Life Sciences Commons^™

Ontogenetic Scaling Patterns And Functional Anatomy Of The Pelvic Limb Musculature In Emus (Dromaius Novaehollandiae), Luis P. Lamas, Russell P. Main, John R. Hutchinson

Department of Basic Medical Sciences Faculty Publications

Emus (Dromaius novaehollandiae) are exclusively terrestrial, bipedal and cursorial ratites with some similar biomechanical characteristics to humans. Their growth rates are impressive, as their body mass increases eighty-fold from hatching to adulthood whilst maintaining the same mode of locomotion throughout life. These ontogenetic characteristics stimulate biomechanical questions about the strategies that allow emus to cope with their rapid growth and locomotion, which can be partly addressed via scaling (allometric) analysis of morphology. In this study we have collected pelvic limb anatomical data (muscle architecture, tendon length, tendon mass and bone lengths) and calculated muscle physiological cross sectional area …

Ecology Of Insect Pests Of Cotton And Their Natural Enemies, Soolaf Abud Kathiar

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis represents a combination of three projects, all related to cotton agriculture, their pests, and natural enemies of those pests. In the first project, I compared the abundance of soil-surface arthropods in cotton fields with three different tillage methods (conventional and two conservation tillage methods). Cotton plants produce extrafloral nectar, an adaptation of many plants that attracts natural enemies of plant pests and reduces feeding injury from herbivores. Therefore, in the second project, I analyzed the sugar and amino acid concentrations of the extrafloral nectar of five lines of cotton. Green lacewings are natural enemies that are often used …

Linking Photosynthesis Physiology Of Upland Hardwood Reproduction To Ecology And Silviculture In The Arkansas Ozarks, Kutcher K. Cunningham

Theses and Dissertations

Oak (Quercus) forests in the Arkansas Ozarks have been important culturally, ecologically and environmentally for centuries. Historically these forests were fire dependent and dominated by oak species. In the past century, fire suppression and land management have caused these forests to densify. As a result, oaks are increasingly less abundant following disturbance in natural hardwood stands. Many applied ecological studies have explored methods and practices to maintain oak species in newly developing stands. This study attempted to link the mechanistic physiology of oak and non-oak reproduction to the applied ecological work. Varying stand conditions were generated in an undisturbed mature …

Characterization Of Salmonella Enterica Isolates From Food And Clinical Samples: Functionality Of Cytolethal Distending Toxin (Cdt) From Non-Typhi Salmonella Enterica, Ezat Hussain Mezal

Theses and Dissertations

Salmonella enterica is recognized worldwide as a significant cause of both human and animal disease. Recently, many random outbreaks of infections associated with the pathogens have been documented. Thus, state of the art molecular tools are necessary to conduct effective surveillance that would aid monitoring and prevention of disease. In this study, 110 Salmonella enterica serovars (Enteritidis & Javiana) strains isolated from food, environmental and clinical samples were analyzed for genetic diversity, antibiotic resistance, presence of virulence genes, plasmids, and plasmid replicon types. To assess the genetic diversity, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) fingerprinting, multiple-locus variable-number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA) and …

Broadband In Nebraska: Current Landscape And Recommendations, Nebraska Information Technology Commission, Nebraska Broadband Initiative, Nebraska Public Service Commission, University Of Nebraska-Lincoln, Nitc Community Council, Nebraska Department Of Economic Development, Aim

Rural Futures Institute: Publications

N ebraska’s broadband vision is that residents, businesses, government entities, commu-nity partners, and visitors have access to affordable broadband service and have the necessary skills to effectively utilize broadband technologies.

Objectives

To increase economic development opportunities, create good-paying jobs, at-tract and retain population, overcome the barriers of distance, and enhance qual-ity of life in Nebraska by stimulating the continuing deployment of broadband technologies which meet the need for increasing connection speeds.

To increase digital literacy and the widespread adoption of broadband technolo-gies in business, agriculture, health care, education, government and by individu-al Nebraskans.

