Digital Commons Network^™

Wildlife Habitat Quality In Southern Mississippi 8 Years After Intensive Pine Plantation Establishment, Tamara Nicole Campbell

Theses and Dissertations

I evaluated effects of 5 pine plantation establishment regimes 6 – 8 years postestablishment on loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) growth, vegetation characteristics, nutritional carrying capacity for white-tailed deer, and breeding birds in the Lower Coastal Plain of Mississippi. Treatments combined mechanical site preparation (MSP), chemical site preparation (CSP), and herbaceous weed control (HWC) designed to represent a range of operational intensities. Chemical SP provided greater long-term control of woody competition than MSP, but did not provide significant pine growth advantage. Vegetation richness, diversity, and structure were best maintained with MSP and year 1 banded HWC. Canopy cover appears to be …

Genomic Instability May Be A Signal Of Human Embryonic Stem Cell Differentiation, Clara Ines Esteban-Perez

Theses and Dissertations

Embryonic stem (ES) cells have the ability to maintain pluripotency and self-renewal during in vitro maintenance, which is a key to their clinical applications. ES cells are a model in developmental biology studies due to their potential to differentiate in vitro. Understanding critical pathways of pluripotency, self-renewal, and differentiation during early embryonic development is important for the evaluation of the therapeutic potential of ES cells because of their ability for tumor transformation due to genetic and epigenetic instability acquired during in vitro culture maintenance. Single tandem repeats are sequences of DNA that have been implicated in the deregulation of gene …

Machine Learning And Mapping Algorithms Applied To Proteomics Problems, William Shane Sanders

Theses and Dissertations

Proteins provide evidence that a given gene is expressed, and machine learning algorithms can be applied to various proteomics problems in order to gain information about the underlying biology. This dissertation applies machine learning algorithms to proteomics data in order to predict whether or not a given peptide is observable by mass spectrometry, whether a given peptide can serve as a cell penetrating peptide, and then utilizes the peptides observed through mass spectrometry to aid in the structural annotation of the chicken genome. Peptides observed by mass spectrometry are used to identify proteins, and being able to accurately predict which …

Responses Of Butterfly And Forb Communities To Management Of Semi-Natural Grassland Buffers, Jolie Goldenetz Dollar

Theses and Dissertations

Conversion of natural grasslands for agricultural uses and intensification of agricultural production has been a major cause of natural ecosystem fragmentation and biodiversity loss. Diversifying agricultural landscapes by adding semi-natural grasslands can potentially help couple agricultural production (i.e., providing food, fiber, and energy to a growing human population) with environmental stewardship, enhancing ecosystem health, and increasing biodiversity. To ensure long-term ecological benefits of buffers and to maintain them as suitable habitat for prairie-associated species, periodic disturbance is required to keep buffers in an early-successional grassland plant community. In this dissertation, I fill knowledge gaps about biodiversity of semi-natural grassland buffers …

Evaluation Of L-Carnitine In Ovo Injection Followed By L-Carnitine Feed Supplementation On Broiler Hatching And Growing Characteristics, Michael Ray Dooley

Theses and Dissertations

Ross × Ross 708 eggs were injected with commercial diluent containing supplemental L-carnitine at 8, 16, or 32 mg/100 μL concentrations using an automated multi-egg injector. After hatching, 1,080 male and female broiler chicks were distributed into 90 pens with chicks at each of the injected concentrations receiving feed that was or was not supplemented with 50 ppm of L-carnitine. Treatments did not affect incubation time or hatchability of fertilized eggs. Birds fed supplemental L-carnitine and injected in ovo with L-carnitine had lower body weight and ate less feed. The same birds exhibited a reduction in feed conversion compared to …

A Proteomic Approach To Profiling The Pipping Muscle Of The Broiler Embryo, Adebayo Oluwaseun Sokale

Theses and Dissertations

The Musculus complexus (pipping muscle) plays a primary role in the hatching of the chick from the eggshell at the end of its embryonic life. Various metabolic and cellular changes have been associated with the pipping muscle during development. These studies profiled the pipping muscle at the molecular level by identifying proteins which are associated with the developmental changes. In the first phase of the study, protein expression profile of the Day 13 chicken embryo pipping muscle was obtained using DDF with nano HPLC mass spectrometric analyzer. Identified proteins were categorized based on Gene Ontology. In the second phase, pipping …

Agricultural Conservation Buffers For Breeding Grassland Birds In Eastern Mississippi, Heidi Lynn Adams

Theses and Dissertations

Periodic disturbance in CP33 habitat buffers is required to maintain early-successional plant communities for grassland birds. However, effects of disturbance on habitat suitability and nesting success of grassland birds are unknown. Furthermore, the grassland bird community and reproductive performance in CP33 habitat buffers may be influenced by the landscape context (e.g., edge habitat, surrounding land cover). My objectives for this study were to determine how periodic disturbance and the agricultural landscape mosaic influence the breeding grassland bird community in buffers, and how these same factors influence grassland bird nesting success and density in buffers. Data collected during line-transect surveys conducted …

