Life Sciences Commons^™

Managing Chickens From Chicks To Peak Egg Production, Joseph Okoh, Essence Perry

All Current Publications

Chickens were first domesticated for cultural purposes, but selective breeding has focused on egg production. Choosing the right breeds and good management practices are essential for farmers to maximize egg yield, quality, and safety. This fact sheet covers poultry history, top egg-laying breeds, egg anatomy, nutrition, and practical tips to help farmers improve productivity and run successful egg production ventures.

A Farmer's Guide To Egg Quality, Safety, And Flock Health, Joseph Okoh, Essence Perry

All Current Publications

Eggs are a valuable source of nutrition and income for many backyard and smallholder farmers. To ensure a steady supply of high-quality eggs, it's essential to understand the key factors that influence hens’ health and productivity. From proper nutrition to effective lighting and disease prevention, each decision you make affects your flock’s performance. This guide offers practical advice to help you raise resilient, high-laying hens and build a successful small-scale egg production system, no matter your level of experience.

Bridging Bench To Bedside: Developing Sup2-Il-33 Armored Car T Cells For Translational Immunotherapy, Shannon Lynn Ferry

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Despite some promising results, CAR T cell therapy elicits limited responses in most patients with solid tumors. Armoring CAR T cells with immunomodulatory cytokines improves efficacy in solid tumors. We previously reported that administering IL-2 superkine (Sup2) and IL-33 cytokine armored CAR T cells without host pre-conditioning is sufficient to broadly activate host immunity to delay growth of B16F10 melanoma in immunocompetent B6 mice. However, lymphodepleting pre-conditioning prior to CAR T cell infusion is routinely utilized to enable engraftment of adoptively transferred cells. Here we assess the efficacy TRP1-specific CAR T cells with or without Sup2 and IL-33 armoring following …

Organism-Specific Sequence Motifs Link Ribosomal Rnas To Brain Disorders, Isidore Rigoutsos, Stepan Nersisyan, Eric Londin, Iliza Nazeraj, Bonnie Dong, Anastasios Vourekas, Phillipe Loher

Computational Medicine Center Faculty Papers

We report that in humans, mice, fruit flies, and worms, the ribosomal RNAs and the transcribed spacers of 45S are densely packed with organism-specific sequence motifs that are primarily shared with nervous system genes. The human ribosomal RNAs and 45S spacers contain 1,723 such motifs. Specific combinations of these motifs are predominantly found in 3,430 human nervous system genes, of which 1,046 are genes associated with brain disorders, including autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia. The sequences of the 1,723 motifs and their locations in the introns and exons of nervous system genes are unique to primates. Experimental evidence indicates that …

10.13.2025 Ored Connect, Liz Williamson

ORED Newsletter

• ORED Small Grants Program RFP
• Mississippi Impact Grants RFP
• Contest to Promote Lab Practices
• Field Fest
• AAAS Membership for Faculty, Staff, and Students 

Understanding The Nutrition Ecology And Related Distal And Proximal Research Gaps Impacting School-Aged Children's And Adolescents' Functioning-A Report From The "Biomarkers Of Nutrition For Development: Knowledge Indicating Dietary Sufficiency (Bond-Kids)" Project Working Group 2., Maureen M Black, Meg M Bruening, Amy Carroll-Scott, Jayna M Dave, Kristie L Ebi, Lora L Iannotti, Susan L Johnson, Lorrene D Ritchie, Elizabeth Y Jimenez, Alison L Steiber, Daniel J Raiten

Children’s Nutrition Research Center Staff Publications

Nutrition is critical to the health, development, and well-being of children and adolescents, operating through nutrients and the social and physical influences of dietary behaviors. Child and adolescent growth and development depend on complex biological systems interacting with the nutrition ecology. In this review, we focus on bidirectional interactions with the multilevel nutrition ecology, including distal systems (climate, geopolitical, and food systems) and proximal systems (community food options; health, social, and food services; and school policies and programs), all mediated by the family. Thus, the impact of nutrition on children's and adolescents' functional outcomes is dependent on understanding the multilevel …

Inhibition Of Osteosarcoma Lung Metastases By Β-Glucan And Cd40 Agonist Is Mediated By Activation Of Macrophages And Nk Cells, Pradeep Shrestha, Rejeena Shrestha, Eugenie S Kleinerman

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Osteosarcoma (OS) lung metastases remain a significant therapeutic challenge. Innate immune activation is a promising therapeutic approach. Innate immune agonists can modulate the tumor immune microenvironment and improve therapeutic response.