Goals

The following goals and targets help …

Mtorc2 Is Required For Rit-Mediated Oxidative Stress Resistance, Weikang Cai, Douglas A. Andres

Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry Faculty Publications

Rit, a member of the Ras family of GTPases, has been shown to promote cell survival in response to oxidative stress, in part by directing an evolutionarily conserved p38 MAPK-Akt survival cascade. Aberrant Rit signaling has recently been implicated as a driver mutation in human cancer, adding importance to the characterization of critical Rit effector pathways. However, the mechanism by which Rit-p38 signaling regulated Akt activity was unknown. Here, we identify mTORC2 as a critical downstream mediator of Rit-dependent survival signaling in response to reactive oxygen species (ROS) stress. Rit interacts with Sin1 (MAPKAP1), and Rit loss compromises ROS-dependent mTORC2 …

Epigenetic Regulation Of Nuclear Hormone Receptor Dax-1, Michael B. Heskett

Master's Theses

DAX-1 (NR0B1) is an orphan nuclear receptor that plays a key role in the development and maintenance of steroidogenic tissue in mammals. Dax-1 is also expressed in mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells and is required to maintain pluripotency. Duplication of the X-chromosome in the region containing the NR0B1 gene results in sex reversal, and mutations in NR0B1 cause adrenal hypoplasia congenita. DAX-1 has been observed to act as a corepressor of other nuclear receptors including androgen receptor (AR), estrogen receptor (ER), and steroidogenic factor 1 (SF-1). In addition to pluripotent ES cells, DAX-1 is primarily expressed in select tissues of …

Gut Microbiota-Derived Short-Chain Fatty Acids, T Cells, And Inflammation, Chang Kim, Jeongho Park, Myunghoo Kim

Department of Comparative Pathobiology Faculty Publications

T cells are central players in the regulation of adaptive immunity and immune tolerance. In the periphery, T cell differentiation for maturation and effector function is regulated by a number of factors. Various factors such as antigens, co-stimulation signals, and cytokines regulate T cell differentiation into functionally specialized effector and regulatory T cells. Other factors such as nutrients, micronutrients, nuclear hormones and microbial products provide important environmental cues for T cell differentiation. A mounting body of evidence indicates that the microbial metabolites short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) have profound effects on T cells and directly and indirectly regulate their differentiation. We …

Effects Of Barbell Deadlift Training On Submaximal Motor Unit Firing Rates For The Vastus Lateralis And Rectus Femoris, Matt S. Stock, Brennan J. Thompson

Kinesiology and Health Science Faculty Publications

Previous investigations that have studied motor unit firing rates following strength training have been limited to small muscles, isometric training, or interventions involving exercise machines. We examined the effects of ten weeks of supervised barbell deadlift training on motor unit firing rates for the vastus lateralis and rectus femoris during a 50% maximum voluntary contraction (MVC) assessment. Twentyfour previously untrained men (mean age 524 years) were randomly assigned to training (n515) or control (n59) groups. Before and following the intervention, the subjects performed isometric testing of the right knee extensors while bipolar surface electromyographic signals were detected from the two …

Investigating The Links Between Ozone And Organic Aerosol Chemistry In A Biomass Burning Plume From A Prescribed Fire In California Chaparral, M. J. Alvarado, C. R. Lonsdale, Robert Yokelson, S. K. Akagi, H. Coe, J. S. Craven, E. V. Fischer, G. R. Mcmeeking, J. H. Seinfeld, T. Soni, J. W. Taylor, D. R. Weise, C. E. Wold

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Publications

Within minutes after emission, rapid, complex photochemistry within a biomass burning smoke plume can cause large changes in the concentrations of ozone (O₃) and organic aerosol (OA). Being able to understand and simulate this rapid chemical evolution under a wide variety of conditions is a critical part of forecasting the impact of these fires on air quality, atmospheric composition, and climate. Here we use version 2.1 of the Aerosol Simulation Program (ASP) to simulate the evolution of O₃ and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) within a young biomass burning smoke plume from the Williams prescribed burn in chaparral, …

High Intralocus Variability And Interlocus Recombination Promote Immunological Diversity In A Minimal Major Histocompatibility System, Anthony B. Wilson, Camilla M. Whittington, Angela Bahr

