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Photoheterotrophic Growth Of Physcomitrella Patens, Terry M. Bricker, Adam J. Bell, Lan Tran, Laurie K. Frankel, Steven M. Theg

Faculty Publications

© Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2013. Physcomitrella patens is a model bryophyte representing an early land plant in the green plant lineage. This organism possesses many advantages as a model organism. Its genome has been sequenced, its predominant life cycle stage is the haploid gametophyte, it is readily transformable and it can integrate transformed DNA into its genome by homologous recombination. One limitation for the use of P. patens in photosynthesis research is its reported inability to grow photoheterotrophically, in the presence of sucrose and the Photosystem II inhibitor 3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea, which prevents linear photosynthetic electron transport. In this communication we describe …

Inhibition Of Osteoclastogenesis And Inflammatory Bone Resorption By Targeting Bet Proteins And Epigenetic Regulation, Kyung-Hyun Park-Min, Elisha Lim, Min Joon Lee, Sung Ho Park, Eugenia Giannopoulos, Anna Yarilina, Marjolein Van Der Meulen, Baohong Zhao, Nicholas Smithers, Jason Witherington, Kevin Lee, Paul P. Tak, Rab K. Prinjha, Lionel B. Ivashkiv

Publications and Research

Emerging evidence suggests that RANKL-induced changes in chromatin state are important for osteoclastogenesis, but these epigenetic mechanisms are not well understood and have not been therapeutically targeted. In this study we find that the small molecule I-BET151 that targets bromo and extra-terminal (BET) proteins that “read” chromatin states by binding to acetylated histones strongly suppresses osteoclastogenesis. I-BET151 suppresses pathologic bone loss in TNF-induced inflammatory osteolysis, inflammatory arthritis, and post-ovariectomy models. Transcriptome analysis identifies a MYC-NFAT axis important for osteoclastogenesis. Mechanistically, I-BET151 inhibits expression of the master osteoclast regulator NFATC1 by suppressing expression and recruitment of its newly identified upstream regulator …

Aquatic Hazard Assessment Of A Commercial Sample Of Naphthenic Acids., James P. Swigert, Carol Lee, Diana C.L. Wong, Russell White, Alan G. Scarlett, Charles E. West, Steven J. Rowland

More Faculty of Science and Engineering Research

This paper presents chemical composition and aquatic toxicity characteristics of a commercial sample of naphthenic acids (NAs). Naphthenic acids are derived from the refining of petroleum middle distillates and can contribute to refinery effluent toxicity. NAs are also present in oil sands process-affected water (OSPW), but differences in the NAs compositions from these sources precludes using a common aquatic toxicity dataset to represent the aquatic hazards of NAs from both origins. Our chemical characterization of a commercial sample of NAs showed it to contain in order of abundance, 1-ring>2-ring>acyclic>3-ring acids (∼84%). Also present were monoaromatic acids (7%) …

Controlling Photoreactions In Crystals And Through Confinement In Water Soluble Supramolecules, Barnali Mondal

Open Access Dissertations

The research presented in this thesis reports various uses of supramolecules in steering photochemical and photophysical properties of small organic guest molecules. Crystals possess long range periodic arrangement of highly ordered building units and are considered as supramolecular systems. The first part of the thesis reports the use of crystals as a confined media (solid state) in directing photochemical reactions. In particular, olefins (trans 4-stilbazoles) have been directed to undergo selective [2+2] cycloaddtion in solid state. Selective photoproduct in crystals is controlled by various weak interactions in crystal lattice, which bring (pack) the reactive C=C bonds within 4.2 Å. Photoreaction …

The Cord (November 26, 2014)

The Cord

No abstract provided.

Inhibitory Effect Of Gold Nanoparticles On The D-Ribose Glycation Of Bovine Serum Albumin, Weixi Liu, Menashi A. Cohenford, Leslie Frost, Champika Seneviratne, Joel A. Dain

Chemistry Faculty Publications

Formation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) by nonenzymatic glycation of proteins is a major contributory factor to the pathophysiology of diabetic conditions including senile dementia and atherosclerosis. This study describes the inhibitory effect of gold nanoparticles (GNPs) on the D-ribose glycation of bovine serum albumin (BSA). A combination of analytical methods including ultraviolet–visible spectrometry, high performance liquid chromatography, circular dichroism, and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry were used to determine the extent of BSA glycation in the presence of citrate reduced spherical GNPs of various sizes and concentrations. GNPs of particle diameters ranging from 2 nm to …

