Life Sciences Commons^™

Advertising Sports Nutrition Practices To Adolescent Athletes: A Poster Series, Emma Hansen

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Sports nutrition is an important aspect of an athlete’s training and improvement, yet it is often overlooked when it comes to younger competitors. Four posters were created with the intent of providing adolescent athletes, their parents, and their coaches with information about important topics in sports nutrition including a general overview of nutrition goals, hydration strategies, recovery nutrition, and nutritional considerations for vegetarian and vegan youth athletes. The posters were designed to appeal to adolescents from the ages of 13 to 18, and each poster covers its designated topic in detail appropriate for middle and high school-aged athletes. The accompanying …

Proximate Composition, Retained Water, And Bacterial Load For Two Sizes Of Hybrid Catfish (Ictalurus Furcatus × Ictalurus Punctatus) Fillets At Different Process Steps, Manirul Haque, Juan L. Silva

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

The catfish processors in the US are required to state the maximum percentage of retained water content (RWC) on the product label. The objectives of our study were to quantify the RWC of processed hybrid catfish fillets from proximate composition and the bacterial load at different processing points. Water content was determined using oven-dry (AOAC950.46,1990) and Near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. Protein and fat content were determined by NIR spectrometer. Psychrotrophic (PPC) and Total Coliform (TCC) counts were enumerated using 3MPetrifilmTM. The fillets’ overall baseline water, protein, and fat content were 77.8, 16.7 and 5.7%, respectively. The RWC of final fresh and …

Phenotypic Plasticity In Circulating Tumor Cells Is Associated With Poor Response To Therapy In Metastatic Breast Cancer Patients, Evan N Cohen, Gitanjali Jayachandran, Hui Gao, Phillip Peabody, Heather B Mcbride, Franklin D Alvarez, Megumi Kai, Juhee Song, Yu Shen, Jie S Willey, Bora Lim, Vicente Valero, Naoto T Ueno, James M Reuben

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are indicators of metastatic spread and progression. In a longitudinal, single-center trial of patients with metastatic breast cancer starting a new line of treatment, a microcavity array was used to enrich CTCs from 184 patients at up to 9 timepoints at 3-month intervals. CTCs were analyzed in parallel samples from the same blood draw by imaging and by gene expression profiling to capture CTC phenotypic plasticity. Enumeration of CTCs by image analysis relying primarily on epithelial markers from samples obtained before therapy or at 3-month follow-up identified the patients at the highest risk of progression. CTC …

Immortalized B Cells Transfected With Mrna Of Antigen Fused To Mitd (Ibmam): An Effective Tool For Antigen-Specific T-Cell Expansion And Tcr Validation, Zhe Wang, Tiantian Zhang, Aaron Anderson, Vincent Lee, Szymon Szymura, Zhenyuan Dong, Benjamin Kuang, Elizabeth Oh, Jingwei Liu, Sattva S Neelapu, Larry Kwak, Soung-Chul Cha

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Peripheral mononuclear blood cells (PBMCs) are the most widely used study materials for immunomonitoring and antigen-specific T-cell identification. However, limited patient PBMCs and low-frequency antigen-specific T cells remain as significant technical challenges. To address these limitations, we established a novel platform comprised of optimized HLA-matched immortalized B cells transfected with mRNA of a prototype viral or tumor antigen conjugated to MHC class-I trafficking domain protein (MITD) to increase the efficiency of epitope expression in antigen-presenting cells (APCs) essential to expanding antigen-specific T cells. When applied to CMV as a model, the IBMAM platform could successfully expand CMV-specific T cells from …

Microbiome Influencers Of Checkpoint Blockade-Associated Toxicity, Yinghong Wang, Robert R Jenq, Jennifer A Wargo, Stephanie S Watowich

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Immunotherapy has greatly improved cancer outcomes, yet variability in response and off-target tissue damage can occur with these treatments, including immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs). Multiple lines of evidence indicate the host microbiome influences ICI response and risk of immune-related adverse events (irAEs). As the microbiome is modifiable, these advances indicate the potential to manipulate microbiome components to increase ICI success. We discuss microbiome features associated with ICI response, with focus on bacterial taxa and potential immune mechanisms involved in irAEs, and the overall goal of driving novel approaches to manipulate the microbiome to improve ICI efficacy while avoiding irAE risk.

