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Articles 49801 - 49830 of 255945

Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Diversity Of Bees In Trees On An Urban College Campus, Aidan Castricone Aug 2022

Diversity Of Bees In Trees On An Urban College Campus, Aidan Castricone

Biology Student Scholarship

It is well known that insect pollinator populations are declining and a lack of nutrients (i.e flowering plants) may be a contributor to this decline. Insect pollinators forage for pollen and nectar, which provides proteins, fats, and carbohydrates, from flowering plants. Current research on pollinator foraging behavior focuses on pollinators that forage on the ground thus overlooking those that forage in trees. Trees such as Kousa dogwood (Cornus kousa) and crabapple (Malus sp.) bloom in early Spring, even before herbaceous perennials and forbs. Thus trees are likely the only places for early flying pollinators to find food. …

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Assessment Of Population Size, Survival, And Movement Behavior Of The Rare Frosted Elfin Butterfly, Breelyn Gilbert Aug 2022

Assessment Of Population Size, Survival, And Movement Behavior Of The Rare Frosted Elfin Butterfly, Breelyn Gilbert

Biology Student Scholarship

The frosted elfin butterfly (Callophrys irus) is a locally rare Lycaenaid with spotty distribution throughout the eastern United States. As host plant specialists, frosted elfins only lay eggs on two plant species. Yellow wild indigo (Baptisia tinctoria), one of the host plants for this species, is found in abundance at Gavins Pond (Foxboro MA). Since 2000, Massachusetts Butterfly Club members have been informally monitoring the frosted elfin population at this site; however, no systematic population surveys have been done. Using their data, I estimated annual population size from 2000 to 2022. In 2022, I also performed …

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Establishing The Freestyle 293 Expression System As A Tool To Generate Recombinant Apolipoprotein E In Mammalian Cells, Michaela Cunningham Aug 2022

Establishing The Freestyle 293 Expression System As A Tool To Generate Recombinant Apolipoprotein E In Mammalian Cells, Michaela Cunningham

Honors Program Theses and Projects

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a devastating form of dementia with 5 million people suffering from the disease in the United States alone. Thus, there is a need to understand the cause of AD so that therapeutics can be developed to treat it. The greatest risk factor for AD is the APOE gene, which encodes the apolipoprotein Eprotein. Three predominant APOE alleles exist humans, which give rise to three isoforms, called apoE2, E3, and E4. Individuals with apoE4 are ten times more likely to develop AD. In contrast, the apoE2 isoform has a neuroprotective effect and is associated with a 2-fold …

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Characterization Of Exosomes And Their Role In Cellular Migration In Chemosensitive And Chemoresistant Ovarian Cancer Cells, Courtney Mceneaney Aug 2022

Characterization Of Exosomes And Their Role In Cellular Migration In Chemosensitive And Chemoresistant Ovarian Cancer Cells, Courtney Mceneaney

Honors Program Theses and Projects

Chemotherapy-resistant cells that remain after primary cancer treatment lead to recurrence and metastasis, resulting in a poor prognosis for patients. Chemoresistant cells were created by our collaborators using the human ovarian cancer cell line, OVCAR8, by selection of cells that survived serial culture with cisplatin, a platinum-based chemotherapeutic. The cisplatin-resistant cells (OVCAR8R) demonstrate a morphology unique from the original cisplatin-sensitive cells (OVCAR8) which could correlate with their difference in aggressiveness. My research goal is to isolate and characterize exosomes from the OVCAR8 and OVCAR8Rlines. Exosomes are small vesicles secreted from cells and contribute to the tumor microenvironment(TME). It has been …

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Multi-Species Multi-Seasonal Wildlife Occupancy Along An Urban-To-Rural Gradient In Southeastern Massachusetts, Bobbi M. Scully Aug 2022

Multi-Species Multi-Seasonal Wildlife Occupancy Along An Urban-To-Rural Gradient In Southeastern Massachusetts, Bobbi M. Scully

