Life Sciences Commons^™

Decomposing Trends In Adult Body Mass Index, Obesity, And Morbid Obesity, 1971-2012, Ashley Wendell Kranjac, Robert L. Wagmiller

Sociology Faculty Articles and Research

Trends in adult obesity have been used to motivate key public health policies in the United States. While these analyses provide important insights into the broad historical contours of the obesity epidemic in the U.S., they shed less light on the proximate mechanisms that have generated these changes and that will ultimately determine the long-term course and pace of change in obesity rates. We used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), Glenn Firebaugh's linear decomposition technique, and Kitagawa's algebraic decomposition method to decompose change in body mass index (BMI), obesity, and morbid obesity from 1971 through …

To Bee Or Not To Bee?, Shimon Edelman, Roy Moyal, Tomer Fekete

Animal Sentience

Klein & Barron’s (2016) (K & B’s) case for insect consciousness is a welcome development in an area that, in all of the science and philosophy of mind, is probably the most anthropocentric. In this commentary, we seek to strengthen K & B’s side of the argument by appealing not just to putative neural mechanisms but also to computational theory that supports it (section 1). We also offer some remarks on three distinctions that are relevant to K & B’s thesis and are central to phenomenal awareness: between the capacity for awareness and its contents (section 2); between …

No Proof For Subjective Experience In Insects, Holk Cruse, Malte Schilling

Animal Sentience

Klein & Barron (2016) provide an inspiring review collecting arguments that show quite related functions in humans and insects. Here we extend the comparison to robots, and formulate two critical objections. One concerns an epistemological question related to the phenomenon of subjective experience. The other questions whether insects need integrated spatiotemporal modeling for navigation.

Transcriptome Response Of Cassava Leaves Under Natural Shade, Zehong Ding, Yang Zhang, Yi Xiao, Fangfang Liu, Minghui Wang, Xinguang Zhu, Peng Liu, Qi Sun, Wenquan Wang, Ming Peng, Tom Brutnell, Pinghua Li

Center for Plant Science Innovation: Faculty Publications

Cassava is an important staple crop in tropical and sub-tropical areas. As a common farming practice, cassava is usually cultivated intercropping with other crops and subjected to various degrees of shading, which causes reduced productivity. Herein, a comparative transcriptomic analysis was performed on a series of developmental cassava leaves under both full sunlight and natural shade conditions. Gene expression profiles of these two conditions exhibited similar developmental transitions, e.g. genes related to cell wall and basic cellular metabolism were highly expressed in immature leaves, genes involved in lipid metabolism and tetrapyrrole synthesis were highly expressed during the transition stages, and …

Malosma Laurina Dieback Associated With Fungal Induced Loss In Hydraulic Conductivity And Photosynthesis, Gabriella N. Palmeri, Shaquetta R. Reese, Helen I. Holmlund, Frank W. Ewers, Stephen D. Davis

Biology

Widespread Malosma laurina (Laurel Sumac) dieback is occurring throughout the Santa Monica Mountains. M. laurina is a keystone species within the SMM and its deep roots provide necessary slope stability to the hillsides; therefore, M. laurina’s health is of ecological importance. This study examines whether M. laurina dieback is associated with decreased stem water transport due to the prevalence of a pathogenic fungus within the water transport tissue. Stem samples from dieback and healthy control M. laurina were cultured for fungal growth. 100% of samples from water transport tissue from dieback adult plants contained a fungal pathogen from the …

Role Of Spinophilin In Group I Metabotropic Glutamate Receptor Endocytosis, Signaling, And Synaptic Plasticity, Andrea R. Di Sebastiano, Sandra Fahim, Henry A. Dunn, Cornelia Walther, Fabiola M. Ribeiro, Sean P. Cregan, Stephane Angers, Susanne Schmid, Stephen S. G. Ferguson

