Digital Commons Network^™

The Rise And Fall Of The Louisiana Muskrat, 1890-1960: An Environmental And Social History, Jared Boscareno

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

As the nineteenth century drew to a close, people living in coastal Louisiana noticed that local rodents called muskrats were rapidly increasing and quickly becoming pests by digging up crops and into levees. Property owners soon demanded their elimination, but to the ire of many, Louisiana officials chose to develop a market for muskrat fur and protect its supply through management laws. The state sought the cooperation of trappers in order to maintain global demand, but when nutria were released alongside the muskrat, the ecological balance of the marsh was permanently altered. Muskrats shrank back into obscurity, and trappers struggled …

Physics And Astronomy Collection Development Policy, Virginia A. Baldwin

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries: Collection Development Policies

The Department of Physics and Astronomy offers the B.A. and B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees. The department offers a Physics degree with an astronomy option and Physics faculty will continue to teach Astronomy classes. The graduate program in Astronomy is being phased out and there is currently no Physics Education program. The Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln offers graduate education leading to the degrees of Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in Physics. The Department has a flexible program of graduate study to accommodate students with a wide variety of goals and backgrounds.

Philosophy Collection Development Policy, Kathleen Johnson

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries: Collection Development Policies

The philosophy collection supports the teaching, research, and service activities of the entire university community. Its primary audience is the faculty and students of the Department of Philosophy in the College of Arts & Sciences. Its primary focus is support for the undergraduate and graduate curricula for philosophy. Research needs of faculty and students are supplemented through Interlibrary Loan. Although the collection also benefits other citizens of the state of Nebraska, materials are not purchased with them in mind. While the collection focuses on works classified in Library of Congress call numbers B, BC-BD, BH, and BJ, research support is …

Exploring Red-Tailed Hawk Migration Using Stable Isotope Analysis And Dna Sexing Techniques, Kara Clare Donohue

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Understanding the movements of migratory birds and connecting the different stages of their annual cycle is necessary for the conservation and management of migratory bird species. Stable isotope technology has the potential to shed light on the movements of migratory species and to help us better understand their population dynamics. Several studies use stable hydrogen isotopes in particular to predict origins of birds sampled during migration or in winter. However, recent work on stable hydrogen isotopes in feathers (δD_f) draws into question the utility of this technology in estimating origins of migrants. My objective was to determine whether …

Heterologous Expression Studies Of Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Reveal Two Distinct Trypanosomatid Caax Protease Activities And Identify Their Potential Targets, David Z. Mokry, Surya P. Manandhar, Kristen A. Chicola, George M. Santangelo, Walter K. Schmidt

Faculty Publications

The CaaX tetrapeptide motif typically directs three sequential posttranslational modifications, namely, isoprenylation, proteolysis, and carboxyl methylation. In all eukaryotic systems evaluated to date, two CaaX proteases (Rce1 and Ste24/Afc1) have been identified. Although the Trypanosoma brucei genome also encodes two putative CaaX proteases, the lack of detectable T. brucei Ste24 activity in trypanosome cell extracts has suggested that CaaX proteolytic activity within this organism is solely attributed to T. brucei Rce1 (J. R. Gillespie et al., Mol. Biochem. Parasitol. 153: 115-124. 2007). In this study, we demonstrate that both T. brucei Rce1 and T. brucei Ste24 are enzymatically active when …

Discovery And Validation Of New Regulatory Rna Elements In Chlamydia Trachomatis, Yasser Mohammed Elsayed Metwally Abdelrahman

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Chlamydia trachomatis is an obligate intracellular bacterium that exhibits a unique biphasic developmental cycle that can be disrupted by growth in the presence of IFN-g and b-lactams, giving rise to an abnormal growth state termed persistence. Relatively little is known about the regulatory mechanisms that control temporal gene expression during the developmental cycle or the control of persistence and reactivation. Here we have examined the expression of a newly defined family of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) that are differentially expressed during the developmental cycle and the induction of persistence and reactivation (Using IFNγ and Carbenicillin). Non-coding RNAs were initially identified using …

Application Of Different Bioanalytical Workflows For Proteomics Of Prostate Cancer, Li Chen

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

In the current dissertation, we focused on the development and application of multiple mass spectrometry-based bioanalytical platforms for phosphoproteomic characterization in cell culture and clinical specimens of prostate cancer; and on the application of optimized methods to analysis of differential protein expression to reveal molecular mechanism of drug action in animal model of prostate cancer.

