Life Sciences Commons^™

An Evaluation Of Blogging As An Educational Tool For Interprofessional Education As Part Of University Experiential Learning, Kelley Robb

Graduate Theses

Since the inception of the Internet, much of our society’s communication has become paperless and instantaneous. The speed at which information can be disseminated has not only changed the way in which we communicate with each other but it has also increased the collaboration between professions, particularly the health sciences. As society shifts to a more virtual environment, it is imperative to assess these online tools to determine whether they elevate our research, educational methods and/or work environment. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether blogging can be used as an educational tool for interprofessional education in a …

Ecology Of Sceloporus Consobrinus Populations In Two Thermally Different Habitats, Alyssa N. Bangs

Theses and Dissertations from 2016

Life history traits in ectotherms are tied to environmental temperature, and many species exhibit morphological and behavioral differences in thermally different habitats. Although these differences are generally attributed to differences in thermal regimes between habitats, most prior research on this topic has been performed across latitudinal or altitudinal gradients. Consequently, I wanted to determine if differences in morphology and behavior are also present among populations of Sceloporus consobrinus that inhabit thermally different habitats at the same latitude and elevation. In this study, I chose sites that fit one of two habitat types: warmer open rocky habitat and cooler, more vegetated …

Effects Of Non-Consumptive Recreation And Environmental Factors On Arkansas State Park Biodiversity, Bennett P. Grooms

Theses and Dissertations from 2016

State parks serve a dual conservation role by offering protected habitat to many species while also promoting recreational use of natural resources. Non-consumptive recreation activities, however, have long-term negative effects on the behavior, physiology, and reproductive success of state park biotic communities. The purpose of my research was to investigate the possible synergistic effects of non-consumptive trail use, environmental factors, and trail design factors on avian, mesocarnivore, and woody vegetation communities in Arkansas state parks. During 18 May – 7 August 2015, I conducted avian point counts, trail user counts, set camera traps, and sampled vegetation at 227 points on …

Effective Tandem Hoop Net Sampling Effort For Evaluation Of Channel Catfish Populations In Reservoirs, Philip B. Malone

Theses and Dissertations from 2016

Channel Catfish Ictalurus punctatus have an important role in Arkansas’s commercial and recreational fisheries. This importance promoted sampling strategy investigations for obtaining information that assist with future management decisions. My study focused on determining effective sampling effort and sample size requirements needed for detecting changes in relative abundance within Channel Catfish populations, and explored relationships between catch per unit effort (CPUE) and reservoir habitat characteristics. My study was conducted during the spring of 2014 in six reservoirs (Lake Nimrod, Lake Overcup, Lake Catherine, De Queen Lake, Lake Erling, and Lake Columbia). General stock assessments consisting of length frequency distributions, growth …

Developing Best Management Practices For Interior Least Tern Habitat Restoration On The Mcclellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System, John Gordon T. Ross

Theses and Dissertations from 2016

The interior least tern (Sternula antillarum athalassos) is an endangered shorebird that nests on sandbars in river systems throughout the central United States, and which has lost habitat due to damming and channelization of these rivers. My study sought to quantify the status and trends of the population nesting in the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System (MKARNS) within Arkansas, and to establish best practices for nesting habitat management. The local population of terns remained steady between 2010 and 2014, with approximately 450 adults breeding in this section of MKARNS. Regression tree analysis and principal component analysis showed that colonies on …

Report Of A Meeting On Contemporary Topics In Zebrafish Husbandry And Care, Nikki Osborne, Gregory Paull, Adam Grierson, Karen Dunford, Elisabeth M. Busch-Nentwich, Lynne U. Sneddon, Natalie Wren, Joe Higgins, Penny Hawkins

Ichthyology Collection

A meeting on Contemporary Topics in Zebrafish Husbandry and Care was held in the United Kingdom in 2014, with the aim of providing a discussion forum for researchers, animal technologists, and veterinarians from academia and industry to share good practice and exchange ideas. Presentation topics included protocols for optimal larval rearing, implementing the 3Rs (replacement, reduction, and refinement) in large-scale colony management, and environmental enrichment. The audience also participated in a survey of current practice relating to practical husbandry, cryopreservation, and the provision of enrichment.