Honors Program Theses and Projects

Documenting wildlife distributions along urban to rural gradients (URGs) creates opportunities to comparatively analyze wildlife habitat associations. In urban environments, wildlife diversity is expected to be impoverished and limited to invasive and generalist species while more diverse wildlife assemblages are expected in rural environments. Using motion-triggered game cameras I documented presence of the eastern gray squirrel (EGS), the coyote, and the white-tailed deer (WTD) along an URG in southeastern Massachusetts, to determine the effects of urbanization on their occupancy patterns. I used a multi-seasonal dynamic occupancy modeling approach to determine the overall occupancy probability of each study species along the …

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Joint Impacts Of Future Climate Conditions And Invasive Species On Black Ash Forested Wetlands, Joseph Shannon, Randall Kolka, Matthew Van Grinsven, Fengjing Liu Aug 2022

Joint Impacts Of Future Climate Conditions And Invasive Species On Black Ash Forested Wetlands, Joseph Shannon, Randall Kolka, Matthew Van Grinsven, Fengjing Liu

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Wetlands around the globe are being impacted by changing temperature and precipitation patterns. Simultaneously black ash forested wetlands are expected to lose much of their overstory canopy due to the invasive Emerald Ash Borer (EAB). Field experiments and modeling efforts have provided information on species tolerance of post-EAB conditions and future climate adapted species. No studies have yet examined the interaction of the loss of ash and future climate scenarios on wetland hydrologic conditions. We developed daily wetland hydrology models for three vegetation conditions: black ash forest, alternate non-ash forest, and non-forested. Model simulations were evaluated under current climate conditions …

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Floral Nutritional Value And Plant-Pollinator Interactions In Providence, Rhode Island, Gracey Sorensen Aug 2022

Floral Nutritional Value And Plant-Pollinator Interactions In Providence, Rhode Island, Gracey Sorensen

Biology Student Scholarship

Bees obtain nutrients from flowers. Pollen provides proteins and fats; nectar provides carbohydrates and some amino acids. With recent decline in pollinator populations, conservationists are interested in providing nutritious plants for pollinators. Counterintuitively, urban areas have the green space for pollinator friendly plantings. On Providence College’s urban campus, I examined how floral abundance and pollinator interactions correlate to the nutritional value of plant species. Quadrat surveys were performed within 53 quadrats through the Spring and Summer for plant-pollinator interactions. Pollen was collected from all flowering species and analyzed for nitrogen and carbon content using an elemental analyzer. Nectar samples were …

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Characterizing Habitat Suitability For Gulf Sturgeon (Acipenser Oxyrinchus Desotoi) In Southern Louisiana, Jenna N. Brogdon Aug 2022

Characterizing Habitat Suitability For Gulf Sturgeon (Acipenser Oxyrinchus Desotoi) In Southern Louisiana, Jenna N. Brogdon

LSU Master's Theses

A generalized additive modeling (GAM) framework was used to characterize fish-habitat relationships and develop habitat suitability maps to predict spatiotemporal and ontogenetic shifts in Gulf sturgeon distribution within an impacted estuary in the northern Gulf of Mexico, Lake Pontchartrain. Gulf sturgeon (n = 103) were fitted with acoustic transmitters in the Pearl River during the early summer and fall from 2013 to 2018, and an array of acoustic receivers (n = 81) was used to monitor Gulf sturgeon habitat use and movement in the estuary from 2016 to 2019. Daily presence data from the telemetry array were paired with environmental …

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Experimental Infection Of Brazilian Free-Tailed Bats (Tadarida Brasiliensis) With Two Strains Of Sars-Cov-2, Angela M. Bosco-Lauth, Stephanie M. Porter, Karen A. Fox, Mary E. Wood, Daniel Neubaum, Marissa Quilici Aug 2022

