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David Cordie Receives Research Award At Parasitologists Conference, Lawrence University

Press Releases

Lawrence University biology major David Cordie was recognized for the best undergraduate presentation at the recent Annual Midwestern Conference of Parasitologists (AMCOP) held at Purdue University.

Cordie received the Raymond Cable Award for his presentation “Testing alternate hypotheses of parasitic communities and aquatic invasive species interaction in Green Bay, Lake Michigan.” The award included a $200 cash prize.

Seniors Briana Harter and Samantha Luebke joined Cordie at the conference as poster presenters.

Cordie’s presentation focused on research he began last summer on the round goby, an invasive fish species that competes with and preys upon native fish species, disrupting the …

Cosm News, Georgia Southern University

College of Science & Mathematics: News & Publications (2012-2022)

• Biology Professor selected as 2013 Governor’s Teaching Fellow

Research Team Focuses On Invertebrate Species Diversity In The Fox River, St. Norbert College

St. Norbert College Magazine 2013-2018

The Fox River Valley has long been a locus for manufacturing, in large part because of its proximity to water, but as a team of St. Norbert researchers has shown, the relationship between industry and the river that runs through it can also make for an intriguing area of focus when it comes to environmental studies.

Plant Cytoskeleton: Della Connects Gibberellins To Microtubules, Ram Dixit

Biology Faculty Research

A new study reveals that DELLA proteins directly interact with the prefoldin complex, thus regulating tubulin subunit availability in a gibberellin-dependent manner. This finding provides a mechanistic link between the growth-promoting plant hormone gibberellin and cortical microtubule organization.

Synergistic Inhibition Of Survival, Proliferation, And Migration Of U87 Cells With A Combination Of Ly341495 And Iressa, Zarina Yelskaya, Vangie Carrillo, Ewa Dubisz, Hira Gulzar, Devon Morgan, Shahana S. Mahajan

Publications and Research

Glioblastomas exploit various molecular pathways to promote glutamate-dependent growth by activating the AMPA (2-amino-3-(3-hydroxy-5-methyl-isoxazol-4-yl) propanoic acid) receptor, the group II metabotropic glutamate receptor, mGluR, and the epidermal growth factor receptor, EGFR. We hypothesized that targeting more than one of these pathways would be more effective in inhibiting glutamate-dependent growth. Using a model of U87 cell line, we show that blocking glutamate release by Riluzole inhibits cell proliferation. Glutamate-dependent growth is effectively inhibited by a combination of Iressa, an inhibitor of EGFR activation and LY341495, a group II mGluR inhibitor. Treatment of U87 cells with a combination of Iressa and LY341495 …

Seroprevalence Of Epstein-Barr Virus Infection In U.S. Children Ages 6-19, 2003-2010, Jennifer Beam Dowd, Tia Palermo, Jennifer Brite, Thomas W. Mcdade, Allison Aiello

Publications and Research

Background Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a common herpesvirus linked to infectious mononucleosis and multiple cancers. There are no national estimates of EBV seroprevalence in the United States. Our objective was to estimate the overall prevalence and sociodemographic predictors of EBV among U.S. children and adolescents aged 6–19. Methods We calculated prevalence estimates and prevalence ratios for EBV seroprevalence using data from the 2003–2010 U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) for children aged 6–19 (n = 8417). Poisson regression was used to calculate multivariable-adjusted prevalence ratios across subgroup categories (sex, race/ethnicity, parental education, household income, household size, foreign-born, BMI, …

Tidal Variation In Nitrogen Cycling In Oregon Sponges, Stacia Cowgill, Matthew Creech, Amy Hammerquist

Science and Social Sciences

As filter feeders, marine sponges are closely integrated with their environment. Sponges also host many diverse species of bacteria that carry out a gamut of metabolic processes, including several nitrogen transformations. The variable nature of tidal exchanges can influence the biogeochemicals available for the sponge and its associated microbes to obtain from the environment. As ambient nutrient concentrations change, it is suggested that the pumping rates of the sponge will change, thus altering the activity of the symbionts. To explore these hypotheses, ambient and exhalent water samples were collected at both high tide and low tide in Netarts Bay, Oregon. …