Antibiotics Induce Prostagladin E2 Production And Cytotoxicity In Equine Chondrocytes That Can Be Inhibited By Avocado Soybean Unsaponifiables, Glucosamine, And Chondroitin Sulfate, Cathleen Ann Mochal-King

Theses and Dissertations

Amikacin (AK) and enrofloxacin (EF) concentrations consistent with intra-articular and regional limb perfusion were evaluated for their effects on equine chondrocytes. We evaluated the production of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) by equine chondrocytes in response to AK and EF administration,and if the combination of avocado soybean unsaponifiables (ASU), glucosamine (GLU), and chondroitin sulfate (CS) could reduce the production of PGE2. Monolayer cell cultures of equine chondrocytes were treated with clinically relevant concentrations of AK and EF plus combinations of ASU, GLU, and CS.AK and EF generated a dose dependent cytotoxicity. The induction of PGE2 following EF administration was significantly greater than …

Systems Biology Modeling Of Bovine Fertility Using Proteomics, Divya Swetha Peddinti

Theses and Dissertations

Beef and milk production industries represent the largest agricultural industries in the United States with a retail equivalent value of approximately $112 billion (USDA, 2008). Infertility is the major problem for mammalian reproduction. In the United States approximately 66% of cows are bred by Artificial Insemination (AI), but only ~50% of these inseminations result in successful pregnancies. Infertility can occur either from male factor (spermatozoon) or female factor (oocyte) and male contributes approximately 40% of cases. Infertility costs the producer approximately $5 per exposed cow for every 1% reduction in pregnancy rate. In spite of its millions of dollars in …

Influence Of Agronomic Practices In Rice (Oryza Sativa L.) And Soybean (Glycine Max L.) Production In Midsouthern Usa, Kevin Alan Dillon

Theses and Dissertations

Within Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Texas, rice acreage is rotated with soybean due to both crops’ adaptability to the clay soils of the midsouthern USA. Two row patterns, two maturity groups, and six seeding rates were examined at Stoneville, MS, in 2009-2010, with respect to soybean growth and yield produced on silt loam soil. Optimal yield for MG IV was 333,000 seed ha-1 (297,000 plants ha-1). Twin-row soybean increased seed yield 7 to 10% more than single-row due to greater LAI, NDVI, and node and pod production. Rice field experiments quantified N loss via ammonia volatilization and determined grain …

Investigation Of Inield Cubing As A Method Of Densification Of Grass-Based Biomass, John Wesley Lowe

Theses and Dissertations

The objective of this study was to develop a research platform using a John Deere 425 Hay Cuber and to evaluate inield densification of grass-based biomass for energy fuel sources. The hay cuber was repaired, modernized, and instrumented to provide a stable test platform on which to quantify and evaluate operating parameters. Bermudagrass was chosen as a model for cubing energy grasses such as Giant miscanthus and switchgrass. Lignin sulfonate binder was added to windrowed bermudagrass at 27.6 kg/tonne (50 lbs/ton) to increase the lignin content to that of energy grasses. The material output from the cuber was collected and …

Nestling Provisioning Of Dickcissels In Native Warm-Season Grass Field Buffers, Kristina Lynne Baker

Theses and Dissertations

Grassland birds must have accessible, nutritional prey for nestlings which Conservation Reserve Program practices like CP33—Habitat Buffers for Upland Birds may provide. In 2008—2009, I monitored dickcissel nests in and around CP33 buffers at a farm in north-central Mississippi using video cameras to capture provisioning activities. I simultaneously observed foraging flights and measured distances traveled from nests. Orthopterans were the most commonly chosen prey, and dickcissels brought larger prey items when chicks were older. But, other changes in provisioning were not significantly related to nest age as I hypothesized. Also contrary to my initial hypotheses, provisioning at nests within buffers …

Predicting The Potential Distributions Of Major Invasive Species Using Geospatial Models In Southern Forest Lands, Yuan Tan

Theses and Dissertations

Former researches provide evidence that invasive species could alter ecosystem’s components, threaten native species and cause economic losses in southern forest lands. The objective of the project is to explore significant driving factors and develop geospatial models for monitoring, predicting and mapping the extent and conditions of major invasive species. In the study area, 16 invasive species were classified into four groups: regionally spreading species, regionally establishing species, locally spreading species and regionally colonizing species by population size and spatial characteristics. According to local Moran’s I, spatial autocorrelation existed in 16 invasive species. Autologistic model and simultaneous autoregressive model were …

Role Of Reactive Oxygen Species In Glioblastoma Multiforme Microsatellite Instability, Kortney Lynnette Wilkinson-Busha