Experimental Infection Of Brazilian Free-Tailed Bats (Tadarida Brasiliensis) With Two Strains Of Sars-Cov-2, Angela M. Bosco-Lauth, Stephanie M. Porter, Karen A. Fox, Mary E. Wood, Daniel Neubaum, Marissa Quilici

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is presumed to have originated from wildlife and shares homology with other bat coronaviruses. Determining the susceptibility of North American bat species to SARS-CoV-2 is of utmost importance for making decisions regarding wildlife management, public health, and conservation. In this study, Brazilian free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiliensis) were experimentally infected with two strains of SARS-CoV-2 (parental WA01 and Delta variant), evaluated for clinical disease, sampled for viral shedding and antibody production, and analyzed for pathology. None of the bats (n = 18) developed clinical disease associated with infection, shed infectious virus, or …

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Dietary Intake Among Children Attending Childcare Centers: Impact Of The New Cacfp Meal Guidelines, Jayna M Dave, Tzuan A Chen, Maha Almohamad, Sonia Cotto-Moreno Aug 2022

Dietary Intake Among Children Attending Childcare Centers: Impact Of The New Cacfp Meal Guidelines, Jayna M Dave, Tzuan A Chen, Maha Almohamad, Sonia Cotto-Moreno

Children’s Nutrition Research Center Staff Publications

Through the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, USDA (US Department of Agriculture) made the first major changes in the CACFP (Child and Adult Care Food Program) meal and snack menu patterns. Childcare centers that serve low-income families qualify to participate and receive reimbursement for meals and snacks served. The purpose of this study was to assess what changes in children's dietary behaviors occurred as a result of the new CACFP meal pattern requirements. This study evaluated these changes at childcare centers operating in Houston and San Antonio, Texas, USA, areas enrolled in the CACFP, pre- (Spring 2016) and post-implementation …

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Snp Discovery In Proso Millet (Panicum Miliaceum L.) Using Lowpass Genome Sequencing, Rituraj Khound, Guangchao Sun, Ravi V. Mural, James C. Schnable, Dipak K. Santra Aug 2022

Snp Discovery In Proso Millet (Panicum Miliaceum L.) Using Lowpass Genome Sequencing, Rituraj Khound, Guangchao Sun, Ravi V. Mural, James C. Schnable, Dipak K. Santra

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Domesticated ~10,000 years ago in northern China, Proso millet (Panicum miliaceum L.) is a climate-resilient and human health-promoting cereal crop. The genome size of this self-pollinated allotetraploid is 923 Mb. Proso millet seeds are an important part of the human diet in many countries. In the USA, its use is restricted to the birdseed and pet food market. Proso millet is witnessing gradual demand in the global human health and wellness food market owing to its health-promoting properties such as low glycemic index and gluten-free. The breeding efforts for developing improved proso millet cultivars are hindered by the …

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Hybrid Incompatibility Between Ldrosophila Virilis And D. Lummei Is Stronger In The Presence Of Transposable Elements, Dean M. Castillo, Leonie C. Moyle Aug 2022

Hybrid Incompatibility Between Ldrosophila Virilis And D. Lummei Is Stronger In The Presence Of Transposable Elements, Dean M. Castillo, Leonie C. Moyle

Nebraska Cooperative Extension: Faculty and Staff Publications

Mismatches between parental genomes in selfish elements are frequently hypothesized to underlie hybrid dysfunction and drive speciation. However, because the genetic basis of most hybrid incompatibilities is unknown, testing the contribution of selfish elements to reproductive isolation is difficult. Here, we evaluated the role of transposable elements (TEs) in hybrid incompatibilities between Drosophila virilis and D. lummei by experimentally comparing hybrid incompatibility in a cross where active TEs are present in D. virilis (TE+) and absent in D. lummei, to a cross where these TEs are absent from both D. virilis (TE−) and D. lummei genotypes. Using genomic data, …

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Continuous Ph Monitoring And Control: Selecting And Interfacing The Electrode, Controller, And Datalogger, Noah J. Langenfeld, Bruce Bugbee Aug 2022

Continuous Ph Monitoring And Control: Selecting And Interfacing The Electrode, Controller, And Datalogger, Noah J. Langenfeld, Bruce Bugbee

Techniques and Instruments

pH control is essential to well-managed hydroponics. Here, we describe the selection and interfacing of electrodes, controllers, and loggers.