Characterization of the phosphoproteome in prostate cancer

Our study in phosphoprotein signatures on a large scale in prostate cancer focused on the LNCaP human prostate cancer cell line, and on human prostate cancer tissue.

For the LNCaP prostate cancer cell line, we applied a combination …

Development Of A Fluorescent Probe For Determination Of Water Transport In Subcellular Organelles, Adriana Chaurra-Arboleda

All Dissertations

Water transport has been widely studied in a variety of cells and isolated membranes. However, the intrinsic complexity related with the study of intracellular processes has delayed the development of an analytical technique for the study of water transport in subcellular compartments of living cells. This study represents the development and application of a ratiometric fluorescent probe to study water transport in endocytic organelles of intact living cells. The probe is based on the use of a D₂O-sensitive fluorophore, Lucifer yellow dextran (LY-dex), together with a D₂O-insensitive fluorophore, Alexa fluor 546 dextran (AF546-dex), used as an …

Characterization And Functional Regulation Of Bioactive Peptides In Avian Macrophages And Heterophils, Lakshmi Kannan

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Oligopeptides and low molecular weight polypeptides play central roles as effectors and signal transducers acting as hormones, neurotransmitters, growth factors, toxins, and antimicrobial factors that are important for the survival of the organism. Owing to the ubiquitous involvement of peptides in many key regulatory processes, we have been interested to identify native peptides in different cells and tissues and understand their functions. To conduct our studies, we used avian macrophages and heterophils as models of specialized cells which constitute central components of innate immunity. These studies involved (a) qualitative identification and characterization of the peptides associated with high intensity mass …

Detailed Analysis Of A Contiguous 22-Mb Region Of The Maize Genome., Fusheng Wei, Joshua C. Stein, Chengzhi Liang, Jianwei Zhang, Robert S. Fulton, Regina S. Baucom, Emanuele De Paoli, Shiguo Zhou, Lixing Yang, Yujun Han, Shiran Pasternak, Apurva Narechania, Lifang Zhang, Cheng-Ting Yeh, Kai Ying, Dawn H. Nagel, Kristi Collura, David Kudrna, Jennifer Currie, Jinke Lin, Hyeran Kim, Angelina Angelova, Gabriel Scara, Marina Wissotski, Wolfgang Golser, Laura Courtney, Scott Kruchowski, Tina A. Graves, Susan M. Rock, Stephanie Adams, Lucinda A. Fulton, Catrina Fronick, William Courtney, Melissa Kramer, Lori Spiegel, Lydia Nascimento, Ananth Kalyanaraman, Cristian Chaparro, Jean-Marc Deragon, Phillip Sanmiguel, Ning Jiang, Susan R. Wessler, Pamela J. Green, Yeisoo Yu, David C. Schwartz, Blake C. Meyers, Jeffrey L. Bennetzen, Robert A. Martienssen, W. Richard Mccombie, Srinivas Aluru, Sandra W. Clifton, Patrick S. Schnable, Doreen Ware, Richard K. Wilson, Rod A. Wing

Department of Horticulture & Landscape Architecture Faculty Publications

Most of our understanding of plant genome structure and evolution has come from the careful annotation of small (e.g., 100 kb) sequenced genomic regions or from automated annotation of complete genome sequences. Here, we sequenced and carefully annotated a contiguous 22 Mb region of maize chromosome 4 using an improved pseudomolecule for annotation. The sequence segment was comprehensively ordered, oriented, and confirmed using the maize optical map. Nearly 84% of the sequence is composed of transposable elements (TEs) that are mostly nested within each other, of which most families are low-copy. We identified 544 gene models using multiple levels of …

