Digital Commons Network^™

Partridge Berry: Simple Beauty Belies Complexity, W. John Hayden

Biology Faculty Publications

Superficially, plants seem so simple. Rooted in place, they do not move around. And while plant growth is a dynamic process, without time-lapse photography, growth events are so imperceptibly slow that, to us impatient humans, plants seem both immobile and static. Nevertheless, there is a lot going on inside the plant body, and this is especially true for the events of reproduction that play out inside flowers and fruits. As one of my students recently commented, “I used to think it was just a matter of pollen plus stigma and, presto-change-o, seeds happen.” That student, I hope, learned otherwise, as …

The Impact Of Nucleoside Sugar Modification On Biochemical Dna Transactions, Adides Williams

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Discrimination by DNA polymerases controls the fidelity of DNA replication, and reduced fidelity results in mutations essential in the etiology of cancer. Polymerase discrimination operates at both dNTP insertion and subsequent elongation steps, and involves several energetic and structural factors that are as yet incompletely understood. While base pairing interactions have been studied extensively, substantially less is known about the role of sugar structure and conformation for polymerase incorporation and extension. In these studies we examined, systematically, the role of sugar structure and conformation on polymerase selection of the dNTP for insertion and polymerase elongation. To accomplish these goals, we …

Effect Of A Single High-Fat Meal And Vitamins On The Circulatory Response To Local Heat In Koreans And Caucasians, Jongeun Yim

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Blood flow mediated by the vascular endothelium plays an important role in removing heat from the skin. Asians who have thrifty genes have impaired endothelial function (EF) due to the westernized high fat (HF) dietary lifestyle. Hypertriglyceridemia (HTG) can produce free radicals which reduces the bioavailability of the endothelium derived relaxing factor, nitric oxide (NO). EF, as measured by the blood flow response (BFR) to heat, occlusion and the free radical concentration after a single HF meal has not been studied in Korean-Asians compared to Caucasians. The purpose of this study was to evaluate baseline and postprandial EF as related …

Curriculum Subcommittee Minutes, March 1, 2012, Utah State University

Educational Policies Committee

Department of Agricultural Systems Technology and Education School of Applied Sciences, Technology and Education

• Prefix Changes

Department of Agricultural Systems Technology Education

• Prerequisite Change

Department of Animal, Diary and Veterinary Sciences School of Veterinary Medicine

• New Course
• Prerequisite Change

Department of Applied Economics

• Delete Course

Department of Plants, Soils and Climate

• Title Change, Course Description Change
• Prerequisite Change

Department of Art and Design

• University Studies Request

Department of Economics and Finance

• New Course
• Title Change, Course Number Change, Prerequisite Change, Multiple List Change
• Prerequisite Change

Department of Management

• New Course

Department of Communicative Disorders and Deaf Education

• Title Change, Prerequisite …

Research, Monitoring, Assessment And Development Plan 2011 – 2012, Department Of Fisheries

Fisheries Occasional Publications

No abstract provided.

Tropical Tree Seedling Growth Responses To Nitrogen, Phosphorus And Potassium Addition, Louis S. Santiago, S. Joseph Wright, Kyle E. Harms, Joseph B. Yavitt, Carmi Korine, Milton N. Garcia, Benjamin L. Turner

Faculty Publications

Nutrients are a critical resource for plant growth, but the elements limiting growth in tropical forests have rarely been determined. We investigated the influence of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K) and micronutrients on seedling biomass and nutrient allocation in a factorial nutrient fertilization experiment in lowland tropical forest at the Barro Colorado Nature Monument, Panama. We also measured 8years of herbivory and growth for 1800 seedlings. We sought to determine the identity of limiting elements and possible nutrient interactions. The five study species were Alseis blackiana, Desmopsis panamensis, Heisteria concinna, Sorocea affinis and Tetragastris panamensis. Plants grew in deeply …

Evidence That Thaxtomin C Is A Pathogenicity Determinant Of Streptomyces Ipomoeae, The Causative Agent Of Streptomyces Soil Rot Disease Of Sweet Potato, Dongli Guan, Brenda L. Grau, Christopher A. Clark, Carol M. Taylor, Rosemary Loria, Gregg S. Pettis

Faculty Publications

Streptomyces ipomoeae is the causal agent of Streptomyces soil rot of sweet potato, a disease marked by highly necrotic destruction of adventitious roots, including the development of necrotic lesions on the fleshy storage roots. Streptomyces potato scab pathogens produce a phytotoxin (thaxtomin A) that appears to facilitate their entrance into host plants. S. ipomoeae produces a less-modified thaxtomin derivative (thaxtomin C) whose role in pathogenicity has not been examined. Here, we cloned and sequenced the thaxtomin gene cluster (txt) of S. ipomoeae, and we then constructed targeted txt mutants that no longer produced thaxtomin C. The mutants were unable to …