Aspartate Β-Hydroxylase Expession Promotes A Malignant Pancreatic Cellular Phenotype, Xiaoqun Dong, Qiushi Lin, Arihiro Aihara, Gregory Gabriel

Faculty Articles

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is one of the leading causes of cancer related deaths due to aggressive progression and metastatic spread. Aspartate β-hydroxylase (ASPH), a cell surface protein that catalyzes the hydroxylation of epidermal growth factor (EGF)-like repeats in Notch receptors and ligands, is highly overexpressed in PC. ASPH upregulation confers a malignant phenotype characterized by enhanced cell proliferation, migration, invasion and colony formation in vitro as well as PC tumor growth in vivo. The transforming properties of ASPH depend on enzymatic activity. ASPH links PC growth factor signaling cascades to Notch activation. A small molecule inhibitor of β-hydroxylase activity was …

Aspartate Β-Hydroxylase Expression Promotes A Malignant Pancreatic Cellular Phenotype, Xiaoqun Dong, Qiushi Lin, Arihiro Aihara, Yu Li, Chiung-Kuei Huang, Waihong Chung, Qi Tang, Xuesong Chen, Rolf Carlson, Christina Nadolny, Gregory Gabriel, Mark Olsen, Jack Wands

Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences Faculty Publications

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is one of the leading causes of cancer related deaths due to aggressive progression and metastatic spread. Aspartate β-hydroxylase (ASPH), a cell surface protein that catalyzes the hydroxylation of epidermal growth factor (EGF)-like repeats in Notch receptors and ligands, is highly overexpressed in PC. ASPH upregulation confers a malignant phenotype characterized by enhanced cell proliferation, migration, invasion and colony formation in vitro as well as PC tumor growth in vivo. The transforming properties of ASPH depend on enzymatic activity. ASPH links PC growth factor signaling cascades to Notch activation. A small molecule inhibitor of β-hydroxylase activity …

Developing A University-Wide Course On Sustainability: A Critical Evaluation Of Planning And Implementation, Can B. Aktas, Rosemary Whelan, Howard Stoffer, Edmund Todd, Cindy L. Kern Ph.D.

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications

Sustainability is an issue of increasing importance in today's world. Institutions of higher education are undergoing change towards incorporating sustainable development principles within their teaching, research, service, and community outreach efforts. This article presents a case study of the development and implementation of one such initiative: a university-wide freshman course centered on the topic of sustainability. The objective of the course was to expose freshman students to important sustainability issues in a common course team-taught by faculty from various disciplines. The article presents experiences and recommendations as a guide to administrators, faculty and researchers at other institutions of higher education …

Microbial Diversity In A Venezuelan Orthoquartzite Cave Is Dominated By The Chloroflexi (Class Ktedonobacterales) And Thaumarchaeota Group I.1c, Hazel A. Barton, Juan G. Giarrizzo, Paula Suarez

KIP Articles

The majority of caves are formed within limestone rock and hence our understanding of cave microbiology comes from carbonate-buffered systems. In this paper, we describe the microbial diversity of Roraima Sur Cave (RSC), an orthoquartzite (SiO4) cave within Roraima Tepui, Venezuela. The cave contains a high level of microbial activity when compared with other cave systems, as determined by an ATP-based luminescence assay and cell counting. Molecular phylogenetic analysis of microbial diversity within the cave demonstrates the dominance of Actinomycetales and Alphaproteobacteria in endolithic bacterial communities close to the entrance, while communities from deeper in the cave are dominated (82–84%) …

Structure-Based Network Analysis Of Activation Mechanisms In The Erbb Family Of Receptor Tyrosine Kinases: The Regulatory Spine Residues Are Global Mediators Of Structural Stability And Allosteric Interactions, Kevin A. James, Gennady M. Verkhivker

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

The ErbB protein tyrosine kinases are among the most important cell signaling families and mutation-induced modulation of their activity is associated with diverse functions in biological networks and human disease. We have combined molecular dynamics simulations of the ErbB kinases with the protein structure network modeling to characterize the reorganization of the residue interaction networks during conformational equilibrium changes in the normal and oncogenic forms. Structural stability and network analyses have identified local communities integrated around high centrality sites that correspond to the regulatory spine residues. This analysis has provided a quantitative insight to the mechanism of mutation-induced ‘‘superacceptor’’ activity …

