Life Sciences Commons^™

School Siting Near Industrial Chemical Facilities: Findings From The U.S. Chemical Safety Board's Investigation Of The West Fertilizer Explosion., Veronica A Tinney, Jerad M Denton, Lucy Sciallo-Tyler, Jerome A. Paulson

Environmental and Occupational Health Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) investigated the April 17, 2013 explosion at the West Fertilizer Company (WFC) that resulted in 15 fatalities, more than 260 injuries and damage to more than 150 buildings. Among these structures were four nearby school buildings cumulatively housing children in grades K-12, a nursing care facility and an apartment complex. The incident occurred during the evening when school was not in session, which reduced the number of injuries.

OBJECTIVES: The goal of this paper is to illustrate the consequences of siting schools near facilities that store or use hazardous chemicals, …

Consumer Product Chemicals In Indoor Dust: A Quantitative Meta-Analysis Of U.S. Studies, Susanna D. Mitro, Robin Dodson, Veena Singla, Gary Adamkiewicz, Angelo F. Elmi, Monica Tilly, Ami R. Zota

Environmental and Occupational Health Faculty Publications

Indoor dust is a reservoir for commercial consumer product chemicals, including many compounds with known or suspected health effects. However, most dust exposure studies measure few chemicals in small samples. We systematically searched the U.S. indoor dust literature on phthalates, replacement flame retardants (RFRs), perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), synthetic fragrances, and environmental phenols and estimated pooled geometric means (GMs) and 95% confidence intervals for 45 chemicals measured in ≥3 data sets. In order to rank and contextualize these results, we used the pooled GMs to calculate residential intake from dust ingestion, inhalation, and dermal uptake from air, and then identified hazard …

Arboretum Annual Report 2015-2016, Glenn Dreyer

Annual Reports

No abstract provided.

Quantifying Undisturbed (Native) Lands In Eastern South Dakota: 2013, Pete Bauman, Benjamin Carlson, Tanner Butler

Quantifying Undisturbed (Native) Lands in Eastern South Dakota: 2013

We employed simple GIS methods primarily utilizing the South Dakota Farm Service Agency’s Common Land Unit (CLU) data layers from 2013, along with 2012 US Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP) county mosaic aerial imagery, to evaluate approximately 22.6 million acres of land in the 44 counties that comprise eastern South Dakota. Mapping of this total project area was done in three distinct project phases from 2014 through 2016. We utilized the CLU data layer, queried to show current and former cropland, to first identify and remove any areas with a cropping history, regardless of current land …

Inhibition Of Human Metapneumovirus Binding To Heparan Sulfate Blocks Infection In Human Lung Cells And Airway Tissues, Edita M. Klimyte, Stacy E. Smith, Pasqua Oreste, David Lembo, Rebecca Ellis Dutch

Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry Faculty Publications

Human metapneumovirus (HMPV), a recently discovered paramyxovirus, infects nearly 100% of the world population and causes severe respiratory disease in infants, the elderly, and immunocompromised patients. We previously showed that HMPV binds heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs) and that HMPV binding requires only the viral fusion (F) protein. To characterize the features of this interaction critical for HMPV binding and the role of this interaction in infection in relevant models, we utilized sulfated polysaccharides, heparan sulfate mimetics, and occluding compounds. Iota-carrageenan demonstrated potent anti-HMPV activity by inhibiting binding to lung cells mediated by the F protein. Furthermore, analysis of a minilibrary …

The Cosm Newsletter

COSM Newsletter

• Eagles in Training for STEM Careers
• The Department of Biology Welcomes New Faculty
• Biology Alumni Move Onward and Upward
• Georgia Southern's Elite 8 for REU-2016
• Geologists Investigate Salt Water Intrusion on a Georgia Barrier Island
• The Georgia Southern Sea Turtle Program at St. Catherines Island: The 2016 Sea Turtle Nesting Season
• Hatchlings
• The Department of Mathematical Sciences Welcomes New Faculty
• Eagles Win Third MacArthur Award
• Faculty member awarded new Patent on “Engineered lumenized vascular networks and support matrix”
• The Photonic Nanotechnology Computational Group
• Edwards participates in NSF "Ideas Lab" to Measure "Big G"
• Faculty Member Participates in Scholarly Activities
• Professors …