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Habitat Loss Exacerbates Pathogen Spread: An Agent-Based Model Of Avian Influenza Infection In Migratory Waterfowl, Shenglai Yin, Yanjie Xu, Mingshuai Xu, Mart C M De Jong, Mees Rs Huisman, Andrea Contina, Herbert H T Prins, Zheng Y X Huang, Willem F. De Boer Aug 2022

Habitat Loss Exacerbates Pathogen Spread: An Agent-Based Model Of Avian Influenza Infection In Migratory Waterfowl, Shenglai Yin, Yanjie Xu, Mingshuai Xu, Mart C M De Jong, Mees Rs Huisman, Andrea Contina, Herbert H T Prins, Zheng Y X Huang, Willem F. De Boer

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences Faculty Publications

Habitat availability determines the distribution of migratory waterfowl along their flyway, which further influences the transmission and spatial spread of avian influenza viruses (AIVs). The extensive habitat loss in the East Asian-Australasian Flyway (EAAF) may have potentially altered the virus spread and transmission, but those consequences are rarely studied. We constructed 6 fall migration networks that differed in their level of habitat loss, wherein an increase in habitat loss resulted in smaller networks with fewer sites and links. We integrated an agent-based model and a susceptible-infected-recovered model to simulate waterfowl migration and AIV transmission. We found that extensive habitat loss …

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The Effects Of Prescribed Fire On Ant-Mediated Seed Dispersal In Missouri, Eva M. Colberg Aug 2022

The Effects Of Prescribed Fire On Ant-Mediated Seed Dispersal In Missouri, Eva M. Colberg

Dissertations

Many aspects of animal-mediated seed dispersal are vulnerable to disturbance, including partner identity and dispersal quantity and quality. This dissertation explores ant-mediated seed dispersal of the herb Sanguinaria canadensis in Missouri Ozark oak forests, where prescribed fire is a common land management tool. In Chapter 1, I test the definition of a keystone seed disperser using absolute and relative contributions of different ant species to the quantity and distance of seed dispersal, based on field observations of S. canadensis seed dispersal. I demonstrate that the ant Aphaenogaster rudis is better described as a numerically dominant rather than keystone seed disperser, …

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Multiomic Analysis Reveals Cell-Type-Specific Molecular Determinants Of Covid-19 Severity, Sai Zhang, Johnathan Cooper-Knock, Annika K. Weimer, Minyi Shi, Lina Kozhaya, Derya Unutmaz, Calum Harvey, Thomas H. Julian, Simone Furini, Elisa Frullanti, Francesca Fava, Alessandra Renieri, Peng Gao, Xiaotao Shen, Ilia Sarah Timpanaro, Kevin P. Kenna, J Kenneth Baillie, Mark M. Davis, Philip S. Tsao, Michael P. Snyder Aug 2022

Multiomic Analysis Reveals Cell-Type-Specific Molecular Determinants Of Covid-19 Severity, Sai Zhang, Johnathan Cooper-Knock, Annika K. Weimer, Minyi Shi, Lina Kozhaya, Derya Unutmaz, Calum Harvey, Thomas H. Julian, Simone Furini, Elisa Frullanti, Francesca Fava, Alessandra Renieri, Peng Gao, Xiaotao Shen, Ilia Sarah Timpanaro, Kevin P. Kenna, J Kenneth Baillie, Mark M. Davis, Philip S. Tsao, Michael P. Snyder

