Life Sciences Commons^™

The Effect Of Predator Chemical Cues And Conspecific Alarm Signals Upon Behavior In Early And Late Developmental Stages Of American Toad (Bufo Americanus) Tadpoles, Carol Lynette Johnson

Masters Theses

The chemosensory capability and subsequent habitat choice of larval American toad (Bufo americanus) tadpoles were quantified using choice of refuge with both early and late developmental stages. Treatments were performed with two tadpole densities to ascertain the effect of social aggregations upon behavior. Bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) and predaceous diving beetle larvae (Dytiscus sp.) predators were used to condition water. Conspecific tadpoles as well as Southern leopard frog (Rana sphenocephala) tadpoles were used to prepare treatment extracts.

Tadpole density (n=10 and n=20) had no significant effect upon the percentage of tadpoles seeking cover …

The Effect Of Two States Of Hydration On Muscular Endurance In Men, Melissa L. Petrucci

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of two states of hydration has an effect on muscular endurance in men. Two groups of four men randomly assigned to each group participated in both states of hydration. Both groups were tested at baseline for height, weight, intra- and extra-cellular water, total body water, and a one-repetition maximum strength test. Subjects were then tested after a 24 hour period of water deprivation, and after a 24 hour period of normal water intake (8 ten oz glasses of water). A urine specific gravity test, intra- and extra-cellular water, total body …

Effects Of Apolipoprotein E On Neurite Outgrowth From Adult Mice Cortical Neurons, Yanwen Jiang

Masters Theses

Apolipoprotein (apo) E4, one of the three common isoforms of apoE, has been implicated in Alzheimer's disease (AD). The mechanism whereby apoE4 leads to the pathogenesis of AD is unknown. In the present study, I examined the effects of apoE on neurite outgrowth from adult mice cortical neurons (AMC) in culture. I found that neurite outgrowth from AMC neurons derived from apoE deficient/apoE gene knockout (apoE KO) mice is significantly shorter than that from age-, sex-, and strain-matched wild-type control mice. Furthermore, I present evidence for the differential effects of two isoforms of human apoE, apoE3 and apoE4, on neurite …

Does Creatine Supplementation Increase Muscle Strength In Women?, Tricia Cross

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to see if creatine supplementation increased muscular strength in women. Ten females were assigned to either a creatine (CG) or a placebo (PG) group with five subjects in each. The study lasted five weeks with one week of pre-testing, three weeks of creatine use which included one week of loading (12-13 g/day for seven days) and two weeks of maintenance (3-4 g/day for 14 days), and one week of post testing. Pre- and post-test strength were measured with a one repetition maximal lift (1RM) on the bench press and the leg press. All subjects …

Patterns And Implications Of Aberrant Singing Behaviors Of Black-Capped (Poecile Atricapillus) And Carolina (Poecile Carolinensis) Chickadees In Illinois, Patrick Caesar Enstrom

Masters Theses

I studied the singing behavior of the closely related Black-capped (Poecile atricapillus) and Carolina (Poecile carolinensis) Chickadees along their range interface in central Illinois. These sibling species are parapatrically distributed from the Appalachians through the Midwest to Kansas. Where their ranges do overlap, small hybrid zones form and chickadees in these areas frequently sing aberrant songs. The majority of the songs studied were recorded 17 April-16 July 1999 in fifteen counties throughout central Illinois. I measured 8 frequency and duration characteristics of the first two notes of songs that began with two whistled notes. The averages of these characteristics …

Impacts Of White-Tailed Deer Grazing On Spring Wildflower Communities, Faye Frankland

Masters Theses

High deer densities on state forests and nature preserves throughout Illinois have prompted concerns that deer are impacting the growth, survival, and reproduction of spring-flowering herbaceous plants. I investigated the impacts of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) on the herbaceous vegetation, particularly spring wildflowers, at Beall Woods Nature Preserve (BWNP). BWNP was selected as the site for this study because it supports a diverse community of spring wildflowers and a large deer population. The objectives for this study were to: (1) quantify the extent of deer foraging on representative spring-flowering plant species at Beall Woods Nature Preserve, (2) investigate the effects …

