Life Sciences Commons^™

Diffusion And Osmosis: Passive Movement Of Molecules In Biological Systems, Ana Lucia Fuentes, Maria Entezari

Open Educational Resources

During this lab, students determine the salinity of collected water samples. They also compare the effect of the solute concentration of their samples with that of solutions of known solute concentrations on plant cells.

Research Paper Development Assignment: Guidelines, Cerr Worksheets, Global Learning Worksheet, And Powerpoint Presentation Prompts And Rubric, Angela Padilla

Open Educational Resources

❏ This Research Paper Assignment is designed for NSF & LMF courses (STEM majors). The assignment is to have students research a global scientific issue. Possible topics that work well for this assignment contain solar panel use, the increase in health issues (like respiratory or mental health conditions) due to global warming/climate change, animal (and other living organism) extinction (or increase) due to global warming, sea level rise, coastal flooding, how the increase in ocean plastics affects the ocean and its species (which affect the environment/climate), etc. However, any global scientific topic will do.

❏ The assignment’s main objectives are …

The Limits Of Lead (Pb) Phytoextraction And Possibilities Of Phytostabilization In Contaminated Soil: A Critical Review, Sara Perl Egendorf, Peter M. Groffman, Gerry Moore, Zhongqi Cheng

Advanced Science Research Center

This review article focuses on lead (Pb), one of the most ubiquitous and harmful toxicants found in soil. Our objective is to address misconceptions regarding the ability of plants to uptake Pb through their roots and translocate it to above-ground tissues, and their ability to act as hyperaccumulators and thereby phytoextract Pb. In accordance with a number of cited definitions, we suggest that species capable of Pb phytoextraction can be rated with the following three criteria: (1) root uptake above a nominal threshold of 1,000 mg Pb/kg, (2) bioconcentration factor (BCF or shoot/soil concentration) >1, and (3) translocation factor (TF …

Multivariate Analysis Of Open Field Exploration Identifies Latent Spatial And Social Behavioral Axes In Domestic Dogs, Budhaditya Chowdhury, Moira Van Staaden, Robert Huber

Advanced Science Research Center

Recent methodological advances in studying large scale animal movements have let researchers gather rich datasets from behaving animals. Often collected in small sample sizes due to logistical constraints, these datasets are however, ideal for multivariate explorations into behavioral complexity. In behavioral studies of domestic dogs, although automated data loggers have recently seen increasing use, a comprehensive framework to identify complex behavioral axes is lacking. Dog behavioral studies frequently rely on subjective ratings, despite demonstrable evidence that these are insufficient for identifying behavioral variables. Taking advantage of dogs’ innate running abilities and readily available GPS data loggers, we extracted latitude-longitude coordinates …

Correction: Visible-Light Photooxidation In Water By 1o2-Generating Supramolecular Hydrogels, Sankarsan Biswas, Mohit Kumar, Andrew Levine, Ian Jimenez, Rein V. Ulijn, Adam Braunschweig

Advanced Science Research Center

Correction for ‘Visible-light photooxidation in water by ¹O₂-generating supramolecular hydrogels’ by Sankarsan Biswas et al., Chem. Sci., 2020, 11, 4239–4245, DOI: 10.1039/C9SC06481H.

Retrospective Unbiased Plasma Lipidomic Of Progressive Multiple Sclerosis Patients-Identifies Lipids Discriminating Those With Faster Clinical Deterioration, Mario Amatruda, Maria Petracca, Maureen Wentling, Benjamin Inbar, Kamilah Castro, Emily Y. Chen, Michael A. Kiebish, Keith Edwards, Matilde Inglese, Patrizia Casaccia

Advanced Science Research Center

The disease course of patients with a confirmed diagnosis of primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS) is uncertain. In an attempt to identify potential signaling pathways involved in the evolution of the disease, we conducted an exploratory unbiased lipidomic analysis of plasma from non-diseased controls (n = 8) and patients with primary progressive MS (PPMS, n = 19) and either a rapid (PPMS-P, n = 9) or slow (PPMS-NP, n = 10) disease course based on worsening disability and/or MRI-visible appearance of new T2 lesions over a one-year-assessment. Partial least squares-discriminant analysis of the MS/MSALL lipidomic dataset, identified lipids driving the …

Polymer Brush Hypersurface Photolithography, Carlos Carbonell, Daniel J. Valles, Alexa M. Wong, Andrea S. Carlini, Mollie A. Touve, Joanna Korpanty, Nathan C. Gianneschi, Adam B. Braunschweig