Improving The Spatial Allocation Of Functional Group Biomasses In Spatially-Explicit Ecosystem Models: Insights From Three Gulf Of Mexico Models, Arnaud Gruss, Elizabeth A. Babcock, Skyler Sagarese, Michael Drexler, David D. Chagaris, Cameron H. Ainsworth, Brad Penta, Sergio Derada, Tracey Sutton

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Spatially-explicit ecosystem models, such as Ecospace, Atlantis, and OSMOSE, are key tools for achieving ecosystem-based fisheries management in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM). In spatially-explicit ecosystem models, trophic interactions strongly depend on the way functional group biomasses are allocated spatially, which conditions patterns of spatial overlap between predators, prey, and competitors. Here, we review realized and ongoing improvements in the spatial allocation of functional group biomasses in Ecospace and OSMOSE models of the West Florida Shelf ("WFS Reef fish Ecospace" and "OSMOSE-WFS") and in the Atlantis model of the GOM ("Atlantis-GOM"). A habitat capacity model, which defines the spatial distribution …

Forage News [2016-10], Department Of Plant And Soil Sciences, University Of Kentucky

Forage News

• KY Grazing Conference Write Up
• Tribute to a Forage Legend: Warren Thompson
• Frost and Freezes Increase Cyanide Poisoning Risk
• Kentucky Cattlemen Association Presents Forage Specialist Funds at the KFGC Field Day
• Forage News Quote of the Month: "Beware of Emotional Decision" - Russell Hackley
• Fall Nitrogen Boosts Winter Survival and Spring Greenup
• Master Grazer's new Coordinator, Jacob Brandenburg
• Featured Publication: Calculating Carrying Capacity Using Web Soil Survey, AGR-222

Natural Variability In Acyl Moieties Of Sugar Esters Produced By Certain Tobacco And Other Solanaceae Species, Antoaneta B. Kroumova, David Zaitlin, George J. Wagner

Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center Faculty Publications

A unique feature of glandular trichomes of plants in the botanical family Solanaceae is that they produce sugar esters (SE), chemicals that have been shown to possess insecticidal, antifungal, and antibacterial properties. Sugar esters of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) provide pest resistance, and are important flavor precursors in oriental tobacco cultivars. Acyl moieties of SEs in Nicotiana spp., petunia, and tomato are shown to vary with respect to carbon length and isomer structure (2–12 carbon chain length; anteiso-, iso-, and straight-chain). Sugar esters and their acyl groups could serve as a model to explore the basis of …

Dissolved Iron And Iron Isotopes In The Southeastern Pacific Ocean, Jessica N. Fitzsimmons, Tim M. Conway, Jong-Mi Lee, Richard Kayser, Kristen M. Thyng, Seth G. John, Edward A. Boyle

Marine Science Faculty Publications

The Southeast Pacific Ocean is a severely understudied yet dynamic region for trace metals such as iron, since it experiences steep redox and productivity gradients in upper waters and strong hydrothermal iron inputs to deep waters. In this study, we report the dissolved iron (dFe) distribution from seven stations and Fe isotope ratios (δ⁵⁶Fe) from three of these stations across a near‐zonal transect from 20 to 27°S. We found elevated dFe concentrations associated with the oxygen‐deficient zone (ODZ), with light δ⁵⁶Fe implicating porewater fluxes of reduced Fe. However, temporal dFe variability and rapid δ⁵⁶Fe …

Hexapod Herald - Vol. 28, No. 4, October 2016

Hexapod Herald and Other Entomology Department Newsletters

Content: Welcome New Students - Congratulations - ESA National Meeting//ICE Meeting News - Faculty News - Publications - Grants - Meet Buddy Roper, an Online Student - Student News - BugFest 2016