Treatment Outcomes For Newly Diagnosed, Treatment-Naïve Tp53-Mutated Acute Myeloid Leukemia: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Naval G Daver, Shahed Iqbal, Camille Renard, Rebecca J Chan, Ken Hasegawa, Hao Hu, Preston Tse, Jiajun Yan, Michael J Zoratti, Feng Xie, Giridharan Ramsingh

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: TP53 mutations, which are present in 5% to 10% of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), are associated with treatment resistance and poor outcomes. First-line therapies for TP53-mutated (TP53m) AML consist of intensive chemotherapy (IC), hypomethylating agents (HMA), or venetoclax combined with HMA (VEN + HMA).

Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to describe and compare treatment outcomes in newly diagnosed treatment-naïve patients with TP53m AML. Randomized controlled trials, single-arm trials, prospective observational studies, and retrospective studies were included that reported on complete remission (CR), CR with incomplete hematologic recovery (CRi), overall survival (OS), event-free survival (EFS), …

Quantifying The Soundscape: How Filters Change Acoustic Indices, Emilia B. Hyland, Annie Schulz, John E. Quinn

Open Access Fund Publications

Monitoring biodiversity can be time consuming and costly. Automated recording units (ARUs) have rapidly emerged as an efficient and cost-effective tool for measuring biodiversity. Acoustic indices are one output from recordings from ARUs that can be quantified to serve as an ecological indicator for biodiversity. However, there is a lack of guidance on what acoustic filters to apply to these indices and when. To address this gap, we collected acoustic data from study locations spanning temperate and tropical forests, agricultural grasslands and croplands, and peri-urban development. We applied filters of 80, 500, 1000, and 2000 Hz to these data when …

A Gene Regulatory Network Approach Harmonizes Genetic And Epigenetic Signals And Reveals Repurposable Drug Candidates For Multiple Sclerosis, Astrid M Manuel, Yulin Dai, Peilin Jia, Leorah A Freeman, Zhongming Zhao

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a complex dysimmune disorder of the central nervous system. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified 233 genetic variations associated with MS at the genome-wide significant level. Epigenetic studies have pinpointed differentially methylated CpG sites in MS patients. However, the interplay between genetic risk factors and epigenetic regulation remains elusive. Here, we employed a network model to integrate GWAS summary statistics of 14 802 MS cases and 26 703 controls with DNA methylation profiles from 140 MS cases and 139 controls and the human interactome. We identified differentially methylated genes by aggregating additive effects of differentially methylated …

Molecularly Targeted Therapy In Acute Myeloid Leukemia: Current Treatment Landscape And Mechanisms Of Response And Resistance, Curtis A Lachowiez, Courtney D Dinardo, Sanam Loghavi

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) has evolved rapidly over the last decade as improved understanding of cytogenetic and molecular drivers of leukemogenesis refined survival prognostication and enabled development of targeted therapeutics. Molecularly targeted therapies are now approved for the treatment of FLT3 and IDH1/2-mutated AML and additional molecularly and cellularly targeted therapeutics are in development for defined patient subgroups. Alongside these welcome therapeutic advancements, increased understanding of leukemic biology and treatment resistance has resulted in clinical trials investigating combinations of cytotoxic, cellular, and molecularly targeted therapeutics resulting in improved response and survival outcomes in patients with AML. Herein, …

Session Ii: Faculty Showcase Presentation 3 - Beware Of Bogus Barcodes, Dr. David Campbell

Life of the Scholar Multidisciplinary Conference

Certain DNA sequences are promoted as a barcode for easily identifying organisms. But actual biology is messier than that. I discuss some problems with this approach, as well as potential, reflecting issues encountered in my research.