Anatomy and Cell Biology Publications

Activation of Group I metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) activates signaling cascades, resulting in calcium release from intracellular stores, ERK1/2 activation, and long term changes in synaptic activity that are implicated in learning, memory, and neurodegenerative diseases. As such, elucidating the molecular mechanisms underlying Group I mGluR signaling is important for understanding physiological responses initiated by the activation of these receptors. In the current study, we identify the multifunctional scaffolding protein spinophilin as a novel Group I mGluR-interacting protein. We demonstrate that spinophilin interacts with the C-terminal tail and second intracellular loop of Group I mGluRs. Furthermore, we show that interaction …

Effects Of Aging And Coronary Artery Disease On Sympathetic Neural Recruitment Strategies During End-Inspiratory And End-Expiratory Apnea, Mark B. Badrov, Sophie Lalande, T Dylan Olver, Neville Suskin, J Kevin Shoemaker

Kinesiology Publications

In response to acute physiological stress, the sympathetic nervous system modifies neural outflow through increased firing frequency of lower-threshold axons, recruitment of latent subpopulations of higher-threshold axons, and/or acute modifications of synaptic delays. Aging and coronary artery disease (CAD) often modify efferent muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA). Therefore, we investigated whether CAD (n = 14; 61 ± 10 yr) and/or healthy aging without CAD (OH; n = 14; 59 ± 9 yr) modified these recruitment strategies that normally are observed in young healthy (YH; n = 14; 25 ± 3 yr) individuals. MSNA (microneurography) was measured at baseline and during …

Global Intron Retention Mediated Gene Regulation During Cd4+ T Cell Activation., Ting Ni, Wenjing Yang, Miao Han, Yubo Zhang, Ting Shen, Hongbo Nie, Zhihui Zhou, Yalei Dai, Yanqin Yang, Poching Liu, Kairong Cui, Zhouhao Zeng, Yi Tian, Bin Zhou, Gang Wei, Keji Zhao, Weiqun Peng, Jun Zhu

Genomics and Precision Medicine Faculty Publications

T cell activation is a well-established model for studying cellular responses to exogenous stimulation. Using strand-specific RNA-seq, we observed that intron retention is prevalent in polyadenylated transcripts in resting CD4(+) T cells and is significantly reduced upon T cell activation. Several lines of evidence suggest that intron-retained transcripts are less stable than fully spliced transcripts. Strikingly, the decrease in intron retention (IR) levels correlate with the increase in steady-state mRNA levels. Further, the majority of the genes upregulated in activated T cells are accompanied by a significant reduction in IR. Of these 1583 genes, 185 genes are predominantly regulated at …

Mutations Affecting Epigenetic Regulators And Their Role In Peripheral T-Cell Lymphomas, Chao Wang

Theses & Dissertations

Peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) is a heterogeneous group of generally aggressive lymphoid malignancies, accounting for 10-15% of all non-Hodgkin lymphomas. Angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma (AITL) represents approximately 20% of all PTCLs and is recognized as a distinct entity. Accurate diagnosis and classification of PTCL remain challenging. With the exception of ALK+ ALCL, patients with PTCL generally have a poor prognosis with standard chemotherapy and even with the availability of many novel drugs, including HDAC inhibitor (romidepsin and belinostat), gemcitabine, and bortezomib. Therefore, deciphering the pathogenesis of this group of diseases is needed to identify novel treatable targets for better therapeutic intervention. …

Genetic Landscape Of Pediatric Myelodysplastic Syndromes, Jennifer E. Grove

Theses & Dissertations

Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are acquired heterogeneous hematopoietic clonal disorders primarily seen in the adult and elderly populations that presents a variety of cellular morphologies in cell lineages, varying prognoses, and differences in overall survival (OS) between individual patients. The occurrence of MDS in the pediatric and young adult population, or those between the ages of 0 and 29, is slowly on the rise. Pediatric and elderly cases exhibit diverse cytogenetic findings with differences in OS. The characterization of the genetic landscape of pediatric MDS is limited and most studies detailing genetic changes have been conducted in adult MDS cases. In …

Exploration Into The Functional Impact Of Muc1 On The Formation And Regulation Of Transcriptional Complexes Containing Ap-1 And P53, Ryan L. Hanson

Theses & Dissertations

The transmembrane glycoprotein MUC1 is aberrantly expressed in the majority of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma cases and promotes tumor progression by engaging in morphogenetic signaling through its cytoplasmic tail. Furthermore, MUC1 can translocate to the nucleus and function as a transcriptional co-regulator in conjunction with transcriptional complexes containing activator protein-1 (AP-1) and p53. The specificity of these interactions are thought to rely on specific patterning of post-translational modifications within the cytoplasmic tail of MUC1.