Faculty Research 2022

The determinants of severe COVID-19 in healthy adults are poorly understood, which limits the opportunity for early intervention. We present a multiomic analysis using machine learning to characterize the genomic basis of COVID-19 severity. We use single-cell multiome profiling of human lungs to link genetic signals to cell-type-specific functions. We discover >1,000 risk genes across 19 cell types, which account for 77% of the SNP-based heritability for severe disease. Genetic risk is particularly focused within natural killer (NK) cells and T¬†cells, placing the dysfunction of these cells upstream of severe disease. Mendelian randomization and single-cell profiling of human NK cells …

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Complete Genome Sequences Of Two Temperate Bacillus Subtilis Phages Isolated At Tumamoc Hill Desert Laboratory, Gregory P. Krukonis, Amanda K. Kemp, Katie F. Storrie, Vivian R. Chavira, Hayden W. Lantrip, Victoria D. Perez, Desiree A. Reyes, Julian A. Truax, Rachel Loney, Veronique A. Delesalle Aug 2022

Complete Genome Sequences Of Two Temperate Bacillus Subtilis Phages Isolated At Tumamoc Hill Desert Laboratory, Gregory P. Krukonis, Amanda K. Kemp, Katie F. Storrie, Vivian R. Chavira, Hayden W. Lantrip, Victoria D. Perez, Desiree A. Reyes, Julian A. Truax, Rachel Loney, Veronique A. Delesalle

Biology Faculty Publications

Bacteriophages are important in structuring bacterial communities, including desert soils dominated by Bacillus species. Here, we describe two genetically similar temperate phages isolated on a Bacillus subtilis strain from soil in Tucson, Arizona. Their double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) genomes contain 98 and 102 genes, with a set of 4 genes being found in only one phage.

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Developmental Basis Of Evolutionary Lung Loss In Plethodontid Salamanders, Zachary R. Lewis, Ryan R. Kerney, James Hanken Aug 2022

Developmental Basis Of Evolutionary Lung Loss In Plethodontid Salamanders, Zachary R. Lewis, Ryan R. Kerney, James Hanken

Biology Faculty Publications

One or more members of four living amphibian clades have independently dispensed with pulmonary respiration and lack lungs, but little is known of the developmental basis of lung loss in any taxon. We use morphological, molecular, and experimental approaches to examine the Plethodontidae, a dominant family of salamanders, all of which are lungless as adults. We confirm an early anecdotal report that plethodontids complete early stages of lung morphogenesis: Transient embryonic lung primordia form but regress by apoptosis before hatching. Initiation of pulmonary development coincides with expression of the lung-specification gene Wnt2b in adjacent mesoderm, and the lung rudiment expresses …

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Defence Mitigation By Predators Of Chemically Defended Prey Integrated Over The Predation Sequence And Across Biological Levels With A Focus On Cardiotonic Steroids, Shabnam Mohammadi, Lu Yang, Matthew Bulbert, Hannah M. Rowland Aug 2022

Defence Mitigation By Predators Of Chemically Defended Prey Integrated Over The Predation Sequence And Across Biological Levels With A Focus On Cardiotonic Steroids, Shabnam Mohammadi, Lu Yang, Matthew Bulbert, Hannah M. Rowland

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Predator–prey interactions have long served as models for the investigation of adaptation and fitness in natural environments. Anti-predator defences such as mimicry and camouflage provide some of the best examples of evolution. Predators, in turn, have evolved sensory systems, cognitive abilities and physiological resistance to prey defences. In contrast to prey defences which have been reviewed extensively, the evolution of predator counter-strategies has received less attention. To gain a comprehensive view of how prey defences can influence the evolution of predator counter-strategies, it is essential to investigate how and when selection can operate. In this review we evaluate how predators …

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All Is Perception, Robert Friedman Aug 2022

All Is Perception, Robert Friedman

Faculty Publications

This editorial addresses the universality and importance of the science of perception. In particular, recently published studies in this journal illustrate the natural variations in perception. These articles are a reminder of perception as a natural process with inherent variations and that any two individuals are not guaranteed to form the same representation of an object, regardless of whether it originates from the senses or not. Since perception is a foundation for higher cognition, it also has an immense influence on studies of humanity and interpretations of natural processes.

