Life Sciences Commons^™

Developing An Environmentally And Economically Sustainable Sugar Kelp Aquaculture Industry In Southern New England: From Seed To Market, Charles Yarish, Jang K. Kim, Scott Lindell, Hauke Kits-Powell

Department of Marine Sciences

The long-term goal of this proposed project was to promote development of a sustainable sugar kelp industry that can help revitalize working waterfronts, and increase employment and economic opportunities for seafood production, processing, and distribution services in Southern New England and New York. To achieve this goal, we have transfer cultivation techniques of Saccharina latissima (sugar kelp) from academic laboratories to commercially viable farms, introduce processing techniques, and provide templates for business plans. An additional benefit of this study are the ecosystem services afforded by sugar kelp farming. Kelp aquaculture will remove carbon and nitrogen (as well as phosphorus) from …

Developing An Environmentally And Economically Sustainable Sugar Kelp Aquaculture Industry In Southern New England: From Seed To Market, Charles Yarish, Jang Kyun Kim, Scott Lindell, Hauke Kite-Powell

EEB Articles

The long-term goal of this proposed project was to promote development of a sustainable sugar kelp industry that can help revitalize working waterfronts, and increase employment and economic opportunities for seafood production, processing, and distribution services in Southern New England and New York. To achieve this goal, we have transfer cultivation techniques of Saccharina latissima (sugar kelp) from academic laboratories to commercially viable farms, introduce processing techniques, and provide templates for business plans. An additional benefit of this study are the ecosystem services afforded by sugar kelp farming. Kelp aquaculture will remove carbon and nitrogen (as well as phosphorus) from …

Investigation Of Moringa Oleifera Leaf Extract And Its Cancer-Selective Antiproliferative Properties, Reagen H. Welch, Ashlee H. Tietje

Journal of the South Carolina Academy of Science

Moringa oleifera is a tree native to a number of Asian, African, and Central American countries and has been used in traditional medicine for an assortment of medicinal uses for centuries. Due to bioactive compounds within Moringa leaves, it is believed that Moringa leaf extract may possess cancer-selective antiproliferative properties. Previous research has been conducted in regards to this topic, but poor experimental design due to lack of necessary controls limits the legitimacy of anticancer claims. While previous research has shown that Moringa leaf extract has the potential to kill cancer cells, the research fails to demonstrate the effects of …

Nebline, Nov./Dec. 2017

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Feature: 4-H’ers Grow Into True Leaders through Service

Food & Health

Farm & Acreage

Pests & Wildlife

Horticulture

Early Childhood

4-H & Youth

and other extension news and events

Giant Salvinia, Salvinia Molesta (Salviniaceae): Evaluation Of Sub-Optimum Temperatures On Survival Of The Giant Salvinia Weevil, Cyrtobagous Salviniae (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) And Integration Of Management Practices With Aquatic Herbicides, Lauren W. Cozad

LSU Master's Theses

Salvinia molesta is one of the world’s worst aquatic weeds and has cost Louisiana nearly $7 million worth of damage and economic impact each year. While aquatic herbicides and the biological control agent, Cyrtobagous salviniae, are the most efficacious control methods, there are limitations with each technology. Therefore, studies were conducted to evaluate insect mortality at upper and lower lethal temperatures and investigate integrated pest management (IPM) with insects and herbicides. Three Louisiana populations of C. salviniae were tested to evaluate cold tolerance and found that at 0°C, the Bayou Nicholas population was 1.3- and 1.4-times more cold tolerant …

Substantial Contribution Of Genetic Variation In The Expression Of Transcription Factors To Phenotypic Variation Revealed By Erd-Gwas, Hung-Ying Lin, Qiang Liu, Xiao Li, Jinliang Yang, Sanzhen Liu, Yinlian Huang, Michael J. Scanlon, Dan Nettleton, Patrick S. Schnable

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Background: There are significant limitations in existing methods for the genome-wide identification of genes whose expression patterns affect traits.