Effects Of Leafy Spurge (Euphorbia Esula) Infestation On Breeding Birds Of The Sheyenne National Grassland, Nd, Daniel M. Scheiman

Masters Theses

Leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula) is an exotic invasive weed in the northern Great Plains. We examined the effects of leafy spurge infestation on densities and nest success of breeding birds in grasslands on the Sheyenne National Grassland (SNG), ND. We categorized spurge-infested grasslands into three levels of infestation, based on the area covered by spurge patches: (a) low (0-20%), (b) medium (20-60%) and, (c) high (> 60%). We surveyed 60 100-m radius circular plots (20 in each category), and searched for nests in three 16-ha plots (one in each category). There were no statistically significant differences in mean species richness …

Emergence And Reproductive Patterns In The Japanese Beetle, Popillia Japonica (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), Steven J. Van Timmeren

Masters Theses

Sex-biased emergence patterns are common in insects resulting in either protandry (males emerging before females) or protogyny (females emerging before males). The Japanese beetle, Popillia japonica Newman, has been shown to exhibit protandry but shows some characteristics of a protogynous species. For example, females mate and oviposit multiple times and this species displays last male sperm advantage. This study investigated the emergence and egg laying patterns of Japanese beetles in east-central Illinois. Although variation existed among study sites none showed protandry and overall they displayed protogyny. Females did not initiate oviposition until several days after emergence and the number of …

Reproduction Partitioning In Polygyne Nests Of The Yellowjacket Vespula Squamosa, Stephanie A. Stewart

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Apolipoprotein E On Olfactory Neuron Plasticity In Mice, Rafia Nisar

Masters Theses

Previous studies have shown that apoE is upregulated in injured nerves, and that it may participate in nerve regeneration by recycling lipids from the degenerating myelin sheath to axonal growth cones. However, these studies fail to differentiate apoE function in degeneration and regeneration, because of temporal juxtaposition of degeneration and regeneration in these models. In this study, we characterized the apoE expression during olfactory nerve regeneration in mice, which occurs over an extended seven week period. Olfactory nerves were lesioned in 2-3-month-old mice by intransal irrigation of Triton X-100. Following lesioning the olfactory bulbs were collected at 0, 3, 7, …

Relationship Between Protective Effects Of Estrogen, Apoe And Alzheimer's Disease, Sara M. Ludwig

Masters Theses

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegerative disorder characterized by progressive memory loss and loss of cognitive function. The pathogenesis and progression of AD is poorly understood. Recently, several risk factors have been determined, however, how these risk factors function to induce AD onset has yet to be elucidated.

Apolipoprotein E genotype has been clearly demonstrated to be a risk factor for AD. The apoE2 and apoE3 isoforms appear to be protective against AD, whereas the apoE4 isoform has been implicated in the development of AD. The apoE4 allele works in a dosage-dependent fashion; that is, the greater the expression of …

Prairie Analysis At Prairie Ridge State Natural Area, Jasper County, Il, Annette Kessler

Masters Theses

Five restored prairie sites at Prairie Ridge State Natural Area in Jasper County were studied during the growing season of 1998. These sites varied in age from two years to thirty years and in size from 4 acres to 10 acres. Key areas of data recorded were an overall and site specific vascular species lists, phenology of various species, and cover analysis of each site. Frequency cover and importance values of the taxa were determined using randomly located quadrats along line transects. Prairie quality of each site was determined, as well as a similarity index that compared the sites to …

Effect Of Calendering On Flexographic Print Ability Of Linerboard, William P. Woods

Masters Theses

Today's corrugated board end user demands a higher quality than ever. Retailing techniques are moving toward so-called ''value-added packaging," which consists of high quality printed packaging that works to sell the product from the shelf. To preserve'its dominance in the corrugated market, the flexographic printing industry must find new ways to cost effectively satisfy the new demands.

