Life Sciences Commons^™

Impact Of Portable Piloting Units On The Situation Awareness Of Maritime Pilots Perspectives Of Danish And West African Pilots, Bernard Kuwornu

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Estimating The Extent Of Illegal Fishing In The Exclusive Economic Zone Of Sierra Leone, Isha Jebbeh Kpaka

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Advancing The Blue Economy Through Sustainable Mariculture : The Prospect Of Pearl Oyster And Sponge Farm Cultivation In St. Vincent And The Grenadines, Kevin Antonio Providence

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Habitat Use And Diet Composition Of The Common Eland (Tragelaphus Oryx) In Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania, Gregory A. Mtega, Cuthbert L. Nahonyo, Steven Temu, George Sangu, John Bukombe

Tanzania Journal of Science

Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA) is renowned worldwide for its multiple land use where pastoralism and wildlife conservation co-exist. Thus, the NCA must meet a delicate balance of competing needs between livestock and wildlife. Currently the NCA is  conducting resettlement program to facilitate pastoralists who are willing to move and resettle outside of the conservation area in order to reduce the number of people and livestocks in NCA. The common eland (Tragelaphus oryx) are among the large herbivore species found in the NCA that might be affected by possible competition between livestock and wildlife. The information on this species including habitat …

Activated Carbon Based On Borassus Aethiopum Shells, Hulls, Kernels And Fruits For Removal Of Phenol And 2-Chlorophenol From Water, Ndatiye W. Ndatiye, Lupituko L. Mkayula, Grace A. Kinunda

Tanzania Journal of Science

This study aimed at developing activated carbons from Borassus aethiopum shells (BaS), hulls (BaH), kernels (BaK) and fruits (BaF) for removing phenol (Ph) and 2-chlorophenol (2-CP) from aqueous solution. The preparation of the activated carbons involved carbonization of the starting materials at 500 ºC followed by chemical activation at 600 ºC using 0.5 M H3PO4 acid. The prepared activated carbons were found to be mesoporous having pore sizes and surface areas in the range of 3.2 to 3.5 nm and 644 to 740 m2/g, respectively. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) thermograms showed that the prepared activated carbons can be applied in the …

Ecological Correlates For Endemic And Threatened Amphibians In The Uluguru Nature Forest Reserve, Tanzania, Joseph M. Christopher, Wilirk Ngalason, John V. Lyakurwa

Tanzania Journal of Science

Information on habitat characteristics for endemic and threatened amphibians along the altitudinal gradient in the Uluguru Nature Forest Reserve (UNFR) is limited. We assessed habitat characteristics associated with the occurrence of endemic and threatened amphibians in the Uluguru Nature Forest Reserve between April and June 2022. Bucket pitfall traps, time-constrained audio-visual surveys, plots and opportunistic searching were used to study amphibians in 6 sites along elevational gradient from 600 m to 2100 m a.s.l. Eighteen amphibian species were recorded, thirteen of them being endemic to the Eastern Arc Mountains, two near-endemic and three widely distributed. Among the species recorded, seven …

Anticancer Potential Of The Leaf Extracts From The Selected Croton Species, Peter V. Fayyu, Joan J.E. Munissi, Stephen S. Nyandoro, Flora Stephano

Tanzania Journal of Science

The reported investigations were aimed at establishing anticancer potential of the leaf extracts from Croton dictyophlebodes (CDE), C. kilwae (CKE) and C. longipedicellatus ssp austrotanzanicus (CLE). In vitro cytotoxicity assays of the extracts were performed against human laryngeal cancer cell line (HEp-2) and human breast cancer cell line (MCF-7), while in vivo toxicological studies were done using Swiss albino mice (Mus musculus) following the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development guideline number 423 of 2001. Results for in vitro assays revealed that CDE and CLE induced cytotoxicity to MCF-7 and HEp-2 cell lines at EC50 values of 86 and 63 …

Antidiabetic Potential Of Vitex Mombassae Fruits Extract In Streptozotocin-Nicotinamide Induced Diabetic Wistar Rat Model, Mussa B. Mbegeze, Joan J.E. Munissi, Flora Stephano, Ramadhani S.O. Nondo, Stephen S. Nyandoro