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Unl-Taps Crowdsourcing Team Offers Public An Inside View, Matthew Stockton, Krystle Rhoades, Tessa Burford Aug 2022

Unl-Taps Crowdsourcing Team Offers Public An Inside View, Matthew Stockton, Krystle Rhoades, Tessa Burford

Cornhusker Economics

At the beginning of the 2022 production season, the University of Nebraska at Lincoln (UNL) Testing Ag Performance Solutions (TAPS) program kicked off the TAPS Crowdsourcing Team. Designed as an opportunity for the public to interact with the hands-on management of a TAPS sprinkler corn irrigated competition plot, the Crowdsourcing Team offers anyone a chance to be involved with the intricacies of crop production. Part of a multistate Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) practicum, the Crowdsourcing Team is an online community that encourages learning through experience, as well as discussion with peers and professionals.

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Lowering Water Table Reduces Carbon Sink Strength And Carbon Stocks In Northern Peatlands, Min Jung Kwon, Ashley Ballantyne, Philippe Ciais, Chunjing Qiu, Elodie Salmon, Nina Raoult, Bertrand Guenet, Mathias Göckede, Eugénie S. Euskirchen, Hannu Nykänen, Edward A. Schuur, Merritt R. Turetsky, Catherine M. Dieleman, Evan Kane, Donatella Zona Aug 2022

Lowering Water Table Reduces Carbon Sink Strength And Carbon Stocks In Northern Peatlands, Min Jung Kwon, Ashley Ballantyne, Philippe Ciais, Chunjing Qiu, Elodie Salmon, Nina Raoult, Bertrand Guenet, Mathias Göckede, Eugénie S. Euskirchen, Hannu Nykänen, Edward A. Schuur, Merritt R. Turetsky, Catherine M. Dieleman, Evan Kane, Donatella Zona

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Peatlands at high latitudes have accumulated >400 Pg carbon (C) because saturated soil and cold temperatures suppress C decomposition. This substantial amount of C in Arctic and Boreal peatlands is potentially subject to increased decomposition if the water table (WT) decreases due to climate change, including permafrost thaw-related drying. Here, we optimize a version of the Organizing Carbon and Hydrology In Dynamic Ecosystems model (ORCHIDEE-PCH4) using site-specific observations to investigate changes in CO and CH fluxes as well as C stock responses to an experimentally manipulated decrease of WT at six northern peatlands. The unmanipulated control peatlands, with the WT …

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Long-Term Effect Of A Gnrh-Based Immunocontraceptive On Feral Cattle In Hong Kong, Rebecca Pinkham, Ka-Kei Koon, Jason To, Jason Chan, Flavie Vial, Matt Gomm, Douglas C. Eckery, Giovanna Massei Aug 2022

Long-Term Effect Of A Gnrh-Based Immunocontraceptive On Feral Cattle In Hong Kong, Rebecca Pinkham, Ka-Kei Koon, Jason To, Jason Chan, Flavie Vial, Matt Gomm, Douglas C. Eckery, Giovanna Massei

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Increasing human-wildlife conflicts worldwide are driving the need for multiple solutions to reducing “problem” wildlife and their impacts. Fertility control is advocated as a non-lethal tool to manage free-living wildlife and in particular to control iconic species. Injectable immunocontraceptives, such as GonaCon, stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies against the gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH), which in turn affects the release of reproductive hormones in mammals. Feral cattle (Bos indicus or Bos taurus) in Hong Kong are an iconic species whose numbers and impacts on human activities have increased over the last decade. Previous studies have proven that a …