One possibility is the use of an additional calendering step to give the linerboard better printability. This study evaluated two different types of calenders: the shoe (extended nip) calender and the hot/soft nip calender (Appendix A). The test material was commercially produced linerboard, …

Fundamental Study Of The Coating And Basesheet Influences On Gloss In Relationship To Coated Inkjet Papers, Raja Ramakrishnan

Masters Theses

The use of fumed metallic oxides for glossy ink jet media offers alternatives to expensive cast coated and extruded film methods. Fumed metallic oxide pigments provide a high internal porosity and packing porosity that enable the rapid diffusion of liquid inks into the coating layer. Their small particle size (0.1-0.3μm), enable the development of gloss. However, calendering is needed to develop gloss values in the range of cast coated and extruded film grades.

Calendering of coated sheet reduces production speed, adds additional handling and rewinding cost (if performed off-line) and reduces the bulk and porosity of the coating layer, consequently …

Reactive Oxygen Species Generated By Depletion Of Cellular Glutathione Mediate Cadmium Cytotoxicity, Jun Xu

Masters Theses

Studies were put forth to test whether or not reactive oxygen species, which are influenced by the cellular level of reduced glutathione, mediate the toxicity of cadmium. Cadmium has been a focal point in the health care community in the past few years because it has been shown to induce the development of tumors, interfere with cellular signaling, and cause damage to organs, tissues, and biomolecules. Although various studies and theories have been proposed, little direct evidence, especially from studies utilizing primary cells in culture, has accumulated to show the mechanism by which the cadmium induced toxicity occurs.

Our studies …

Effect Of Various Starch Sources On The Silicone Holdout Of Release Paper, Chandrasekaran Duraiswamy

Masters Theses

Siliconized papers are widely being used from food and packaging industry to pressure sensitive label industry and their use has increased considerably over the last decade. Surface and structural properties of the sheet influence the silicone hold out and release properties.

Surface sizing of the sheet is done prior to silicone coating. The objective of this research is to find their film forming capabilities, fluid hold out of various starches, and the effect of the various calendering process on the release properties was also studied.

No significant difference between the starch sources were observed, except for the modified com starch …

The Influence Of Fumed Metallic Oxides On Coating Structure And Their Relationships To Print Quality, Hyun-Kook Lee

Masters Theses

Aqueous-based coating for paper or paperboard applications use traditional coating pigments such as clay, calcium carbonate, and titanium dioxide. But, for matte coated ink jet papers, amorphous and gelled silicas are used due to their unique morphological properties, which are sponge-like in nature. The unique structure of these pigments provides an internal porosity and packing porosity which enables the rapid diffusion of liquid inks into the coating layer. The rapid uptake of the ink immobilizes the anionic dyes at the surface of the coating, allowing high optical print densities to be achieved.

The particle size of precipitated and gelled silicas …

Use Of Boron Compounds To Reduce Phototyellowing Of Mechanical Pulps, Qilin Zhou

Masters Theses

Bleached chemithermomechanical pulps (BCTMP) are replacing chemical pulps such as bleached kraft pulp (BKP) in many paper grades. However, the loss of brightness that arises from exposure to light remains a significant impediment to the wider use of these pulps. Efforts have been made in reducing photoyellowing, but so far no universal, economical method has been found which converts high-yield pulp into a product with brightness stability comparable to that of a bleached chemical pulp.