Animal-Friendly Affinity Reagents: Replacing The Needless In The Haystack, A. C. Gray, S. S. Sidhu, P. C. Chandrasekera, C. F.M. Hendriksen, C. A.K. Borrebaeck

Biomedicine and Animal Models in Research Collection

The multibillion-dollar global antibody industry produces an indispensable resource but that is generated using millions of animals. Despite the irrefutable maturation and availability of animal-friendly affinity reagents (AFAs) employing na€ive B lymphocyte or synthetic recombinant technologies expressed by phage display, animal immunisation is still authorised for antibody production. Remarkably, replacement opportunities have been overlooked, despite the enormous potential reduction in animal use. Directive 2010/63/EU requires that animals are not used where alternatives exist. To ensure its implementation, we have engaged in discussions with the EU Reference Laboratory for alternatives to animal testing (EURL ECVAM) and the Directorate General for Environment …

Malanda Gold: The Tale Of A Unique Rainbowfish From The Atherton Table-Lands, Now On The Verge Of Extinction., Peter J. Unmack, Keith Martin, Michael P. Hammer, Brendan Ebner, Karl Moy, Culum Brown

Ichthyology Collection

No abstract provided.

Birth Mass Is The Key To Understanding The Negative Correlation Between Lifespan And Body Size In Dogs, Rong Fan, Gayla R. Olbricht, Xavior Baker, Chen Hou

Mathematics and Statistics Faculty Research & Creative Works

Larger dog breeds live shorter than the smaller ones, opposite of the mass-lifespan relationship observed across mammalian species. Here we use data from 90 dog breeds and a theoretical model based on the first principles of energy conservation and life history tradeoffs to explain the negative correlation between longevity and body size in dogs. We found that the birth/adult mass ratio of dogs scales negatively with adult size, which is different than the weak interspecific scaling in mammals. Using the model, we show that this ratio, as an index of energy required for growth, is the key to understanding why …

Lower Prairie Creek Project, Susie Van Kirk

Susie Van Kirk Papers

Information on the Prairie Creek fish hatchery from 1927 through 1936. This report includes details on fish species and population numbers, as well as information on the landowners and the construction of the hatchery.

Ros Regulation Of Axonal Mitochondrial Transport, Pin-Chao Liao

Open Access Dissertations

Mitochondria perform critical functions including aerobic ATP production and calcium (Ca2+) homeostasis, but are also a major source of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. To maintain cellular function and survival in neurons, mitochondria are transported along axons, and accumulate in regions with high demand for their functions. Oxidative stress and abnormal mitochondrial axonal transport are associated with neurodegenerative disorders. However, we know little about the connection between these two. Using primaryDrosophila neuronal cell culture and the third instar larval nervous system as in vitro and in vivo models, respectively, we studied mitochondrial transport under oxidative stress conditions. In vitro …

Hydromagnetic Peristaltic Transportation With Porous Medium Through An Asymmetric Vertical Tapered Channel And Joule Heating, S. R. Kumar

Applications and Applied Mathematics: An International Journal (AAM)

The present paper deals with a theoretical investigation of the hydromagnetic peristaltic transportation with porous medium through coaxial asymmetric vertical tapered channel and joule heating which has been studied under the assumption of long wavelength approximations. Exact analytical expressions of axial velocity, volume flow rate, pressure gradient, temperature and heat transfer coefficient at both walls were calculated. The effects of various emerging parameters, Hartmann number, Non-uniform parameter, Prandtl number, Heat generator parameter, Brinkman number, Porous parameter are discussed through the use of graphs. We notice from the figures that the temperature of the fluid increases in the entire vertical tapered …

Sagestep News, Winter 2016, No. 29, Sagestep

Newsletters

Seasonal newsletter of SageSTEP.

