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Biol 115-002: Evolution Of Sex, Daphne Soares

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

How Individual Traits Predict Distribution Patterns And Community Convergence, Zachary K. Lange

Biology Dissertations - Archive

One of the fundamental questions in biology is whether natural conditions lead species and communities toward predictable outcomes. Answering this question requires understanding how traits of individual organisms are connected to species- and community-level patterns. In Chapter 2, I examined how thermal physiology and environmental temperatures interact to determine the distribution patterns of Anolis lizards on the Greater Antilles. I combined lab-measured thermal traits (critical thermal minimum: CT_min, critical thermal maximum: CT_max, thermal preference: T_pref) with occurrence and abundance data from 21 species of Anolis lizards collected from extensive mark-resight surveys of communities across …

Investigating Non-Canonical Roles Of Atr And Chk1 Throughout The Cell Cycle, Yoon Ki Joo

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Chromosome Instability (CIN), which results from DNA damage in interphase and chromosome missegregation in mitosis, is considered to be a potent driver of cancer. To prevent CIN, cells harbor the DNA Damage Response (DDR) pathway, which is responsible for detecting and repairing damaged DNA. Because of their importance in preventing CIN, the core members of the DDR pathway such as Ataxia Telangiectasia and Rad3-related (ATR) and Checkpoint kinase 1 (CHK1) have been studied as promising targets in cancer therapy. However, clinical trials show that ATR and CHK1 inhibitors elicit adverse side effects with unknown reasons. Recent research suggests that one …

Racial Health Disparities Among Pregnant Women Of Color In New York City: Biological And Systemic Impacts, Kaylin Peña

Pitzer Senior Theses

Racial Health Disparities Among Pregnant Women of Color in New York City: Biological and Systemic Impacts

Abstract

This thesis aims to explore how racial health disparities, underrepresentation in gynecology, and socioeconomic barriers contribute to adverse pregnancy outcomes among women of color in New York City. Through an interdisciplinary approach that combines resources from medical anthropology and human biology, this research will examine the biological implications of chronic stress, specifically HPA axis dysregulation, and its role in maternal health outcomes. With the idea of intersectionality, as conceptualized by Kimberlé Crenshaw, the study analyzes the various effects of systemic inequities and social …

Investigating The Sequence Requirements For Translation Initiation By Viral Internal Ribosome Entry Sites, Sabrina Gulli Grunseich

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Protein synthesis is both essential and highly regulated. This process is complex and requires the concerted effort of many protein factors. Some viruses have evolved ways to co-opt host translation during initiation by using internal ribosome entry sites (IRESs). These structured RNAs allow the virus to bind to the host's ribosome in the absence of canonical requirements. This dissertation focuses on relating the sequence of viral IRES elements to their role in initiating translation. The Cricket Paralysis Virus (CrPV) IRES is short, uses a simple mechanism, and can function in diverse cell-free systems making it a useful tool to study …

Coordinated Wnt And Shh Signaling In Hair Follicle Mesenchyme Development And Regeneration, Yiqun Jiang

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Developmental morphogenesis requires cells to balance proliferation with differentiation, often regulated by multiple signaling pathways. While most studies consider these pathways as additive, less is known about how they interact to regulate fate transitions. In this dissertation, I use the hair follicle dermal condensate (DC), the first differentiated mesenchymal population of the skin with the ability to instruct new hair growth, to study morphogens interact to regulate the dermal mesenchyme.Wnt and SHH are necessary and sufficient for DC formation, during which cell cycle exit with molecular DC gene expression occur simultaneously. Interestingly, high Wnt alone is sufficient to induce cell …

Molecular Mechanisms Of Kras Regulation And Resistance In Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma, Xiangyu Ge