Advanced Science Research Center

Polymer brush patterns have a central role in established and emerging research disciplines, from microarrays and smart surfaces to tissue engineering. The properties of these patterned surfaces are dependent on monomer composition, polymer height, and brush distribution across the surface. No current lithographic method, however, is capable of adjusting each of these variables independently and with micrometer-scale resolution. Here we report a technique termed Polymer Brush Hypersurface Photolithography, which produces polymeric pixels by combining a digital micromirror device (DMD), an air-free reaction chamber, and microfluidics to independently control monomer composition and polymer height of each pixel. The printer capabilities are …

Hijacking The Fusion Complex Of Human Parainfluenza Virus As An Antiviral Strategy, T. C. Marcink, E. Yariv, K. Rybkina, V. Más, F. T. Bovier, A. Des Georges, A. L. Greninger, C. A. Alabi, M. Porotto, N. Ben-Tal, A. Moscona

Advanced Science Research Center

The receptor binding protein of parainfluenza virus, hemagglutinin- neuraminidase (HN), is responsible for actively triggering the viral fusion protein (F) to undergo a conformational change leading to insertion into the target cell and fusion of the virus with the target cell membrane. For proper viral entry to occur, this process must occur when HN is engaged with host cell receptors at the cell surface. It is possible to interfere with this process through premature activation of the F protein, distant from the target cell receptor. Conformational changes in the F protein and adoption of the postfusion form of the protein …

Combinatorial Discovery And Validation Of Heptapeptides With Utp Binding Induced Structure, Daniela Kroiss, James Aramini, Sangitaa Ragoonath, Rein V. Ulijn, Tell Tuttle

Advanced Science Research Center

In biology, supramolecular recognition typically involves an ‘induced-fit’ mechanism, where structures rearrange upon complexation to accommodate binding ligands. Designing minimalistic compounds with such adaptability is challenging as they involve subtle conformational changes that are energetically similar. Here, we demonstrate the integration of combinatorial screening with molecular modelling to identify heptapeptides that form a stable loop upon recognition of uridine triphosphate (UTP). Peptide sequences selected using phage display were refined computationally and correlated with experimental KD values. This combined approach may serve as a method for the de novo selection and subsequent rationalization of the compositional and organizational principles that dictate …

Barrels Xxxii Meeting Report: Whiskers In The Windy City, Giuseppe Cataldo, Chia-Chien Chen, Alicia C. Barrientos, Joshua C. Brumberg

Publications and Research

The 32^nd Annual Barrels meeting was hosted at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, Illinois on October 17^th and 18^th, 2019. The annual meeting brings together researchers who utilize the rodent whisker-to-barrel system as a means to understand cortical function and development. This year’s meeting focused on social behaviors, development and cerebellar functions within the barrel system and beyond.

A Kinesin Adapter Directly Mediates Dendritic Mrna Localization During Neural Development In Mice, Hao Wu, Jing Zhou, Tianhui Zhu, Ivan Cohen, Jason Dictenberg

Publications and Research

Motor protein-based active transport is essential for mRNA localization and local translation in animal cells, yet how mRNA granules interact with motor proteins remains poorly understood. Using an unbiased yeast two–hybrid screen for interactions between murine RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) and motor proteins, here we identified protein interaction with APP tail-1 (PAT1) as a potential direct adapter between zipcode-binding protein 1 (ZBP1, a β-actin RBP) and the kinesin-I motor complex. The amino acid sequence of mouse PAT1 is similar to that of the kinesin light chain (KLC), and we found that PAT1 binds to KLC directly. Studying PAT1 in mouse …

Microbial Degradability Of Terrigenous, Marsh-Exported, And Estuarine Colored Dissolved Organic Matter In Long Island Sound, John R. Supino

Dissertations and Theses

The Long Island Sound is one of the world's most urbanized estuaries, polluted from excess nutrients which impact the quality of water through increased biological productivity. Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is a sensitive indicator of anthropogenic pollution and nutrient enrichment in coastal waters as well as an important part of the carbon cycle and serves as a primary food source for aquatic food webs. Additionally, the colored portion of DOM (CDOM) impacts coastal optical properties, ocean color, and light attenuation. High levels of CDOM have been shown to inhibit the growth of phytoplankton and limit photosynthesis, damaging the food chain …

Understanding How Sequence Differences Among Glutamate Transporters Might Contribute To Their Differential Function In Glutamate Clearance In C. Elegans, Irving Estevez