Influence Of Immobilized Biomolecules On Magnetic Bead Plug Formation And Retention In Capillary Electrophoresis, Rachel L. Henken, Rattikan Chantiwas, S. Douglass Gilman

Faculty Publications

Significant changes in the formation and retention of magnetic bead plugs in a capillary during electrophoresis were studied, and it was demonstrated that these effects were due to the type of biological molecule immobilized on the surface of these beads. Three biological molecules, an antibody, an oligonucleotide, and alkaline phosphatase (AP), were attached to otherwise identical streptavidin-coated magnetic beads through biotin-avidin binding in order to isolate differences in bead immobilization in a magnetic field resulting from the type of biological molecule immobilized on the bead surface. AP was also attached to the magnetic beads using epoxy groups on the bead …

Arthropod Community Associated With Tropical Soda Apple And Natural Enemies Of Gratiana Boliviana (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) In Florida, R. Diaz, K. Hibbard, A. Samayoa, W. A. Overholt

Faculty Publications

Arthropods associated with the exotic weed tropical soda apple were collected in Florida. We found that tropical soda apple is a suitable host for several insect pests of agricultural and ornamental plants. Additionally, we report several predators, parasitoids and entomopathogens of Gratiana boliviana, a biological control agent of tropical soda apple.

The Pan American (2012-03-01), Reynaldo Leal, Nadia Tamez-Robledo

UTPA Archives - The Pan American Newspaper

Vol. 68, No. 20

On Growth And Development: Housing Environment Impacts On Children's Development And Its Relevance In Interior Design Solutions, Karyn Mckey-Paz

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The role of housing quality and housing location in children’s development are of great importance, as these issues may affect their outcomes later in life. Housing and neighborhood conditions include but are not limited to housing costs, residential layout, and neighborhood surroundings. These characteristics could determine whether or not the physical condition of the house is healthy and safe, and if the neighborhood in which the house is located is free from danger, all of which have an effect on their development.

This research paper goes into a detailed examination of how the characteristics of children’s home and neighborhood conditions …

Kantian Optimization, Social Ethos, And Pareto Efficiency, John E. Roemer

Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers

Although evidence accrues in biology, anthropology and experimental economics that homo sapiens is a cooperative species, the reigning assumption in economic theory is that individuals optimize in an autarkic manner (as in Nash and Walrasian equilibrium). I here postulate an interdependent kind of optimizing behavior, called Kantian. It is shown that in simple economic models, when there are negative externalities (such as congestion effects from use of a commonly owned resource) or positive externalities (such as a social ethos reflected in individuals’ preferences), Kantian equilibria dominate Nash-Walras equilibria in terms of efficiency. While economists schooled in Nash equilibrium may view …

Will Gene Patents Derail The Next-Generation Of Genetic Technologies?: A Reassessment Of The Evidence Suggests Not, Christopher M. Holman

UMKC Law Review

Judge Bryson recently asserted in Association for Molecular Pathology v. US Patent and Trademark Office (dissenting-in-part) that human gene patents "present a significant obstacle to the next generation of innovation in genetic medicine — multiplex tests and whole-genome sequencing." His concern over the impact of gene patents on genetic testing, which coincides with his position that certain gene patents should be declared patent ineligible, reflects a widely held misperception that 20% of human genes are patented in a manner that would necessarily result in infringement by whole genome sequencing and other forms of genetic testing. In fact, the myth that …

The Bird Of Time: Cognition And The Avian Biological Clock, Vincent M. Cassone, David F. Westneat

Biology Faculty Publications

Avian behavior and physiology are embedded in time at many levels of biological organization. Biological clock function in birds is critical for sleep/wake cycles, but may also regulate the acquisition of place memory, learning of song from tutors, social integration, and time-compensated navigation. This relationship has two major implications. First, mechanisms of the circadian clock should be linked in some way to the mechanisms of all these behaviors. How is not yet clear, and evidence that the central clock has effects is piecemeal. Second, selection acting on characters that are linked to the circadian clock should influence aspects of the …

Vincristine And Bortezomib Cause Axon Outgrowth And Behavioral Defects In Larval Zebrafish, Tahsin M. Khan, Nathan Benaich, Clare F. Malone, Rebecca L. Bernardos, Amy R. Russell, Gerald B. Downes, Michael J. Barresi, Lara D. Hutson

Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Peripheral neuropathy is a common side effect of a number of pharmaceutical compounds, including several chemotherapy drugs. Among these are vincristine sulfate, a mitotic inhibitor used to treat a variety of leukemias, lymphomas, and other cancers, and bortezomib, a 26S proteasome inhibitor used primarily to treat relapsed multiple myeloma and mantle cell lymphoma. To gain insight into the mechanisms by which these compounds act, we tested their effects in zebrafish. Vincristine or bortezomib given during late embryonic development caused significant defects at both behavioral and cellular levels. Intriguingly, the effects of the two drugs appear to be distinct. Vincristine causes …

Kantian Optimization: An Approach To Cooperative Behavior, John E. Roemer

Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers

Although evidence accrues in biology, anthropology and experimental economics that homo sapiens is a cooperative species, the reigning assumption in economic theory is that individuals optimize in an autarkic manner (as in Nash and Walrasian equilibrium). I here postulate a cooperative kind of optimizing behavior, called Kantian. It is shown that in simple economic models, when there are negative externalities (such as congestion effects from use of a commonly owned resource) or positive externalities (such as a social ethos reflected in individuals’ preferences), Kantian equilibria dominate Nash-Walras equilibria in terms of efficiency. While economists schooled in Nash equilibrium may view …

Use Of Airborne Lidar To Delineate Canopy Degradation And Encroachment Along The Guatemala-Belize Border, John F. Weishampel, Jessica N. Hightower, Arlen F. Chase, Diane Z. Chase

Anthropology Faculty Research

No abstract provided.

The Behavioral Ecology Of Estrus Signaling In Humans, Kylie Breuer

Social Sciences

When female primates are the most fertile, they show it by a swelling of the estrus, which is easily visible to other primates. The purpose of this is to demonstrate to male primates when the females are most likely to conceive, and therefore to reveal the best time for copulation. Human females, on the other hand, do not express as obvious of clues as to when they are the most fertile. As of recent, general knowledge has been that female humans have concealed ovulation, but there have been several studies that seem to prove otherwise. My senior project question is: …

The Social Contagion Of Violence; A Theoretical Exploration Of The Nature Of Violence In Society, Kayla Kirkpatrick

Social Sciences

No abstract provided.

The Proteomic Response Of Sea Squirts (Genus Ciona Congeners) To Hyposalinity Stress, James S. Koman

Master's Theses

The ascidian species Ciona savignyi and C. intestinalis are invasive species but show interspecific differences in their population response to hypo-saline stress associated with heavy winter-run off events that are predicted to become more frequent due to climate change. Despite an almost world-wide distribution, C. intestinalis seems to be more susceptible to hypo-saline stress than the geographically more limited C. savignyi. Given that the genomes of both species are fully sequenced, we were able to compare their proteomic response to both acute and chronic salinity to characterize the mechanisms that are responsible for setting tolerance limits to hyposaline conditions …

Tshkt1;2, A Hkt1 Homolog From The Extremophile Arabidopsis Relative Thellungiella Salsuginea, Shows K + Specificity In The Presence Of Nacl, Zahir Ali, Hyeong Cheol Park, Akhtar Ali, Dong Ha Oh, Rashid Aman, Anna Kropornicka, Hyewon Hong, Wonkyun Choi, Woo Sik Chung, Woe Yeon Kim, Ray A. Bressan, Hans J. Bohnert, Sang Yeol Lee, Dae Jin Yun

Faculty Publications

Cellular Na +/K + ratio is a crucial parameter determining plant salinity stress resistance. We tested the function of plasma membrane Na +/K + cotransporters in the High-affinity K + Transporter (HKT) family from the halophytic Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) relative Thellungiella salsuginea. T. salsuginea contains at least two HKT genes. TsHKT1;1 is expressed at very low levels, while the abundant TsHKT1;2 is transcriptionally strongly up-regulated by salt stress. TsHKT-based RNA interference in T. salsuginea resulted in Na + sensitivity and K + deficiency. The athkt1 mutant lines overexpressing TsHKT1;2 proved less sensitive to Na + and showed less K + …

Erratum To: An Adaptive Composite Density Estimator For K-Tree Sampling(Eur J Forest Res, 10.1007/S10342-011-0502-8), Steen Magnussen, Lutz Fehrman, William J. Platt

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

First Report Of A Mermithid Nematode Infecting Piezodorus Guildinii And Acrosternum Hilare (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) In The United States, Katherine L. Kamminga, Jeffrey A. Davis, S. Patricia Stock, Arthur R. Richter

Faculty Publications

A mermithid nematode emerged from stink bugs, Acrosternum hilare and Piezodorus guildinii, collected from Louisiana soybean fields. Photographs of this parasite are presented. An analysis conducted by amplifying 18S rDNA revealed that the nematode belongs to the genus Hexamermis. A BLAST search indicated that the sequence (696 bp) has the closest match to Hexamermis agrotis Wang et al. 18S ribosomal RNA gene. This is the first report of a Hexamermis sp. infecting A. hilare worldwide and a mermithid infecting P. guildinii in the United States.