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Long-Term Effect Of A Gnrh-Based Immunocontraceptive On Feral Cattle In Hong Kong, Rebecca Pinkham, Ka-Kei Koon, Jason To, Jason Chan, Flavie Vial, Matt Gomm, Douglas C. Eckery, Giovanna Massei Aug 2022

Long-Term Effect Of A Gnrh-Based Immunocontraceptive On Feral Cattle In Hong Kong, Rebecca Pinkham, Ka-Kei Koon, Jason To, Jason Chan, Flavie Vial, Matt Gomm, Douglas C. Eckery, Giovanna Massei

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Increasing human-wildlife conflicts worldwide are driving the need for multiple solutions to reducing “problem” wildlife and their impacts. Fertility control is advocated as a non-lethal tool to manage free-living wildlife and in particular to control iconic species. Injectable immunocontraceptives, such as GonaCon, stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies against the gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH), which in turn affects the release of reproductive hormones in mammals. Feral cattle (Bos indicus or Bos taurus) in Hong Kong are an iconic species whose numbers and impacts on human activities have increased over the last decade. Previous studies have proven that a …

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Dynamic Energy Budget Models: Fertile Ground For Understanding Resource Allocation In Plants In A Changing World, Sabrina E. Russo, Glenn Ledder, Erik B. Muller, Roger M. Nisbet Aug 2022

Dynamic Energy Budget Models: Fertile Ground For Understanding Resource Allocation In Plants In A Changing World, Sabrina E. Russo, Glenn Ledder, Erik B. Muller, Roger M. Nisbet

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Climate change is having dramatic effects on the diversity and distribution of species. Many of these effects are mediated by how an organism’s physiological patterns of resource allocation translate into fitness through effects on growth, survival and reproduction. Empirically, resource allocation is challenging to measure directly and so has often been approached using mathematical models, such as Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) models. The fact that all plants require a very similar set of exogenous resources, namely light, water and nutrients, integrates well with the DEB framework in which a small number of variables and processes linked through pathways represent an …

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Rna-As-Graphs Motif Atlas—Dual Graph Library Of Rna Modules And Viral Frameshifting-Element Applications, Qiyao Zhu, Louis Petingi, Tamar Schlick Aug 2022

Rna-As-Graphs Motif Atlas—Dual Graph Library Of Rna Modules And Viral Frameshifting-Element Applications, Qiyao Zhu, Louis Petingi, Tamar Schlick

Publications and Research

RNA motif classification is important for understanding structure/function connections and building phylogenetic relationships. Using our coarse-grained RNA-As-Graphs (RAG) representations, we identify recurrent dual graph motifs in experimentally solved RNA structures based on an improved search algorithm that finds and ranks independent RNA substructures. Our expanded list of 183 existing dual graph motifs reveals five common motifs found in transfer RNA, riboswitch, and ribosomal 5S RNA components. Moreover, we identify three motifs for available viral frameshifting RNA elements, suggesting a correlation between viral structural complexity and frameshifting efficiency. We further partition the RNA substructures into 1844 distinct submotifs, with pseudoknots and …

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Structure-Based Design Of Stapled Peptides That Bind Gabarap And Inhibit Autophagy, Hawley Brown, Mia Chung, Alina Üffing, Nefeli Batistatou, Tiffany Tsang, Weiqun Mao, Robert C Bast, Zhen Lu, Oliver H Weiergräber, Joshua A Kritzer Aug 2022

Structure-Based Design Of Stapled Peptides That Bind Gabarap And Inhibit Autophagy, Hawley Brown, Mia Chung, Alina Üffing, Nefeli Batistatou, Tiffany Tsang, Weiqun Mao, Robert C Bast, Zhen Lu, Oliver H Weiergräber, Joshua A Kritzer