Methods: Using an experimental syngeneic OS lung metastasis BALB/c mouse model with K7M3-luc OS cells, we evaluated the antitumor effects of yeast-derived particulate β-glucan in prevention and therapeutic settings. We then assessed whether the CD40 agonist (CD40a) in combination with β-glucan increased therapeutic response in two different immune-competent mouse models of OS lung tumor burden.

Results: In the pretreatment settings, mice treated with β-glucan prior to OS cell infusion …

Characterization Of Suspicious Prostate Lesions At Multiparametric Mri With Dynamic 68 Ga-Gozetotide Pet/Ct, Daniel Parrott, Qing Yuan, Daniella Pinho, Yin Xi, Daniel N Costa, Alberto Diaz De Leon, Marianna Dakanali, Xiankai Sun, Orhan K Oz, Spencer Bowen, Neil M Rofsky, Dana Mathews, Ivan Pedrosa

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Prostate cancer (PCa) will affect approximately 12% of US men in their lifetime and remains the 2nd most common cause of cancer-specific death. However, there is a broad spectrum of severity of PCa; some require aggressive treatment and others can "watch-and-wait". Distinction of clinically significant prostate cancer (csPCa) from indolent PCA with current imaging methods remains challenging.

Objective: This study aims to evaluate dynamic prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA) positron emission tomography (PET/CT) in the characterization of suspicious prostate lesions identified on multiparametric MRI (mpMRI).

Methods: Prospective study of biopsy-naïve patients with at least one Prostate Imaging and Reporting …

Climate Change Projections Through Optimized Machine Learning And Deep Learning Models: A Comprehensive Analysis, Hala H. Youssef, Salma S. Mohammed, Hanan M. Amer, Abeer T. Khalil

Mansoura Engineering Journal

One major worldwide issue that has far-reaching effects on environmental stability and the avoidance of natural disasters is climate change. Developing efficient mitigating strategies depends on precise climate change forecasts. To predict important climate change indicators, including temperature fluctuations, greenhouse gas (CO2, N2O, CH4, and SF6) emissions, population dynamics, sea level changes, Arctic Sea ice extent, and Antarctica mass, this study evaluated the predictive capabilities of several Machine Learning (ML) and Deep Learning (DL) techniques. The set of machine learning algorithms includes Multiple Linear Regression (MLR), K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN), Support Vector Machines (SVMs), Artificial Neural Networks (ANN), Random Forest (RF), …

Decoding Genetic And Network Signatures Of Susceptibility To Orthodontic Root Resorption: Toward Predictive And Personalized Orthodontics, Casey Morishige, Morgan Mecham, Gabriel Eisenhuth, Shilpa Bhandi, Frank Licari, Shankargouda Patil

Annual Research Symposium

No abstract provided.

Genetic Engineering Of Esophageal Organoids: Crispr-Based Knock-In For Cell Lineage Tracing, Kyung-Pil Ko, Jae-Il Park

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Esophageal organoids serve as powerful systems to study epithelial lineage hierarchies and cancer biology. Gene manipulation in these organoids has traditionally involved overexpression or knockout strategies. However, CRISPR-/Cas9-based knock-in (KI) approaches now enable precise cell lineage tracing and live imaging. Here, we describe protocols to generate fluorescent KI organoids from murine esophageal epithelium by tagging Krt13 (BFP) and Sox2 (mNeon). These dual-reporter organoids allow direct monitoring of growth dynamics and differentiation trajectories. We outline CRISPR/Cas9 design, donor construction using homology-independent approaches (CRISPaint), delivery into organoid cells, enrichment and single-clone isolation, and validation by fluorescence. For organoids, homology-directed repair (HDR) can …

Re-Survey Of Blastocystis Infection In Free-Living Birds From Urban Xinxiang City, Xuehan Liu, Yingying Cao, Di An, Chengshui Liao, Ruibiao Wang, Bo Wen, Chunling Zhu, Huarun Sun, Longfei Zhang, Baoliang Qin, Yanhui Wang, Jianhe Hu, Yueyu Bai, Ke Ding, Lei Wang