Impact Of The Red Imported Fire Ant, Solenopsis Invicta (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), On Biological Control Of Salvinia Minima (Hydropteridales: Salviniaceae) By Cyrtobagous Salviniae (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), Katherine A. Parys, Seth J. Johnson

Faculty Publications

A 2-yr study of the impacts of the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren, on the success of Cyrtobagous salviniae Calder & Sands as a biological control agent of common salvinia, Salvinia minima Baker, was undertaken in southern Louisiana. Floating moats were constructed around 8 release sites where C. salviniae was introduced as a biological control agent. These moats were used to restrict access to the release site by red imported fire ants in half the quadrats. Moating was successful in limiting the number of red imported fire ants in the release sites over the course of the study …

Pathogen Persistence In The Environment And Insect-Baculovirus Interactions: Disease-Density Thresholds, Epidemic Burnout, And Insect Outbreaks, Emma Fuller, Bret D. Elderd, Greg Dwyer

Faculty Publications

Classical epidemic theory focuses on directly transmitted pathogens, but many pathogens are instead transmitted when hosts encounter infectious particles. Theory has shown that for such diseases pathogen persistence time in the environment can strongly affect disease dynamics, but estimates of persistence time, and consequently tests of the theory, are extremely rare. We consider the consequences of persistence time for the dynamics of the gypsy moth baculovirus, a pathogen transmitted when larvae consume foliage contaminated with particles released from infectious cadavers. Using field-transmission experiments, we are able to estimate persistence time under natural conditions, and inserting our estimates into a standard …

Stability And Stabilization For Models Of Chemostats With Multiple Limiting Substrates, Frédéric Mazenc, Michael Malisoff

Faculty Publications

We study chemostat models in which multiple species compete for two or more limiting nutrients. First, we consider the case where the nutrient flow and species removal rates and input nutrient concentrations are all given as positive constants. In that case, we use Brouwer degree theory to give conditions guaranteeing that the models admit globally asymptotically stable componentwise positive equilibrium points, from all componentwise positive initial states. Then we use the results to develop stabilization theory for a class of controlled chemostats with two or more limiting nutrients. For cases where the dilution rate and input nutrient concentrations can be …

The Ubiquitin Ligase Siah2 Regulates Pparγ Activity In Adipocytes, Gail Kilroy, Heather Kirk-Ballard, Lauren E. Carter, Z. Elizabeth Floyd

Faculty Publications

Moderate reductions in peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)γ levels control insulin sensitivity as effectively as activation of PPARγ in adipocytes by the thiazolidinediones. That observation suggests that PPARγ activity can be regulated by modulating the amount of PPARγ protein in adipocytes. Activation of PPARγ in adipocytes is linked to changes in PPARγ protein levels via increased degradation of PPARγ proteins by the ubiquitin proteasome system. Identification of the ubiquitin ligase or ligases that recognize ligand bound PPARγ is an essential step in determining the physiological significance of the relationship between activation and ubiquitin-dependent degradation of PPARγ. Using an RNA interference-based screen, …

March 1, 2012, University Of North Dakota

University Senate Meeting Minutes

Minutes from the March 1, 2012, meeting of the University Senate. 29 pages

Physicochemical And Microbiological Quality Of Harvested Rainwater From An Agricultural Installation In Ireland, Sean O'Hogain, Liam Mccarton, Niamh Mcintyre, Jenny Pender, Anna Reid

Articles

Members of DTC Research Group. Dublin Institute of Technology was commissioned in 2005 by the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government in Ireland to assess the feasibility of utilising rainwater to replace treated mains water for nonpotable uses. The project involved the design, installation, commissioning and monitoring of rainwater harvesting on a farm. Two monitoring programmes, Regime 1 and Regime 2, examined the physicochemical and microbiological quality of the harvested rainwater. Samples were taken monthly and tested. Regime 1 analysis showed that the microbiological quality of the rainwater from the site did not comply with the requirements of the …

Recalibrating Constitutional Innocence Protection, Robert J. Smith

Washington Law Review

This Article examines the constitutional nature of the right of a prisoner to receive post-conviction relief based solely on the claim that he is innocent. Part I explores innocence protection as an animating value of constitutional criminal procedure (Part I.A) and describes how developments in the way that crimes are investigated, proved, and reexamined have dislodged the trial from its place at the center of the constitutional criminal procedure universe (Part I.B). Part II explores how realigning the importance of innocence protection with the practical realities of our criminal justice system would impact the regulation of post-conviction procedures. It also …