Digital Commons Network^™

Microbial Phytases And Phytate: Exploring Opportunities For Sustainable Phosphorus Management In Agriculture, Nelly P. Balaban, Aliya D. Suleimanova, Lia R. Valeeva, Inna B. Chastukhina, Natalia L. Rudakova, Margarita R. Sharipova, Eugene V. Shakirov

Biological Sciences Faculty Research

Myo-inositol phosphates (phytates) are important biological molecules produced largely by plants to store phosphorus. Phytate is very abundant in many different soils making up a large portion of all soil phosphorus. This review assesses current phytase science from the perspective of its substrate, phytate, by examining the intricate relationship between the phytate-hydrolyzing enzymes and phytate as their substrate. Specifically, we examine available data on phytate’s structural features, distribution in nature and functional roles. The role of phytases and their localization in soil and plant tissues are evaluated. We provide a summary of the current biotechnological advances in using industrial …

Severing Ties: A Lacanian Reading Of Motherhood In Joyce Carol Oates’S Short Stories "The Children" And "Feral", Uroš Tomić

Bearing Witness: Joyce Carol Oates Studies

This paper approaches two of Joyce Carol Oates’s short stories (“The Children” and “Feral”) from a Lacanian perspective on the tripartite structure of personality in an attempt to analyze questions of motherhood and the parent-child separation process. Although published 35 years apart both stories deal with mothers who have trouble containing their maternal attitude and children who become elusive entities for their parents. Utilizing as well the concept of what Oates has termed “realistic allegory” in the analysis of characters situated within highly specific settings and circumstances, the paper aims to shed light on Oates’s vision of the workings of …

Development Of A Stream Water Temperature Model As A Component Model For Openmi Based Integrated Modelling Of River Zenne, Belgium., Narayan Kumar Shrestha, Olkeba Tolessa Leta, Jiri Nossent, Ann Van Griensven, Willy Bauwens

Open Water Journal

In 2000, the European Union launched the Water Framework Directive (WFD) (EU, 2000), which calls to achieve a good ecological status of all water bodies by 2015 through integrated river basin management. Integrated models are therefore necessary to serve as tools for river basin management in the scope of the WFD. Despite large investments made for the management of the Brussels’ sewer systems, the Zenne river still receives high loads of pollutants, especially considering the small size of this receiving water body. An interuniversity, multidisciplinary research project ‘Good Ecological Status of the river Zenne (GESZ)’ was therefore launched to evaluate …

The Trope Of Flattening And The Complexities Of Difference: An Account Of Trinidad Carnival, Nanette De Jong, Christian Mieves

Anthurium: A Caribbean Studies Journal

This paper critiques the position of flattening as an alternative way to map and analyse power structures in Trinidad Carnival. As will be argued, traditional hierarchies of meaning and value invert in Carnival, with participants using masquerade and the visual arts to perform and critique the contradictions of Trinidad society, and to make or unmake categories of difference. Flattening, as the authors argue, is particularly well suited when speaking about Carnival, whose cultural frames are constantly blurred, stretched, erased or redrawn, and where distortions of social and cultural distinctions are realised visually. Furthermore, flattening emphasises the elasticity and fluidity …

Index: Volumes 5-6, Georgia Journal Of International And Comparative Law

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Campus Vol Ii N 3, Nancy Sayre, Hugh Wittich, Jay Shaw, William T. Utter, Spiros Mandamadiotis, Glen Bammann, Terry Thurn, Sam Robinson, Olney Dekker, Jane Roudebush

Campus

Sayre, Nancy. "The Long & Short of It". Prose. 2.

Wittich, Hugh. "The Long & Short of It". Prose. 2.

Shaw, Jay. "The Most Unforgettable Professor I've met". Prose. 4.

Utter, Wm. T. "The Most Unforgettable Student I've Met". Prose. 4.

Mandamadiotis, Spiros. "Traitors Are Innocent". Prose. 5.

Bammann, Glenn. "Exposé". Prose. 6.

Robinson, Sam and Terry Thurn. "How They Do It At Denison". Picture. 8.

Dekker, Olney. "Quite a Record". Prose. 10.