Freeze Tolerance Of Cyphoderris Monstrosa (Orthoptera: Prophalangopsidae), Jantina Toxopeus, Jacqueline Lebenzon, Alexander H. Mckinnon, Brent J. Sinclair

Biology Publications

The great grig, Cyphoderris monstrosa Uhler (Orthoptera: Prophalangopsidae), is a large (20-30 mm, >1 g), nocturnal ensiferan that in habits montane coniferous forests in northwestern North America. C. monstrosa overwinters as a late-instar nymph, but its cold tolerance strategy has not previously been reported. We collected nymphs from near Kamloops, British Columbia, in late spring to determine their cold tolerance strategy. C. monstrosa nymphs were active at low temperatures until they froze at -4.6 ± 0.3 °C. The nymphs survived internal ice formation (i.e. are freeze tolerant), had a lethal temperature between -9 and -12 °C, and could survive for …

Dissecting Salt Tolerance In Soybean By Profiling Differential Physiological Responses Under Salt Stress, Jade Amber Newsome

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Saline soils are common worldwide and limit the yield potential of many crops. Plants respond in a variety of ways to the stress imposed by saline soils. Plants under salt stress must first sense their surroundings and transmit a signal alerting the rest of the plant to the saline conditions. Salt tolerance in soybeans is typically defined by exclusion of chloride ions from foliar tissues. Though differences in ion uptake among soybean genotypes is well documented, the key mechanisms employed by tolerant cultivars to cope with salt stress on the whole-plant level are still largely unknown. Objectives of the current …

The Etiology, Virulence, And Phylogenetics Of The Celery Anthracnose Pathogen, Colletotrichum Fioriniae (= C. Acutatum Sensu Lato), Jason Alexander Pavel

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

An anthracnose disease of celery, caused by Colletotrichum acutatum sensu lato, has been reported in the U.S. A phylogenetic analysis was conducted on a collection of isolates from celery and non-celery hosts to evaluate their taxonomic position within Colletotrichum acutatum sensu lato. Both celery and non-celery isolates were evaluated for pathogenicity on celery and for vegetative compatibility. Culture filtrates from celery and non-celery isolates were evaluated for their ability to reproduce the unusual leaf curl type symptoms. A total of 18 celery isolates were evaluated for their taxonomic placement based on analysis of the glutamine synthetase intron sequence. All isolates …

Association Mapping Of Seed Weight, Protein, And Sucrose Content; And Kinetics Of Edamame Under Infrared Treatment, Laura Melissa Lara Santisteban

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Edamame is a specialty large-seeded soybean (Glycine max L. Merr.) harvested at an immature stage (R6) that has become the second largest consumed soyfood. Although United States is the largest soybean producer, majority of edamame is imported from Asia, highlighting the importance of developing new edamame varieties. Association mapping (AM) provides an alternative to bi-parental linkage mapping method to detect quantitative trait loci (QTL) adding higher resolution and broader germplasm information. Seed weight, sucrose, and protein are quantitative traits of value when selecting edamame lines. However molecular mechanisms controlling each of these traits are still inconclusive and have not been …

Avs Corner, December 2016, Peyton Voirin, Leslie Ward, Kim Hill, Johanna Johnson, Annie Kate Herlong

AVS Corner

No abstract provided.

Xpert Mtb/Rif Assay Shows Faster Clearance Of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Dna With Higher Levels Of Rifapentine Exposure., A Jayakumar, R M Savic, C K Everett, Debra Benator, D Alland, C M Heilig, M Weiner, S O Friedrich, N A Martinson, A Kerrigan, C Zamudio, S V Goldberg, W C Whitworth, J L Davis, P Nahid

Medicine Faculty Publications

The Xpert MTB/RIF assay is both sensitive and specific as a diagnostic test. Xpert also reports quantitative output in cycle threshold (CT) values, which may provide a dynamic measure of sputum bacillary burden when used longitudinally. We evaluated the relationship between Xpert CT trajectory and drug exposure during tuberculosis (TB) treatment to assess the potential utility of Xpert CT for treatment monitoring. We obtained serial sputum samples from patients with smear-positive pulmonary TB who were consecutively enrolled at 10 international clinical trial sites participating in study 29X, a CDC-sponsored Tuberculosis Trials Consortium study evaluating the tolerability, safety, and antimicrobial activity …

Strategies For Enriching Variant Coverage In Candidate Disease Loci On A Multiethnic Genotyping Array, Stephanie Bien, Genevieve L. Wojcik, Niha Zubair, Christopher Gignoux, Alicia R. Martin, Lisa W. Martin, Page Study Investigators