Non-Calanoid Copepods At The Bermuda Atlantic Time-Series Study (Bats) Station: Community Structure And Ecology, 1995-1999, Hussain Ali Al-Mutairi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Zooplankton were sampled on a monthly basis at the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study (BATS) site from January 1995 to December 1999. Samples were collected using a 1-m², 200 µm mesh net. The net sampled the water column in an oblique manner from the surface to a mean depth of 200 m. One day and one night tow from each cruise was examined microscopically to determine the community structure of the non-calanoid copepods. In addition, a three year set of nighttime samples were examined taken by 0.5-m², 20 and 35 µm mesh nets (1995-1996 and 1997, respectively) towed obliquely to 150 …

Genome 10k: A Proposal To Obtain Whole-Genome Sequence For 10000 Vertebrate Species, David Haussler, Stephen J. O'Brien, Oliver A. Ryder, F. Keith Barker, Michele Clamp, Andrew J. Crawford, Robert Hanner, Olivier Hanotte, Warren E. Johnson, Jimmy A. Mcguire, Webb Miller, Robert W. Murphy, William J. Murphy, Frederick H. Sheldon, Barry Sinervo, Byrappa Venkatesh, Edward O. Wiley, Fred W. Allendorf, George Amato, C. Scott Baker, Aaron Bauer, Albano Beja-Pereira, Eldredge Bermingham, Giacomo Bernardi, Cibele R. Bonvicino, Sydney Brenner, Terry Burke, Joel Cracraft, Mark Diekhans

Biology Faculty Articles

The human genome project has been recently complemented by whole-genome assessment sequence of 32 mammals and 24 nonmammalian vertebrate species suitable for comparative genomic analyses. Here we anticipate a precipitous drop in costs and increase in sequencing efficiency, with concomitant development of improved annotation technology and, therefore, propose to create a collection of tissue and DNA specimens for 10000 vertebrate species specifically designated for whole-genome sequencing in the very near future. For this purpose, we, the Genome 10K Community of Scientists (G10KCOS), will assemble and allocate a biospecimen collection of some 16203 representative vertebrate species spanning evolutionary diversity across living …

Agronomy & Horticulture Collection Development Policy, Elaine Maytag Nowick

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries: Collection Development Policies

The Agronomy & Horticulture Collection supports the RESEARCH, graduate, and undergraduate education mission of the department. It also provides information resources for related groups in the university such as Cooperative Extension, RESEARCH & Extension Centers, the Statewide Arboretum, and the Water Center. The Department is also supported by materials in other subject areas such as Plant Pathology, Biology, Biochemistry, Microbiology, and Statistics.

Genome 10k: A Proposal To Obtain Whole-Genome Sequence For 10 000 Vertebrate Species, Tony Gamble, Genome 10k Community Of Scientists

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

The human genome project has been recently complemented by whole-genome assessment sequence of 32 mammals and 24 nonmammalian vertebrate species suitable for comparative genomic analyses. Here we anticipate a precipitous drop in costs and increase in sequencing efficiency, with concomitant development of improved annotation technology and, therefore, propose to create a collection of tissue and DNA specimens for 10 000 vertebrate species specifically designated for whole-genome sequencing in the very near future. For this purpose, we, the Genome 10K Community of Scientists (G₁₀KCOS), will assemble and allocate a biospecimen collection of some 16 203 representative vertebrate species spanning …

Monitoring Early Season Mosquito And Bird Populations: Implications For West Nile Virus In Lancaster County, Nebraska, Jason Thiele, Trevor Hefley, Lindsay Beck-Johnson, Emily Matthews

RURALS: Review of Undergraduate Research in Agricultural and Life Sciences

West Nile virus (WNV) surveillance efforts in Nebraska focus on the late summer and early fall months. We studied mosquito and bird populations in Lancaster County, Nebraska to evaluate the potential for WNV transmission in the late spring and early summer, prior to occurrences of human WNV infections. Culex tarsalis is the most important vector of WNV in Nebraska and was the focal species for the study. Mosquitoes were trapped at six locations representing three habitat types from May 14 to July 11, 2007. The C. tarsalis population, as estimated by the number of individuals caught in the traps each …

