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The Genus Crocus, Series Crocus (Iridaceae) In Turkey And 2 East Aegean Islands: A Genetic Approach, Osman Erol, Hi̇lal Betül Kaya, Levent Şik, Meti̇n Tuna, Levent Can, Muhammed Bahatti̇n Tanyolaç

Turkish Journal of Biology

In this study, a total of 26 Crocus specimens from different locations across Turkey and 2 East Aegean islands (Chios and Samos) were analyzed using 12 amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) primer combinations to obtain information on genetic diversity, population structure, and genetic relationships. A total of 369 polymorphic AFLP bands were generated and scored as binary data. Genetic similarities were determined. Cluster analysis revealed 4 major groups among the 26 genotypes examined in this study. The nuclear DNA contents (2C) of the 26 Crocus specimens were found to range from 5.08 pg in C. asumaniae to 9.75 pg in …

Development Of An Improved Rna Interference Vector System For Agrobacterium-Mediated Plant Transformation, Umut Toprak, Cathy Coutu, Doug Baldwin, Martin Erlandson, Dwayne Hegedus

Turkish Journal of Biology

Plant-mediated RNA interference (RNAi) has shown a great potential in pest control and requires i) subcloning of sense/antisense regions in compatible vectors, ii) transfer of the silencing cassette into a binary vector, iii) transformation of Agrobacterium tumefaciens with desired binary plasmids, and iv) transformation of plants with Agrobacterium. The procedure is long and should ensure plasmid backbone stability; however, plasmid recombination due to antibiotic selection is a common problem. pGSA1252 is an RNAi silencing binary vector allowing direct cloning of hairpin structure; however, it possesses a chloramphenicol selection marker leading to plasmid recombination in various Agrobacterium strains. To solve this …

A Comparative Study On Plant Morphology, Gas Exchange Parameters, And Antioxidant Response Of Ocimum Basilicum L. And Origanum Vulgare L. Grown On Industrially Polluted Soil, Ira Stancheva, Maria Geneva, Yuliana Markovska, Nikolina Tzvetkova, Ivanka Mitova, Milka Todorova, Petar Petrov

Turkish Journal of Biology

The effects of Cd, Pb, and Zn uptake on plant morphology, photosynthetic parameters, antioxidant potential, and essential oil yield and quality in Ocimum basilicum L. and Origanum vulgare L. plants were evaluated. The plants were grown as a pot experiment in soil heavily polluted with Cd and Pb and on unpolluted soil. Both plants accumulated Cd, mainly in the roots, while Pb occurred in the oregano shoots only. The leaf blade thickness of both plants increased when grown in polluted soil. Basil plants responded to the action of heavy metals with increases in gas exchange, stomatal conductivity, and transpiration, but …

Defense Enzyme Activities And Biochemical Variations Of Pelargonium Zonale In Response To Nanosilver Application And Dark Storage, Mehrnaz Hatami, Mansour Ghorbanpour

Turkish Journal of Biology

Pelargonium petal abscission and ethylene-induced leaf senescence are major problems that reduce the longevity of plants. This study was carried out to determine the poststorage influence of nanosilver (NS) particle (0, 20, 40, 60, and 80 mg L^{-1}) application during dark storage period on chlorophyll and carotenoid pigments, malondialdehyde (MDA) content, leaf protein and ethylene concentration, petal abscission, membrane stability index (MSI), and enzyme activity including ascorbate peroxidase (APX), peroxidase (POD), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and \BETA-glucosidase (\BETA-GLU) in two Pelargonium pot plants of the cultivars Flowerfairy and Foxi. Enhanced photosynthetic pigment contents were recorded in leaves of both …

Comprehensive Analysis Of Beta-Galactosidase Protein In Plants Based On Arabidopsis Thaliana, Samin Seddigh, Maryam Darabi

Turkish Journal of Biology

Beta-galactosidases (\BETAgals) (EC 3.2.1.23) have been detected in a wide range of plant organs and tissues and are described by their ability to hydrolyze terminal nonreducing \BETA-D-galactosyl residues from \BETA-D-galactosides. In this study, 92 \BETAgal protein sequences from different plants, 7 animal samples including human and mouse, 3 samples from bacteria including Escherichia coli, and 4 samples from insects including Drosophila melanogaster were aligned. Sequences were analyzed by computational tools to predict the protein properties, such as molecular mass, isoelectric point, signal peptide, motifs, transmembrane domain, and secondary and spatial structure. Protein structure analysis revealed there is a high identity …