Dissertations and Theses

In the nervous system, high circuit resolution requires efficient post-signaling clearance of the neurotransmitter. Glutamate-mediated neurotransmission involves the release of glutamate (Glu) into the synaptic cleft by the presynaptic cell and binding to glutamate receptors (GluR) on the postsynaptic cell, leading to activation of a signal transduction cascade. Neurotransmission is eventually terminated by Glu uptake via glutamate transporters (GluT). Inefficient Glu clearance is detrimental to precise rapid signaling, can lead to blurring of circuit resolution by inadvertent Glu spillover to nearby circuits, and may even be neurotoxic. While classical views depict synapses as insulated by glia, recent technological advances show …

Mechanisms Of Value-Biased Prioritization In Fast Sensorimotor Decision Making, Kivilcim Afacan-Seref

Dissertations and Theses

In dynamic environments, split-second sensorimotor decisions must be prioritized according to potential payoffs to maximize overall rewards. The impact of relative value on deliberative perceptual judgments has been examined extensively, but relatively little is known about value-biasing mechanisms in the common situation where physical evidence is strong but the time to act is severely limited. This research examines the behavioral and electrophysiological indices of how value biases split-second perceptual decisions and the possible mechanisms underlying the process. In prominent decision models, a noisy but statistically stationary representation of sensory evidence is integrated over time to an action-triggering bound, and value-biases …

Lateralized Temporal Integration Properties Of The Mouse Auditory Cortex, Demetrios Neophytou

Dissertations and Theses

Social communication calls are fleeting, rapidly modulating signals and the ability of the auditory system to perceive such transient signals is a remarkable phenomenon. The mechanism by which the auditory cortex (ACx) is believed to be capable of processing these signals is through recurrent connectivity in the cortical circuits. Recurrent connectivity is proposed to be a possible circuit motif that aids in the processing of these transient signals. Recurrent connectivity is believed to have an effect on the temporal fidelity, the ability to follow a modulating signal, and the recurrent activity, sustained activity following stimulus offset, at the level of …

Lps, A Tlr-4 Agonist And Viper A Tlr-4 Inhibitor Upregulate Phagocytosis Of Zymosan In Bv2 Cells, Sherouk Alzeory

Dissertations and Theses

Microglia cells are the first line of innate immunity defense in the central nervous system (CNS). They play a critical role in maintaining CNS homeostasis by having an active but yet balanced phagocytic activity. However, in various CNS related diseases, microglia cells have been shown to malfunction. In Alzheimer's Disease (AD), hyperactive microglia with impaired phagocytic activity is the main hallmark of this disease, along with the accumulation of amyloid-beta aggregates. Additionally, emerging new studies have suggested a fungal infection etiology to AD, specifically in relation to Candida albicans (C.albicans). Thus, understanding the mechanism of fungal clearance in the …

Impacts Of Vegetation Density And Distance From The High Tide Line On Raccoon Predation Of Diamondback Terrapin Nests In Jamaica Bay, Ny – A Preliminary Study, Zvi Teitelbaum

Dissertations and Theses

Diamondback terrapin turtles (Malaclemys terrapin) have been culturally and economically important since at least the nineteenth century. However, due to overharvesting, this became a species of conservation concern. While extensive data are available to describe its natural history, some conditions that impact nest predation are poorly understood. In this exploratory study, vegetation type and distance to the high tide line were examined to determine their potential impact on predation of diamondback terrapin nests by raccoons. For that, terrapin scented water was used to construct 50 artificial nests at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge. These artificial nests were placed in …

More Than Meets The Eye: A Taxonomic Revision Of The Nearctic Species In The Eye-Gnat Genus Amiota Loew (Diptera: Drosophilidae), Lance E. Jones

Dissertations and Theses

Thorough biotic inventories are still needed even in families as seemingly well-studied as fruit flies (Diptera: Drosophilidae). Drosophilidae have had an outsize effect on the history of biology because of their pivotal role in the study of genetics, development, and evolution. Even with more than a century of intensive study, large gaps remain in our understanding of diversity in this fly family, including well-studied areas such as North America. This thesis presents a taxonomic revision of the Nearctic species of the genus Amiota Loew. Twenty-three species are identified as being new to science for publication at a later date. This …

Attention Strongly Modulates Reliability Of Neural Response To Naturalistic Narrative Stimuli, Jason Ki

Dissertations and Theses

Attentional engagement is a major determinant of how effectively we gather information through our senses. Alongside the sheer growth in the amount and variety of information content we are presented with through modern media, there is increased variability in the degree to which we ‘absorb’ that information. Traditional research on attention has illuminated the basic principles of sensory selection to isolated features or locations, but it provides little insight into the neural underpinnings of our attentional engagement with modern naturalistic content. Here, we show in human subjects that the reliability of an individual's neural responses with respect to a larger …

Effects Of Weak Electric Fields On Long-Term Synaptic Plasticity, Gregory Kronberg