Medicine Faculty Publications

Investigating genetic architecture of complex traits in ancestrally diverse populations is imperative to understand the etiology of disease. However, the current paucity of genetic research in people of African and Latin American ancestry, Hispanic and indigenous peoples in the United States is likely to exacerbate existing health disparities for many common diseases. The Population Architecture using Genomics and Epidemiology, Phase II (PAGE II), Study was initiated in 2013 by the National Human Genome Research Institute to expand our understanding of complex trait loci in ethnically diverse and well characterized study populations. To meet this goal, the Multi-Ethnic Genotyping Array (MEGA) …

Pertussis-Associated Pneumonia In Infants And Children From Low- And Middle-Income Countries Participating In The Perch Study., Breanna Barger-Kamate, Maria Deloria Knoll, E Wangeci Kagucia, Christine Prosperi, Henry C Baggett, Daniel E. Park, +31 Additional Authors

Epidemiology Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND:  Few data exist describing pertussis epidemiology among infants and children in low- and middle-income countries to guide preventive strategies.

METHODS:  Children 1-59 months of age hospitalized with World Health Organization-defined severe or very severe pneumonia in 7 African and Asian countries and similarly aged community controls were enrolled in the Pneumonia Etiology Research for Child Health study. They underwent a standardized clinical evaluation and provided nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swabs and induced sputum (cases only) for Bordetella pertussis polymerase chain reaction. Risk factors and pertussis-associated clinical findings were identified.

RESULTS:  Bordetella pertussis was detected in 53 of 4200 (1.3%) cases …

Residual Effects Of Nitrogen Fertilization On Soil Nitrogen Pools And Corn Growth, Meghan E. Moser

Open Access Theses

Given the dynamic nature of soil nitrogen (N), inorganic N fertilization to corn (Zea mays L.) has potential to alter N pool balance by creating an accumulation or depletion of soil N. Current corn N recommendations in the common corn-soybean rotation of Indiana strive to find the best N rate that maximizes producer profit. Increasing our understanding of soil N will inform producers if they should adjust fertilizer rates for corn to influence maintenance of organic N and Carbon. Our objective was to determine residual N effects from fertilized corn in a corn-soybean rotation by measuring (1) soil N …

Origins And Maintenance Of Diversity In A Vertebrate Parthenogen, Alex Scott Hall

Biology Dissertations - Archive

Clonal lineages are expected to experience a decline in fitness over time due to their inability to decouple deleterious and beneficial alleles. Individually, however, asexual populations pass twice as much of their DNA per generation as sexual lineages. This balancing act between Muller's Ratchet and the lack of the two-fold cost of sex in asexuals brings significant scientific intrigue to instances of asexual populations. Among vertebrates, squamates (and mainly lizards) are uniquely capable of true parthenogenesis whereby females reproduce without males. These lineages are always hybrid, as is the case with parthenogenetic Aspidoscelis lizards (Teiidae). In particular, the checkered whiptail …

Insights Into The Genomic And Metabolic Adaptations Of Termite Associated Verrucomicrobia Strains Using Functional And Comparative Genomics, Malini Sharadkumar Kotak

Biology Dissertations - Archive

The symbiotic gut organisms of termites play an important role in lignocellulose digestion and other related metabolic processes. Previous studies on Diplosphaera colitermitum TAV2, a Verrucomicrobium isolated from the hindgut of Reticulitermes flavipes, revealed its microaerophilic nature and involvement in important ecophysiological processes in the termite gut. In the present study, a detailed account of genomic sequences of 3 additional strains is provided, and the genomes of all 5 TAV strains isolated so far are compared, to gain a comprehensive understanding of these organisms. Our comparative genomic study shows that these strains represent two distinct species, and despite significant number …

Brain Transcriptional Profiles Of Male Alternative Reproductive Tactics And Females In Bluegill Sunfish, Charlyn Partridge