Mapping The Beta-Sheet Structure Of The Yeast Prion Sup35 Through Creation Of Targeted Mutant Forms, Emily K. Davis, James D. Knox, Daniel Palacios

Science and Social Sciences

Proteins with an aggregated form rich in beta-sheet structure are known as amyloids, of which a subset are infectious. These infectious proteins are known as prions and cause diseases including bovine spongiform encephalopathy (“Mad Cow” disease). Several prions have been identified in the baker’s yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. One of the most well-studied yeast prions is the protein Sup35. To understand the fine protein structure of Sup35 better, we used PCR-based mutagenesis to introduce a lysine residue (a charged amino acid) at five defined places in the protein sequence of Sup35. We describe our process for creating these mutant versions and …

Teaching Information Literacy Using A Train-The-Trainer Model With Biology Lab Instructors, Valerie E. Perry, Patricia J. Hartman, Jason Keinsley, Meghan Moran, Renae Newhouse

Library Presentations

In Spring 2013, we collaborated with the Biology Department course coordinator at University of Kentucky to create, teach, and assess course-integrated information literacy sessions for 17 Biology Lab sections, reaching 462 students once a week for two weeks (thus 34 sessions reaching 934 attendees). We also experimented with the “train-the-trainer” model by providing an introductory session to TAs, then alternating one librarian-led section with one TA-led section. We taught in a Macbook lab, using Powerpoint presentations mixed with active instruction and tools such as PollEverywhere and Course Guides. We assessed the information literacy concepts learned using a simple Google Docs …

Trends In Citations To Books On Epidemiological And Statistical Methods In The Biomedical Literature, Miquel Porta, Jan P. Vandenbroucke, John P. A. Ioannidis, Sergio Sanz, Esteve Fernandez, Raj Bhopal, Alfredo Morabia, Cesar Victora, Tomàs Lopez

Publications and Research

Background There are no analyses of citations to books on epidemiological and statistical methods in the biomedical literature. Such analyses may shed light on how concepts and methods changed while biomedical research evolved. Our aim was to analyze the number and time trends of citations received from biomedical articles by books on epidemiological and statistical methods, and related disciplines. Methods and Findings The data source was the Web of Science. The study books were published between 1957 and 2010. The first year of publication of the citing articles was 1945. We identified 125 books that received at least 25 citations. …

David Cordie Senior Experience Exhibited At Uw-Fox’S Valley’S Weis Earth Science Museum, Lawrence University

Press Releases

As part of his Senior Experience, Lawrence University senior biology major David Cordie is curating an exhibition of fossils detailing climate change that will be featured at UW-Fox’s Valley’s Weis Earth Science Museum beginning Wednesday, May 8.

The exhibition features a dozen plant fossils from the Mazon Creek fossil bed in northern Illinois. Cordie also created several posters to accompany the fossils, explaining what they reveal about the region’s climate approximately 350 million years ago. It will be on display until mid-July. Cordie began the project last summer as part of an internship with Weis Museum director Joanne Kluessendorf. …

Bromus Tectorum Litter Alters Photosynthetic Characteristics Of Biological Soil Crusts From A Semiarid Shrubland, Marcelo D. Serpe, Eric Roberts, David J. Eldridge, Roger Rosentreter

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Invasion by the exotic annual grass Bromus tectorum has increased the cover and connectivity of fine litter in the sagebrush steppes of western North America. This litter tends to cover biological soil crusts, which could affect their metabolism and growth. To investigate this possible phenomenon, biological soil crusts dominated by either the moss Bryum argenteum or the lichen Diploschistes muscorum were covered with B.tectorum litter (litter treatment) or left uncovered (control treatment) and exposed to natural field conditions. After periods of five and ten months, we removed the litter and compared the photosynthetic performance of biological soil crusts …

Recent Characterizations Of Mscs And Its Homologs Provide Insight Into The Basis Of Ion Selectivity In Mechanosensitive Channels, Grigory Maksaev, Elizabeth S. Haswell

