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Embryology And Wing Development In A Dragonfly (Tramea Onusta), Valeria M. Casas

Theses and Dissertations

Most phylogenetic research within the insect phylogeny is focused on higher order taxons. Therefore, to better understand insect wing and flight origin, genetic studies on more primitive insect orders is necessary. Odonata, the order including dragonflies, is one of the earliest insect taxa to develop wings. Hox genes are highly conserved regulatory genes involved in embryonic development of organisms. Hox gene expression studies in insects allow improved insight of body plan development including wings. Embryonic development of dragonfly, Tramea onusta, was analyzed at various developmental stages. Developmental genes Antennapedia, Distal-less, Ultrabithorax, abdominal-A, Abdominal-B, engrailed, Cadual, engrailed 2, Wingless, nubbin, …

Clustering Mixed Data: An Extension Of The Gower Coefficient With Weighted L2 Distance, Augustine Oppong

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Sorting out data into partitions is increasing becoming complex as the constituents of data is growing outward everyday. Mixed data comprises continuous, categorical, directional functional and other types of variables. Clustering mixed data is based on special dissimilarities of the variables. Some data types may influence the clustering solution. Assigning appropriate weight to the functional data may improve the performance of the clustering algorithm. In this paper we use the extension of the Gower coefficient with judciously chosen weight for the L2 to cluster mixed data.The benefits of weighting are demonstrated both in in applications to the Buoy data set …

Post-Transcriptional Regulation Of Rsma In Pseudomonas Aeruginosa, Ian Miller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a Gram-negative bacillus found in numerous environments. Gene regulatory mechanisms such as; Two-Component Systems, transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulators, and small non-coding RNAs control the expression of virulence factors that allow P. aeruginosa to initiate acute infections and persist as a chronic infection. A significant post-transcriptional regulator involved in these regulatory networks is the Regulator of Secondary Metabolites (RsmA). In this study, we investigated the contribution of a putative stem-loop on expression of RsmA. We constructed rsmA leader fusions to measure translation with and without the stem-loop present. Secondly, we introduced point mutations to disrupt the formation …

Characterization Of A Variant Of Tuberous Sclerosis Complex 2 And Its Interaction With Rheb, Sowmya Sivakumar

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Protein-protein interactions are vital in maintaining proper function and homeostasis in cells. Some signaling pathways are regulated by G-proteins that work like switches to activate and deactivate pathways. Mutations in these proteins, their effectors or the interaction between proteins may cause dysregulation of signals that can lead to many diseases.

Rheb, Ras homology enriched in brain, is a Ras family GTPase that is vital in regulation of the mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) pathway that signals cell proliferation and growth. Due to the low intrinsic GTPase activity of Rheb, a GTPase activating protein (GAP), Tuberous Sclerosis Complex 2 (TSC2) down …

Determining The Effect Of Locally Delivered Bioactive Modulators On Macrophage Activation At The Implantation Site Of Different Biomaterials In Rats, Kamel Alkhatib

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Altering the foreign body reaction by targeting macrophages has been of interest in the biomaterials field to improve the integration of longevity of implanted biomedical devices. The objective of this dissertation was to study the effect of locally delivered bioactive modulators on macrophage activation at the implantation site of different biomaterials in rats. Iloprost, a prostacyclin analog, was tested for its ability to direct macrophages to their pro-wound healing phenotype after the implantation of microdialysis probe in the subcutaneous space of male Sprague Dawley rats. This study showed that iloprost can shift macrophage activation states in vivo to the pro-wound …

Networks In Nature: Applying Cultural Ecology For Stewardship, Shelby Lasaine

College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to describe the historical context and systemic structure of the Western agrarian estate model to locate opportunities for strategic solutions to environmental degradation in a way that balances cultivated and conserved natural resources. In part 1, landholders are identified as a point of leverage in the agrarian system. Part 2 goes over the historical development of the Western estate and state traditions, which support landholders by having instituted land administration and information systems to enfranchise their activity. The systemic theory that underlies the Western model is outlined in part 3, describing how social and …