Open Access Publishing Support Funded Articles

Bluegill sunfish (Lepomis macrochirus) are one of the classic systems for studying male alternative reproductive tactics (ARTs) in teleost fishes. In this species, there are two distinct life histories: parental and cuckolder, encompassing three reproductive tactics, parental, satellite, and sneaker. The parental life history is fixed, whereas individuals who enter the cuckolder life history transition from sneaker to satellite tactic as they grow. For this study, we used RNAseq to characterize the brain transcriptome of the three male tactics and females during spawning to identify gene ontology (GO) categories and potential candidate genes associated with each tactic. We …

The Impact Of Environmental Parameters On Microcystin Production In Dialysis Bag Experiments, Liqiang Xie, Richard Rediske, Nadia Gillett, James O'Keefe, Brian Scull, Qingju Xue

Open Access Publishing Support Funded Articles

It is important to understand what environmental parameters may regulate microcystin (MC) production and congener type. To determine if environmental conditions in two hydraulically connected lakes can influence MC production and congener ratios, we incubated dialysis bags containing phytoplankton from mesotrophic/eutrophic Muskegon Lake into hypereutrophic Bear Lake (Michigan, USA) and vice versa. Strong cyanobacteria growth was observed in all dialysis bags with Bear Lake phytoplankton in July and August. Phytoplankton communities were dominated by Aphanizomenon aphanizomenoides, Microcystis wesenbergii, Limnothrix redekei. MC concentrations were correlated with M. wesenbergii and A. aphanizomenoides biovolume. MC concentrations in bags incubated in the Muskegon …

Annual Forage Cropping-Systems For Midwestern Ruminant Livestock Production, John Ernest Mcmillan

Open Access Dissertations

Annual forage cropping systems are a vital aspect of livestock forage production. One area where this production system can be enhanced is the integration of novel annual forages into conventional cropping systems. Two separate projects were conducted to investigate alternative forage options in annual forage production. In the first discussed research trial, two sets of crops were sown following soft red winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) grain harvest, at two nitrogen application rates 56 and 112 kg ha-1 . The first set of crops were C4 summer annuals seeded within two weeks of wheat grain harvest and included, brown …

Can Low-Severity Fire Reverse Compositional Change In Montane Forests Of The Sierra Nevada, California, Usa?, Kendall M. L. Becker, James A. Lutz

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

Throughout the Sierra Nevada, nearly a century of fire suppression has altered the tree species composition, forest structure, and fire regimes that were previously characteristic of montane forests. Species composition is fundamentally important because species differ in their tolerances to fire and environmental stressors, and these differences dictate future forest structure and influence fire regime attributes. In some lower montane stands, shade-tolerant, fire-sensitive species have driven a threefold increase in tree density that may intensify the risk of high-severity fire. In upper montane forests, which were historically characterized by longer fire return intervals, the effects of fire exclusion are both …

Tracing The Dawn Of The Elapidae Through The Molecular Systematics And Historical Biogeography Of Old World Coralsnakes, Utpal Smart

Biology Dissertations - Archive

Much debated since the early 20th century, the evolutionary history and origin of the clinically important family Elapidae is of enormous interest. A persistent lack of higher-level phylogenetic resolution however, has impeded a clear understanding of the biogeography of this charismatic group of snakes. The traditional limiting factor in studies on higher-level elapid relationships has been the availability of samples from Old World coralsnakes (genera Sinomicrurus and Calliophis). Usually small, shy and fossorial, these animals are amongst the rarest Oriental snakes and their sampling in molecular studies has been sparse. Herein, primarily using molecular data, I work out the systematic …

Phylogeography Of The American Green Treefrog Species Group, Paul Nathaniel Pasichnyk

Biology Dissertations - Archive

The southeastern United States is an important temperate biodiversity hotspot, housing a multitude of endemic species and multiple large rivers fragmenting their ranges. To determine if the Riverine Barriers Hypothesis explains population divergence in this region, this study utilizes of a combination of phylogeographic methods and ecological niche modeling to investigate the role of rivers in genetic dispersal. Intra-and interspecific phylogenies for the hylid treefrogs Dryophytes cinereus, D. gratiosus and D. squirellus were estimated using nuclear and mitochondrial DNA sequences to identify relationships and genetic variation within these species and test for population structure, especially with respect to potential riverine …