Publications and Research

Background: The genes of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC/MH) have attracted considerable scientific interest due to their exceptional levels of variability and important function as part of the adaptive immune system. Despite a large number of studies on MH class II diversity of both model and non-model organisms, most research has focused on patterns of genetic variability at individual loci, failing to capture the functional diversity of the biologically active dimeric molecule. Here, we take a systematic approach to the study of MH variation, analyzing patterns of genetic variation at MH class IIα and IIβ loci of the seahorse, which …

In The Social Amoeba, Dictyostelium Discoideum , Density, Not Farming Status, Determines Predatory Success On Unpalatable Escherichia Coli, Susanne Disalvo, Debra A. Brock, Jeff Smith, David C. Queller, Joan E. Strassmann

Biology Faculty Research

Background
The social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum interacts with bacteria in a variety of ways. It is a predator of bacteria, can be infected or harmed by bacteria, and can form symbiotic associations with bacteria. Some clones of D. discoideum function as primitive farmers because they carry bacteria through the normally sterile D. discoideum social stage, then release them after dispersal so the bacteria can proliferate and be harvested. Some farmer-associated bacteria produce small molecules that promote host farmer growth but inhibit the growth of non-farmer competitors. To test whether the farmers’ tolerance is specific or extends to other growth inhibitory …

Biodiesel Production From Castor Oil And Its Application In Diesel Engine, Ismail S, Abu S. A, Rezaur R, Sinin H

ASEAN Journal on Science and Technology for Development

In this study, the optimum biodiesel conversion from crude castor oil to castor biodiesel (CB) through transesterification method was investigated. The base catalyzed transesterification under different reactant proportion such as the molar ratio of alcohol to oil and mass ratio of catalyst to oil was studied for optimum production of castor biodiesel. The optimum condition for base catalyzed transesterification of castor oil was determined to be 1:4.5 of oil to methanol ratio and 0.005:1 of potassium hydroxide to oil ratio. The fuel properties of the produced CB such as the calorific value, flash point and density were analyzed and compared …

Development Of Suspended Particulate Matter Empirical Equation For Tropics Estuary From Landsat Etm+ Data, Razak Z, Zuhairi A, Shahbudin S, Rosnan Y

ASEAN Journal on Science and Technology for Development

Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM) essentially related to the total scattering of particles in the water column. It plays the role as a transport medium for pollutants, total load of organic and inorganic substance in the water phase. In this study, we have developed empirical relationship based on a strong relationship between Landsat near infrared (NIR) band and archived SPM data. The following were the power equations:SPM NE (mg/l) = 11.68x0.666SPM SW (mg/l) = 18.61x0.493where, x (TM4) is radiance of ETM+ NIR band 4 was developed under tropical atmospheric conditions. Using the above equation, the SPM concentration for Northeast and Southwest …

Smokejumper Obituary: Petersen, Kent A. (Idaho City 1968), National Smokejumper Association

Smokejumper Obituaries

No abstract provided.

Registration Of ‘Newell’ Smooth Bromegrass, K P. Vogel, R B. Mitchell, B L. Waldron, M R. Haferkamp, J D. Berdahl, D D. Baltensperger, Galen Erickson, T J. Klopfenstein

Green Canyon Environmental Research Area, Logan Utah

No abstract provided.

Color Updating On The Apparent Motion Path, Edmund Chong, Sang Wook Hong, Won Mok Shim

Dartmouth Scholarship

When a static stimulus appears successively at two distant locations, we perceive illusory motion of the stimulus across them–long-range apparent motion (AM). Previous studies have shown that when the apparent motion stimuli differ in shape, interpolation between the two shapes is perceived across the AM path. In contrast, the perceived color during AM has been shown to abruptly change from the color of the first stimulus into that of the second, suggesting interpolation does not occur for color during AM. Here, we report the first evidence to our knowledge, that an interpolated color, distinct from the colors of either apparent …

Managing Threats To The Urban Forest: From Dutch Elm Disease To Emerald Ash Borer - Learning From Experience, Christopher J. Borman

Doctor of Plant Health Program: Dissertations and Student Research

The urban forest provides important essential services to all municipalities; however, its value is often overlooked. The urban forest contributes to energy savings, environmental benefits, psychological well-being, and social benefits. Managing the urban forest in a sustainable manner is important if we wish to benefit from these services well into the future. Reliable management techniques have been created through previous experiences with pests, and these should be utilized and improved for use on urban forests.