Findeisen, Bob. "New Courses". Prose. 11.

Findeisen, Bob. "Budget Blues$". Prose. 12.

Roudebush, Jane. "Campus Wheel". Picture. 15.

Anonymous. Untitled. Poem. 15.

Examination Of The Collaboration Between Career Technical Education And Core Teachers In Linked Learning Pathways, Lucia M. Van Scyoc

Dissertations

Purpose. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to determine how teachers in Linked Learning Pathways rate the effectiveness and identify the impact of the collaboration strategies of a shared purpose, interdependent team and focus on results as they are used in the integration of career and technical education and core academic courses. This also included identifying and describing the criteria used by teachers to determine positive impact in identifying positive collaboration strategies.

Methodology. A mixed method research design, consisting of quantitative and qualitative data, was used to conduct this study. Specifically, an explanatory sequential design model starting with …

Mannequin Challenge | Biological Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

Who says that learning about the various properties of Biomaterials is boring? Clearly, they haven't taken Dr. Yu Huang's BENG 2330 Properties of Biomaterials course. Not only do these students know how to distinguish the differences between natural and synthetic biomaterials.They know how to have a good time bringing the mannequin challenge into their lab clean up.

Processes Of Racialization Through Media Depictions Of Transracial Violence, Megan Allen

Honors Program Theses and Projects

In this honors thesis, I explore the process of racialization in media coverage of White-on-Black violent events (both crimes and incidents not recognized by the legal system as crimes) using a critical race theory framework. Recent years have seen a series of killings of and assaults on African American people that have become newsworthy, as they have been seen, often controversially, as unjustified. The controversy has largely broken down on racial and political lines, with minority Americans and the left seeing these incidents as evidence and example of ongoing racial inequality, with whites and the right, in particular right-wing whites, …

Advanced Dual Beam Optical Tweezers For Undergraduate Biophysics Research, Brian Daudelin

Honors Program Theses and Projects

Optical tweezing is a modern physics technique which allows us to use the radiation pressure provided from laser beams to trap very small microscopic particles. In the last two decades optical tweezers have been used extensively in biophysics and atomic physics to study the building blocks of our world on the cellular and quantum levels. Our goal is to construct a dual beam optical tweezers for future undergraduate biophysical research. In this thesis we discuss how the construction and assembly of the dual beam optical tweezers is done from start to finish. Construction consisted of assembling a polarization maintaining laser. …

Rit1 Gtpase Regulates Sox2 Transcriptional Activity And Hippocampal Neurogenesis, Sajad Mir, Weikang Cai, Douglas A. Andres

Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry Faculty Publications

Adult neurogenesis, the process of generating mature neurons from neuronal progenitor cells, makes critical contributions to neural circuitry and brain function in both healthy and disease states. Neurogenesis is a highly regulated process in which diverse environmental and physiological stimuli are relayed to resident neural stem cell populations to control the transcription of genes involved in self-renewal and differentiation. Understanding the molecular mechanisms governing neurogenesis is necessary for the development of translational strategies to harness this process for neuronal repair. Here we report that the Ras-related GTPase RIT1 serves to control the sequential proliferation and differentiation of adult hippocampal neural …

Quantifying The Dna Binding Properties Of The Binuclear Ruthenium Complex Λλ-P, Nicholas Bryden

Honors Program Theses and Projects

Threading intercalators are small molecules that bind to DNA by threading their side chains through the DNA bases to intercalate their middle planar section between the DNA base pairs. The high binding affinity and slow dissociation rates of threading intercalators have put them in the class of prospective anti-cancer drugs. In this study we explore the binding of a specific threading intercalator, a binuclear ruthenium complex ΛΛ-P (ΛΛ-[μ-bidppz(phen)4Ru2]4+) using optical tweezers. A single DNA molecule is held at a constant force and the small molecules are introduced to the system in various concentrations until equilibrium is achieved. Measurements of DNA …

Molecular Typing And Virulence Analysis Of Multidrug Resistant Klebsiella Pneumoniae Clinical Isolates Recovered From Egyptian Hospitals, Reham Wasfi, Walid F. Elkhatib, Hossam M. Ashour