Associations Of Functional Connectivity And Walking Performance In Multiple Sclerosis, Rachel E. Bollaert, Kyle Poe, Elizabeth A. Hubbard, Robert W. Motl, Lara A. Pilutti, Curtis L. Johnson, Bradley P. Sutton

Exercise Science Faculty Research and Publications

Background

Persons with multiple sclerosis (MS) often demonstrate impaired walking performance, and neuroimaging methods such as resting state functional connectivity. (RSFC) may support a link between central nervous system damage and disruptions in walking.

Objectives

This study examined associations between RSFC in cortical networks and walking performance in persons with MS.

Methods

29 persons with MS underwent 3-T brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and we computed RSFC among 68 Gy matter regions of interest in the brain. Participants completed the Timed 25-foot Walk as a measure of walking performance. We examined associations using partial Pearson product-moment correlation analyses (r …

An Interface Of The Taste And Reward Systems In The Brainstem And Its Role In Feeding, Louis Saites

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

We eat what tastes good. We also eat because it is necessary for our health. In fact, some of the most nutritious foods (e.g., vegetables) are often less appetizing, and the tastiest (e.g., fast food, ice cream) may be the least healthy. Despite the former, we may also have a lower limit of what we accept at which point nutrition becomes irrelevant (e.g., “spinach is just too yucky”). Further, we may eat unhealthily because of overwhelming urges. We investigated the complex interactions of taste and feeding at the neurobiological level using the experiments described.

In one sense, this neurobiology begins …

Understanding The Impact Of Bcrp And Pgp Efflux Transporters On The Disposition Of Their Endogenous, Xenobiotic And Dietary Substrates, Samit Ganguly

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Breast Cancer Resistant Protein (BCRP) and P-glycoprotein (PGP) are membrane-bound efflux transporters that transport multiple chemical classes of compounds and act as barriers to tissue permeability, thereby regulating tissue exposure of their substrates. The role of these transporters in therapeutic resistance of their xenobiotic substrates due to their expression and efflux function at target organs/tissues, especially in brain and intestine, is well established, which has fueled investigation toward identification of their inhibitors. Multiple clinically used drugs and dietary chemicals have been reported to inhibit these transporters and potentially increase the exposure of concomitantly administered BCRP and/or PGP substrates, which might …

A Practical Incremental Learning Framework For Sparse Entity Extraction, Hussein Al-Olimat, Steven Gustafson, Jason Mackay, Krishnaprasad Thirunarayan, Amit Sheth

Publications

This work addresses challenges arising from extracting entities from textual data, including the high cost of data annotation, model accuracy, selecting appropriate evaluation criteria, and the overall quality of annotation. We present a framework that integrates Entity Set Expansion (ESE) and Active Learning (AL) to reduce the annotation cost of sparse data and provide an online evaluation method as feedback. This incremental and interactive learning framework allows for rapid annotation and subsequent extraction of sparse data while maintaining high accuracy. We evaluate our framework on three publicly available datasets and show that it drastically reduces the cost of sparse entity …

Relationships Among Invasive Coqui Frogs, The Small Indian Mongoose And Rat Species In Hawaii, Shane A. Hill

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Non-native species are increasing globally, and with this increase, it is likely that there will be new, unique relationships found among non-natives as well as additional impacts on native species. Rats and mongooses have been introduced to islands throughout the world where they impact native species, including birds, reptiles, and amphibians. The coqui frog was introduced to Hawaii in the 1980’s, where there were already abundant rat and mongoose populations. Previous research suggests that the high densities of coqui frogs may provide enough of a new food source for mongooses and rats that their populations would grow larger than they …

Integrated Management Of Billbugs (Coleoptera: Dryophthoridae) In Intermountain West Turfgrass, Madeleine M. Dupuy