Within this dissertation, we examined how MUC1 influences the formation and activity of these transcription factors and the resulting impact on tumor progression and metastasis. In our …

Molecular Mechanisms Involved In Neurotoxicity Mediated By Hiv Proteins And Drug Abuse, Yu Cai

Theses & Dissertations

While the advancement of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has transformed the course of HIV/AIDS from a death sentence to a manageable chronic condition, the prevalence of a constellation of neurological disorders collectively termed as HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND) continues to persist in these patients. HAND is characterized by cognitive dysfunction, depression, impaired memory and/or deficits in motor skills. The underlying factors leading to HAND have been the subject of extensive research and are thought to be associated with HIV infection in the CNS combined with robust immune activation of resident cells of the CNS. In addition, there is a …

Study Of The Structure-Related Functions Of Eukaryotic Primase-Pol Alpha Complex During Replication, Yinbo Zhang

Theses & Dissertations

During eukaryotic replication primase•polymerase α (prim•polα) complex synthesizes de novo chimeric primers composed of about 10 nt RNA and 20 nt DNA, which are subsequently extended by main replicative DNA polymerases (pol), polε and polδ, on leading and lagging strands, respectively. It is estimated that prim•polα initiates more than 10 millions of lagging strand Okazaki fragments in human genome in each replication cycle. A concerted action of the two active sites, RNA pol and DNA pol, is required to ensure the efficient priming. A remarkable feature of the prim•polα complex is the “programmed” synthesis of the chimeric primer, where the …

The Mechanism Of Tubular Recycling Endosome Biogenesis, Shuwei Xie

Theses & Dissertations

Endocytic trafficking is a critical process for cellular homeostasis, and multiple ailments that include cardiovascular disease and cancer are related to the dysregulation of endocytic transport. As vesicles and target membranes are key to endocytic transport, lipids are essential for the regulation of endocytic trafficking pathways. We have shown that the tubular recycling endosomes (TRE) are essential for the regulation of endocytic recycling pathways. However, the mechanisms by which TRE are biosynthesized and carry out their functions remain unsolved. Studies from our lab have shown that phosphatidic acid (PA) recruits Molecule Interacting with Casl-Like protein 1 (MICAL-L1) as well as …

Voltage-Gated K+ Channels And Hiv-1-Induced Neural Injury: Implications For Pathogenesis Of Hiv-1-Associated Neurocognitive Disorders, Han Liu

Theses & Dissertations

Human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1)-associated neurocognitive disorder (HAND) is a subcortical disease involving neuronal loss and myelin damage. Myelin is deposited by oligodendrocytes through a complex process including oligodendrocyte progenitor cell (OPC) proliferation and maturation. Oligodendrocytes/OPCs are susceptible to viral proteins such as Tat and that myelin damage is associated with oligodendrocyte number decrease. It has been shown that activation of voltage-gated K⁺ (K_V) channels mediates apoptosis in various cell types. K_V1.3 is the most predominant K_V channel expressed in OPCs/oligodendrocytes and potentially involved in OPC developmental regulation. We studied the involvement of K_{V …}

Forced Exercise Increases Muscle Mass In Eae Despite Early Onset Of Disability, D. I. Patel, L. J. White, V. A. Lira, D. S. Criswell

Health & Kinesiology Faculty Publications and Presentations

We aimed to determine whether 10 days of treadmill exercise can increase skeletal muscle mass and intramuscular concentrations of brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and nerve growth factor (NGF) in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Forty female Lewis rats were randomly assigned to either EAE sedentary (EAE-Sed), EAE exercise (EAE-Ex), Control sedentary (Con-Sed) and Control exercise (Con-Ex). Exercising animals completed a 10 day forced exercising training program. Hind limb skeletal muscles were excised and weighed with soleus muscle used for BDNF and NGF quantification. Statistical analysis was done using a one-way analysis of variance. Disability was more pronounced in the EAE-Ex …