Biology Faculty Research

The bacterial mechanosensitive channel MscS provides an excellent model system for the study of mechanosensitivity and for investigations into the cellular response to hypoosmotic shock. Numerous studies have elucidated the structure, function and gating mechanism of Escherichia coli MscS, providing a wealth of information for the comparative analysis of MscS family members in bacteria, archaea, fungi and plants. We recently reported the electrophysiological characterization of MscS-Like (MSL)10, a MscS homolog from the model flowering plant Arabidopsis thaliana. Here we summarize our results and briefly compare MSL10 to previously described members of the MscS family. Finally, we comment on how …

The Varied Roles Of Induced Plant Responses In Species Interactions, Justine B. Roths Ms

All Student Scholarship

In this review, I will discuss indirect species interactions that occur as a result of herbivore-induced trait changes in plants. Species interactions are at the very core of the field of ecology. In particular, plant–insect herbivore interactions are of central importance as these two groups together consist of over 75% of the macroscopic diversity on earth. Historically, research has focused on pair-wise direct interactions however, more recently, the importance of indirect interactions has been widely acknowledged. Indeed, indirect interactions may be as strong and as common as direct interactions. Indirect interactions have been actively investigated in plant–insect systems, which are …

Earliest Archaeological Evidence Of Persistent Hominin Carnivory, Joseph V. Ferraro, Thomas W. Plummer, Briana L. Pobiner, James S. Oliver, Laura C. Bishop, David R. Braun, Peter W. Ditchfield, John W. Seaman, Katie M. Binetti, John W. Seaman, Fritz Hertel, Richard Potts

Publications and Research

The emergence of lithic technology by ∼2.6 million years ago (Ma) is often interpreted as a correlate of increasingly recurrent hominin acquisition and consumption of animal remains. Associated faunal evidence, however, is poorly preserved prior to ∼1.8 Ma, limiting our understanding of early archaeological (Oldowan) hominin carnivory. Here, we detail three large well-preserved zooarchaeological assemblages from Kanjera South, Kenya. The assemblages date to ∼2.0 Ma, pre-dating all previously published archaeofaunas of appreciable size. At Kanjera, there is clear evidence that Oldowan hominins acquired and processed numerous, relatively complete, small ungulate carcasses. Moreover, they had at least occasional access to the …

A Plspm-Based Test Statistic For Detecting Gene-Gene Co-Association In Genome-Wide Association Study With Case-Control Design, Xiaoshuai Zhang, Xiaowei Yang, Zhongshang Yuan, Yanxun Liu, Fangyu Li, Bin Peng, Dianwen Zhu, Jinghua Zhao, Fuzhong Xue

Publications and Research

For genome-wide association data analysis, two genes in any pathway, two SNPs in the two linked gene regions respectively or in the two linked exons respectively within one gene are often correlated with each other. We therefore proposed the concept of gene-gene co-association, which refers to the effects not only due to the traditional interaction under nearly independent condition but the correlation between two genes. Furthermore, we constructed a novel statistic for detecting gene-gene co-association based on Partial Least Squares Path Modeling (PLSPM). Through simulation, the relationship between traditional interaction and co-association was highlighted under three different types of co-association. …

Developing Stable Isotope Biomarkers Of Yup'ik Traditional And Market Foods To Detect Associations With Chronic Disease Risk, Sarah H. Nash

Biological Sciences

This dissertation addresses the need for valid measures of dietary intake for use in studies of chronic disease risk in the Yup'ik population of Southwest Alaska. The Yup'ik people have experienced dietary changes over the past century, as consumption of traditional foods has been increasingly supplemented or replaced by market-purchased foods. Determining whether this dietary change is associated with increases in chronic disease risk is important for making nutritional recommendations for disease prevention. However, monitoring dietary change is challenging, in part due to the limitations of self-reported methods of dietary assessment. Dietary biomarkers are promising alternatives to self-reported methods, because …

Overexpression Of Full-Length Centrobin Rescues Limb Malformation But Not Male Fertility Of The Hypodactylous (Hd) Rats, František Liška, Claudia Gosele, Elena Popova, Blanka Chylíková, Drahomíra Křenová, Vladimír Křen, Michael Bader, Laura L. Tres, Norbert Hubner, Abraham L. Kierszenbaum