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Billbugs are a serious pest of turfgrass in the Intermountain West. Billbug larvae severely discolor and eventually kill turfgrass by feeding in stems, on roots, and on crowns of the plant. Billbugs are typically managed with preventive, calendar-based applications of insecticides. Most of our knowledge on the biology and management of billbugs comes from research in the eastern U.S, and little is known about billbug biology and best management practices in the Intermountain West. First, I examined the seasonal activity of billbug life stages in Intermountain West turfgrass and developed a predictive degree-day model to better time management strategies against …

Gene-Environment Interaction: Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (Bdnf) As A Moderating Factor For The Effects Of Exercise And Diet On Cognitive And Mental Health: The Cache County Study On Memory In Aging, Chelsea L. Sanders

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Cache County Study on Memory in Aging, funded by the National Institute on Aging, studied longitudinal changes in memory and aging over 12 years’ follow-up in a population-based sample of 5,092 older adults in semirural Cache County, UT. Among the extensive interview procedures, researchers collected information regarding the participants’ demographics, health, genetic factors, diet, physical activity, and cognitive abilities. This study has allowed researchers to investigate how genetic and modifiable lifestyle factors interact to predict health, cognitive function, and psychological wellbeing in older adults.

Diet and exercise are important lifestyle factors in maintaining cognitive health and psychological wellbeing throughout …

Effect Of Tannin-Containing Legume Hays On Enteric Methane Emissions And Nitrogen Partitioning In Beef Cattle, Elizabeth K. Stewart

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Cattle are responsible for greenhouse gas emissions such as carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide. In particular, the cow-calf phase of production accounts for approximately 80 percent of the total beef production system greenhouse gas emissions. Tannins are chemical compounds found in certain forages and they have the potential to help reduce these negative environmental impacts. Thus, given that the cow-calf phase often relies on feeding hay, feeding tannin-containing hays may represent a significant mitigation practice.

With my MS program, I sought to explore whether tannin-containing hays fed to mother cows and heifers influence methane and nitrogen emissions relative to …

Patterns Of Threatened Vertebrates Based On Trophic Level, Diet, And Biogeography, Shaley A. Valentine

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Humans have indirectly and directly contributed to the extinction of over 500 species within the past 500 years, a rate far higher than we have seen in the past. The high extinction rate and the fact that 18% of vertebrates may become extinct within the next century have pushed Earth into a biodiversity crisis. Understanding what makes species more at risk of extinction is needed to protect Earth’s biodiversity.

Generally, it is expected that predators have greater extinction risk than omnivores and herbivores because predators are larger in body size, depend on other animal species for food, need large home …

Development And Fitness Consequences Of Onshore Behavior Among Polar Bears In The Southern Beaufort Sea Subpopulation, Kate M. Lillie

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are experiencing rapid and substantial changes to their environment due to global climate change. Polar bears of the southern Beaufort Sea (SB) have historically spent most of the year on the sea ice. However, recent reports from Alaska indicate that the proportion of the SB subpopulation observed onshore during late summer and early fall has increased considerably. Previous research suggests that the number of polar bears onshore is linked to sea ice conditions and the availability of subsistence-harvested whale carcasses, which are referred to as bone piles. My objectives were to determine the development …

Anglo-American Influence On The Teaching Of The Natural Sciences In Primary Schools Of 19th - Century Brazil, Karl M. Lorenz, Ariclê Vechia

Education Faculty Publications

In the 19th century there was a transnational movement of educational ideas from Europe and the United States to Brazil. This paper discusses the Anglo-American perspective on the teaching of the natural sciences and its effect on science education in the Brazilian primary school. It begins by examining the ideas on the teaching of science by distinguished British and American scientists and the science curricula of schools in Europe and the Americas. The paper then focuses on the final quarter century and the 1878 reform of primary education of the Minister of the Empire Leôncio da Carvalho and the ideas …