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains one of the most aggressive human malignancies, with a five-year survival rate of less than 13%. Oncogenic KRAS mutations occur in over 90% of cases and drive tumor initiation and progression, making KRAS a desirable therapeutic target. Despite the development of direct KRAS inhibitors, clinical efficacy has been modest due to rapid adaptive resistance. This thesis primarily investigates the molecular mechanisms by which PDAC cells adapt to KRAS inhibition, while also uncovering co-vulnerabilities that can be therapeutically exploited. Chapter 1 provides a comprehensive literature review of KRAS biology in PDAC, summarizing historical and contemporary findings …

The Independent And Redundant Roles Of Tbx16 And Msgn1 In Mesodermal Differentiation, Guoyu Zhu

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Tbx16 and msgn1 genes are key genes responsible for the mesodermal progenitor cells to undergo mesodermal fate transition during zebrafish embryonic body elongation. Here we elucidated their previously unclear independent and redundant roles of mesodermal fate regulation. Using heat-shock induced tbx16 and msgn1 overexpression, in situ hybridization, quantitative PCR, RNA sequencing, and systematic analysis of differentially expressed genes, we found that tbx16 and msgn1 promotes mesodermal differentiation by repressing the progenitor niche that maintains the mesodermal progenitor cell state. Tbx16 and msgn1 repress the expression of many of the same genes in the mesodermal progenitor niche, but tbx16 also represses …

Exploration Of The Mechanisms Regulating Genomic Stability In Plants, Wenxin Yuan

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Genomic stability is a cornerstone of cellular integrity, with implications spanning genetic engineering, epigenetic regulation, and disease modeling. However, most studies rely on yeast or mammalian models, leaving significant gaps in our understanding of plant chromatin biology and genome stability mechanisms. Exploring the conserved and divergent processes regulating genome stability in plants has become increasingly important, especially as global climate change threatens crop yields and biodiversity. Furthermore, the developmental resilience of plants provides a unique opportunity to study genes essential in mammals, offering translational insights for agriculture and human health. This dissertation investigates the molecular and genetic mechanisms underpinning T-DNA …

Biol 375-002: Conservation Biology, Michael Nelson

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 628-002: Cell Biology Of Disease, Darshan Desai

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Brain On Drugs: The Rewarding And Punishing Effects Of Addiction And Relapse, Abby Ferrell

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Addiction is a multidimensional disorder that is heavily influenced by behavior, biology, and social interaction. These factors work together to make addiction persist and make relapse easier. Three major models of addiction are explored--behaviorism, biology, and social learning theory, which all contribute to the understanding of addiction, and their respective treatments can be individual, and when integrated. Behavior models highlight how conditioning and reinforcement contribute to addiction, while biological studies focus on dopamine changes in the brain that alter other areas of brain chemistry. Social learning theories add to the environmental cue associations that behaviorism mentions briefly. The implications that …

Biol 222-004: Evolution, Michael Nelson

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 315-004: Principles Of Neurobiology, Gal Haspel

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 315-002: Principles Of Neurobiology, Kristen Severi

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 355-002: Cell Biology, Mary Konsolaki

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 440-002: Cell Biology Of Disease, Darshan Desai

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 475-H02, Maria Stanko

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 636-102: Advanced Computational Neuroscience, Horacio Rotstein

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Math 615-102: Approaches To Quantitative Analysis In The Life Sciences, Gareth Russell

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 205-002, Foundations Of Biology: Ecology And Evolution, Caroline Devan

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 150-002: Living In A Variable Universe, Gareth Russell

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 606-102: Applied Bioprocessing & Immunology Based Therapies, John Yarotsky

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 495-H02: Honors Seminar In Biology, Allison Edgar

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 206-002, 004, 006, 102 Foundations Of Biology: Ecology And Evolution Laboratory, Caroline Devan

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 498-002: St: Glia, The Neuron's Forgotten Sibling, Jorge Golowasch

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 641-002: Systems Neuroscience, Farzan Nadim

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 731-002: Proposal Preparation For External Funding, Phillip Barden

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 447-Hm2 Systems Neurobiology, Farzan Nadim

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 340- 002, 004, 006, 008, 010, 012, 102, 104: Mammalian Physiology Laboratory, John Yarotsky

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.