Theses and Dissertations

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is an extremely aggressive and almost always fatal brain tumor. GBM literature indicates defective mismatch repair (MMR) mechanisms are not involved in GBM tumorigenesis as in other tumors, and instigating mechanisms of GBM tumorigenesis remain unclear. GBM and neural progenitor (NPR) cells were exposed to three concentrations of H2O2 (0, 0.5, and 1.0 μM), cultured, and then harvested 0, 2, 4, and 6 days post-exposure; DNA from cells was amplified with microsatellite primers, investigating whether or not H2O2 exposure affected microsatellite instability (MSI) in target sequences. Three out of six markers showed significant MSI in the H2O2-exposed …

Air Temperature And Winter Mortality: Implications For The Persistence Of The Invasive Mussel, Perna Viridis In The Intertidal Zone Of The South-Eastern United States, Lb Firth, Am Knights, S Bell

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

Global climate change and invasive species represent two of the biggest threats to the environment. Biological communities are responding to global climate change through poleward shifts in distribution, and changes in abundance and phenology of both native and non-native species. An increase in the frequency and magnitude of extreme weather events is predicted with global climate change. Much is known about mortality events of marine organisms in relation to warm thermal stress with relatively little known about cold thermal stress, particularly in the tropics. Intertidal species are particularly susceptible to fluctuations in aerial conditions and many are considered indicators of …

Students Have Their Own Minds. A Response To “Beyond The Catch-22 Of School-Based Social Action Programs: Toward A More Pragmatic Approach For Dealing With Power”, Matthew Goldwasser

Democracy & Education

In response to the authors’ work on finding a more pragmatic approach to dealing with power, this commentary calls into question the possibility of a preestablished agenda by the researchers, who struggled to engage high school students. There might have been a case of overly ambitious expectations at work; also, the authors confess to being in the school only once a week and that their students were themselves struggling to find their place in a new charter school with an emphasis on social action. This response challenges the authors to reexamine their wish to engage students with institutional power by …

Buscando La Libertad: Latino Youths In Search Of Freedom In School, Jason Irizarry

Democracy & Education

Drawing from a two-year ethnographic study of Latino high school students engaged in youth participatory action research (YPAR), this article describes students’ quest for freedom in schools, locating their struggle within a larger effort to realize the democratic ideals of public schooling. Using Latino/a Critical Race Theory as a theoretical lens, the author demonstrates how popular discourse around the “achievement gap” often obscures the oppressive policies and practices implemented by educators that limit freedoms necessary for educational and personal development and profoundly influence the identities and life trajectories of Latino youth. The article concludes with an exploration of YPAR as …

The Development Of A Systematic Coding System For Elementary Students’ Drawings Of Engineers, Nicole Weber, Daphne Duncan, Melissa Dyehouse, Johannes Strobel, Heidi A. Diefes-Dux

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

The Draw an Engineer Test (DAET) is a common measure of students’ perceptions of engineers. The coding systems currently used for K-12 research are general rubrics or checklists to capture the images presented in the drawing, which leave out some of the richness of students’ perceptions, currently only captured with an accompanying student interview. The purpose of this study is to build a reliable coding system, which first establishes an inventory of pictorial elements irrespective of their potential relationship with engineering and second captures aspects of students’ engineering perceptions inductively (from the ground up) while at the same time incorporating …

Middle-And High-School Students’ Interest In Nanoscale Science And Engineering Topics And Phenomena, Kelly Hutchinson, George M. Bodner, Lynn Bryan

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

Research has shown that an increase in students’ interest in science and engineering can have a positive effect on their achievement (Baird, 1986; Eccles & Wigfield, 2002; French, Immekus & Oakes, 2005; Schiefele, Krapp, & Winteler, 1992; Schwartz Bloom & Haplin, 2003; Weinburgh, 1995). Whereas many NSF-funded programs in materials science and nanotechnology have included efforts to develop curriculum materials for use in secondary or tertiary classrooms, relatively little work has been done to determine the topics that increase students’ interest in science, engineering, and technology. As part of the work done by the National Center for Learning and Teaching …

Knowledge Integration And Wise Engineering, Jennifer L. Chiu, M. C. Linn

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

Recent efforts in engineering education focus on introducing engineering into secondary math and science courses to improve science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education (NAS, 2010). Infusing engineering into secondary classrooms can increase awareness of and interest in STEM careers, help students see the relevance of science and math in their everyday lives, and increase STEM literacy. This paper describes how the knowledge integration framework provides research-based guidelines to help secondary students develop and connect science and engineering concepts. Results from technology enhanced curriculum units demonstrate how instruction based on knowledge integration principles and patterns using the Web based Inquiry …

Engineering An Optimal Bioartificial Pancreas For Islet Transplantation Using Bioactive Scaffolds, Eileen Pedraza