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The LC3/GABARAP family of proteins is involved in nearly every stage of autophagy. Inhibition of LC3/GABARAP proteins is a promising approach to blocking autophagy, which sensitizes advanced cancers to DNA-damaging chemotherapy. Here, we report the structure-based design of stapled peptides that inhibit GABARAP with nanomolar affinities. Small changes in staple structure produced stapled peptides with very different binding modes and functional differences in LC3/GABARAP paralog selectivity, ranging from highly GABARAP-specific to broad inhibition of both subfamilies. The stapled peptides exhibited considerable cytosolic penetration and resistance to biological degradation. They also reduced autophagic flux in cultured ovarian cancer cells and sensitized …

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Ichthyofaunal Utilization Of A Man-Made Salt Marsh Creek In Mission Bay, California, 25 Years After Creation, Maria Angst, Drew M. Talley Aug 2022

Ichthyofaunal Utilization Of A Man-Made Salt Marsh Creek In Mission Bay, California, 25 Years After Creation, Maria Angst, Drew M. Talley

Creative Collaborations: Annual Showcase of Undergraduate Research

Abstract: Southern California's wetlands are drastically declining due to human activities. Increasingly, marsh restoration and creation are being used to mitigate such losses. This study used minnow traps to resample the ichthyofauna of a created marsh (Crown Point Mitigation Site; CPMS) and an adjacent natural marsh (Kendall Frost) in Mission Bay, California, 26 years following the marsh creation. These data were compared to data collected from 1995-1998, immediately after marsh creation. Fishes trapped included Fundulus parvipinnis, Gillichthys mirabilis, Ctenogobius sagittula, Atherinops affinis, and Mugil cephalus. Species richness and dominance measures were higher in the natural …

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Cyclase-Associated Protein 1 (Cap1) In Cyclic Adenosine Monophosphate (Camp) And Protein Kinase C (Pkc) Signals To Regulate Cancer Cell Functions, Lokesh Kalki Mani Sai Akana Aug 2022

Cyclase-Associated Protein 1 (Cap1) In Cyclic Adenosine Monophosphate (Camp) And Protein Kinase C (Pkc) Signals To Regulate Cancer Cell Functions, Lokesh Kalki Mani Sai Akana

Student Theses and Dissertations

Cyclase-Associated Protein 1 (CAP1) is an actin-regulating protein that promotes actin dynamics and is also involved in cell adhesion and proliferation as well as implicated in human cancers. We previously found that phosphorylation at the Ser307/Ser309 tandem regulatory site on CAP1 is critical for CAP1 functions in breast and pancreatic cancer cells. We silenced CAP1 through RNAi in HCT116 and SW480 colon cancer cells as confirmed in Western blotting. We have found that depletion of CAP1 led to reduced FAK (Focal Adhesion Kinase) activity and matrix adhesion in SW480 cells, while it stimulated FAK activity and cell adhesion in HCT116 …

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Evaluating The Potential Effect Of Nitrogen And Toxicological Responses Of Juvenile Lampsilis Reeveiana (Mollusca: Unionidae) In The Buffalo National River, Anna Marie Pieri Aug 2022

Evaluating The Potential Effect Of Nitrogen And Toxicological Responses Of Juvenile Lampsilis Reeveiana (Mollusca: Unionidae) In The Buffalo National River, Anna Marie Pieri

Student Theses and Dissertations

The Buffalo National River (BUFF) was established as the first national river in 1972 and later designated as an Extraordinary Resource Water and Natural and Scenic Waterway. This thesis seeks to address the potential threat of elevated nutrients and its association with freshwater mussel declines in the BUFF through laboratory and in situ exposures. Water and sediment chemistry data were collected, and relevant thresholds were used to extrapolate lab-to-field toxicity during low-flow events. Acute toxicity was not observed; however, low-concentration chronic toxicity may be influencing mussel assemblages with rising temperatures. Water quality degradation is likely the result of combined sources …

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