Results: The transcriptomes of five tissues from 27 genetically diverse maize inbred lines were deeply sequenced to identify genes exhibiting high and low levels of expression variation across tissues or genotypes. Transcription factors are enriched among genes with the most variation in expression across tissues, as well as among genes with higher-than-median levels of variation in expression across genotypes. In contrast, transcription factors are depleted among genes whose expression is either highly stable or highly variable across genotypes. We developed a …

Estimation Of Irrigation Requirements For Drip-Irrigated Maize In A Sub-Humid Climate, Liu Yang, Hai-Shun Yang, Jiu-Sheng Li, Yan-Feng Li, Hai-Jun Yan

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Drip-irrigation is increasingly applied in maize (Zea mays L.) production in sub-humid region. It is critical to quantify irrigation requirements during different growth stages under diverse climatic conditions. In this study, the Hybrid-Maize model was calibrated and applied in a sub-humid Heilongjiang Province in Northeast China to estimate irrigation requirements for drip irrigated maize during different crop physiological development stages and under diverse agro-climatic conditions. Using dimensionless scales, the whole growing season of maize was divided into diverse development stages from planting to maturity. Drip-irrigation dates and irrigation amounts in each irrigation event were simulated and summarized in 30-year simulation …

Identifying Ecologically Relevant Scales Of Habitat Selection: Diel Habitat Selection In Elk, Caleb P. Roberts, James W. Cain Iii, Robert D. Cox

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Although organisms make resource selection decisions at multiple spatiotemporal scales, not all scales are ecologically relevant to any given organism. Ecological patterns and rhythms such as behavioral and climatic patterns may provide a consistent method for identifying ecologically relevant scales of habitat selection. Using elk (Cervus canadensis) as an example species, we sought to test the ability of behavioral patterns to empirically partition diel scales for modeling habitat selection. We used model selection to partition diel scales by shifts in dominant behavior and then used resource selection probability functions to model elk habitat selection hierarchically at diel scales within seasons. …

Effects Of Nitrogen And Phosphorus Fertilizer And Topsoil Amendment On Native Plant Cover In Roadside Revegetation Projects, Heidi L. Hillhouse, Walter H. Schacht, Jonathan M. Soper, Carol E. Wienhold

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Establishing vegetation on roadsides following construction can be challenging, especially for relatively slow growing native species. Topsoil is generally removed during construction, and the surface soil following construction (“cut-slope soils”) is often compacted and low in nutrients, providing poor growing conditions for vegetation. Nebraska Department of Transportation (NDOT) protocols have historically called for nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fertilization when planting roadside vegetation following construction, but these recommendations were developed for cool-season grass plantings and most current plantings use slower-establishing, native warmseason grasses that may benefit less than expected from current planting protocols. We evaluated the effects of nitrogen and …

Nebline, October 2017

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Feature: Floodwater and Stormwater Can Contaminate Water Wells

Food & Health

Farm & Acreage

Pests & Wildlife

Horticulture

Early Childhood

4-H & Youth

and other extension news and events

Recognizing Challenges And Opportunities In The Quest To End Hunger, Jennifer Williams Zwagerman

Texas A&M Law Review

As an attorney and professor that does not focus on intellectual property law, I was a bit apprehensive about providing a keynote address for a Symposium focusing on “Agriculture, Intellectual Property, and Feeding the World in the 21st Century.” As I thought about this topic, knowing that there were other speakers who would focus more on the IP issues and technical aspects of various topics, I kept coming back to the importance of technology as we worktowards the goal of feeding the world, and the many ways in which innovation plays a role in meeting that goal. It also brought …

Nebline, September 2017

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Feature: Early Childhood Educators Benefit from Mindfulness Reflection

Food & Health

Farm & Acreage

Pests & Wildlife

Horticulture

Early Childhood

4-H & Youth

and other extension news and events

Control Of Glyphosate-Resistant Common Ragweed (Ambrosia Artemisiifolia L.) In Glufosinate-Resistant Soybean [Glycine Max (L.) Merr], Ethann R. Barnes, Stevan Z. Knezevic, Peter H. Sikkema, John L. Lindquist, Amit J. Jhala

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Common ragweed emerges early in the season in Nebraska, USA and is competitive with soybean; therefore, preplant herbicides are important for effective control. Glyphosate has been used as a preplant control option; however, confirmation of glyphosate-resistant (GR) common ragweed in Nebraska necessitates evaluating other herbicide options. The objectives of this study were to (1) evaluate the efficacy of preplant (PP) herbicides followed by (fb) glufosinate alone or in tank-mixture with imazethapyr, acetochlor, or S-metolachlor applied post-emergence (POST) for control of GR common ragweed in glufosinate-resistant soybean; (2) their effect on common ragweed density, biomass, and soybean yield; and (3) the …

Impact Of Seed Protein Alleles From Three Soybean Sources On Seed Composition And Agronomic Traits, Lillian F. Brzostowski, Timothy I. Pruski, James Specht, Brian W. Diers

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Evaluation of seed protein alleles in soybean populations showed that an increase in protein concentration is generally associated with a decrease in oil concentration and yield.

Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrill] meal is one of the most important plant-based protein sources in the world. Developing cultivars high in seed protein concentration and seed yield is a difficult task because the traits have an inverse relationship. Over two decades ago, a protein quantitative trait loci (QTL) was mapped on chromosome (chr) 20, and this QTL has been mapped to the same position in several studies and given the confirmed QTL …

Nebline, August 2017

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Feature: Back-to-School Nutrition

Food & Health

Farm & Acreage

Pests & Wildlife

Horticulture

Early Childhood

4-H & Youth

and other extension news and events

Special pullout section: Lancaster County Super Fair 2017 Schedule & Map

Synergistic Use Of Remote Sensing And Modeling To Assess An Anomalously High Chlorophyll-A Event During Summer 2015 In The South Central Red Sea, Wenzhao Li, Hesham El-Askary, K. P. Manikandan, Mohamed A. Qurban, Michael J. Garay, Olga V. Kalishnikova

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

An anomalously high chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) event (>2 mg/m3) during June 2015 in the South Central Red Sea (17.5° to 22°N, 37° to 42°E) was observed using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data from the Terra and Aqua satellite platforms. This differs from the low Chl-a values (<0.5 mg/m3) usually encountered over the same region during summertime. To assess this anomaly and possible causes, we used a wide range of oceanographical and meteorological datasets, including Chl-a concentrations, sea surface temperature (SST), sea surface height (SSH), mixed layer depth (MLD), ocean current velocity and aerosol optical depth (AOD) obtained from different sensors and models. Findings confirmed this anomalous behavior in the spatial domain using Hovmöller data analysis techniques, while a time series analysis addressed monthly and daily variability. Our analysis suggests that a combination of factors controlling nutrient supply contributed to the anomalous phytoplankton growth. These factors include horizontal transfer of upwelling water through eddy circulation and possible mineral fertilization from atmospheric dust deposition. Coral reefs might have provided extra nutrient supply, yet this is out of the scope of our analysis. We thought that dust deposition from a coastal dust jet event in late June, coinciding with the phytoplankton blooms in the area under investigation, might have also contributed as shown by our AOD findings. However, a lag cross correlation showed a two- month lag between strong dust outbreak and the high Chl-a anomaly. The high Chl-a concentration at the edge of the eddy emphasizes the importance of horizontal advection in fertilizing oligotrophic (nutrient poor) Red Sea waters.

Inferring Foliar Water Uptake Using Stable Isotopes Of Water, Gregory R. Goldsmith, Marco M. Lehmann, Lucas A. Cernusak, Matthias Arend, Rolf T.W. Siegwolf

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

A growing number of studies have described the direct absorption of water into leaves, a phenomenon known as foliar water uptake. The resultant increase in the amount of water in the leaf can be important for plant function. Exposing leaves to isotopically enriched or depleted water sources has become a common method for establishing whether or not a plant is capable of carrying out foliar water uptake. However, a careful inspection of our understanding of the fluxes of water isotopes between leaves and the atmosphere under high humidity conditions shows that there can clearly be isotopic exchange between the two …

Cellular And Molecular Targets Of Menthol Actions, Murat Oz, Eslam El Nebrisi, Keun-Hang Susan Yang, Frank Christopher Howarth, Lina T. Al Kury

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Menthol belongs to monoterpene class of a structurally diverse group of phytochemicals found in plant-derived essential oils. Menthol is widely used in pharmaceuticals, confectionary, oral hygiene products, pesticides, cosmetics, and as a flavoring agent. In addition, menthol is known to have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and analgesic effects. Recently, there has been renewed awareness in comprehending the biological and pharmacological effects of menthol. TRP channels have been demonstrated to mediate the cooling actions ofmenthol. There has been new evidence demonstrating thatmenthol can significantly influence the functional characteristics of a number of different kinds of ligand and voltage-gated ion channels, indicating that at …