Molecular Biosciences Faculty Publications

Klebsiella pneumonia infection rates have increased dramatically. Molecular typing and virulence analysis are powerful tools that can shed light on Klebsiella pneumonia infections. Whereas 77.7% (28/36) of clinical isolates indicated multidrug resistant (MDR) patterns, 50% (18/36) indicated carpabenem resistance. Gene prevalence for the AcrAB efflux pump (82.14%) was more than that of the mdtK efflux pump (32.14%) in the MDR isolates. FimH-1 and mrkD genes were prevalent in wound and blood isolates. FimH-1 gene was prevalent in sputum while mrkD gene was prevalent in urine. Serum resistance associated with outer membrane protein coding gene (traT) was found in all blood …

Adaptive Variation And Introgression Of A Constans-Like Gene In North American Red Oaks, Jennifer F. Lind-Riehl, Oliver Gailing

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Oaks provide a model system to study maintenance of species identity by divergent selection since they maintain morphological differences and ecological adaptations despite interspecific hybridization. The genome of closely related interfertile oak species was shown to be largely homogeneous, with a few genomic areas exhibiting high interspecific differentiation possibly as result of strong divergent selection. Previously, a genic microsatellite was identified as under strong divergent selection, being nearly fixed on alternative alleles in the two interfertile North American red oak species: Quercus rubra L. and Quercus ellipsoidalis E.J. Hill. Further genotyping in two other red oak species—Quercus velutina Lam. and …

Reflection Matrix Method For Controlling Light After Reflection From A Diffuse Scattering Surface, Kenneth W. Burgi

Theses and Dissertations

This research focuses on reflective inverse diffusion, which was a proof-of-concept experiment that used phase modulation to shape the wavefront of a laser causing it to refocus after reflection from a rough surface. By refocusing the light, reflective inverse diffusion has the potential to eliminate the complex radiometric model of indirect photography by creating a virtual light source at the first diffuse reflector that satisfies the line-of-sight requirement of dual photography. However, the initial reflective inverse diffusion experiments provided no mathematical background and were conducted under the premise that the process operated similarly to transmissive inverse diffusion.

In this research, …

Analysis Of Small Muscle Movement Effects On Eeg Signals, Erhan E. Yanteri

Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis, the artefactual effects of the small muscle movements were investigated. Upper frequency bands (30 Hz) of the EEG signal were extracted in order to investigate the artefactual effects of the small muscle movements. When the contamination level is high, the detection of the small muscle artifact can be made with the 92.2% accuracy. If these artifacts are really small such as a single finger movement, the detection accuracy decreases to 64%. But, the detection accuracy increases to 72% after removing the eye blink artifacts. The results of the classification support our hypothesis about the artefactual effects of …

An Information Theoretic Investigation Of Complex Adaptive Supply Networks With Organizational Topologies, Joshua V. Rodewald

Theses and Dissertations

Supply networks exist throughout society in manufacturing and knowledge-intensive industries as well as many service industries. Organizations have been noted to behave as complex adaptive systems or information supply networks with both formal and informal structures. Thoroughly understanding supply network structure and behavior are critical to managing such organizations effectively, but their properties of complex adaptive systems make them more difficult to analyze and assess, forcing researchers to rely on unrealistic data or assumptions of behavior. This research proposes an information theoretic methodology to discover such complex network structures and dynamics while overcoming the difficulties historically associated with their study. …

Bioremoval Of Phenol From Aqueous Solutions Using Native Caribbean Seaweed, Abel E. Navarro, Anibal Hernandez-Vega, Md Emran Masud, Loretta M. Roberson, Liz M. Diaz-Vázquez

Publications and Research

Among several Puerto Rican algae, Sargassum sp. (SG) and Chaetomorpha (CM) showed the highest phenol adsorption capacity from aqueous solutions and were used in optimized adsorption batch experiments at room temperature. The effects of pH, adsorbent dose, phenol concentration, salinity and presence of interfering substances were evaluated. Initial solution pH exhibited a strong effect, mainly on the phenol aqueous chemistry; showing the maximum adsorption at pH 10. Sorption isotherm results were modelled according to the Langmuir, Tempkin and Freundlich equations. Isotherm modelling indicated a maximum adsorption capacity (qmax) of 82.10 and 17.7 mg of phenol per gram of SG and …