Enhancing Ais To Improve Whale-Ship Collision Avoidance And Maritime Security, Philip A. Mcgillivary, Kurt Schwehr, Kevin Fall

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

Whale-ship strikes are of growing worldwide concern due to the steady growth of commercial shipping. Improving the current situation involves the creation of a communication capability allowing whale position information to be estimated and exchanged among vessels and other observation assets. An early example of such a system has been implemented for the shipping lane approaches to the harbor of Boston, Massachusetts where ship traffic transits areas of the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary frequently used by whales. It uses the Automated Identification Systems (AIS) technology, currently required for larger vessels but becoming more common in all classes of vessels. …

Plasmonic Enhancement Of Forster Energy Transfer Between Two Molecules In The Vicinity Of A Metallic Nanoparticle: Nonlocal Optical Effects, P.T. Leung, H. Y. Xie, H. Y. Chung, D. P. Tsai

Physics Faculty Publications and Presentations

The problem of Forster resonance energy transfer (FRET) between two molecules in the vicinity of a metallic nanoparticle such as a nanoshell is studied within a phenomenological model which takes into account the nonlocal optical response of the metal. This model allows for arbitrary locations and orientations of the two molecular dipoles with respect to the metal particle which can be of ultrasmall sizes (nm) and for which nonlocal effects are of high significance. In particular, for the nanoshell case, the molecules can be located both outside, both inside, or one inside and one outside the shell. Also, the case …

Wound Healing Ethnomedicinal Plants Popular Among The Malayali Tribes In Vattal Hills, Dharmapuri, Tn, India, S. Ramya, N. Alaguchamy, V. M. Maruthappan, R. Sivaperumal, M. Sivalingam, A. Krishnan, V. Govindaraji, K. Kannan, R. Jayakumararaj

Ethnobotanical Leaflets

Healing of chronic lower extremity wounds is a global problem, especially in developing countries where traditional medicine is often used by the people in remote places. India has a rich tradition of plant based knowledge pertinent to healthcare. A survey of ethnomedicinal plant species used by Malayali’s to heal cut/ wounds in Vattal Hills of Dharmapuri was made. A large number of plants/ extracts/ decoctions/ pastes are used by tribals to heal wounds, cuts and burns. In the present study, an attempt has been made to document ethnobotanical knowledge base and methods employed by Malayali’s for treatment of cut/ wounds. …

The Early Development Of Gender Differences, Matthew H. Mcintyre, Carolyn P. Edwards

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

This article reviews findings from anthropology, psychology, and other disciplines about the role of biological factors in the development of sex differences in human behavior, including biological theories, the developmental course of sex differences, and the interaction of biological and cultural gendering processes at different ages. Current evidence suggests that major biological influences on individual differences in human gender, to the extent that they exist, operate primarily in early development, during and especially prior to puberty. Biological effects are likely to be mediated by relatively simple processes, like temperament, which are then elaborated through social interactions (as with mother and …

Washington University Record, September 24, 2009

Washington University Record

No abstract provided.

Inhibition Of The Calcium Plateau Following In Vitro Status Epilepticus Prevents The Development Of Spontaneous Recurrent Epileptiform Discharges, Nisha Nagarkatti

Theses and Dissertations

Status epilepticus (SE) is a major clinical emergency resulting in continuous seizure activity that can cause brain injury and many molecular and pathophysiologic changes leading to neuronal plasticity. The neuronal plasticity following SE-induced brain injury can initiate epileptogenesis and lead to the ultimate expression of acquired epilepsy (AE), characterized clinically by spontaneous, recurrent seizures. Epileptogenesis is the process wherein healthy brain tissue is transformed into hyperexcitable neuronal networks that produce AE. Understanding these alterations induced by brain injury is an important clinical challenge and can lend insight into possible new therapeutic targets to halt the development of AE. Currently there …

Washington University Record, September 17, 2009

Washington University Record

No abstract provided.