This study evaluates the ability of sodium borate and/or boric acid to inhibit the yellowing process of paper that was made from BCTMP, with an …

Borax As A Strength Additive In Recycling, Siva Krishnagopal Devisetti

Masters Theses

The effect of multiple recycling on strength properties and fiber properties like strength of fiber, weighted average fiber length, fines percentage and water retention values were investigated in this study. Borax was used as a strength aid and swelling agent to improve the flexibility of fiber and strength of recycled paper. Bleached softwood kraft pulp was used to make the hand sheets and recycled repeatedly for up to four cycles. The main objectives were to evaluate the chemically treated pulp and untreated pulp at each stage of recycling, to study the effect of multiple recycling on strength properties of paper …

Characterization Of Nih-3t3 Mouse Fibroblast Cells Transfected With The Somatostatin Receptor Subtype 2 And The Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase Shp-1, Scott Bradford Cross

Masters Theses

The hormone Somatostatin (SMS) and its analogs have been shown to mediate a variety of cellular actions including inhibition of cellular growth and differentiation of endocrine tumors such as insulinomas and glucagonomas. The mechanisms by which SMS exerts its antitumorigenic effects are poorly understood but are thought to include one of the five Somatostatin receptors (SSTR1-5), and the protein tyrosine phosphatase SHP-1. To determine if the antiproliferative effects of SMS were due to the presence of the SSTR2 receptor or the stimulation of SHP-1, we introduced cDNA's of the SMS receptor SSTR2, SHP-1, and a dominant negative mutant of SHP-1 …

Dimethyldioxirane In Tcf Bleaching Sequences, Nayereh Mahdavi

Masters Theses

The use of chlorine containing bleaching process creates various organic compounds such as chlorinated furan, dioxin, and AOX (adsorbable organic halogen). The human and aquatic life has been affected with the formation of these chlorinated organic compounds. EPA is proposing new regulations to impose discharge limits on the conventional pollutant materials of the bleaching effluents.

The objective of this research was to evaluate two TCF (Total Chlorine Free) bleaching sequences that use hydrogen peroxide and DMD on oxygen delignified hardwood kraft pulp. In one of the sequences, the DMD stage (A) was used prior to the hydrogen peroxide stage (P), …

Effects Of Temperature Control On Gravure Packaging Inks, Rodrigo Sosa

Masters Theses

It is well known that variations in ink temperature cause a variation in color density and viscosity. The viscosity of almost all liquids decreases with increasing temperature. In this research project, three different ink temperatures were selected to measure the effects of temperature control on solvent and ink consumption and on printability. Two colors were selected (magenta and cyan) and two heat exchangers were constructed to cool and/or heat the ink.

It was found that variations in ink temperature cause variation in solvent and ink consumption. As the temperature of the ink increases, solvent consumption and ink consumption increase, but …

Vascular Flora Of The Allison Prairie, Lawrence County, Illinois, Brian R. Garrard

Masters Theses

Allison Prairie in Lawrence County, Illinois is a five acre recreation of a gravel prairie. The Allison Prairie Restoration is the largest and best remaining example of a sand and gravel prairie in the Wabash Border Natural Division of Illinois. A total of 112 species of vascular plants representing 35 families are known to exist at the Allison Prairie Restoration (Table 1). Heterotheca camporum (Greene) Shinners (golden aster), Melilotus alba Medic. (white sweet clover), and Sporobolus asper (Michx.) Kunth (dropseed) are dominants (Table 2 and 3). There is 1 gymnosperm species, Juniperus virginiana L. (red cedar), 30 monocot species and …

Investigating The Allosteric Behavior Of Malate Dehydrogenase From Escherichia Coli, Eman M. Ghanem

Masters Theses

Regulatory mechanisms of malate dehydrogenase from E.coli (eMDH) involving NADH as an allosteric effector were investigated. The reaction was studied in both directions: malate oxidation and oxaloacetate reduction. When malate was the variable substrate, a plot of rate against substrate concentration was sigmoidal in the presence of 0.065 mM NADH, which indicates the presence of an allosteric site for NADH on the enzyme. Binding of NADH at the allosteric site causes conformational changes in the active site and, thereby, changes the catalytic activity of the enzyme. An increase in K_m value, from 1.3 to 3.9 mM malate was observed, …

Alarm Calls Affect Foraging Behavior In Eastern Chipmunks (Tamias Striatus), Jessica K. Baack