A Vision For Change In Bioscience Education: Building On Knowledge From The Past, Nancy J. Pelaez, Trevor R. Anderson, Samuel N. Postlethwait

PIBERG Publications

High quality undergraduate education is central to the success of all life scientists. Several major bioscience educational issues are the targets of much debate, research, funding, publications, and reports (e.g. Vision and Change). Surprisingly, these issues are considered by modern bioscience instructors as unresolved despite historical reports that claim the contrary. Here we illustrate with evidence how, more than 50 years ago, Sam Postlethwait successfully instituted strategies to address several issues in plant biology education with his audio-­‐tutorials. These strategies succeeded in individualizing instruction of students with diverse educational backgrounds in large classes, incorporating authentic and active learning, integrating lab …

Re-Examining The Roles Of Landpower In The 21st Century And Their Implications, William T. Johnsen Dr.

Books, Monographs & Collaborative Studies

View the Executive Summary

After 13 years of prolonged ground combat, a weary American public is leery of further interventions requiring land forces. Shifting geostrategic conditions, such as a revanchist Russia and a rising China, reinforce this reluctance. At the same time, technological innovation once more offers the chimera of war from a distance that does not endanger land forces. Nonetheless, at some point, a highly volatile international security environment will place U.S. national interests at risk, requiring the use of military power. Given the increasing rise of interdependence among all components of military power (air, cyberspace, land, sea, and …

An Integrated Transcriptome And Expressed Variant Analysis Of Sepsis Survival And Death., Ephraim L. Tsalik, Raymond J. Langley, Darrell L. Dinwiddie, Neil A. Miller, Byunggil Yoo, Jennifer C. Van Velkinburgh, Laurie D. Smith, Isabella Thiffault, Anja K. Jaehne, Ashlee M. Valente, Ricardo Henao, Xin Yuan, Seth W. Glickman, Brandon J. Rice, Micah T. Mcclain, Lawrence Carin, G Ralph Corey, Geoffrey S S. Ginsburg, Charles B. Cairns, Ronny M. Otero, Vance G. Fowler, Emanuel P. Rivers, Christopher W. Woods, Stephen F. Kingsmore

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: Sepsis, a leading cause of morbidity and mortality, is not a homogeneous disease but rather a syndrome encompassing many heterogeneous pathophysiologies. Patient factors including genetics predispose to poor outcomes, though current clinical characterizations fail to identify those at greatest risk of progression and mortality.

METHODS: The Community Acquired Pneumonia and Sepsis Outcome Diagnostic study enrolled 1,152 subjects with suspected sepsis. We sequenced peripheral blood RNA of 129 representative subjects with systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) or sepsis (SIRS due to infection), including 78 sepsis survivors and 28 sepsis non-survivors who had previously undergone plasma proteomic and metabolomic profiling. Gene …

The Lineage-Specific Evolution Of Aquaporin Gene Clusters Facilitated Tetrapod Terrestrial Adaptation, Roderick Nigel Finn, François Chauvigné, Jón Baldur Hlidberg, Christopher P. Cutler, Joan Cerdà

Biology: Faculty Publications

A major physiological barrier for aquatic organisms adapting to terrestrial life is dessication in the aerial environment. This barrier was nevertheless overcome by the Devonian ancestors of extant Tetrapoda, but the origin of specific molecular mechanisms that solved this water problem remains largely unknown. Here we show that an ancient aquaporin gene cluster evolved specifically in the sarcopterygian lineage, and subsequently diverged into paralogous forms of AQP2, -5, or -6 to mediate water conservation in extant Tetrapoda. To determine the origin of these apomorphic genomic traits, we combined aquaporin sequencing from jawless and jawed vertebrates with broad taxon assembly of …

Linking Land Use And Water Quality Changes In Lake Maumelle Through Benthic Sediment, Dawn Marie Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

Lake Maumelle is a reservoir in Pulaski County, Arkansas that was finished in 1958 for the purpose of supplying potable water to Little Rock and surrounding areas. It is an oligotrophic, monomictic lake with a generously forested watershed. There has been an increase of urbanization in the watershed which may influence the water quality. This research examines the reservoir's sensitivity to land use/land cover change for the lake by analyzing the benthic sediment. By using multidisciplinary methods, cores were examined using mass accumulation rates, grain size analysis, elemental analysis, phase identification, and diatom identification. Those results were then compared to …