Secretarial Order 3336 Science Priorities: The Role Of Science Past, Present, And Future, Stephen W. Barrett

Joint Fire Science Program Digests

Within sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) ecosystems, which are home to more than 350 species of plants and animals, potentially more frequent and severe fires are causing an increased threat to human safety, property, rural economies, and wildlife habitat. In particular, the habitat of the greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus), an iconic sagebrush-dependent species, is at risk. In response to this reality, on January 15, 2015, Secretary Sally Jewell signed Secretarial Order 3336 (S.O. 3336), titled “Rangeland Fire Prevention, Management, and Restoration.” The main purpose of the order is to implement enhanced policies and strategies for managing rangeland fire and …

Studies On Asparagine In Nebraska Wheat And Other Grains, Sviatoslav Navrotskyi

Department of Food Science and Technology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Understanding of the contribution of environmental and genetic factors on the chemical composition of different grains is a critical issue in the area of food safety of cereal products. Numerous studies have reported that asparagine can form acrylamide, a toxic and potentially carcinogenic precursor compound, during a Milliard reaction. Therefore, studying the environmental and genetic effects that contribute to accumulation of asparagine in wheat and proso millet lines, which were grown in the state of Nebraska, is important for supporting breeding programs aimed at providing safer crops for consumers. In the realm of reduction of the asparagine concentration in wheat-based …

Experimental Assessment Of Lionfish Removals To Mitigate Reef Fish Community Shifts On Northern Gulf Of Mexico Artificial Reefs, Kristin A. Dahl, William F. Patterson Iii, Richard A. Synder

C-IMAGE Publications

Substantial declines in reef fishes were observed at northern Gulf of Mexico artificial reef sites between 2009−2010 and 2011−2012, a period that bracketed the appearance of invasive lionfish in this ecosystem. Small demersal reef fishes, the predominant prey of lionfish in other systems, displayed the greatest declines. However, a confounding factor during this time was the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (DWH) in summer 2010. In some areas, targeted lionfish removals have been demonstrated to mitigate negative effects on native fishes. Therefore, we conducted a 2 yr experiment to examine the effectiveness and ecological benefits of targeted lionfish removals at artificial …

Northern Saw-Whet Owls: Influence Of Environmental Factors On Autumn Migration Dynamics, Hannah K. Murphy

Senior Honors Theses

A portion of the population of the Northern Saw-whet Owl (Aegolius acadicus) leaves its breeding range in Canada and the northern United States each fall to winter where lesser snow cover allows easier access to prey. Study of its migratory dynamics is difficult, however, both because of its nocturnal habits and because it does not vocalize readily off of its breeding territory. Since 2002 banding studies in the Lynchburg area have investigated the migration dynamics of this species in central Virginia. However, few studies have examined the influence of environmental factors on capture rates of saw-whets during migration. …

Promises And Challenges Of Eco-Physiological Genomics In The Field: Tests Of Drought Responses In Switchgrass. Plant Physiology, John T. Lovell, Eugene V. Shakirov, Scott Schwartz, David B. Lowry, Michael J. Aspinwall, Samuel H. Taylor, Jason Bonnette, Juan Diego Palacio-Mejia, Christine V. Hawkes, Philip A. Fay, Thomas E. Juenger

Biological Sciences Faculty Research

Identifying the physiological and genetic basis of stress tolerance in plants has proven to be critical to understanding adaptation in both agricultural and natural systems. However, many discoveries were initially made in the controlled conditions of greenhouses or laboratories, not in the field. To test the comparability of drought responses across field and greenhouse environments, we undertook three independent experiments using the switchgrass reference genotype Alamo AP13. We analyzed physiological and gene expression variation across four locations, two sampling times, and three years. Relatively similar physiological responses and expression coefficients of variation across experiments masked highly dissimilar gene expression responses …

Louisiana Agriculture Fall, 2016

Louisiana Agriculture

No abstract provided.