Does A Will Stand A Chance Under The Current Interpretation And Application Of Dependants' Relief Legislation In British Columbia

UBC Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Anthropocene In The Time Of Trump, Financial Markets, Climate Change Risk, And Vulnerability

UBC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Identifying Breed Effects For Cow Mature Weight, Madeline J. Zimmermann

Department of Animal Science: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Mature weight (MWT) in beef cattle has increased over the past 30 yr. In general, larger cows are costlier to maintain than smaller cows, and their profitability depends on their production environment. A wide range of beef production environments exist in the United States. There are also a variety of beef cattle breeds that can be chosen and mated to create a type of cow which will be optimally suited to excel in a given environment. However, there remains a need for tools allowing effective comparison among breeds to facilitate such decision making. Unfortunately, estimated progeny differences ( …

Evaluation Of The Interaction Of Beta-Adrenergic Agonists Supplementation And Heat Stress On Growth Performance And Carcass Composition In Feeder Lambs, Lauren Elisabeth Kett

Department of Animal Science: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Forty-nine crossbred feeder lambs (wethers, n = 49; 53.3 ± 3.7 kg BW) were utilized to evaluate the interaction of b - adrenergic agonist (bAA) supplementation and heat stress on growth performance and carcass composition. Utilizing and 3 x 2 factorial design, lambs were randomly assigned to one of three bAA supplementation: 1) Control, CON, 2) Ractopamine Hydrochloride at 40 mg/hd/d, RHCL, and Zilpaterol Hydrochloride at 2.5 mg/hd/d, ZHCL for a period of 20 d and one of two environmental conditions (Thermal Neutral: TN and Heat Stress: HS). The TN environment had a constant thermal heat index (THI) of 16.6°C. …

Airborne Bacteria In Earth's Lower Stratosphere Resemble Taxa Detected In The Troposphere: Results From A New Nasa Aircraft Bioaerosol Collector (Abc), David J. Smith, Jayamary D. Ravichandar, Sunit Jain, Dale W. Griffin, Hongbin Yu, Qian Tan, James Thissen, Terry Lusby, Patrick Nicoll, Sarah Shedler

Marine Science Faculty Publications

Airborne microorganisms in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere remain elusive due to a lack of reliable sample collection systems. To address this problem, we designed, installed, and flight-validated a novel Aircraft Bioaerosol Collector (ABC) for NASA's C-20A that can make collections for microbiological research investigations up to altitudes of 13.7 km. Herein we report results from the first set of science flights—four consecutive missions flown over the United States (US) from 30 October to 2 November, 2017. To ascertain how the concentration of airborne bacteria changed across the tropopause, we collected air during aircraft Ascent/Descent (0.3 to …

Avian Jurisprudence And The Protection Of Migratory Birds In North America, Marshall A. Bowen

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

African Trypanosomes Evade Immune Clearance By Oglycosylation Of The Vsg Surface Coat, Jason Pinger, Dragana Nešić, Liaqat Ali, Francisco Aresta-Branco, Mirjana Lilic, Shanin Chowdhury, Hee-Sook Kim, Joseph Verdi, Jayne Raper, Michael A. J. Ferguson, F. Nina Papavasiliou, C. Erec Stebbins

Publications and Research

The African trypanosome, Trypanosoma brucei spp., is a paradigm for antigenic variation, the orchestrated alteration of cell surface molecules to evade host immunity. The parasite elicits robust antibody-mediated immune responses to its Variant Surface Glycoprotein (VSG) coat, but evades immune clearance by repeatedly accessing a large genetic VSG repertoire and “switching” to antigenically distinct VSGs. This persistent immune evasion has been ascribed exclusively to amino acid variance on the VSG surface presented by a conserved underlying protein architecture. We establish here that this model does not account for the scope of VSG structural and biochemical diversity. The 1.4Å resolution crystal …

Social Interactions Occurring During An Introductory College Of Agriculture Course, Brittany Renea Leek