Masters Theses

I used playback experiments to test whether alarm calls affected the foraging behavior of Eastern chipmunks (Tamias striatus). I subjected chipmunks, foraging at artificial feeding stations, to three playback treatments (silent, control noise, and alarm call) and examined changes in vigilant and foraging behavior. Chipmunks responded to alarm calls with a greater degree and duration of vigilant behavior, such as look-ups and alert postures. Chipmunks also ran a shorter distance to cover, ran more directly to cover, and took longer to re-emerge from the burrow after hearing an alarm call. Alarm calls caused individuals to spend more time …

A Comparison Of The Health Belief Model And Stages Of Change In Exercise Behavior Construct In Cardiac Rehabilitation Patients, Tracey Phillips

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare the Health Belief Model (HBM) and the STAGES theoretical constructs in the uncovering of influencing factors associated with exercise compliance behaviors in cardiac rehabilitation subjects.

Sixty subjects who had experienced a cardiac event and who were attending a phase II outpatient cardiac rehabilitation program participated in this study. A questionnaire regarding health beliefs and exercise behavior classification was administered. Questions pertained to general health motivations, effectiveness of the intervention, perception of disease severity, perception of susceptibility and the stage of exercise behavior.

An analysis of variance and Tukey's post hoc comparison statistical …

A Comparison Of Nutritional Knowledge, Eating Attitudes, Training Regimens, And Body Composition Between Normal And Abnormal Menstruating Female Adolescent Cross Country Athletes, Dena Maureen Block

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare factors that may influence menstrual irregularities of female adolescent high school cross-country runners, ranging from 13-18 years of age. A survey was utilized to determine the subjects age, year in school, exercise history, menstrual history, and training regimens and where the subjects sought nutritional information. The groups were separated according to their current menstrual status. One group (normal) consisted of subjects who currently had a normal menstrual cycle for at least one year (n=17), while the other group (abnormal) (n=18) experienced an irregular menstrual cycle.

A twenty item questionnaire was administered to …

Mathematical Model Of Paper Discoloration By Ink Particles, Zbigniew W. Slotwinski

Masters Theses

The goal of this experiment is to investigate how changes in the size and number of ink particles will affect the final brightness of the filter pad.

It was assumed that any differences in brightness of the used Millipore filters were due to change in the average particle size, given the same mass of ink solids on each filter. However, such simplified interpretation of image analysis proved to be inadequate to solve this complex problem.

The correlation between the particle area, number of particles, and brightness drop was established using an algorithm based on the particle area and the square …

Stage-Dependent Expression Of Target-Derived Influences Stimulates Axon Outgrowth In Hirudo Medicinalis, Tina M. Harik

Masters Theses

Our lab has been investigating the development of neuronal phenotype and circuitry in Hirudo medicinalis. Early in embryogenesis the heart excitor (HE) motor neuron selectively extends multiple arbors into the body wall prior to heart tube (HT) formation. HE contact with HT primordium at later stages of development results in remodeling such that arbors are elaborated on the HT, while those in the body wall are retracted. HT-derived cues are necessary for HE remodeling (Jellies, 1995. Am. Zool. 35:529; Jellies and Kopp, 1995. Invert. Neurosci. 1:145). HT and body wall explants were co-cultured to investigate the possible influences of …

Mechanism By Which Insulin And Its Mimetics, Selenate And Vanadate, Regulate Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase Gene Expression, Sanjay M. Jivraj

Masters Theses

Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) is a key enzyme of the pentose phosphate pathway. It controls the carbon flow through this pathway, producing reducing equivalents in the form of NADPH to meet the cellular need for reductive biosynthesis and the maintenance of the cellular redox state. Hepatic expression of G6PDH has been shown to be regulated by hormones, nutrients and some growth factors, however the mechanism by which these factors regulate G6PDH gene expression has not been characterized. Here we investigate the mechanism by which insulin and its mimetics, selenate and vanadate, regulate G6PDH gene expression.

Insulin exerts its tissue specific affect …