The Thai Journal of Veterinary Medicine

Blastocystis is the most ubiquitous intestinal protozoan parasite found in humans and animals worldwide. Commonly, ST7 and ST6 are the major Blastocystis subtypes reported in birds, and their frequencies fluctuate greatly with various factors. However, little literature is available on the prevalence and subtype characteristics of this parasite in free-living wild birds in the same city. For this purpose, a total of 114 fresh fecal specimens were collected from wild free-living birds in urban districts of Xinxiang city and tested for Blastocystis using PCR of the barcoding region of the small subunit ribosomal RNA (SSU rRNA) gene. The positive isolates …

Evaluation Of Different Design Standards For The Design Of Axial Loaded Concrete Filled Steel Tube Columns Under Fire, Ebtsam Youssef Ibrahim Abd El Ghaffar, Nabil Said Mahmoud, Fikry A. Salem, Mohammed. M. Ghannam

Mansoura Engineering Journal

This paper compares various codes and standards for the behavior of “Concrete-Filled Steel Tubes” (CFST) columns under fire and axial load. The codes evaluated include European standards (EC4.2 and EC3.2), the American standard (AISC 360), and the Australian standard (AS/NZS 2327). The fire resistance of Concrete-Filled Steel Tubular (CFST) and steel hollow (SH) columns was assessed using a computer program developed with Visual Studio .NET. The program's results were compared with previous experimental data to evaluate the accuracy of various codes and standards in predicting the behavior of these columns under fire conditions. This study highlights the importance of selecting …

Primary Hyperaldosteronism, Joanna Lam

The Kabod

This paper will give an overview of primary hyperaldosteronism, which is a condition characterized by the excess production of aldosterone from the adrenal glands. Since its discovery in 1954 by James Conn, primary hyperaldosteronism has been discovered to have a variety of causes, with the more common ones being either benign tumors or inherited disorders such as congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Affected patients display conditions such as hypertension or hypokalemia, which may lead to symptoms including headaches, blurred vision, or dizziness. This paper will cover the anatomy of the adrenal glands, along with the normal physiology and synthesis of aldosterone. Aldosterone’s …

Crayfishes Of Kansas: List Of Taxa, Synonyms, And References, Mark E. Eberle

Sternberg Museum of Natural History Faculty Publications

There are 14 species of crayfishes (Decapoda: Cambaridae) reported from Kansas, although there are questions about the systematics of some taxa. These species are listed by their current names and the synonyms under which they have been reported since 1885, along with their conservation status. Published references that include each species in Kansas are also noted. In addition, information about species with type localities in Kansas and unresolved taxonomic issues are summarized. The list of species has been updated in 2025 to include two species introduced to Kansas and other new information.

Draft Genome Sequences Of Burkholderia And Paraburkholderia Strains Isolated From Panicum Virgatum Soil And Roots At The Lux Arbor Reserve In Michigan, Usa, H. Kehlet-Delgado, R. H. Petipas, A. A. Antoch, Jeffrey S. Norman, X. Li, R. A. White Iii, S. E. Evans, L. K. Tiemann, M. L. Friesen

Biology Faculty Works

We present draft genomes of two Paraburkholderia strains and two Burkholderia strains. Three strains were isolated from surrounding soils and one from roots of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) in Michigan, USA.

Targeting The Bcl2 Family: Advances And Challenges In Bh3 Mimetic-Based Therapies, Nabanita Mukherjee, James Sheetz, Yiqun Shellman

Student Papers, Posters & Projects

The BCL2 family of proteins plays a pivotal role in regulating apoptosis and cellular homeostasis, making them critical therapeutic targets in cancer and other diseases characterized by pathological cell survival. BH3 mimetics, small molecules that selectively inhibit anti-apoptotic BCL2 family members, have achieved significant clinical success, particularly in hematologic malignancies. However, several challenges remain, including resistance mechanisms, toxicity (such as MCL1 inhibitor-associated cardiotoxicity), and the intricate balance between apoptotic and non-apoptotic functions. This review provides a comprehensive overview of BCL2 family biology, the development and clinical application and outcomes of BH3 mimetics, and the emerging resistance mechanism known as double-bolt …

Factors Influencing Plant Community Structure And Composition Of Restored Tamaulipan Thornscrub Forests, Jerald T. Garrett, Audrey J. Hicks, Christopher A. Gabler

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

The Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) of Texas is a biodiversity hotspot due to its high alpha, beta, and gamma diversity and high regional endemism, which are at high risk of degradation. The region has lost 95% of its native thornforest habitat primarily due to agricultural and urban expansion. This study aims to evaluate the current vegetative structure and composition of restored thornforest sites located in the LRGV to identify restoration methods and site characteristics that affect forest restoration outcomes. Twelve restored thornforest sites were selected for this study that varied in time since restoration, patch size, degree of isolation, …