Crop, Tillage, And Landscape Effects On Near-Surface Soil Quality Indices In Indiana, W. Ashley Hammac, Diane E. Stott, Douglas Karlen, Cynthia A. Cambardella

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Soil quality is a critical link between land management and water quality. We aimed to assess soil quality within the Cedar Creek Watershed, a pothole- dominated subwatershed within the St. Joseph River watershed that drains into the Western Lake Erie Basin in northeastern Indiana. The Soil Management Assessment Framework (SMAF) with 10 soil quality indicators was used to assess inherent and dynamic soil and environmental characteristics across crop rotations, tillage practices, and landscape positions. Surface physical, chemical, and nutrient component indices were high, averaging 90, 93, and 98% of the optimum, respectively. Surface biology had the lowest component score, averaging …

Tissue, Organ Research Institute Coming To Manchester, Beth Potier

UNH Today Archive

No abstract provided.

3-D Microwell Array System For Culturing Virus Infected Tumor Cells, Umut A. Gurkan

Faculty Scholarship

Cancer cells have been increasingly grown in pharmaceutical research to understand tumorigenesis and develop new therapeutic drugs. Currently, cells are typically grown using two-dimensional (2-D) cell culture approaches, where the native tumor microenvironment is difficult to recapitulate. Thus, one of the main obstacles in oncology is the lack of proper infection models that recount main features present in tumors. In recent years, microtechnology-based platforms have been employed to generate three-dimensional (3-D) models that better mimic the native microenvironment in cell culture. Here, we present an innovative approach to culture Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) infected human B cells in 3-D using …

A Machine Learning Approach For Using The Postmortem Skin Microbiome To Estimate The Postmortem Interval, Hunter R. Johnson, Donovan D. Trinidad, Stephania Guzman, Zenab Khan, James V. Parziale, Jennifer M. Debruyn, Nathan H. Lents

Publications and Research

Research on the human microbiome, the microbiota that live in, on, and around the human person, has revolutionized our understanding of the complex interactions between microbial life and human health and disease. The microbiome may also provide a valuable tool in forensic death investigations by helping to reveal the postmortem interval (PMI) of a decedent that is discovered after an unknown amount of time since death. Current methods of estimating PMI for cadavers discovered in uncontrolled, unstudied environments have substantial limitations, some of which may be overcome through the use of microbial indicators. In this project, we sampled the microbiomes …

The Role Of One-Carbon Metabolism In The Development And Prevention Of Colorectal Cancer, Matthew P. Hanley

Doctoral Dissertations

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the 3^rd most common form of cancer in the United States, and the 2^nd most common cause of cancer-related death. CRC incidence has declined over the past several decades, however, there is a continued need for improved methods of CRC detection and prevention. Methyl group homeostasis, which is dysregulated in CRC and impacts several fundamental biological processes, represents a promising target for novel CRC detection and prevention strategies. DNA methylation is influenced by methyl group homeostasis and is known to be frequently dysregulated in CRC. However, less is known about the extent of aberrant …

Digital Holographic Microscopy Of Phase Separation In Multicomponent Lipid Membranes, Vahideh Farzam Rad, Ali-Reza Moradi, Ahmad Darudi, Lobat Tayebi

School of Dentistry Faculty Research and Publications

Lateral in-homogeneities in lipid compositions cause microdomains formation and change in the physical properties of biological membranes. With the presence of cholesterol and mixed species of lipids, phospholipid membranes segregate into lateral domains of liquid-ordered and liquid-disordered phases. Coupling of two-dimensional intralayer phase separations and interlayer liquid-crystalline ordering in multicomponent membranes has been previously demonstrated. By the use of digital holographic microscopy (DHMicroscopy), we quantitatively analyzed the volumetric dynamical behavior of such membranes. The specimens are lipid mixtures composed of sphingomyelin, cholesterol, and unsaturated phospholipid, 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine. DHMicroscopy in a transmission mode is an effective tool for quantitative visualization of phase …