American elm (Ulmus americana L.) was once a major component of the urban forests of North America. In 1927, Dutch elm disease (DED) was …

Drivers And Barriers For Going Green: Perceptions From The Business Practitioners In Malaysia, Loke S-P, Khalizani K, Rohati S, Sayaka A

ASEAN Journal on Science and Technology for Development

The changes of global environmental conditions have placed great challenges to governments and societies. While it is not easy for the companies to go green, we need a renewed concern for our environment in order to revive the nation’s economic growth, social cohesion and ecological balances. This article identifies the drivers and barriers for the business industry to adopt green practices. A total of 571 business companies from the Perak State participated in this study. Four variables: (1) Regulations (β=0.159, p<0.05); (2) Social responsibility (β=0.201, p<0.05); (3) Pro-environmental organizational culture (β=0.389, p<0.01); and (4) Organizational supports (β=0.369, p<0.01) werefound to significantly affect the company’s green initiatives. The results indicated that the main internal barriers were: it lacked of financial resources (66.2%) and skilled staff (63.9%); whereas the main external barriers were: the penalty imposed were not severe enough for making any extra efforts (64.8%) and the penalty was light for violation of environmental regulations (63.2%). This research had implications for the academics, practitioners and policy makers. It provided greater insights into the green practices in Malaysian firms. The research findings also urged the local governments to greatly enhance regulatory scrutiny on the production and manufacturing industries.

A First Survey Of The Centipedes Of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Joseph Desisto

Holster Scholar Projects

No abstract provided.

Soil Carbon And Nitrogen Mineralization And Crop Parameters In Typical Maize-Bean Intercropping In Western Kenya, Judith A. Odhiambo, Urszula Norton, Emmanuel C. Omondi, Dennis Ashilenje, Jay B. Norton

Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Faculty Research

Smallholder farmers in western Kenya who plant maize (Zea mays L.) intercropped with beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) face many challenges associated with nutrient-poor soils and weather-related crop failures. In regions where temperatures are favorable, crops are grown twice per year during long and short rainy seasons and in other regions, once per year during one long growing season. Growing crops two times per year necessitates frequent land preparation using inversion-type tillage. Little is known about the impact of current tillage-intensive crop management on annual soil organic matter (SOM) recovery. The aim of this study was to assess changes to soil …

Draft Genome Sequence Of New Bacillus Cereus Strain Tsu1, Hui Li, Suping Zhou, Terrance Johnson, Koen Vercruysse, Alexander J. Ropelewski, Theodore W. Thannhauser

Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Faculty Research

This paper reports the draft genome sequence of new Bacillus cereus strain tsu1, isolated on an agar-cellulose plate. The draft genome sequence is 5.81 Mb, revealing 5,673 coding sequences. It contains genes for cellulose-degradation and biosynthesis pathways of polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) and 8 rRNA genes (5S, 16S, and 23S).

Primulaceae, Jon M. Ricketson, John J. Pipoly Iii, B. Stahl, M. Moraes

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Books and Book Chapters

No abstract provided.

Why Did The Bear Cross The Road? Comparing The Performance Of Multiple Resistance Surfaces And Connectivity Modeling Methods, Samuel A. Cushman, Jesse S. Lewis, Erin Landguth

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

There have been few assessments of the performance of alternative resistance surfaces, and little is known about how connectivity modeling approaches differ in their ability to predict organism movements. In this paper, we evaluate the performance of four connectivity modeling approaches applied to two resistance surfaces in predicting the locations of highway crossings by American black bears in the northern Rocky Mountains, USA. We found that a resistance surface derived directly from movement data greatly outperformed a resistance surface produced from analysis of genetic differentiation, despite their heuristic similarities. Our analysis also suggested differences in the performance of different connectivity …

Bovine Colostrum Supplementation Optimises Earnings, Performance And Recovery In Racing Thoroughbreds, C. K. Fenger, Thomas Tobin, P. J. Casey, Edward A. Roualdes, J. L. Langemeier, D. M. Haines

Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center Faculty Publications

Bovine colostrum (BC) is the first milk produced by cows after calving and contains numerous beneficial substances for the immunity and development of the newborn calf. Because of the growth and immune factors in BC, it has become an attractive supplement for use by athletes to support immunity and health during athletic performance. In order to evaluate the effects of oral BC supplementation on equine athletes, this study evaluated the earnings, performance, recovery and incidence of upper respiratory infections (URTI) in racing horses. The study design was a randomized cross-over racing performance study. 21 horses in race training were randomly …

El Nino Southern Oscillation (Enso) Enhances Co2 Exchange Rates In Freshwater Marsh Ecosystems In The Florida Everglades, Sparkle L. Malone, Christina L. Staudhammer, Steven F. Oberbauer, Paulo Olivas, Michael G. Ryan, Jessica L. Schedlbauer, Henry W. Loescher, Gregory Starr

Biology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Mitochondria Dysfunction In Lung Cancer-Induced Muscle Wasting In C2c12 Myotubes, Julie B. Mclean, Jennifer S. Moylan, Francisco H. Andrade

Physiology Faculty Publications

Aims: Cancer cachexia is a syndrome which results in severe loss of muscle mass and marked fatigue. Conditioned media from cachexia-inducing cancer cells triggers metabolic dysfunction in skeletal muscle, including decreased mitochondrial respiration, which may contribute to fatigue. We hypothesized that Lewis lung carcinoma conditioned medium (LCM) would impair the mitochondrial electron transport chain (ETC) and increase production of reactive oxygen species, ultimately leading to decreased mitochondrial respiration. We incubated C2C12 myotubes with LCM for 30 min, 2, 4, 24 or 48 h. We measured protein content by western blot; oxidant production by 2′,7′-dichlorofluorescin diacetate (DCF), 4-amino-5-methylamino-2′,7′-difluorofluorescein diacetate (DAF), and …

Attentional Blink: An Antecedent To Binge Eating Behavior, Gregory Denke

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This study examined how attentional sub-processes contribute to binge-eating. Dense-array EEG and a version of the canonical attentional blink task were used to ascertain the neural correlates underlying the attentional sub-processes that comprise the Posner model of attention (alerting, orienting, and executive control) and how attentional activation differs for binge-eaters vs. non-binge eaters. Furthermore, we examined a number of the event-related potentials (ERP), including P2 activation, which has been linked with orientating of attention, and N2 activation which has been linked with attentional conflict. We found decreased P2 activation for binge-eaters, in the negative condition, for incorrect target 2 (T2) …

Mechanisms Of Condition-Specific Regulation Of Mrna Stability By Puf Proteins: From Yeast To Humans, Joseph Russo

Dissertations

RNA binding proteins regulate mRNA decay and translation, two key steps in the control of gene expression in cells. Controlling mRNA metabolism allows cells to respond rapidly to altering conditions by utilizing already available mRNA, bypassing the wait for newly transcribed mRNA. The Puf family of RNA binding proteins bind specific mRNAs through interactions with sequences located in the 3’ untranslated region (UTR). Puf proteins are conserved throughout eukaryotes and have diverse roles including stem cell maintenance, neuronal development, stress response and organelle biogenesis. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Puf proteins are conditionally regulated in response to the cells metabolic. Specifically, in …

A Microrna-1280/Jag2 Network Comprises A Novel Biological Target In High-Risk Medulloblastoma, Fengfei Wang, Marc Remke, Tze-Chen Hsieh, Lizi Wu, Cynthia Hawkins, Joseph M. Wu, Erxi Wu

NYMC Faculty Publications

Over-expression of PDGF receptors (PDGFRs) has been previously implicated in high-risk medulloblastoma (MB) pathogenesis. However, the exact biological functions of PDGFRα and PDGFRβ signaling in MB biology remain poorly understood. Here, we report the subgroup specific expression of PDGFRα and PDGFRβ and their associated biological pathways in MB tumors. c-MYC, a downstream target of PDGFRβ but not PDGFRα, is involved in PDGFRβ signaling associated with cell proliferation, cell death, and invasion. Concurrent inhibition of PDGFRβ and c-MYC blocks MB cell proliferation and migration synergistically. Integrated analysis of miRNA and miRNA targets regulated by both PDGFRβ and c-MYC reveals that increased …