Session Ic: Natural Sciences Presentation 2 - Isolation Of Citral From Lemongrass: Steam Distillation, Spectroscopy, And Gc-Ms Analysis, Nicole L. Riha

Life of the Scholar Multidisciplinary Conference

For my summer scholars project, I worked to isolate citral oil from fresh lemongrass, which has a high citral content in its oil. Extraction was done by performing a steam distillation. Oil was then analyzed with various forms of spectroscopy to confirm the presence of citral. This experiment expanded on a previous study. According to research, citral has anti-microbial, anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer properties.

Session Ia: Psychology Presentation 3 - The Effects Of Covid-19 Pandemic Isolation On Multiple Aspects Of Child And Adolescent Lives, Alissa Carpenter

Life of the Scholar Multidisciplinary Conference

This presentation seeks to be a thorough literature review seeking to answer the question of “what effects did the COVID-19 pandemic have on children and adolescents?” Various topics (effects) will be discussed. The underlying hypothesis of this work is that the COVID-19 pandemic did more than just infect people with a virus. I intend to shed light on the complexity of effects that the global shutdown had on the well-being and performance of children and adolescents.

Sustainable Management Of Facemask Waste Generated From Covid-19 Pandemic In Bhutan, Tshering Yangdon, Twisuk Punpeng, Sirima Mongkolosomit, Kampol Nanthapong, Kinzang Yangden

Journal of Health Research

Background: The rise in facemask waste with the uncertainty of deposition data and all its concomitant pressure on management has resulted in new risks and challenges for achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs). The purpose of this mixed methods study was to estimate facemask waste generation and examine management in Bhutan since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Method: One thousand five hundred and twenty-seventh (1,527) consenting members of the public from Class A Thromdes (self-governing municipalities) were surveyed online from February to April 2022, to estimate mask waste using descriptive statistics. This was supported by the waste characterization conducted in Memelhakha, the biggest …

Insentient “Cognition”?, Stevan Harnad

Animal Sentience

A sentient state is a state that it feels like something to be in. Cows have them, cars don’t. Cognitive capacities are a subset of behavioral capacities. Not all behavioral capacities are cognitive (but the distinction is fuzzy). Might the difference have something to do with whether the behaver is sentient?

Child Weight Status: The Role Of Feeding Styles And Highly Motivated Eating In Children, Maria A Papaioannou, Thomas G Power, Teresia M O'Connor, Jennifer O Fisher, Nilda E Micheli, Sheryl O Hughes

Children’s Nutrition Research Center Staff Publications

Although parental feeding plays an important role in child eating and weight status, high food motivation among children may also be a factor shaping how feeding impacts child weight. This study explored whether individual differences in preschool children’s food motivation interacted with mothers’ feeding styles in predicting subsequent child weight status. Participants included 129 Hispanic Head Start mother/child dyads. Data were collected at ages 4–5 years (Time 1) and 7–9 (Time 3). Staff measured heights/weights and observed children in an eating in the absence of hunger task. Mothers reported on feeding styles/practices and children’s eating behaviors. A principal components analysis …

The New Solar Farms: Growing A Fertile Policy Environment For Agrivoltaics, Sarah Brunswick, Danika Marzillier

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Clinically Adjudicated Reference Standards For Evaluation Of Infectious Diseases Diagnostics, Robin Patel, Ephraim L Tsalik, Scott Evans, Vance G Fowler, Sarah B Doernberg, Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Lack of a gold standard can present a challenge for evaluation of diagnostic test accuracy of some infectious diseases tests, particularly when the test's accuracy potentially exceeds that of its predecessors. This approach may measure agreement with an imperfect reference, rather than correctness, because the right answer is unknown. Solutions consist of multitest comparators, including those that involve a test under evaluation if multiple new tests are being evaluated together, using latent class modeling, and clinically adjudicated reference standards. Clinically adjudicated reference standards may be considered as comparator methods when no predefined test or composite of tests is sufficiently accurate; …

Genetic Stop Signs: Nontraditional Sequences That Terminate Rna Production, Christina Iverson, Samuel Scott

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

3rd place open house

Gene expression can change everything about the identity of a bacterial cell. This process begins when the protein RNA polymerase reads a DNA strand and produces, or transcribes, a matching messenger RNA sequence. This RNA sequence will then be read by a protein-building complex which builds a protein encoded by the RNA. When RNA polymerase finishes producing the RNA sequence, the RNA polymerase will fall off the DNA strand, known as transcription termination. Currently, there are two known mechanisms for transcription termination. We believe that there may be more unknown mechanisms for termination.