The Effects Of Isoprene Emission From Native And Invasive Trees On Local Air Quality, Aarti P. Mistry

DePaul Discoveries

Biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOC) are the second-most abundant reactive gasses emitted into the atmosphere by the biosphere. Isoprene is a BVOC produced by the process of photosynthesis from vegetation and is emitted from plant leaves. Isoprene is a hydrocarbon that combines with oxides of nitrogen in the atmosphere to create ozone in the troposphere, an air pollutant. Invasive trees alter ecosystems and affect native tree populations. Invasive tree species in the Chicagoland area are outcompeting native tree species and expanding rapidly. The effect of isoprene emissions on air quality is a well-researched area in the atmospheric science community, however, …

Hydrogenation Of Organic Matter As A Terminal Electron Sink Sustains High Co2:Ch4 Production Ratios During Anaerobic Decomposition, Rachel M. Wilson, Malak M. Tfaily, Virginia I. Rich, Jason K. Keller, Scott D. Bridgham, Cassandra Medvedeff Zalman, Laura Meredith, Paul J. Hanson, Mark Hines, Laurel Pfeifer-Meister, Scott R. Saleska, Patrick Crill, William T. Cooper, Jeff P. Chanton, Joel E. Kostka

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Once inorganic electron acceptors are depleted, organic matter in anoxic environments decomposes by hydrolysis, fermentation, and methanogenesis, requiring syntrophic interactions between microorganisms to achieve energetic favorability. In this classic anaerobic food chain, methanogenesis represents the terminal electron accepting (TEA) process, ultimately producing equimolar CO₂ and CH₄ for each molecule of organic matter degraded. However, CO₂:CH₄ production in Sphagnum-derived, mineral-poor, cellulosic peat often substantially exceeds this 1:1 ratio, even in the absence of measureable inorganic TEAs. Since the oxidation state of C in both cellulose-derived organic matter and acetate is 0, and CO₂ has …

Nebline, July 2017

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Feature: The Road to Great (and Safe!) Grilling

Food & Health

Farm & Acreage

Pests & Wildlife

Horticulture

Early Childhood

4-H & Youth

and other extension news and events

A Comparative Analysis Of The Nutrient Composition And Digestibility Of California Perennial And Annual Grasses At Four Stages Of Growth, Elaina Cromer

Master's Theses

Beef products represent the fourth largest agricultural commodity in the state of California, valuing more than $3 billion from 2013 to 2015 (CDFA, 2016) and procure 90% of the income for the range livestock industry (FRAP, 2003). Forages found on California’s coastal, desert, foothill, and mountain ranges are the basis of the state’s beef cattle industry. Understanding their nutritional quality of these forages is important for their effective use (George et al., 2001a; Waterman et al., 2014). The objectives of this research were to investigate the nutritional characteristics, and in situ digestbilities in Angus beef cattle, of common California annual …

Protocol For Enrichment Of The Membrane Proteome Of Mature Tomato Pollen, Puneet Paul, Palak Chaturvedi, Anida Mesihovic, Arindam Ghatak, Wolfram Weckwerth, Enrico Schleiff

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

We established and elaborated on a method to enrich the membrane proteome of mature pollen from economically relevant crop using the example of Solanum lycopersicum (tomato). To isolate the pollen protein fraction enriched in membrane proteins, a high salt concentration (750 mM of sodium chloride) was used. The membrane protein-enriched fraction was then subjected to shotgun proteomics for identification of proteins, followed by in silico analysis to annotate and classify the detected proteins.

Cover Crops: A Primer, Joshua J. Miller, Katja Koehler-Cole, Rodrigo Werle, Daren Redfearn

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

When deciding how best to use cover crops, it is important to consider the ultimate goal. Is it to increase soil organic matter, increase nutrient availability to subsequent crops, reduce soil compaction, supply forage for livestock, and/or suppress weeds? Answering these questions will help identify the cover crops that offer the best chance of success for meeting the goal. Primarily, cover crops are used to enhance soil conservation, nutrient cycling and supply, and weed control. However, these benefits vary based on the species of cover crop that is planted, so it is important to select the crop type that will …