A Dynamical Systems Model Of Progesterone Receptor Interactions With Inflammation In Human Parturition, Douglas Brubaker, Mark R. Chance, Sam Mesiano

Faculty Scholarship

Background: Progesterone promotes uterine relaxation and is essential for the maintenance of pregnancy. Withdrawal of progesterone activity and increased inflammation within the uterine tissues are key triggers for parturition. Progesterone actions in myometrial cells are mediated by two progesterone receptor (PR) isoforms, PR-A and PR-B, that function as ligand-activated transcription factors. PR-B mediates relaxatory actions of progesterone, in part, by decreasing myometrial cell responsiveness to pro-inflammatory stimuli. These same pro-inflammatory stimuli promote the expression of PR-A which inhibits the anti-inflammatory activity of PR-B. Competitive interaction between the progesterone receptors then augments myometrial responsiveness to pro-inflammatory stimuli. The interaction between PR-B …

Developmental Functions Of Mir156-Regulated Squamosa Promoter Binding Protein-Like (Spl) Genes In Arabidopsis Thaliana, Mingli Xu, Tieqiang Hu, Jianfei Zhao, Mee-Yeon Park, Keith W. Earley, Gang Wu, Li Yang, R. Scott Poethig

Faculty Publications

Correct developmental timing is essential for plant fitness and reproductive success. Two important transitions in shoot development—the juvenile-to-adult vegetative transition and the vegetative-to-reproductive transition—are mediated by a group of genes targeted by miR156, SQUAMOSA PROMOTER BINDING PROTEIN (SBP) genes. To determine the developmental functions of these genes in Arabidopsis thaliana, we characterized their expression patterns, and their gain-of-function and loss-of-function phenotypes. Our results reveal that SBP-LIKE (SPL) genes in Arabidopsis can be divided into three functionally distinct groups: 1) SPL2, SPL9, SPL10, SPL11, SPL13 and SPL15 contribute to both the juvenile-to-adult vegetative transition …

Role Of Ddr1 In Pancreatic Cancer, Huocong Huang

Theses & Dissertations

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas are highly malignant cancers, characterized by extensive invasion into surrounding tissues, metastasis to distant organs at a very early stage, and a limited response to therapy. One of the main features of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas is desmoplasia, which leads to extensive deposition of collagen I. We have demonstrated that collagen I can induce epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in pancreatic cancer cells. A hallmark of EMT is an increase in the expression of a mesenchymal cadherin, N-cadherin. Our previous studies have shown that up-regulation of N-cadherin can promote tumor cell invasion and that collagen I-induced EMT is through two …

What Makes Us Conscious Is Not What Makes Us Human, Ezequiel Morsella, Erica B. Walker

Animal Sentience

Consistent with the promising proposal of Klein & Barron (K & B), we discuss how what makes us conscious appears to be distinct from and more widespread in the animal kingdom than what distinguishes us from other species. Many of the abilities that do distinguish humans from other species (e.g., syntax and co-articulation in speech production) can be mediated unconsciously. The kind of functional architecture proposed by K & B may engender an “action selection bottleneck” in both humans and nonhuman species. As noted by K & B, this bottleneck is intimately related to conscious processing.

Oregon Wine Board Meeting Minutes August 18, 2016, Oregon Wine Board

Oregon Wine Board Documents

These meeting minutes list individuals in attendance and missing at the August 18, 2016 Oregon Wine Board (OWB) meeting, held at Linfield College in McMinnville, Oregon. The Board went into Executive Session prior to calling the meeting to order. The finance, research, education, and marketing/communications committees provided reports. As part of the research committee's report, the Board discussed whether business and economics research will continue to reside within the Oregon Wine Standing Committee on Research (OWSCR). The meeting lasted 3 hours 44 minutes (including the time spent in Executive Session).