Isolation And Amplification Of Genomic Dna From Barks Of Cinnamomum Spp., Valya Parambil Swetha, Viswanath Alambath Parvathy, Thotten Elampillay Sheeja, Bhaskaran Sasikumar

Turkish Journal of Biology

Cinnamomum verum Presl (syn. C. zeylanicum Blume), the cinnamon of commerce, is an important aromatic tree spice having wide applications in perfumery, flavoring, beverages, and medicine. Adulteration of cinnamon with the cheaper and inferior barks of C. aromaticum and C. malabatrum is a problem. Morphological distinction of the barks is difficult; in the case of powdered barks, the situation is even worse. DNA-based molecular tools are preferred under these circumstances. Isolation of high quality DNA is a prerequisite for molecular studies, but barks contain polysaccharides, polyphenols, and secondary metabolites that hamper DNA isolation. Since attempts at isolating DNA using existing …

Cover And Contents

Turkish Journal of Biology

No abstract provided.

Cover And Contents

Turkish Journal of Biology

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Mental Health Stigma On Treatment Attitude Within The Therapeutic Dyad: Therapist Beliefts In The Mental Health Recovery Process For Patients With Schizophrenia, Michele R. Miele

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

OBJECTIVE: Stigma maintains a belief that a recovery process is infeasible for patients with schizophrenia. As clients internalize stigma and therapists maintain a conceptualization of non-recovery, their core beliefs about recovery may become treatment barriers. This study investigated clinicians’ attitudes towards recovery by evaluating the relationship between knowledge of schizophrenia, attitudes of stigma, and attitudes of tolerance held towards people with schizophrenia; included in the evaluation are years of experience working as a mental health professional.

METHOD: This study is a cross-sectional survey design using a sample of 319 participants. The survey consisted of the following measures: knowledge of …

The Effects Of Acknowledging Cultural Differences On Therapeutic Alliance In Cross-Cultural Therapy, Jean-Pierre Assouad

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Therapeutic alliance has been documented to have a significant impact on therapy. This study examined the impact that acknowledging visible cultural differences in the first session of treatment has on therapeutic alliance, perceived clinician cross-cultural competency, and potential attrition. A vignette study design was utilized with 26 subjects who were patients at the PCOM Center for Brief Therapy. The patients were randomly assigned one of four vignettes that consisted of a cross-cultural therapy situation, in which visible cultural differences were either addressed or not by a clinician. Following the reading of the vignette, the subjects were asked to complete the …

The Effects Of Terrorism And Bias Against Muslims And Evangelical Christians In An Online Adult Sample: A Test Of Terror Management Theory, Angelo L. Rannazzisi

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Considering the sociopolitical events of the past decade, the effect of terrorism on the behavior of others has gathered interest in the field of social psychology. Terror Management Theory has been used to conceptualize responses to individual’s fears of mortality. Because one of the goals of terrorism is to generate fear in a specific population, using Terror Management Theory to conceptualize responses to terrorism is appropriate. The current study attempts to ascertain if participants’ responses to stimuli that are indirectly related to Islam can be conceptualized using Terror Management Theory. The results of the study did not support this interpretation. …

Learned Helplessness, Spirituality, Abstinence Efficacy, And Alcohol Recovery, Nicholas J. Demarco

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Treatment for alcoholism is a long and difficult process. Identifying variables that aid in treatment completion and retention of its effects is something that continues to be sought after. Research has identified the factors of spirituality, learned helplessness, and abstinence efficacy as some of the variables that can influence a person’s ability to complete treatment successfully (Sterling, Weinstein, Hill, Gottheil, Gordon, & Shorie, 2006). What it has failed to address is whether or not learned helplessness, spirituality, and abstinence efficacy can impact a person’s ability to sustain treatment effects for a period, post treatment. The data for this project were …

Effect Of Medical Education On Empathy In Osteopathic Medical Students, Adam J. Mctighe

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Empathy is an integral component of the physician-patient relationship and involves a cognitive and emotional ability to connect with others in a meaningful fashion. To date, only two studies exist using osteopathic medical student samples while multiple studies have shown that allopathic student empathy declines significantly during year 3. Similar results were not found in the osteopathic samples; however, the designs used were cross-sectional, while allopathic studies were longitudinal. The current study utilized a mixed methods approach that included cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses, the first to do so within an osteopathic medical student population. The present study investigated empathy levels …