An Arginine Finger Regulates The Sequential Action Of Asymmetrical Hexameric Atpase In The Double-Stranded Dna Translocation Motor, Zhengyi Zhao, Gian Marco De-Donatis, Chad T. Schwartz, Huaming Fang, Jingyuan Li, Peixuan Guo

Pharmaceutical Sciences Faculty Publications

Biological motors are ubiquitous in living systems. Currently, how the motor components coordinate the unidirectional motion is elusive in most cases. Here, we report that the sequential action of the ATPase ring in the DNA packaging motor of bacteriophage ϕ29 is regulated by an arginine finger that extends from one ATPase subunit to the adjacent unit to promote noncovalent dimer formation. Mutation of the arginine finger resulted in the interruption of ATPase oligomerization, ATP binding/hydrolysis, and DNA translocation. Dimer formation reappeared when arginine mutants were mixed with other ATPase subunits that can offer the arginine to promote their interaction. Ultracentrifugation …

A Pilot Study Of Comparison Gesture Analysis In Motion Driven Video Games, Fabrizio Valerio Covone, Brian Vaughan, Charlie Cullen

Conference Papers

This study investigates whether there are significant differences in the gestures made by gamers and non-gamers whilst playing commercial games that employ gesture inputs. Specifically, the study focuses on testing a prototype of multimodal capture tool that we used to obtain real-time audio, video and skeletal gesture data. Additionally, we developed an experimental design framework for the acquisition of spatio-temporal gesture data and analysed the vector magnitude of a gesture to compare the relative displacement of each participant whilst playing a game.

Habitats Colonized By Non-Native Flowering Rush Butomus Umbellatus (Linnaeus, 1753) In The Niagara River, Usa, Matthew D. Gunderson, Kevin L. Kapuscinski, Derek P. Crane, John M. Farrell

Biology

During the summer of 2012, we first observed non-native flowering rush Butomus umbellatus (Linnaeus, 1753) in the upper Niagara River, NY, USA, where this species had previously been undocumented. In a 2013 study, Butomus was present at 33 of 161 (20%) submersed nearshore (≤ 3 m) sites surveyed. It was the species of greatest biomass at 27% of the sites where it was collected, and was observed growing at depths > 3 m. Butomus was disproportionately prevalent in the upper observed ranges of water depth and velocity. Butomus was also closely associated with coarse substrates, differing from canopy-forming species but not …

Pangolin Genomes And The Evolution Of Mammalian Scales And Immunity, Siew Who Choo, Mike Rayko, Tze King Tan, Ranjeev Hari, Aleksey Komissarov, Wei Yee Wee, Andrey A. Yurchenko, Sergey Kliver, Gaik Tamazian, Agostinho Antunes, Richard K. Wilson, Wesley C. Warren, Klaus Peter Koepfli, Patrick Minx, Ksenia Krasheninnikova, Antoinette Kotze, Desire L. Dalton, Elaine Vermaak, Ian C. Paterson, Pavel Dobrynin, Frankie Thomas Sitam, Jeffrine J. Rovie-Ryan, Warren E. Johnson, Aini Mohamed Yusoff, Shu Jin Luo, Kayal Vizi Karuppannan, Gang Fang, Deyou Zheng, Mark B. Gerstein

Biology Faculty Articles

Pangolins, unique mammals with scales over most of their body, no teeth, poor vision, and an acute olfactory system, comprise the only placental order (Pholidota) without a whole-genome map. To investigate pangolin biology and evolution, we developed genome assemblies of the Malayan (Manis javanica) and Chinese (M. pentadactyla) pangolins. Strikingly, we found that interferon epsilon (IFNE), exclusively expressed in epithelial cells and important in skin and mucosal immunity, is pseudogenized in all African and Asian pangolin species that we examined, perhaps impacting resistance to infection. We propose that scale development was an innovation that provided protection against injuries or stress …

Biomechanical Analysis Of Gait Termination In 11–17 Year Old Youth At Preferred And Fast Walking Speeds, Sarah T. Ridge, John Henley, Kurt Manal, Freeman Miller, James G. Richards