2014 Monterey County Water Resources Agency Groundwater Extraction Summary Report

Monterey County Water Resources Agency Water Reports

Annual report required by Monterey County Ordinances No. 3663 and 3717 in order to provide the Monterey County Water Resources Agency the most accurate water use information possible in order to manage water resources. Groundwater extraction data are presented by measurement in acre-feet equal to 325,851 gallons.

2013 Monterey County Water Resources Agency Groundwater Extraction Summary Report

Monterey County Water Resources Agency Water Reports

Annual report required by Monterey County Ordinances No. 3663 and 3717 in order to provide the Monterey County Water Resources Agency the most accurate water use information possible in order to manage water resources. Groundwater extraction data are presented by measurement in acre-feet equal to 325,851 gallons.

2011 Monterey County Water Resources Agency Groundwater Extraction Summary Report

Monterey County Water Resources Agency Water Reports

Annual report required by Monterey County Ordinances No. 3663 and 3717 in order to provide the Monterey County Water Resources Agency the most accurate water use information possible in order to manage water resources. Groundwater extraction data are presented by measurement in acre-feet equal to 325,851 gallons.

2009 Monterey County Water Resources Agency Groundwater Extraction Summary Report

Monterey County Water Resources Agency Water Reports

Annual report required by Monterey County Ordinances No. 3663 and 3717 in order to provide the Monterey County Water Resources Agency the most accurate water use information possible in order to manage water resources. Groundwater extraction data are presented by measurement in acre-feet equal to 325,851 gallons.

2007 Monterey County Water Resources Agency Groundwater Extraction Summary Report

Monterey County Water Resources Agency Water Reports

Annual report required by Monterey County Ordinances No. 3663 and 3717 in order to provide the Monterey County Water Resources Agency the most accurate water use information possible in order to manage water resources. Groundwater extraction data are presented by measurement in acre-feet equal to 325,851 gallons.

2003 Monterey County Water Resources Agency Groundwater Extraction Summary Report

Monterey County Water Resources Agency Water Reports

Annual report required by Monterey County Ordinances No. 3663 and 3717 in order to provide the Monterey County Water Resources Agency the most accurate water use information possible in order to manage water resources. Groundwater extraction data are presented by measurement in acre-feet equal to 325,851 gallons.

2000 Monterey County Water Resources Agency Groundwater Extraction Summary Report

Monterey County Water Resources Agency Water Reports

Annual report required by Monterey County Ordinances No. 3663 and 3717 in order to provide the Monterey County Water Resources Agency the most accurate water use information possible in order to manage water resources. Groundwater extraction data are presented by measurement in acre-feet equal to 325,851 gallons.

Orca Behavior And Subsequent Aggression Associated With Oceanarium Confinement, Robert Anderson, Robyn Waayers, Andrew Knight

Theory of Mind Collection

Based on neuroanatomical indices such as brain size and encephalization quotient, orcas are among the most intelligent animals on Earth. They display a range of complex behaviors indicative of social intelligence, but these are difficult to study in the open ocean where protective laws may apply, or in captivity, where access is constrained for commercial and safety reasons. From 1979 to 1980, however, we were able to interact with juvenile orcas in an unstructured way at San Diego’s SeaWorld facility. We observed in the animals what appeared to be pranks, tests of trust, limited use of tactical deception, emotional self-control, …

A Review Of The Welfare Impact On Pinnipeds Of Plastic Marine Debris, Andrew Butterworth

Reduction and Degradation of Habitat Collection

Uncounted, and usually unobserved, numbers of pinnipeds find themselves entangled in lost fishing gear, monofilament line, nets, rope, plastic packaging in the ocean or on the shoreline. These animals may carry debris wrapped around themselves for long periods, and often die as a result, sometimes from deep chronic wounds. The pinniped species most affected by this modern and manmade phenomenon are fur seals, monk seals, and California sea lions, and to a lesser extent gray, common, and monk seals. Entanglement rates described range up to 7.9% of local populations annually, and the common entangling materials; packing bands, fragments of lost …