Open Access Dissertations

Clinical islet transplantation is a promising treatment for type 1 diabetes. It involves the transplantation of pancreatic islets, isolated from a donor, into the portal vein of a recipient in order to replace his/her dysfunctional islets. Though promising, islet implantation into the liver is greatly hindered by numerous problems, including mechanical stresses, inflammatory responses, exposure to high drug and toxin loads, as well as irretrievability. In order to address these concerns, investigation into alternative implant sites, such as the subcutaneous site, has intensified. Transplantation of islets within these extrahepatic sites is commonly met with three primary obstacles: 1) inadequate spatial …

A Mechanistic Investigation Of Anesthesia-Induced Spatial Learning Deficits In Aged Rats, Lana Jones Mawhinney

Open Access Dissertations

Anesthesia-induced spatial learning impairments in aged rats model postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) in the elderly surgical population. Mechanisms underlying both normal age-related cognitive decline and anesthesia-induced spatial learning deficits in aged rats were investigated. With respect to the involvement of inflammasome activation and age-related cognitive decline, I hypothesized that the aged hippocampus exhibits an elevated activation of inflammasome components contributing to elevated levels of IL-1β in the aged brain. Age-related cognitive decline was identified in a subpopulation of male Fischer 344 rats. Activation of the NLRP1 inflammasome was elevated in the aged brain, contributing to spatial learning deficits in aged …

Agronomy & Horticulture Newsletter, April 29, 2011, Kathy Schindler

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Monthly Newsletters

Information From Our Happi Business Center:……….1

Please Welcome Our Newest Employee:……….1

Congratulations! :……….2

Spring 2011 Seminar Schedule For Agronomy & Horticulture:……….2

Mark Your Calendars:……….2

Spring Semester Open Office Hours For Faculty, Staff, Or Students To Visit With Mark Lagrimini:……….2

2011 Walking Tours Of The Maxwell Arboretum:……….2

Annual Teaching Retreat:……….2

Tentative Plans For Flame Weeding Workshop On August 22 At The Haskell Ag Lab, Concord, Ne:……….3

For Your Information:……….4

Funding Announcements:……….4

V. 78, Issue 34, April 29, 2011

Archway (1946-2020)

No abstract provided.

Reporter - April 29th 2011, Rit Reporter Staff

University Publications

No abstract provided.

Mississippi State University - All Campuses - Enrollment Fall 2006-Fall 2008 By College And Department, Office Of Institutional Research And Effectiveness, Mississippi State University

Enrollment Data

No abstract provided.

Designing And Delivering A Teacher Center Course: “Creativity And Content: Partners In The Classroom”, Jenna L. Ziegler

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

This paper outlines the methods used to design and implement a course on creativity as it can be applied in the school classroom.  It outlines specific steps taken and topics covered during a nine hour creativity course taught through the Teacher Center of an area school district.  In addition to a detailed outline of course content, results and reflections are also included to guide the reader through successful course implementation.  Thorough appendices include all course documents and handouts necessary to effectively implement this course.

The Utah Statesman, April 29, 2011, Utah State University

The Utah Statesman

Weekly student newspaper of Utah State University in Logan.

Transplantation Of Adult Mouse Ips Cell-Derived Photoreceptor Precursors Restores Retinal Structure And Function In Degenerative Mice, Budd A. Tucker, In-Hyun Park, Sara D. Qi, Henry J. Klassen, Caihui Jiang, Jing Yao, Stephen Redenti, George Q. Daley, Michael J. Young

Publications and Research

This study was designed to determine whether adult mouse induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), could be used to produce retinal precursors and subsequently photoreceptor cells for retinal transplantation to restore retinal function in degenerative hosts. iPSCs were generated using adult dsRed mouse dermal fibroblasts via retroviral induction of the transcription factors Oct4, Sox2, KLF4 and c-Myc. As with normal mouse ES cells, adult dsRed iPSCs expressed the pluripotency genes SSEA1, Oct4, Sox2, KLF4, c-Myc and Nanog. Following transplantation into the eye of immunecompromised retinal degenerative mice these cells proceeded to form teratomas containing tissue comprising all three germ layers. At …

Nudibranch Predators Of Octocorallia, Eric Brown

HCNSO Student Capstones

Nudibranchs are soft-bodied marine heterobranch gastropod molluscs which lack a shell and mantle cavity. The basic body plan is bilaterally symmetrical with an expanded notum, but in regards to other physical characteristics they exhibit a wide range of forms. Compared to other molluscs, evolutionarily the head and body became flattened and streamlined and tentacles have been lost or shifted to different areas of the body. Nudibranchs are found in many variations of size and color; despite the fact that these animals in general are noted for flamboyant colors and prominent external anatomical structures, many species rely upon a more cryptic …