Dissertations and Theses

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a technique where a weak direct electrical current is applied to the scalp with the goal of stimulating the brain. There is tremendous interest in the use of tDCS for treating brain disorders and improving brain function. However, the effects of tDCS have been highly variable across studies, leading to a debate over its efficacy. A major challenge is therefore to design tDCS protocols that yield predictable effects, which will require a better understanding of its basic mechanisms of action. One commonly discussed mechanism is that tDCS may alter synaptic plasticity, but the biophysics …

Elucidation Of Putative Binding Partners For The Protein Encoded By Orf149 Of Cyprinid Herpesvirus 3 In Goldfish (Carassius Auratus), Simon Menanteau–Ledouble, Michael Gotesman, Ebrahim Razzazi‐Fazeli, Sven M. Bergmann, Mansour El‐Matbouli

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

A Review Of Small Molecule Inhibitors And Functional Probes Of Human Cathepsin L, Dibyendu Dana, Sanjai Kumar

Publications and Research

Human cathepsin L belongs to the cathepsin family of proteolytic enzymes with primarily an endopeptidase activity. Although its primary functions were originally thought to be only of a housekeeping enzyme that degraded intracellular and endocytosed proteins in lysosome, numerous recent studies suggest that it plays many critical and specific roles in diverse cellular settings. Not surprisingly, the dysregulated function of cathepsin L has manifested itself in several human diseases, making it an attractive target for drug development. Unfortunately, several redundant and isoform-specific functions have recently emerged, adding complexities to the drug discovery process. To address this, a series of chemical …

Sperm Storage Reduces The Strength Of The Mate-Finding Allee Effect, María V. Jiménez-Franco, Andrés Giménez, Roberto C. Rodríguez-Caro, Ana Sanz-Aguilar, Francisco Botella, Jose D. Anadon, Thorsten Wiegand, Eva Graciá

Publications and Research

Mate searching is a key component of sexual reproduction that can have important implications for population viability, especially for the mate-finding Allee effect. Interannual sperm storage by females may be an adaptation that potentially attenuates mate limitation, but the demographic consequences of this functional trait have not been studied. Our goal is to assess the effect of female sperm storage durability on the strength of the mate-finding Allee effect and the viability of populations subject to low population density and habitat alteration. We used an individual-based simulation model that incorporates realistic representations of the demographic and spatial processes of our …

Network Structure Of Vertebrate Scavenger Assemblages At The Global Scale: Drivers And Ecosystem Functioning Implications, Esther Sebastián-González, Zebensui Morales-Reyes, Francisco Botella, Lara Naves-Alegre, Juan M. Pérez-García, Patricia Mateo-Tomás, Pedro P. Olea, Marcos Moleón, Jomar M. Barbosa, Fernando Hiraldo, Eneko Arrondo, José A. Donázar, Ainara Cortés-Avizanda, Nuria Selva, Sergio A. Lambertucci, Aishwarya Bhattacharjee, Alexis L. Brewer, Erin F. Abernethy, Kelsey L. Turner, James C. Beasley, Travis L. Devault, Hannah C. Gerke, Olin E. Rhodes Jr, Andrés Ordiz, Camilla Wikenros, Barbara Zimmermann, Petter Wabakken, Christopher C. Wilmers, Justine A. Smith, Corinne Kendall, Darcy Ogada, Ethan Frehner, Maximilian L. Allen, Heiko U. Wittmer, James R. A. Butler, Johan T. Du Toit, Antoni Margalida, Pilar Oliva-Vidal, David Wilson, Klemen Jerina, Miha Krofel, Rich Kostecke, Richard Inger, Esra Per, Yunus Ayhan, Hasan Ulusoy, Doğanay Vural, Akino Inagaki, Shinsuke Koike, Arockianathan Samson, Paula L. Perrig, Emma Spencer, Thomas M. Newsome, Marco Heurich, José D. Anadón, Evan R. Buechley, José A. Sánchez-Zapata

Publications and Research

The organization of ecological assemblages has important implications for ecosystem functioning, but little is known about how scavenger communities organize at the global scale. Here, we test four hypotheses on the factors affecting the network structure of terrestrial vertebrate scavenger assemblages and its implications on ecosystem functioning. We expect scavenger assemblages to be more nested (i.e. structured): 1) in species-rich and productive regions, as nestedness has been linked to high competition for carrion resources, and 2) regions with low human impact, because the most efficient carrion consumers that promote nestedness are large vertebrate scavengers, which are especially sensitive to human …

Learning And Motivation For Rewards In Schizophrenia: Implications For Behavioral Rehabilitation, Victoria Martin, Alexandra Brereton, Jicheng Tang