Isolating Highly Specific Antibodies Against Cancer Target Hprt, Austin J. Hansen, Christopher J. Haynie, Kiara V. Whitley, Michelle Townsend, Abby Johnson, Hunter Lindsay, Laura Baird, Kim L. O'Neill

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

Effective immunotherapeutic targeting of cancer cells requires identification of specific antigenic differences between cancerous and healthy cells. Hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT) is a cytoplasmic enzyme involved in the salvage pathway for DNA synthesis. Certain cancers (e.g., prostate and breast) upregulate and express HPRT on the cell membrane, making HPRT a potential cancer biomarker for cancer immunotherapies. Antibodies specific for unique cancer proteins are critical to develop targeted cancer immunotherapies. Using a yeast display library and cell sorting, we selected for high-affinity human single-chain (scFv) antibodies against HPRT that can be utilized in chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapies and antibody-dependent …

Phage Host Interactions In Fhua Dependent Bacteriophages, Ian W. Baeten, Jessica M. Lewis, Kathryn E. Janda, David E. Kotter, Julianne H. Grose, William R. Mccleary

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

Bacteriophages are the natural enemy of bacteria. They infect and kill bacterial cells similarly to how animal viruses infect and kill our (eukaryotic) cells. Being viruses, bacteriophages need to get inside of their host to be able to replicate and survive. To do this, phages use receptor binding proteins (RBPs) to bind to various molecules on the surface of bacterial cells, which allows them to attach and initiate the first step of infection. Several novel bacteriophages were isolated from sewage samples across the Wasatch Front of Utah that infect Escherichia coli strain MG1655 and are being used to gain greater …

Quantifying The Effects Of Involvement In Aesthetic Sports On The Development Of Eating Disorders In Pre-Teens, Ella Cook, Melissa Hewitt, Anna Sherrill, Alyssa Tolman, Erik J. Nelson

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

Approximately 2.8 million people (ANAD, 2023) in the United States are affected by eating disorders, and more than 1 in 5 children (Holcombe, 2023) around the world suffer from disordered eating symptoms. Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness, and children involved in “aesthetic sports” (dance, wrestling gymnastics, swimming) are at a higher risk of developing symptoms than their non-participating peers. (Davison et al., 2002) Eating disorders are often associated solely with an older teenagers or women, but heavily impact children as well. It is impossible to address mental health concerns among America’s youth without addressing …

Flipped Versus Online Instruction: A Comparative Analysis Of Student Performance, Noah Emery, Jamie L. Jensen

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

The need for improved modes of online instruction has rapidly increased within the last decade. But whether online instruction is beneficial or as effective as in-person remains inconclusive (McCutcheon et al., 2015). Evidence would suggest that there are knowledge gaps with students who enroll in online courses (Jensen et al., 2022).

We designed and tested various models of an online introductory biology course for non-biology undergraduates in order to determine which method of online instruction would most improve student performance and close these knowledge gaps. We hypothesized that including instructor scaffolding (instructor organization and support), instructor feedback, and peer collaboration …

Higher Incidence Of Parasitic Copepods In Female Host Rockfish Species Call For Improved Restoration And Commercial Management Strategies, Alyssa Walters, Mark C. Belk

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

Host-parasite interactions are key components in shaping ecosystem and community structure. In parasitism, the host maintains the life of the parasite and can have its fitness influenced as a result. This can be especially problematic for commercial fish projects, as well as species management.

New Species Discovery In Eriastrum (Polemoniaceae) In The Californian Red Mountains, Kaitlyn Pankratz, Leigh Johnson

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

Characterized in the flowering plant family Polemoniaceae by wooly hairs on the calyces and bracts associated with the flowers and found in dry areas of western North America (1).