How To Select Change Agents In Organizations? A Comparison Of The Classical And Network Approaches, Anita Zbieg, Dominik Batorski, Błażej Żak

European Management Studies

The dynamic business environment forces companies to change and adapt constantly. The process can be organized with help of change agents. We develop a simple network approach to spreading information and delivering feedback in organizations. We suggest selecting employees with a role of change agents, focusing on the coverage they can obtain in the network – minimize the number of involved agents and maximize the size of their overall communication area. To explore and pre-verify the proposed approach, we compared and examined several network and classical methods of selection. Data includes networks of collaboration from three medium-sized companies. Agents selected …

The Chemistry Of The Flint Water Crisis, Ernest M. Oleksy

The Downtown Review: An Interdisciplinary Journal Written and Peer-Reviewed by Mandel Honors College Students at Cleveland State University

Politics and science do not always go hand-in-hand. Nowhere was this more clear than in the Flint Water Crisis. Negligence towards growing levels of lead poisoning in drinking water led to incredibly deleterious effects on Flint's citizens. The chemistry of equilibrium and the shortcomings of local leaders led to Flint's water becoming a crisis.

Factors Influencing Swallow Bug (O. Vicarius) Populations Within Cliff Swallows Nests, Paul Mcphail

Ursidae: The Undergraduate Research Journal at the University of Northern Colorado

Hematophagous ectoparasites such as swallow bugs (Oeciacus vicarius) have been shown to have a profound negative impact on infested bird chicks, and one study shows that O. vicarius populations are positively correlated with large colonies. In this study, we investigated the abundance of O. vicarius and other arthropods within Cliff Swallow nests, and performed statistical analysis of the results to find any variables that correlated with O. vicarius population size. We expected the number of O. vicarius would be positively influenced by urban surroundings and large Cliff Swallow colony size, and that samples collected in the fall would be larger …

Faith Vs. The Environment: The Ecological Impact Of The Amarnath Yatara Pilgrimage, Emily Doerner

Ursidae: The Undergraduate Research Journal at the University of Northern Colorado

The armed conflict in Kashmir has caused tremendous environmental, human, economic, and social damage. Kashmir is situated in one of the world’s most resource rich and biologically diverse regions. It is home to a number of critically endangered species, melt-water that from glaciers that feed South Asia’s largest rivers, and major historic and religious sites. The Shir Amarnath Yatara is a sacred Hindu pilgrimage in Kashmir. The pilgrimage route goes through the Muslim town of Pahalgam, and ends at a holy shrine to Shiva Lingam. This arduous 30-mile journey, going through sub-zero temperatures in the high mountains of the Himalayas …

Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor Activation Enhances Total Iga Secretion In Leishmania Major-Infected Mice, Madeline Metten

Ursidae: The Undergraduate Research Journal at the University of Northern Colorado

Secretory IgA (antibody A) plays a critical role in neutralizing microbial toxins, regulating non-pathogenic gut microbe populations, and protecting against infections at mucous membranes, like the airways or gut. Altered IgA levels have been associated with increased risk of allergies, infection, and autoimmunity. The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) is a regulator of immune function, including IgA levels. Chemicals in food or the environment can affect IgA levels, and this has been proposed as a risk factor for human disease. In mice, activation of the AhR with a single dose of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), an environmental pollutant, has been shown to alter …

The Ribbed Drapery Of The Puerto Princesa Underground River (Palawan, Philippines): Morphology And Genesis, Paolo Forti, Giovanni Badino, Jose Maria Calaforra, Jo De Waele

International Journal of Speleology

During the 2011 speleological expedition to the Puerto Princesa Underground River (Palawan, Philippines) a drapery characterized by several close-to-horizontal ribs has been noticed. Even without sampling and analyzing its internal growth layers, a detailed morphological study allowed to present a possible genetic model. The presented model helps to explain its evolution, which is mainly controlled by variation in water flow as a consequence of the Palawan climate. When validated by further analyses, the same genetic mechanism could define also the evolution of the very common but still unexplained complex flowstones, which exhibit several close-to-horizontal steps, widenings and narrowings along their …