Spartan Daily September 15, 2009, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily (School of Journalism and Mass Communications)

Volume 133, Issue 10

Deterioration Of Carbonate Rocks Used For Archeological Monuments In Tauric Chersonesos (Crimea), Alexander V. Mosyagin, Irina V. Knauf, Marina S. Zelenskaya

Studia UBB Geologia

The paper presents the mineralogy and petrography of the Proconesian marble and Chersonesian limestone, used as building materials from Antiquity to the medieval times in the Tauric Chersonesos, Crimea. The deterioration process, due to the modern time’s pollution and the climatic factors, is represented by forming of mainly gypsum-rich patina. The ubiquitous presence of micromycetes favors the stone decay.

Faculty Newsnotes 2009 No. 411, Office Of The Provost

Faculty Newsnotes (1972-2010)

No abstract provided.

Giving Hope Through Research: A Search For Novel Treatments For Parkinson's Disease, Depression And Drug Abuse, Julie O'Connor

New Science

Parkinson’s disease affects approximately one percent of people older than 65 years of age. Nearly one million people in the United States have been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, a chronic and progressively debilitating disorder. This motor system disorder which causes trembling in hands, arms, legs, jaw and face; stiffness of the limbs and trunk; slowness of movement; and impaired balance and coordination, is the result of the loss of dopamine-producing brain cells. While there is great hope in Parkinson’s disease research, there is no cure. A variety of medications provide relief from the symptoms, including levodopa, also known as L-dopa, …

Time's Arrow Flies Like A Bird: Two Paradoxes For Avian Circadian Biology, Vincent M. Cassone, Jiffin K. Paulose, Melissa G. Whitfield-Rucker, Jennifer L. Peters

Biology Faculty Publications

Biological timekeeping in birds is a fundamental feature of avian physiology, behavior and ecology. The physiological basis for avian circadian rhythmicity has pointed to a multi-oscillator system of mutually coupled pacemakers in the pineal gland, eyes and hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN). In passerines, the role of the pineal gland and its hormone melatonin is particularly important. More recent molecular biological studies have pointed to a highly conserved mechanism involving rhythmic transcription and translation of "clock genes". However, studies attempting to reconcile the physiological role of pineal melatonin with molecular studies have largely failed. Recent work in our laboratory has suggested …

New Science Volume 17, Division Of Research

New Science

Full issue of Volume 17 of New Science

Inventing New Cars: Analysis Of Chimeric Antigen Receptor Gene-Targeted T Cells Modified To Overcome Regulatory T Cell Suppression In The Tumor Microenvironment, James Lee

Yale Medicine Thesis Digital Library

Human T cells may be genetically modified to express targeted chimeric antigen receptors (CARs). We have previously demonstrated that T cells modified to express a CAR specific to the B cell tumor antigen CD19, termed 19-28z, successfully eradicate systemic human CD19+ tumors in SCID-Beige mice. While these results are encouraging, this xenogeneic tumor model fails to address potential limitations of this therapeutic approach in the clinical setting wherein these modified T cells encounter a hostile tumor microenvironment. Specifically, these models fail to address potential effector T cell inhibition mediated by endogenous regulatory T cells (Tregs). To investigate the role of …

Reversed-Phase Hplc Determination Of Alliin In Diverse Varieties Of Fresh Garlic And Commercial Garlic Products., Aaron Kwaku Apawu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Alliin is a predominant flavor precursor in garlic cloves. It interacts with the enzyme alliinase when garlic cloves are crushed, cut, or chewed to produce allicin, an unstable thiosulfinate that is the main biologically active component of fresh crushed garlic. Biological functions and health benefits of garlic include reduction of cancer risk in humans, improving immune system, and anti-microbial, anti-oxidant, and anti-hypertensive activities. The quality of fresh garlic and garlic products is usually related to its alliin content and allicin release potential. This research presents a simple, rapid, and precise HPLC method for alliin determination. It involves the use of …