The Modeled Structures Of Deg5 And Deg8 Proteases In Arabidopsis Thaliana, Liangbing Chen, Qingzhi Li, Lili Li

Turkish Journal of Biology

Deg5 and Deg8 are chloroplastic proteases found in Arabidopsis thaliana. These proteases participate in the repair of photosystem II. However, little information exists on the structures of Deg5 and Deg8. Here, the Deg5 and Deg8 structures were modeled using the SWISS-MODEL tool with Deg1 as the structural template. Deg5 was composed of only 1 domain, a protease domain. The catalytic triad of Deg5, which comprises His147, Asp188, and Ser266, was located in the cleft between 2 \beta-barrels. Deg8 was composed of a protease domain at the N-terminal and a PDZ domain at the C-terminal. The catalytic triad of Deg8, which …

Purification And Characterization Of An Antibacterial Substance Produced By Pest-Originated Serratia Marcescens Mm3, Serpi̇l Uğraş, Kazim Sezen, Hati̇ce Kati, Zi̇hni̇ Demi̇rbağ

Turkish Journal of Biology

The aim of this investigation was to determine, purify, and characterize an antibacterial substance produced by Serratia marcescens Mm3 (Sm-Mm3) isolated from a common pest of hazelnut in Turkey, Melolontha melolontha, which is also a significant pest all over the world. A highly active antibacterial substance produced by Sm-Mm3 was purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation and high-performance liquid chromatography, respectively, and identified by spectrometric analysis (TOF-MS). Finally, we showed that this molecule is heat-stable, stable in the pH range of 5-9, and insensitive to organic solvents and proteinase K. The molecular mass was determined as 479 Da. Plasmid elimination demonstrated …

Improvement In Tolerance To Salt Stress During Tomato Cultivation, Mustafa Demi̇rkaya

Turkish Journal of Biology

This study was conducted to evaluate the physiological impact of seed priming on improving the salt tolerance of tomato cultivars H-2274 and Rio Grande. Tomato seeds were primed with 5 M NaCl solution at 20 °C for 3 days in a dark environment. The seeds of the control treatments were handled in a similar way, using tap water instead of NaCl solution. After the priming procedure, seeds were washed and sown in standard germination trays. From each treatment group, 21 homogeneous seedlings were transplanted into 10-L pots full of turf for subsequent salinity experiments. In order to avoid osmotic shock, …

Factor Analysis And Predictive Ability Of A Teacher-Completed Autism Rating Scale In An Urban School Setting, Dana Milakovic

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Autism screening tools have not traditionally been developed for use in an urban setting with students of minority status or from a low SES home. Scales have also traditionally lacked a focus on school behaviors. The Social Communication Screener for Schools (SCSS) was developed in order to assist school psychologists in an urban school setting in referring students who, following a full evaluation, were most likely to qualify for an educational diagnosis of Autism. The goal of the scale was to focus on using teacher ratings of language-based behaviors in the school setting to assess behaviors linked with Autism. The …

Transgenic Nicotiana Tabacum Cultivar Samsun Plants Carrying The Wild Sugar Beet Hs1pro1 Gene Have Resistance To Root-Knot Nematodes, Çağla Sönmez, İbrahi̇m Hali̇l Elekci̇oğlu, Ayşe Meral Yücel, Hüseyi̇n Avni̇ Öktem

Turkish Journal of Biology

Nematodes are the principal animal parasites of plants, causing annual crop losses of more than US$100 billion worldwide. Conventional control measures against nematode infection include toxic nematicide application to soil, crop rotation practices, and classical breeding approaches. However, due to the limitations of each technique, biotechnology presents itself as an effective alternative in nematode control. To date, several resistance genes against nematodes have been cloned. One such gene, Hs1^{pro1}, cloned from wild sugar beet, Beta procumbens, shows resistance to the cyst nematode Heterodera schachtii. Recent studies showed that Hs1^{pro1} has a broad target pathogen range. In this study, we transformed …

Soil And Foliar Application Of Potassium Enhances Fruit Yield And Quality Of Tomato Under Salinity, Muhammad Amjad, Javaid Akhtar, Muhammad Anwar Ul Haq, Shakeel Imran, Sven-Erik Jacobsen