Tanzania Journal of Science

Besides changes in life styles and improper dietary patterns, the rapidly increasing burden of diabetes mellitus type 2 is correlated with antidiabetic agents currently in clinical use, which are costly, less effective, and present undesirable side effects. Natural products from plants are promising alternative sources for developing more effective and cost friendly antidiabetic agents. This study therefore investigated the antidiabetic potential of Vitex mombassae fruits extract (VMFE) in streptozotocin-nicotinamide induced diabetic Wistar rat model. Oral acute toxicity test was conducted in male Wistar rat using up and down method by following OECD Guideline 423 (2002). No clinical signs of toxicity …

Phytochemical Constituents Of Cissus Oliveri Growing In Pwani Region, Tanzania, Fadhili S. Estomini, Stephen I. Nnungu, Amelia S. Buriyo

Tanzania Journal of Science

Cissus oliveri (Engl.) Gilg ex Engl. is among the plant species of the family Vitaceae widely used in traditional medicine for management of different ailments. This study aimed at assessing the phytochemicals of C. oliveri parts in order to provide scientific validation for its use as a therapeutic agent. Qualitative analysis of water and ethanolic extracts was conducted by using standard methods and the results revealed that all the parts possess alkaloids, flavonoids, phenols and tannins. Similarly, glycosides and saponins were only present in leaf and root. Quantitative analysis performed by gravimetric and spectrophotometric methods showed that all parts contain …

Association Of Residual Feed Intake To Metrics Of Tanganyika Shorthorn Zebu Cattle In Maswa And Misungwi Districts, Tanzania, Godfrey L. Chasama, Fred D. Chibwana, Aloyce S. Hepelwa, Jestina V. Katandukila

Tanzania Journal of Science

Increasing competition for feed resources and greenhouse gases pollution have been compelling beef production systems to operate at higher feed utilization. These challenges imply the need to breed cattle for Residual Feed Intake (RFI) to lower feeding costs and enteric methane production per output. To explore relevant indicator traits of RFI, this study investigated the association of RFI to Tanganyika Shorthorn Zebu (TSZ) cattle metrics from the Misungwi and Maswa Districts of Tanzania, where Tarime and Sukuma ecotypes are common. A correlation study involving the fattening of twenty-eight TSZ bulls was conducted at Tanzania Livestock Research Institute -Mabuki. From the …

Leucine Supplementation Exacerbates Morbidity In Male But Not Female Mice With Colorectal Cancer-Induced Cachexia, Eleanor R. Schrems, Wesley S. Haynie, Richard A. Perry Jr., Francielly Morena, Ana Regina Cabrera, Megan E. Rosa-Caldwell, Nicholas P. Greene, Tyrone A. Washington

Health, Human Performance and Recreation Faculty Publications and Presentations

Cancer cachexia (CC) is a multifactorial wasting syndrome characterized by a significant loss in lean and/or fat mass and represents a leading cause of mortality in cancer patients. Nutraceutical treatments have been proposed as a potential treatment strategy to mitigate cachexia-induced muscle wasting. However, contradictory findings warrant further investigation. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of leucine supplementation on skeletal muscle in male and female Apc^Min/+ mice (APC). APC mice and their wild-type (WT) littermates were given normal drinking water or 1.5% leucine-supplemented water (n = 4–10/group/sex). We measured the gene expression of regulators of …

Taxonomic Review Of The North American Dung Beetle Genus Melanocanthon Halffter, 1958 (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae: Deltochilini), W. D. Edmonds

Insecta Mundi

This paper presents a taxonomic review of the genus Melanocanthon Halffter, a group of ball-roll­ing (telocoprid) dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae) endemic to eastern North America. The genus comprises five species, each keyed, diagnosed, illustrated and presented with information on dis­tribution, relationships, and biology: Melanocanthon punctaticollis (Schaeffer), M. granulifer (Schmidt), M. nigricornis (Say), M. bispinatus (Robinson) and Melanocanthon vulturnus Edmonds, new species.