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

With the development of the internet, today’s students no longer are confined to the resources only found in their classrooms or public libraries and have been given the ability to gain access to virtually unlimited quantities of information on the topics or events they are discussing in their class rooms and with their peers. The use of technology for communication and education is rapidly changing, but the challenges of technology-driven learning opportunities rest on questions of access and use. There is a need to determine whether students use these methods (i.e., technology based) to more prevalently communicate today. The primary …

Investigation Of Molecular Mechanisms Involved In Retardation Of Immunosenescence In Caenorhabditis Elegans By Royal Jelly, Ojas Natarajan

All Dissertations

With recent advances in medicine, life expectancy has been steadily increasing. This increasing geriatric populous encounter various age-associated diseases including decline in immunity called immunosenescence, which renders them susceptible to an extended array of pathogens like Staphylococcus aureus. These nosocomial pathogens gain resistance to a variety of antibiotics, hence a strong innate immune system is important for host survival. Caenorhabditis elegans has no complex immune system. Hence, it is an excellent model to study the innate immune response.

Royal jelly, a nutraceutical has been previously shown to prolong the lifespan and UV, oxidative and heat shock resistance in C. …

Graphene/P(Vdf-Trfe) Heterojunction Based Wearable Sensors With Integrated Piezoelectric Energy Harvester, Soaram Kim

All Dissertations

Graphene, with its outstanding material properties, including high carrier mobility, atomically thin nature, and ability to tolerate mechanical deformation related strain up to 20% before breaking, make it very attractive for developing highly sensitive and conformable strain/pressure sensor for wearable electronics. Unfortunately, graphene by itself is not piezoresistive, so developing a strain sensor utilizing just graphene is challenging. Fortunately, graphene synthesized on Cu foil can be transferred to arbitrary substrates (preserving its high quality), including flexible polymer substrates, which will allow the overall flexibility and conformability of the sensing element, to be maintained. Furthermore, a graphene/polymer based sensor devices can …

Select Psychological And Physical Impacts Of Therapeutic Yoga For Informal Caregivers: A Feasibility Study, Alysha Amber Walter

All Dissertations

An informal caregiver (ICG) is an individual who provides unpaid care to a person with a disease or disability. The psychological and physical well-being for care recipients are positively impacted by the ICG, but an ICG's psychological and physical well-being are often negatively impacted as a result of providing informal care. Yoga may be one therapeutic intervention for ICGs to improve psychological and physical well-being. A mixed methods concurrent design was utilized to examine select psychological and physical impacts for ICGs after participating in a therapeutic yoga intervention. After the 8-week intervention, participants (n = 8) experienced a statistically significant …

Persuasive Intelligence: On The Construction Of Rhetor-Ethical Cognitive Machines, Nathan D. Riggs

All Dissertations

This work concerns the rhetorical and moral agency of machines, offering paths forward in machine ethics as well as problematizing the issue through the development and use of an interdisciplinary framework informed by rhetoric, philosophy of mind, media studies and historical narrative. I argue that cognitive machines of the past as well as those today, such as rapidly improving autonomous vehicles, are unable to make moral decisions themselves foremost because a moral agent must first be a rhetorical agent, capable of persuading and of being persuaded. I show that current machines, artificially intelligent or otherwise, and especially digital computers, are …

Living With Giants: Human-Elephant Conflict And Poaching In Myanmar, Christie Lynn Sampson

All Dissertations

To address both the impacts of poaching on the wildlife and human populations and create effective conservation policy, conservation efforts must engage communities and include their views as stakeholders in the development of the policy. The involvement of local people has been shown to increase the effectiveness and sustainability of conservation efforts. However, to appropriately engage local people, the government and conservationists must understand their experiences with wildlife, and how local communities' experiences with human-wildlife conflict and poaching influence their willingness to support wildlife conservation programs. Using the Asian elephant as an example, we developed what we consider to be …