Turkish Journal of Biology

Potassium plays a key role in the survival of plants under saline conditions in mitigating the adverse effects of sodium. The effect of application of potassium to soil (0, 3.3, and 6.6 mmol/kg) and leaves (4.5 and 9 mM) on tomato yield and quality under 3 salinity treatments (0, 7.5, and 15 dS m^{-1}), using 2 salt-tolerant (Indent-1 and Nagina) and 2 salt-sensitive (Peto-86 and Red Ball) genotypes, was studied in a pot experiment. Salinity decreased growth and yield of all genotypes; however, salt-tolerant genotypes maintained better growth and produced higher yield than the salt-sensitive genotypes across all salinity levels. …

Does Cyp1a1 Gene Polymorphism Affect Cell Damage Biomarkers And Ageing?, Sima Ataollahi Eshkoor, Patimah Ismail, Sabariah Abd Rahman

Turkish Journal of Biology

This study aimed to investigate the effects of cytochrome P450 1A1 (CYP1A1) gene polymorphism on early ageing due to occupational exposure to mutagens. The project was conducted on buccal epithelial cells collected from mechanical-workshop workers and controls. Epithelial cells were obtained from the inner part of the cheeks. Techniques including comet assay, micronuclei test, real-time polymerase chain reaction, and restriction fragment length polymorphism-polymerase chain reaction were used to assess DNA damage biomarkers. The results showed that there was a significant difference in relative telomere length (P = 0.039) between wild and mutated genotypes among all individuals. Furthermore, occupational exposure showed …

Identification And Expression Profiling Of Clcuv-Responsive Transcripts In Upland Cotton (Gossypium Hirsutum L.), Beenish Aftab, Muhammad Naveed Shahid, Sania Riaz, Adil Jamal, Bahaeldeen Babiker Mohamed, Muzna Zahur, Mahwish Aftab, Bushra Rashid, Tayyab Husnain

Turkish Journal of Biology

CLCuV is one of the most serious causes of cotton damage for which no adequate remedy is available. The possible solution to this problem may be the transfer of resistant genes into the background of agronomical CLCuV-tolerant varieties. In response to viral infection, several plants may show qualitative and quantitative variations in gene expression. To study gene expression between diseased and tolerant plants, DDRT-PCR was performed. Upregulated gene expression was observed among cDNA transcripts screened through random primers. Seven transcripts have significant homology with known proteins (ribosomal protein, photosystem protein unit, membrane protein, and a predicted hypothetical protein). Quantitative real-time …

Assessing Transgender Attitudes Toward Health Care: Can These Attitudes Help Predict Health Outcomes?, Sara M. Shane

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Research has identified the fact that race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, socioeconomic status, education level, geographic location, help seeking behaviors, and experiences of discrimination are associated with health outcomes. In addition, attitudes towards providers can also help determine health outcomes. The transgender community experiences barriers to health care services and therefore their overall health is affected. There is not a sufficient amount of literature that assesses, using standardized measure, the attitudes of the transgender community and their health. The present study will assess the attitudes of the transgender community toward health care (mental and medical health) and, using standardized measures, …

In Vitro Cytotoxic, Genotoxic, And Oxidative Effects Of Acyclic Sesquiterpene Farnesene, Kübra Çeli̇k, Başak Toğar, Hasan Türkez, Numan Taşpinar

Turkish Journal of Biology

Farnesene (FNS) is an acyclic sesquiterpene. It has a wide range of important biological effects such as antioxidant, antimicrobial, and antifungal properties, although its cytotoxic, cytogenetic, and oxidative effects have not been investigated in human blood tissue yet. To this aim, both MTT and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) assays were carried out to evaluate cell viability and cytotoxicity. Total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and total oxidative stress (TOS) parameters were used to assess oxidative alterations. In addition, micronucleus and chromosomal aberration tests were used for mutagenic and genotoxic studies. The results revealed that FNS reduced cell viability at concentrations of higher than …

A Cdna-Aflp Protocol With Reciprocally Arranged 2-Enzyme Sequential Digestion And Silver Staining Detection, Mehmet Ali̇ Südüpak