This paper is a sequel to the recent taxonomic study of Boreocanthon (Edmonds 2022). Melanocanthon and Boreo­canthon are very closely related, distinct phylogenetic lineages with affinities to the pilularius species group of Canthon (Halffter 1961) and the …

Pepsis Elegans Lepeletier (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae: Pepsinae)—A Secretive Spider Wasp And Century-Long Conundrum, Frank E. Kurczewski

Insecta Mundi

After 105 years of study and 425 recent natural photographs, the host spider and nesting behavior of Pepsis elegans Lepeletier (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae: Pepsinae) remain a mystery. Pepsis elegans is the only species in the large and impressive genus Pepsis Fabricius that lives east of the Mississippi River, mainly in the southern U.S. The other 14 Nearctic Pepsis species inhabit the southern U.S. west of the Mississippi River and northern Mexico. They capture and provision their nests with large, hairy, heavy-bodied, stout-legged tarantulas of the genus Aphonopelma Pocock (Araneae: Mygalomorphae: Theraphosidae), the only native theraphosid genus in this region. There are …

Simian Immunodeficiency Virus-Infected Rhesus Macaques With Aids Co-Develop Cardiovascular Pathology And Encephalitis, Kevin S. White, Joshua A. Walker, John Wang, Patrick Autissier, Andrew D. Miller, Nadia N. Abuelezan, Rachel Burrack, Qingsheng Li, Woong-Ki Kim, Kenneth C. Williams

Nebraska Center for Virology: Faculty Publications

Despite effective antiretroviral therapy, HIV co-morbidities remain where central nervous system (CNS) neurocognitive disorders and cardiovascular disease (CVD)-pathology that are linked with myeloid activation are most prevalent. Comorbidities such as neurocogntive dysfunction and cardiovascular disease (CVD) remain prevalent among people living with HIV. We sought to investigate if cardiac pathology (inflammation, fibrosis, cardiomyocyte damage) and CNS pathology (encephalitis) develop together during simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) infection and if their co-development is linked with monocyte/ macrophage activation. We used a cohort of SIV-infected rhesus macaques with rapid AIDS and demonstrated that SIV encephalitis (SIVE) and CVD pathology occur together more frequently …

Optimization Of Pore Characteristics Of Graphite-Based Anode For Li-Ion Batteries By Control Of The Particle Size Distribution, Yun-Jeong Choi, Young-Seak Lee, Ji-Hong Kim, Ji-Sun Im

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

We investigate the reassembly techniques for utilizing fine graphite particles, smaller than 5 µm, as high-efficiency, high-rate anode materials for lithium-ion batteries. Fine graphite particles of two sizes (0.4-1.2 µm and 5 µm) are utilized, and the mixing ratio of the two particles is varied to control the porosity of the assembled graphite. The packing characteristics of the assembled graphite change based on the mixing ratio of the two types of fine graphite particles, forming assembled graphite with varying porosities. The open porosity of the manufactured assembled graphite samples ranges from 0.94% to 3.55%, while the closed porosity ranges from …

Neuroprotective Agents With Therapeutic Potential For Covid-19, César A Zaa, Clara Espitia, Karen L Reyes-Barrera, Zhiqiang An, Marco A Velasco-Velázquez

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

COVID-19 patients can exhibit a wide range of clinical manifestations affecting various organs and systems. Neurological symptoms have been reported in COVID-19 patients, both during the acute phase of the illness and in cases of long-term COVID. Moderate symptoms include ageusia, anosmia, altered mental status, and cognitive impairment, and in more severe cases can manifest as ischemic cerebrovascular disease and encephalitis. In this narrative review, we delve into the reported neurological symptoms associated with COVID-19, as well as the underlying mechanisms contributing to them. These mechanisms include direct damage to neurons, inflammation, oxidative stress, and protein misfolding. We further investigate …

Irf1 Regulates Self-Renewal And Stress Responsiveness To Support Hematopoietic Stem Cell Maintenance, Alexandra J S Rundberg Nilsson, Hongxu Xian, Shabnam Shalapour, Jörg Cammenga, Michael Karin

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are tightly controlled to maintain a balance between blood cell production and self-renewal. While inflammation-related signaling is a critical regulator of HSC activity, the underlying mechanisms and the precise functions of specific factors under steady-state and stress conditions remain incompletely understood. We investigated the role of interferon regulatory factor 1 (IRF1), a transcription factor that is affected by multiple inflammatory stimuli, in HSC regulation. Our findings demonstrate that the loss of IRF1 from mouse HSCs significantly impairs self-renewal, increases stress-induced proliferation, and confers resistance to apoptosis. In addition, given the frequent abnormal expression of IRF1 in …