Publications and Research

Rat hypodactyly (hd) mutation is characterized by abnormal spermatogenesis and sperm decapitation, limb malformation (missing digits II and III) and growth retardation. We have previously reported centrobin (centrosome BRCA2-interacting protein) truncation at the C-terminus in the hd mutant. Here, we report data from a transgenic rescue experiment carried out to determine a role of centrobin in pathogenesis of hd. The transgenic construct, consisting of full-length-coding cDNA linked to a ubiquitous strong promoter/enhancer combination, was inserted to chromosome 16 into a LINE repeat. No known gene is present in the vicinity of the insertion site. Transgenic centrobin was expressed in all …

Warm Springs, Early Lay Dates, And Double Brooding In A North American Migratory Songbird, The Black-Throated Blue Warbler, Andrea K. Townsend, T. Scott Sillett, Nina K. Lany, Sara A. Kaiser, Nicholas L. Rodenhouse, Michael S. Webster, Richard T. Holmes

Dartmouth Scholarship

Numerous studies have correlated the advancement of lay date in birds with warming climate trends, yet the fitness effects associated with this phenological response have been examined in only a small number of species. Most of these species–primarily insectivorous cavity nesters in Europe–exhibit fitness declines associated with increasing asynchrony with prey. Here, we use 25 years of demographic data, collected from 1986 to 2010, to examine the effects of spring temperature on breeding initiation date, double brooding, and annual fecundity in a Nearctic - Neotropical migratory songbird, the black-throated blue warbler (Setophaga caerulescens). Data were collected from birds breeding at …

The Alternative Appeal, Courtney Deroo

Annual Celebration of Student Scholarship and Creativity

For decades, Americans expressed dissatisfaction with conventional cancer treatments. I examine the appeal of biological alternatives to surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy for patients with cancer. The limited effectiveness and side effects of many conventional cancer therapies led many patients to pursue a variety of unconventional therapies. To improve the quality of care for cancer patients, "mainstream" providers must better understand, and even collaborate with, alternative practitioners.

The Degeneration Of The Human Mind: An Analysis Of Alzheimer’S Disease, A Kuhnian Perspective, Genevieve Ilg

Spring 2013, Kuhn's Philosophy of Science

In 1906, a German physician, Dr. Alois Alzheimer, specifically identified a collection of brain cell abnormalities (and the formation of plaque in the brain) as a disease, which forever changed the way scientists view degenerative cognitive disorders. Today, this brain disease bears his name, and is one of the most common diseases among the aging population. The discovery of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) can be seen as a revolutionary, paradigmatic shift in regards to scientific discovery from a Kuhnian perspective. In that vein, the discovery presents philosophical implications for the notion of personhood and how those suffering from AD are treated …

The Antibiotic Revolution, Alyssa Olsen

Spring 2013, Kuhn's Philosophy of Science

In 1928, Alexander Fleming discovered Penicillin, which revolutionized the way infections were treated. This discovery was revolutionary because it impacted the scientific field, the medical field, the pharmaceutical industry, and all of humanity. Alexander Fleming’s discovery of Penicillin sparked the development of antibiotics, which has continued to save people’s lives since the revolution. Thomas Kuhn would qualify the discovery of Penicillin by Alexander Fleming as a revolution because it led to a paradigm shift. Prior to the discovery of Penicillin, patients died from trivial injuries and infections. Fleming’s discovery of Penicillin is revolutionary because it changed the worldview of the …

Using The Unispec To Test The Difference In Reflectance Of The Yellow Petals Of Encelia Californica, Encelia Farinosa, And Spartium Junceum, Mariam E. Fam, Valerie E. Espinoza

Featured Research

The reflectance spectrum of three yellow flowered species (Encelia californica, Encelia farinosa, and Spartium junceum), all grown on the coast of California, was tested to determine if reflectance among the yellow flowers was significantly different. It was hypothesized that there would be a significant difference in reflectance in the 400-700 nm wavebands for the three different species of flowers which all possess yellow petals. Using a Unispec Spectral Analysis System to obtain reflectance spectra for 12 yellow petals of three flowered species, a custom index was created in order to observe differences in the yellow color of the petals, which …

The Effects Of Leaf Hydration On Light Reflectance In Salvia Leucophylla And S. Mellifera, Logan A. Schmitz, Kolina Mah-Ginn, Hayley Presthus