Development Of Students Worksheet Based On Project-Based Learning To Train Critical Thinking Skills At Vocational High School, Dia Ayu Permatasari, Harun Nasruddin

Jurnal Pendidikan Sains

Critical thinking is a cognitive skill that helps identify problems and generate solutions, leading to logical decisions or considerations for solving those problems. Students' critical thinking skills can be trained through learning activities to further improve students' critical thinking skills with learning tools. Therefore, this research intends to produce a student worksheet based on project-based learning to train students' critical thinking skills on the colligative properties of solutions. The development research uses the 4D development model from Thiagarajan, limited to the development stage. A limited trial was conducted with 30 students of industrial chemical engineering expertise at Vocational High School …

Development Of Digital Comic Learning Media Based On Mobile Learning On Media: Making Media Materials In Plant Tissue Culture, Sufina Intan Pertiwi, Fauziyah Harahap, Aline Gusti Yolanda Harahap, Marsya Amira Indrawati, Aline Jelita Christiani Simanullang, Yanda Febry Gracea Br Tarigan, Maureen Efriyanti Sitinjak

Jurnal Pendidikan Sains

his research was conducted based on student needs analysis, analysis of learner characteristics, and curriculum analysis, namely the lack of visualization and presentation of concepts and the lack of utilization of interactive technology in the learning process on media material and media making in tissue culture for college students. This study intends to develop digital comic media based on mobile learning and making media materials in tissue culture. This research method used research and development (R&D) with the ADDIE model: analyze, design, develop, implement, and evaluate. The subjects of this study were students of the Department of Biology, Universitas Negeri …

Problem-Based Learning Assisted By Augmented Reality On The Respiratory System Topic: A Study Of Students’ Critical Thinking Skills And Learning Motivation, Nyimas Dilviana, Ade Yeti Nuryantini, Sumiyati Sa'adah

Jurnal Pendidikan Sains

This study aims to examine the effectiveness of the Problem-Based Learning (PBL) model assisted by Augmented Reality (AR) technology regarding the respiratory system in improving students’ critical thinking skills and learning motivation. The research method used was a quasi-experimental design with a one-group pretest-posttest model. The subjects were 30 eleventh-grade students from a public high school in Garut City. Research instruments included a critical thinking test and a learning motivation questionnaire. The results showed a significant improvement in students’ critical thinking scores after the implementation of PBL with AR support. Additionally, learning motivation data analyzed from 16 statement items revealed …

Interview With Orca Award Winner Donald Weeks; Unl Biochemistry; Biotechnology, Mark Griep, Donald Weeks

UNL ORCA Interview Series

Emeritus Professor Donald Paul Weeks was awarded the ORCA in 2014, a year before he retired. He grew up in a small farm south of Terre Haute, Indiana. In his youth, he participated in 4-H programs that must have sparked an interest in science because he earned his bachelor's degree from Purdue University in 1963. Purdue is about 90 miles north of Terre Haute. Don's doctoral work was at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana for a project about protein synthesis during maize germination. Next, he did postdoctoral work at the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, where his research …

Day-Night Shifts In Water-Soluble Ions Of Size-Resolved Aerosols Before And After The Covid-19 Lockdown In A Coastal Megacity: Metro Manila, Philippines, Grace Betito, Paola Angela Bañaga, Rachel A. Braun, Maria Obiminda Cambaliza, Melliza Templonuevo Cruz, Alexander B. Macdonald, James Bernard Simpas, Connor Stahl, Armin Sooroshian

SOSE Affiliate: Manila Observatory

The COVID-19 pandemic-driven lockdowns offer a unique opportunity to examine how reductions in anthropogenic emissions impacted atmospheric aerosol composition in urban environments. This study investigates the day-night variability of size-resolved water-soluble ions in ambient particulate matter (PM) collected in Metro Manila before (November 2019–February 2020) and after (November 2020–February 2021) lockdown implementation. Using tandem Micro-Orifice Uniform Deposit Impactors (MOUDIs), aerosol samples were collected during daytime (06:00–18:00) and nighttime (18:00–06:00) periods and analyzed for key ionic species (sulfate, ammonium, nitrate, oxalate, sodium, chloride, calcium, and magnesium) via ion chromatography. Submicrometer water-soluble mass declined post-lockdown, particularly during daytime, reflecting suppressed secondary formation …