Modification Of Chitosan Using Glycidyl Methacrylate-Grafted Cellulose (Gmagcell/ Chi) For Methylene Blue Adsorption, Haya Fathana, Rahmi Rahmi, Muhammad Adlim, Surya Lubis

Karbala International Journal of Modern Science

In this study, a glycidyl methacrylate-grafted cellulose/chitosan (GMA-g-Cell/Chi) film was successfully prepared and characterized. GMA-g-Cell was obtained from the grafting process of cellulose derived from sugarcane bagasse using glycidyl methacrylate (GMA). The cellulose grafting process was obtained using 20% GMA for 4 hours at 60oC. The percentage of grafting (PG) and grafting efficiency (GE) values for these parameters were 516 and 60.28%, respectively. Chitosan was modified with GMA-g-Cell and has higher adsorption capacity and tensile strength than chitosan. The adsorption kinetics tend to follow the pseudo-first-order adsorption kinetics model, with Qe and k1 being 7 mg/g and 0.067 g/mg. minute. …

Tak1 And Tbk1 Are Differentially Required By Gmp- And Lmpp-Like Leukemia Stem Cells, Austin P. Runde, Joseph Michael Cannova, Ryan Mack, Kanak Joshi, Mark Sellin, Allan Youmaran, Mattias Lenz, Rohit Thalla, Wei Wei, Peter Breslin S.J., Jiwang Zhang

School of Medicine

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) encompasses a diverse group of cancers that originate in the blood-forming tissues of the bone marrow. Aside from the M3 subtype (PML-RARA⁺), AML carries a 5-year survival rate of 28% for patients 20+ years of age. AML is the most common cancer of the hematopoietic system and is slightly more common in biological males; the average age at diagnosis is 68 years. Standard frontline treatment for AML is a 2-phase regimen of intensive chemotherapy (CTx) employing daunorubicin and cytarabine. Despite 60-70% of patients achieving complete remission (CR), at least half of CR-achieving patients …

Oregon State Ranking Assessment For Preble's Shrew (Sorex Preblei), Misty Nelson

Institute for Natural Resources Publications

Oregon State Ranking Assessment for Preble's shrew (Sorex preblei) by the Oregon Biodiversity Information Center, following NatureServe 2023 methodology.

Oregon State Rank Assessment For Black-Tailed Jackrabbit (Lepus Californicus), Misty Nelson

Institute for Natural Resources Publications

Oregon state conservation status assessment for black-tailed jackrabbit (Lepus californicus) using NatureServe methodology, 2023.

Oregon State Rank Assessment For White-Tailed Antelope Squirrel (Ammospermophilus Leucurus), Misty Nelson

Institute for Natural Resources Publications

Oregon state conservation status assessment for white-tailed antelope squirrel (Ammospermophilus leucurus) using NatureServe methodology, 2023.

Regulated Intramembrane Proteolysis By M82 Peptidases: The Role Of Prss In The Staphylococcus Aureus Stress Response, Baylie M. Schott

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Staphylococcus aureus is a major threat to human health, which is only exacerbated by its resistance to methicillin and other frontline antibiotics. Consequently, annual hospitalizations resulting from methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) have been recorded in the hundreds of thousands for decades. However, the global impact of this opportunistic pathogen cannot solely be attributed to its antibiotic resistance, as S. aureus is also an expert at adapting to host conditions and responding to external stress. Here we attempt to gain a better understanding of a S. aureus factor that aids in circumventing such external insult - PrsS - a membrane protease …

Hurricanes And Tropical Storms’ Impact On Water Quality In Lake Okeechobee, Florida, Daniela Vasquez Diaz

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Hurricanes are natural events with catastrophic outcomes, while climate change's effects on their intensity and frequency remain discussed. However, it is crucial to analyze these through models and statistics to understand their behavior and impact on the basins. Particularly in lakes on tropical coasts since disruptive events such as hurricanes tend to be highly affected. Lake Okeechobee is a unique lake located in Florida and one of the largest freshwater lakes. The lake and some of its significant stations are the locations chosen to perform the investigation. The main focus of the investigation is determining the effect that hurricanes have …

Dietary Habits, Meal Timing, And Meal Frequency In Kuwaiti Adults: Analysis Of The Kuwait National Nutrition Surveillance Data, Charles Darkoh