Turkish Journal of Biology

This study provides a modified protocol to the standard cDNA-amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) procedure that has been used to detect differentially expressed transcripts in various systems. Modifications aimed to improve the overall coverage of the technique and the isolation of single fragments from each of the cDNA species. The protocol utilizes oligo-d(T) coupled magnetic beads to isolate and synthesize, and 2-enzyme sequential digestions of ds-cDNA molecules with flip-flop strategy on the beads to release transcript tags representing individual mRNA type and quantity. The protocol has been applied to detect Puccinia sorghi-induced expressional changes in maize leaf material sampled at …

Effect Of Nanosized Tio_2 Particles On The Development Of Xenopus Laevis Embryos, Ayşe Bi̇rhanli, Fatma Bi̇lge Emre, Funda Sayilkan, Abbas Güngördü

Turkish Journal of Biology

This paper reports the toxic properties of nano-TiO_2 on 2 different early life stages of Xenopus laevis. Synthesis of nano-TiO_2 particles was carried out by the hydrothermal method. Characterization of nanoparticles was performed using spectral techniques including X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and a particle-size analyzer. Embryos at the 8th stage and tadpoles at the 46th stage were exposed to 7 concentrations of nano-TiO_2 in the range of 5 to 320 ppm. After 96 h of exposure, the mortality percentage of each exposure concentration was calculated and the activity of enzyme biomarkers acetylcholinesterase, carboxylesterase, glutathione S-transferase, glutathione reductase, lactate dehydrogenase, …

The Effect Of Prosody Instruction On Reading Fluency And Comprehension Among Third-Grade Students, Tammy B. Overstreet

Dissertations

Problem

Many students are failing to become proficient readers with current instructional methods used in American schools. Students frequently make improvements in two of fluency’s dimensions, rate and accuracy, but these improvements have not consistently correlated to improvements in reading comprehension, which is the objective of reading. The automaticity plus prosody (APP) model was developed by this researcher from Topping’s deep processing fluency model to explain why teaching and assessing the multiple dimensions of fluency (rate, accuracy, and prosody) improve comprehension. The purpose of this study was to compare students in a private school in a small town in southwestern …

Relationship Between Involvement In Institutional Activities And Christian Life Commitment Among Undergraduate Students Of A Christian University In Mexico, Esteban Quiyono

Dissertations

Problem

A considerable gap in knowledge exists regarding religious commitment among young people in Mexican Christian colleges, where many institutional resources are invested to foster such commitment. This study attempted to identify the extent to which Christian commitments of undergraduate students in a Mexican Christian university are related to their involvement in institutional activities, influential agents, and selected demographic variables (gender, grade level, place of residence, and field of study).

Method

A descriptive cross-sectional and correlational design was conducted using survey research methodology with a stratified sample of 332 undergraduate students enrolled during the fall term of the 2002-2003 college …

Factors That Relate To Registered Nurses' Readiness For Interprofessional Learning In The Context Of Continuing Professional Development, Collette Williams

Dissertations

Today’s health-care professionals practice in a highly technological, multidisciplinary environment. In order to provide safe, effective, and high-quality patient care, collaboration is required among all professionals. Traditionally each profession has operated independently in regard to continued professional development. The purpose of this study was to assess practicing registered nurses’ readiness toward interprofessional learning in order to align learning with current practice.

Method. An ex post facto study design was used to gather data to examine if there is a relationship between variables of demographics and readiness for interprofessional learning. The Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale (RIPLS) assesses the readiness for …

Cover And Contents

Turkish Journal of Biology

No abstract provided.

Photocatalytic Antimicrobial Effect Of Tio_2 Anatase Thin-Film-Coated Orthodontic Arch Wires On 3 Oral Pathogens, Fi̇gen Özyildiz, Ataç Uzel, Ayşe Serpi̇l Hazar, Mustafa Güden, Sultan Ölmez, Işil Aras, İsmai̇l Karaboz

Turkish Journal of Biology

The aim of this study was to introduce antimicrobial activity to stainless steel orthodontic arch wires by coating them with TiO_2 in anatase form. Stainless steel (0.016 × 0.022 inch), D-rect (0.016 × 0.022 inch), and multistranded hammered retainer wires (0.014 × 0.018 inch) were coated with TiO_2 anatase by the sol-gel dip coating method. The wires were assessed for their photocatalytic antimicrobial activity against Streptococcus mutans, Candida albicans, and Enterococcus faecalis. After illumination under UVA (315-400 nm) at 1.0 mW/cm^2 for 1 h, the reduction efficiencies of the anatase-coated arch wires were calculated by using colony-forming unit counts. All …