Stem Nematode Counteracts Plant Resistance Of Aphids In Alfalfa, Medicago Sativa, Ricardo A. Ramirez, John M. Stark

Biology Faculty Publications

Plants are exploited by a diverse community of insect herbivores and phytopathogens that interact indirectly through plant-mediated interactions. Generally, plants are thought to respond to insects and pathogens through different defensive signaling pathways. As plants are selected for resistance to one phytophagous organism type (insect vs. pathogen) in managed systems, it is not clear how this selection may affect community interactions. This study examined the effect of nematode-resistant varieties on aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum) suppression, and then determined how infection by the stem nematode, Ditylenchus dipsaci, mediated ecological effects on aphids and on plant defense proteins. Four alfalfa (Medicago sativa) varieties …

Hairy Stalagmites, A New Biogenic Root Speleothem From Botswana, Gerhard C. Du Preez, Paolo Forti, Gerhard Jacobs, Anine Jordaan, Louwrens Tiedt

International Journal of Speleology

Ngamiland in northwestern Botswana hosts the Gcwihaba Caves which present unique subterranean environments and host speleothems never before recorded. Cave atmospheric conditions can be extreme with temperatures as high as 28°C and relative humidity nearing 99.9%. Within Dimapo and Diviner’s Caves peculiar root speleothems that we named ‘Hairy Stalagmites’ were found. These stalagmites are closely associated with the roots of Namaqua fig (Ficus cordata) trees that enter the cave environment in search of water. Pieces of broken stalagmites were sampled from Dimapo Cave for further investigations. Stereo and electron microscopy revealed that the Hairy Stalagmites consist of multiple …

A Contextualized Account Of General Principles Of International Law, Michelle Biddulph, Dwight Newman

Pace International Law Review

This Article examines general principles of international law through the innovative means of comparing their use in four different, novel areas of international law—international environmental law, international investment law, international criminal law, and international indigenous rights. By doing so, the Article is able to make the distinct claim that there is no one, single methodology for analysis of general principles of international law. Rather, each area of international law tends to use a methodology suited to its policy objectives and overall characteristics as a specific area of law. The Article characterizes two predominant academic approaches to general principles: a purely …

A Hot Mess: Knowing Juliet Through Accidental Encounters In Popular Culture, Kirk Hendershott-Kraetzer

Selected Papers of the Ohio Valley Shakespeare Conference

No abstract provided.

Traversing Swanton Road, 17th Ed., James A. West

Academic, Government & Associated Organizational Research Resources

Situated at the northwest end of Santa Cruz County and occupying circa 30 square miles of sharply contrasted terrain, the Scott Creek Watershed concentrates within its geomorphological boundaries, at least 10-12% of California's flora, both native and introduced. Paradoxically, the use/abuse that the watershed has sustained over the past 140+ years, has not necessarily diminished the biodiversity and perhaps parallels the naturally disruptive but biologically energizing processes (fire, flooding, landslides and erosion), which have also been historically documented for the area for +60 years. This is an early edition of an extensive document by James A. West. Please visit the …

Effects Of The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill On Pelagic Fish Species Of The Gulf Of Mexico, John D. Stieglitz

Open Access Dissertations

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill of 2010 is the largest unintended marine oil spill in history. The point-source location of the spill, below the pelagic zone of the northern Gulf of Mexico (GOM), resulted in distribution of crude oil throughout the water column in the open ocean pelagic environment as well as along near-shore coastal habitats. Additionally, unprecedented use of chemical dispersants at both the surface and at depth resulted in increased dissolution of the crude oil into the aqueous phase. Given the importance of regional finfish and shellfish fisheries in the GOM, much attention has been directed to quantifying …

The Effect Of Music Listening On Cold-Pressor Pain Perception, Tolerance, And Attention, Marlen I. Rodriguez-Wolfe

Open Access Theses

The effect of participant-selected music listening on pain perception, pain tolerance, and attention to pain was evaluated during a cold-pressor pain protocol. Participants (N=50) underwent two, ice-water hand immersions in a music condition and a silence condition. Participants were asked to engage in active music listening of their choice during the cold-pressor music condition. The researcher collected a pain tolerance hand-immersion time, while participants self-reported on pain perception and attention to pain. Results showed that participants reported significantly less pain perception and attention to pain, and greater pain tolerance time under the music condition than in the silence condition. The …