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Dietary habits, including meal frequency, meal timing, and skipping meals, have been extensively studied due to their association with the development of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). This study describes dietary habits, meal timing, frequency, skipping meals, and late-night eating in Kuwaiti adults. Kuwait National Nutrition Surveillance System data were utilized to reach the objectives of this study. The findings reveal that approximately 54% of the adults in Kuwait eat after 10 p.m., 29% skip breakfast, and 9.8% skip dinner. Furthermore, adults in Kuwait consume 4.4 meals per day on average. Women skip breakfast more often and have more extended night fasting …

Patterns In Biodiversity And Community Assemblage In Macrofaunal Fouling Communities On Tampa Bay Floating Docks, Cassidy C. Bell

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Understanding biodiversity trends of highly disturbed urban landscapes is essential as anthropogenic factors continue to drive global biodiversity loss. Within marine ecosystems, macrofaunal fouling communities, aggregations of epibenthic invertebrates that colonize human-made structures, represent an ecologically important subset of urban coastlines. Tampa Bay is a highly urbanized estuary in Florida, USA, and is home to the state’s largest port, Port Tampa Bay. This makes the bay a prime site for the introduction of new species, with many organisms either considered invasive or cryptogenic, their origins left unclear. Many factors may contribute to the communities that form on urban structures including …

Bayesian Parametric Models For Survival Prediction In Medical Applications, Iwan Paolucci, Yuan-Mao Lin, Jessica Albuquerque Marques Silva, Kristy K Brock, Bruno C Odisio

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Evidence-based treatment decisions in medicine are made founded on population-level evidence obtained during randomized clinical trials. In an era of personalized medicine, these decisions should be based on the predicted benefit of a treatment on a patient-level. Survival prediction models play a central role as they incorporate the time-to-event and censoring. In medical applications uncertainty is critical especially when treatments differ in their side effect profiles or costs. Additionally, models must be adapted to local populations without diminishing performance and often without the original training data available due to privacy concern. Both points are supported by Bayesian models-yet they …

Apple Crispr-Cas9-A Recipe For Successful Targeting Of Agamous-Like Genes In Domestic Apple, Logan Mccord

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Fruit trees and other fruiting hardwood perennials are economically valuable, and there is interest in developing improved varieties. Both conventional breeding and biotechnology approaches are being utilized towards the goal of developing advanced cultivars. Increased knowledge of the effectiveness and efficiency of biotechnology approaches can help guide use of the CRISPR gene-editing technology. Here, we examined CRISPR-Cas9-directed genome editing in the valuable commodity fruit tree Malus x domestica (domestic apple). We transformed two cultivars with dual CRISPR-Cas9 constructs designed to target two AGAMOUS-like genes simultaneously. The main goal was to determine the effectiveness of this approach for achieving target …

Study Abroad, Open-Source Laboratories, And Citizen Science, Brandon Winters

Day of Scholarship

For over 30 years, students and faculty from Bethel University, St. Paul have been traveling to the Amazon rainforest of Ecuador each January. In the course titled, Ecology in the Tropics: Natural History & Future Prospects- Ecuador & the Galapagos Islands students spend three weeks engaging in ecological, cultural, and research-focused activities while also observing and discussing the various impacts of human occupation on the natural environment. The need for cheap and portable laboratory equipment for these research activities along with the growing popularity of open-source equipment development and the growth of relationships with local communities have given rise to …

Influence Of The Step Number Of The Approach Run On The Jumping Kinematics In Volleyball Spike Jumps, Saburo Nishimura, Yoshinori Kinomura, Yuji Oshima, Haruhi Kataoka, Shuhei Iida, Shohei Yokozawa

Topics in Exercise Science and Kinesiology

Topics in Exercise Science and Kinesiology Volume 4: Issue 1, Article 15, 2023. In volleyball, the approach run serves as a strategy to execute a spike from an elevated striking position. Nevertheless, the influence of the step number of the approach run on the jumping kinematics in spike jumps is unclear. Therefore, this investigation aims to clarify the impact of varying step numbers within the approach run on jumping kinematics. Seven female volleyball athletes were tasked with executing spike jumps, employing 2 and 3-step approach runs. These trials were recorded using high-speed cameras and digitized, and then the kinematics of …