Faculty Publications

In populations where walking and/or stopping can be difficult, such as in children with cerebral palsy, the ability to quickly stop walking may be beyond the child’s capabilities. Gait termination may be improved with physical therapy. However, without a greater understanding of the mechanical requirements of this skill, treatment planning is difficult. The purpose of this study was to understand how healthy children successfully terminate gait in one step when walking quickly, which can be challenging even for healthy children. Lower extremity kinematic and kinetic data were collected from 15 youth as they performed walking, planned, and unplanned stopping tasks. …

Nebline, October 2016

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Feature: Legends of the Fall — Accidental and Occasional Invaders

Food & Health

Farm & Acreage

Pests & Wildlife

Horticulture

Early Childhood

4-H & Youth

Extension Calendar

and other extension news and events

Fluid Dynamic Factors As A Cause And Effect Of Biofilm Formation Of Staphylococcus Aureus Biofilms, Erica Sherman

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Staphylococcus aureus bacteria are able to form biofilms and distinctive tower structures that facilitate their ability to tolerate treatment and to spread within the human body. The formation of towers, which break off, get carried downstream and serve to initiate biofilms in other parts of the body are of particular interest here. It is known that flow conditions play a role in the development, dispersion and propagation of biofilms. The influence of flow on tower formation and what factors lead to tower formation is not at all understood The hypothesis being examined is that tower structures form within a specific …

The Effect Of Skinfold On The Assessment Of The Mean Power Frequency At The Fatigue Threshold, Alyssandra N. Baniqued, Jorge M. Zuniga, Thomas C. Strunc, Katie M. Keenan, Agrini K. Boken, Jeffrey J. Anderson

Journal Articles

The purpose of this study was to determine if the amount of subcutaneous tissue over the quadriceps affects the assessment of mean power frequency at the fatigue threshold (MPFFT). It was hypothesized that greater skinfold values will result in lower power outputs associated to the MPFFT. Fourteen adults (Mean ± SD age = 20.7 ± 0.99; body weight = 72.8 ± 12.6 kg) performed an incremental cycle ergometry test to exhaustion while surface electromyographic (EMG) signals were measured from the vastus lateralis. The skinfold thickness of each leg was taken prior to the test, and skinfold thicknesses were separated into …

Introduction To Cover Crops For Vegetable Production In Utah, Tiffany Maughan, Dan Drost

All Current Publications

This fact sheet provides a brief overview of cover crops for vegetable production and will help growers interested in figuring out what cover crops will work best for their unique situations.

Simple Sprinkler Performance Testing For Wayne County, Kelly Kopp, Niel Allen, Trent Wilde

All Current Publications

This fact sheets tells homeowners how to be more efficient with their irrigation systems by following three simple steps, a site inspection, a sprinkler performance test, and an appropriate irrigation schedule.

Simple Sprinkler Performance Testing For Piute County, Kelly Kopp, Niel Allen, Trent Wilde

All Current Publications

This fact sheet gives homeowners information on making landscape irrigation systems more efficient using a site inspection, a sprinkler performance test and an appropriate irrigation schedule.

Comparison Of Three Traps Used For Pocket Gopher Management (Thomomys Bottae) In Alfalfa Fields, S. Nicole Frey, Mark Nelson

All Current Publications

This fact sheet is a report of a study that compared three traps used for pocket gopher management to determine which trap may be the most effective at capturing valley pocket gophers and was the most time efficient.

Tapping Into Social Media Data To Identify The Public's Most Valued Landscapes, Lael Gilbert, Jordan W. Smith, Derek Van Berkel, Boris Van Zanten

All Current Publications

Today, millions of people are using social media to share information and images about the places they visit for outdoor recreation and leisure. This fact sheet reviews recent research which analyzed over 7.5 million photos posted to Instagram, Flickr, and Panaramio to examine which European landscapes individuals value most. The research is the first of its kind to use social media data to identify the public’s most valued landscapes across an entire continent.