The Effects Of A High Carbohydrate Vs. High Fat Pre-Fast Meal On Incretin Hormone Secretion: A Randomized Crossover Study, Parker Graves, Landon S. Deru, Bruce Bailey

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

Chronic illness such as strokes, heart disease and diabetes all rank among the leading causes of death in the United States. Recently, fasting has gained popularity as a means of prevention from chronic illness through weight loss and other health benefits. Fasting produces multiple beneficial physiological responses that have been shown to aid in chronic disease prevention, one of which is observed by the release of incretin hormones such as glucosedependent insulin tropic polypeptide (GIP) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1). These incretin hormones are released by the gut to augment the secretion of insulin to regulate postprandial glucose levels. During a …

Staphylococcus Aureus Readily Shares Antibiotic Resistance Genes Via Transformation In Co Cultured Biofilms, Brooklyn Jones, Ashley Ball, Emillee Augenstein, Thompson Jared, Austin Wright, Brad Berges

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

Staphylococcus aureus (SA) is a pathogenic bacterium which affects both humans and livestock, primarily affecting the blood, lungs, and soft tissues The CDC estimates 700 000 current deaths per year in the USA that are associated with antibiotic resistance (AR) infections, rising to 10 million/year by 2050 if no action is taken. SA can gain AR by obtaining a resistance gene from another organism, however, the process of such is not well understood The purpose of this project is to elucidate the process of gaining AR genes in SA strains SA strains can form biofilms an exterior, structural film, which …

A Comparison Of Ground And Remote Sensing Methods For Estimating Big Sagebrush ( Artemisia Tridentata Nutt.) Cover, Eliza Cash, April Hulet, Keegan Hammond, Steve Peterson, Ryan Jensen

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

Habitat monitoring and management for sagebrush obligate species are often based on sagebrush cover estimates

Remote sensing methods, including object based image analyses (OBIA), may be a good method to estimate sagebrush cover over large landscapes.

Research Objective: Compare traditional ground measurements used to estimate sagebrush cover with OBIA using high resolution imagery.

Engineering And Characterization Of Antibodies Against Cancer Biomarker Thymidine Kinase 1, Joshua Bennett, Kiara V. Whitley, Christopher J. Haynie, Kim O'Neill

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

Engineered antibodies used in immunotherapies have been increasingly successful due to their ability to uniquely target cells expressing specific cancer antigens Thymidine Kinase 1 (TK 1 is a DNA salvage enzyme typically found in the cytosol However, in certain types of cancer, TK 1 is surface expressed, making it a unique cancer biomarker By identifying antibodies with a high binding affinity for TK 1 we can target cancer cells expressing TK 1 on their surface Using cell sorting and a yeast display library expressing 109 human single chain antibody fragments, we have isolated ten unique single chain antibodies scFvs that …

Air Quality: Comparison Of Pm2.5 Levels In Evaporative Vs Central Air Homes In Utah County Using Filter-Based Sampling, Alisandra Olivares, Taylor Christensen, Paula Chanthakhoun, Jim Johnston, Darrell Sonntag

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

PM_2.5 is particulate matter that is less than 2.5 micrometers. Combustion of fuels, gas, natural gas, and wood are contributors to the production of PM_2.5.

The Effects Of Initiating A Fast With A High Fat Or A High Carbohydrate Shake On Mcp-1, Tnfa And Il-6 Levels, Gage Jensen, Landon S. Deru, Bruce Bailey

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, heart disease and diabetes all rank among the leading causes of death in the United States, particularly among the elderly. While many behavioral and pharmacological strategies have been employed to reduce the incidence of these conditions, increasing evidence indicates that entering a mild to moderate state of ketosis through fasting or a very low carbohydrate diet can improve the prognosis for these conditions.1-4 Our aim is to see the extent that carbohydrate composition in an initiatory meal has on inflammatory marker proteins in our participants. This study assessed the impact that pre-fast meals have on Monocyte chemoattractant …