Featured Research

The presence of trichomes on a plant affect the plant’s ability to retain water; this, in turn, must affect light propagation and reflectance. It was hypothesized that a plant with a higher trichome density (Salvia leucophylla) would have a greater change in reflectance when exposed to a more aired or hydrated environment than a species with a lower trichome density (S. mellifera). Results obtained using a Unispec suggest that Salvia mellifera is more resistant to change in NDVI in response to drying and wetting. Water potential data suggest this may be related to the plant’s resistance to actual drying and …

Fire Edge Effect On Water Potential And Stomatal Conductance In Salvia Leucophylla, Brigid N. Bergin, Paul Chung, Laura C. Miranda

Featured Research

While most plants caught in the middle of wildfires are completely incinerated, many in the edges survive despite suffering partial incineration and/or heat-induced damage. We hypothesized that heat damaged Salvia leucophylla will display a decrease in both stomatal conductance and water potential. We suspected that applying excess heat would lower the plant’s water levels and damage functional components necessary for photosynthesis, so the stomata would close to conserve water. S. leucophylla was chosen to study due to the likelihood of this widespread coastal sage to be found in the edges of wildfires in the Santa Monica Mountains. Using a heat …

Differences In Alkaloid Defenses In The Poison Frog Oophaga Pumilio Between Disturbed And Undisturbed Habitats Of Bocas Del Toro, Panama, Yaritbel Torres-Mendoza

Senior Honors Projects

Poison frogs have the ability to sequester and store alkaloids in their skin as a mechanism of defense against predation. Alkaloids in poison frogs are obtained exclusively from the consumption of alkaloid-containing arthropods. As a result, changes in the environment can potentially harm Oophaga pumilio by altering their source of chemical defense. To date, only two conflicting studies have examined the effects of habitat disturbance on poison frogs chemical defenses. In the present study the effects of habitat disturbance on populations of O. pumilio from Colon and Solarte Islands, Bocas del Toro archipelago in Panama is examined. In addition, an …

Comparative Study Of The Mechanical Strength In Two Species Of Ferns: Polystichum Munitum And Pteridium Aquilinum, Russell P. Baetiong, Victoria M. Lekson, Olivier B. Monty

Featured Research

A comparative study of the mechanical strength in two species of ferns, the winter deciduous Pteridium aquilinum and the evergreen Polystichum munitum, was done. The mechanical strength of the leaf and stipe were used as a means for comparison. Additional data such as specific leaf mass (g/cm2) were also collected. The first hypothesis was that the evergreen fern would have higher leaf mechanical strength, while the second hypothesis was that there would be no difference in the mechanical strength of the stipe. The mechanical strength of the stipe was compared through the Modulus of Elasticity (MOE), while the leaf tensile …

Top And Bottom Photosynthetic Activity In Nerium Oleander And Pandanus Baptistii, Ryan Arima, Jacob Gonzalez

Featured Research

Photosynthesis can be performed on any part of a leaf, yet many plants orient their leaves in different ways and are composed of different leaf anatomies. In this experiment we attempted to discover if there is a significant difference between photosynthesis on the top and bottom of Nerium oleander, a dicot that orients its dorsal face towards the sun, and Pandanus baptistii, a monocot that does not orient its leaves specifically to the sun. To perform this experiment, we used both the LI-6400 and the LiCor Integrating Sphere. With the LI-6400, we measured the photosynthetic rate of the top and …

Mechanical Strength Comparison Of Hydrated And Dehydrated Pteridium Stems, Michelle I. Kang, Kevin M. Ko, John H. Noh, Veronica R. Vega

Featured Research

In this experiment, the mechanical strength of Pteridium stems was tested in two differing conditions: hydrated and dehydrated. It was hypothesized that there would be an increased performance of hydrated stems in the presence of mechanical stress. In order to test this hypothesis, twelve 20 cm pieces of stems were cut in alternation, separating those that would be dehydrated (6) with those that were hydrated (6). The dehydrated specimens were left to dry over a period of 24 hours. The diameters of each individual stem were measured to account for variation in size and remove excess variables. All twelve stems …

Using The Pace Eportfolio To Assess Core Values, Beth Klingner, Linda Anstendig, Sarah Burns-Feyl

Cornerstone 3 Reports : Interdisciplinary Informatics

No abstract provided.