Egalitarianism And Animals, Oscar Horta

Between the Species

The moral consideration of nonhuman animals and the critique of speciesism have been defended by appeal to a variety of ethical theories. One of the main approaches in moral and political philosophy today from which to launch such a defense is egalitarianism, which is the view that we should aim at favoring the worse off by reducing inequality. This paper explains what egalitarianism is and shows the important practical consequences it has for nonhuman animals, both those that are exploited by humans and those in need of aid in the wild. Egalitarianism implies rejecting speciesism, and in practice it prescribes …

The Insulin/Igf Signaling Regulators Cytohesin/Grp-1 And Pip5k/Ppk-1 Modulate Susceptibility To Excitotoxicity In C. Elegans, Nazila Tehrani, John Del Rosario, Moises Dominguez, Robert Kalb, Itzhak Mano

Publications and Research

During ischemic stroke, malfunction of excitatory amino acid transporters and reduced synaptic clearance causes accumulation of Glutamate (Glu) and excessive stimulation of postsynaptic neurons, which can lead to their degeneration by excitotoxicity. The balance between cell death-promoting (neurotoxic) and survival-promoting (neuroprotective) signaling cascades determines the fate of neurons exposed to the excitotoxic insult. The evolutionary conserved Insulin/IGF Signaling (IIS) cascade can participate in this balance, as it controls cell stress resistance in nematodes and mammals. Blocking the IIS cascade allows the transcription factor FoxO3/DAF-16 to accumulate in the nucleus and activate a transcriptional program that protects cells from a range …

Scholastic Minutes 11/25/2014, Scholastic Committee

Scholastic Committee

Reviewed a PowerPoint presentation on the proposed new advising model and discussed Multi-Institutional enrollment.

The Adaptor Protein 1 (Ap-1) Complex At The Heart Of Post-Golgi Trafficking In A Corticotrope Tumor Cell Line, Mathilde L. Bonnemaison

Doctoral Dissertations

Peptides act as chemical messengers to regulate a many physiological functions. First synthesized as inactive precursors, peptides undergo a set of post-translational modifications to gain bioactivity en route through the secretory pathway. Peptides exit the Golgi apparatus in secretory granules (SGs) which are stored until a stimulus triggers their exocytosis. The adaptor protein 1A (AP-1A) is required for SG maturation in neuroendocrine cells and for the formation of specialized SGs such as the glue granules in Drosophila, Weibel-Palade bodies in endothelial cells and rhoptries in Toxoplasma gondii. AP-1A is a heterotetrameric complex (γ/β1/µ1A/σ1) which interacts with cargo proteins …

Empirical Formulas For Direct Double Ionization By Bare Ions: Z=-1 To 92, Robert D. Dubois, A. C.F. Santos, S. T. Manson

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

Experimental cross sections and cross-section ratios reported in the literature for direct double ionization of the outer shells of helium, neon, and argon atoms resulting from bare ions ranging from protons to uranium and for antiprotons are analyzed in terms of a first- and second-order interference model originally proposed by McGuire [J. H. McGuire, Phys. Rev. Lett. 49, 1153 (1982) PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.49.1153]. Empirical formulas for the various contributions to double ionization plus information about the phase difference between the first- and second-order mechanisms are extracted from the data. Projectile and target scaling's are also extracted. Total cross sections and their ratios …

Modular And Cooperative Medical Devices And Related Systems And Methods, Shane M. Farritor, Mark Rentschler, Amy Lehman

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Faculty Publications

The various embodiments disclosed herein relate to modular medical devices, including various devices with detachable modular components and various devices with pivotally attached modular components. Additional embodiments relate to procedures in which various of the devices are used cooperatively. Certain embodiments of the medical devices are robotic in vivo devices.

Computational Investigation Of Potential Failure Modes In Arterial Hemodynamic Flowpath, Praveen Kumar Koya

Theses

The formation of an arterial disease for large and medium size vessels is believed to be a multifactorial interplay of bio - mechanical - chemical processes in the arterial wall and the hemodynamic flow path. The present research presents the viewpoint of a mechanical engineer assuming that mechanical factors are of the key importance in the formation of aneurism, atherosclerotic plague and rupture. The repetitive pressure and shear stresses exerted by the blood flow on the weakened arterial wall may cause its progressive degrade, resulting in aneurism with the following potential rupture. Elevated blood pressure results in an elevated repetitive …