First Report Of Xanthomonas Vasicola Causing Bacterial Leaf Streak On Corn In The United States, K. A. Korus, J. M. Lang, A. O. Adesemoye, C. C. Block, N. Pal, J. E. Leach, T. A. Jackson-Ziems

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

In 2014 and 2015, Zea mays samples (field, seed, and popcorn) were submitted to the Plant and Pest Diagnostic Clinic at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln displaying long, dark, yellow to brown, water-soaked, linear lesions confined to the interveinal spaces of the leaves. Initial symptoms appeared as small water-soaked flecks that expanded between veins to form irregular lesions. In some cases, the disease progressed to cover 40 to 50% of the leaf area. The disease was confirmed by symptom expression and bacterial streaming in 41 counties in Nebraska as well as Yuma Co., Colorado, and Phillips Co., Kansas, both contiguous to …

Nebline, June 2017

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Feature: What's Biting You?

Food & Health

Farm & Acreage

Pests & Wildlife

Horticulture

Early Childhood

4-H & Youth

and other extension news and events

Transcriptomic Resources For The Medicinal Legume Mucuna Pruriens: De Novo Transcriptome Assembly, Annotation, Identification And Validation Of Est-Ssr Markers, N. Sathyanarayana, Ranjith Kumar Pittala, Pankaj Kumar Tripathi, Ratan Chopra, Heikham Russiachand Singh, Vikas Belamkar, Pardeep Kumar Bhardwaj, Jeff J. Doyle, Ashley N. Egan

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Background:

The medicinal legume Mucuna pruriens (L.) DC. has attracted attention worldwide as a source of the anti-Parkinson’s drug L-Dopa. It is also a popular green manure cover crop that offers many agronomic benefits including high protein content, nitrogen fixation and soil nutrients. The plant currently lacks genomic resources and there is limited knowledge on gene expression, metabolic pathways, and genetics of secondary metabolite production. Here, we present transcriptomic resources for M. pruriens, including a de novo transcriptome assembly and annotation, as well as differential transcript expression analyses between root, leaf, and pod tissues. We also develop microsatellite markers …

Physiological Responses Of Scaevola Aemula Seedlings Under High Temperature Stress, B He, T Guo, H Huang, W Xi, Xiaoyong Chen

Faculty Research and Creative Activity

Global climate change is expected to result in a relative high frequency of a short period of extreme high temperature (HT) on plant ecosystems and can have an adverse impact on plant growth and development, yet the response of plants to such damage is not fully understood. In this study, physiological responses of Scaevola aemula seedlings to a short-term(a 3-day period) HT stress were investigated in order to examine the adaptation of S. aemula to the thermal environment. The S. aemula seedlings were cultivated under four temperature treatments of 25/20, 35/27, 40/30, 46/35 °C (day/night). The HT stress-induced injure symptoms …

Advancing Development Of Porphyra Umbilicalis As A Red Algal Model System And Aquaculture Crop, Charlotte Royer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The marine red alga Porphyra umbilicalis (Rhodophyta, Bangiaceae) has ideal traits to allow it to become a model organism, including its economic value, reproduction in the northwestern Atlantic through asexual neutral spores (NS), and availability of fully-sequenced nuclear and organelle genomes. Research on the bacterial component of the Porphyra microbiome is ongoing. To advance model organism development and support microbial studies, data on natural reproductive trends and early embryonic development are needed, along with a system for genetic transformation, and ways of visualizing the attached microbial community. To meet these needs, two years of phenological data were analyzed, revealing seasonal …

A Comprehensive Analysis Of Alternative Splicing In Paleopolyploid Maize, Wenbin Mei, Sanzhen Liu, James C. Schnable, Cheng-Ting Yeh, Nathan M. Springer, Patrick S. Schnable, William Brad Barbazuk

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Identifying and characterizing alternative splicing (AS) enables our understanding of the biological role of transcript isoform diversity. This study describes the use of publicly available RNA-Seq data to identify and characterize the global diversity of AS isoforms in maize using the inbred lines B73 and Mo17, and a related species, sorghum. Identification and characterization of AS within maize tissues revealed that genes expressed in seed exhibit the largest differential AS relative to other tissues examined. Additionally, differences in AS between the two genotypes B73 and Mo17 are greatest within genes expressed in seed. We demonstrate that changes in the level …