Publications and Research

Purpose of review: Impaired reward processing and amotivation are well documented in schizophrenia. We aim to review the current state of neuroimaging and behavioral research addressing components of motivational deficits in this complex and impairing syndrome. Evidence will be integrated to inform the ongoing development of effective strategies for behavioral rehabilitation. Recent findings: While striatal dopamine and aberrant reward prediction errors have been connected to amotivation in schizophrenia, they are not sufficiently full explanations of reward processing impairments. Frontal dysfunction and associated cognitive control deficits also have evidenced involvement in atypical reward prediction, learning, and valuation. Ongoing work supports the …

Higher Sensitivity Of Female Cells To Ethanol: Methylation Of Dna Lowers Cyp2e1, Generating More Ros, Carlos G. Penaloza, Mayra Cruz, Gabrielle Germain, Sidra Jabeen, Mohammad Javdan, R. A. Lockshin, Zahra Zakeri

Publications and Research

Background: Cells taken from mouse embryos before sex differentiation respond to insults according to their chromosomal sex, a difference traceable to differential methylation. We evaluated the mechanism for this difference in the controlled situation of their response to ethanol.

Methods: We evaluated the expression of mRNA for alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), aldehyde dehyrogenases (ALDH), and a cytochrome P450 isoenzyme (Cyp2e1) in male and female mice, comparing the expressions to toxicity under several experimental conditions evaluating redox and other states.

Results: Females are more sensitive to ethanol. Disulfiram, which inhibits alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), increases cell death in males, eliminating the sex …

Polygenic Risk Score Analysis Revealed Shared Genetic Background In Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder And Narcolepsy, Nagahide Takahashi, Tomoko Nishimura, Taeko Harada, Akemi Okumura, Damee Choi, Toshiki Iwabuchi, Hitoshi Kuwabara, Shu Takagi, Yoko Nomura, Jeffrey H. Newcorn, Nori Takei, Kenji J. Tsuchiya

Publications and Research

Attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) is a highly heritable neurodevelopmental disorder, and excessive daytime sleepiness is frequently observed in ADHD patients. Excessive daytime sleepiness is also a core symptom of narcolepsy and essential hypersomnia (EHS), which are also heritable conditions. Psychostimulants are effective for the symptomatic control of ADHD (primary recommended intervention) and the two sleep disorders (frequent off-label use). However, the common biological mechanism for these disorders has not been well understood. Using a previously collected genome-wide association study of narcolepsy and EHS, we calculated polygenic risk scores (PRS) for each individual. We investigated a possible genetic association between …

A Bifunctional Atpase Drives Tad Pilus Extension And Retraction, Courtney K. Ellison, Jingbo Kan, Jennifer L. Chlebek, Katherine R. Hummels, GaёL Panis, Patrick H. Viollier, Nicolas Biais, Ankur B. Dalia, Yves V. Brun

Publications and Research

A widespread class of prokaryotic motors powered by secretion motor adenosine triphosphatases (ATPases) drives the dynamic extension and retraction of extracellular fibers, such as type IV pili (T4P). Among these, the tight adherence (tad) pili are critical for surface sensing and biofilm formation. As for most other motors belonging to this class, how tad pili retract despite lacking a dedicated retraction motor ATPase has remained a mystery. Here, we find that a bifunctional pilus motor ATPase, CpaF, drives both activities through adenosine 5′-triphosphate (ATP) hydrolysis. We show that mutations within CpaF result in a correlated reduction in the rates of …

What If The Key To Climate Change Is Hiding Under The Sea?, Shira Feder

Capstones

“We know more about outer space than we do the ocean,” says Vicki Ferrini, a research scientist at Columbia University with over 20 ocean expeditions under her belt. And as the woman leading Seabed 2030, the charge to map the world’s oceans—which are 85% unexplored—she knows how vital this is to combat climate change and exactly how she’s going to do it. Read it here: https://medium.com/@shira.feder/what-if-the-key-to-climate-change-is-hiding-under-the-sea-4503565c33a2

Visual Modulation Of Resting State Α Oscillations, Kelly Webster, Tony Ro

Publications and Research

Once thought to simply reflect passive cortical idling, recent studies have demonstrated that α oscillations play a causal role in cognition and perception. However, whether and how cognitive or sensory processes modulate various components of the α rhythm is poorly understood. Sensory input and resting states were manipulated in human subjects while electroencephalography (EEG) activity was recorded in three conditions: eyes-open fixating on a visual stimulus, eyes-open without visual input (darkness), and eyes-closed without visual input (darkness). We show that α power and peak frequency increase when visual input is reduced compared to the eyes open, fixating condition. These results …