Geogenie: A Deep Learning Approach To Predict Geographic Provenance Of Biodiversity Samples From Genomic Snps, Bradley T. Martin, Zachery D. Zbinden, Michael E. Douglas, Marlis R. Douglas, Tyler K. Chafin

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Motivation

Determining geographic origin of samples is a common objective in wildlife management, forensics, and conservation. Current methods often assume evolutionary models or require extensive reference datasets, which are costly and difficult to develop, that perform poorly with uneven or biased sampling. Supervised deep learning offers a promising alternative by learning complex patterns without prior model specifications. Combined with novel geo-genetic data augmentation and preprocessing techniques, it can reduce reference panel demands and improve performance across diverse sampling schemes, broadening accurate provenance determination to more study systems. Results

We present GeoGenIE, an open-source software package powered by PyTorch for geographic …

Transcriptomic Analysis Demonstrates Moderators Of Muscle Quality Are Altered In Age-Related Sarcopenic Obesity, Eleanor R. Schrems, Ana Regina Cabrera, Ronald G. Jones Iii, Francielly Morena, Kevin A. Murach, Nicholas P. Greene, Tyrone A. Washington

Health, Human Performance and Recreation Faculty Publications and Presentations

BackgroundSarcopenic obesity (SO) is the combined condition of sarcopenia and obesity, which commonly occurs in the older adult population. SO is associated with poor physical function, increased risk of musculoskeletal injury, and reduced quality of life and independence. Information on the molecular underpinnings of this condition is limited. The aim of this study was to provide a transcriptomic analysis characterizing SO induced by lifelong obesity and to provide a deeper understanding of the etiology of the condition.ResultsYoung (Y) (6 mo) and aged (A) (21-24 mo) mice were fed either normal chow (L) (12% kcal from fat) or high-fat (O) (60% …

Plant Biomass (Dry) Per Square Meter, Johan Du Toit, Shantell Garrett

Browse all Datasets

Results of plant biomass clippings (dry mass / square meter) conducted in the foothills of the Henry Mountains, south-central Utah, over 2012-2022.

Insights Into Cardiac O-Glcnacylation As A Link Between The Diabetic State And Increased Cardiovascular Disease Susceptibility And Pathology, Samuel Formosa Chang

All ETDs from UAB

With diabetes prevalence around the world nearing 10%, and half of the US population having either diabetes or pre-diabetes, many epidemiological studies show diabetic patients have both increased risk for developing major cardiovascular disease (CVD), and increased mortality rates due to CVD. Additionally, within this field, studies have shown that indi-viduals with previously higher HbA1C levels have higher long-lasting risk for major ad-verse cardiac events compared to those with previously lower HbA1C levels—establishing the concept of “metabolic memory”. Within the diabetic milieu, cardiac protein O-GlcNAcylation (O-linked B-N-acetyl-glucosamine) is important for cardiac pathology de-velopment. Specifically, our lab generated a cardiomyocyte specific, …

Mechanistic Distinction Between Oxidative And Chlorination Transformations Of Chloroperoxidase From Caldariomyces Fumago Demonstrated By Dye Decolorization, Norman Paz-Ramirez, Jacob Redwinski, Matthew A. Cranswick, Kyle A. Grice, Kari Stone

Chemistry Department Faculty Articles

Effluents from the textile industry, particularly those containing synthetic azo dyes, poses a significant environmental threat, necessitating the development of more effective and sustainable pollutant removal methods. Traditional dye removal techniques often fall short in efficiency and environmental impact, prompting the exploration of enzymatic degradation as a promising alternative. This study focuses on chloroperoxidase, a natural biocatalyst recognized for its ability to oxidize synthetic dyes into less harmful products. By exploring the mechanistic distinction between chlorination and oxidative processes, we investigate the enzyme’s specific degradation pathways for azo dyes and the resulting by-products. Utilizing analytical techniques, including liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry …

Chemical Analyses Of Grass Samples, Johan Du Toit, Shantell Garrett

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Results of chemical analyses of grass samples collected in the foothills of the Henry Mountains, south-central Utah, in the fall of 2021.

Comprehensive Analysis Of The Tumor Targeting Efficiency Of Functionalized Nanoparticles In An Immunocompetent Environment, Nolan Jackson, Nasry Bouzeineddine, Daniel Cecchi, Safara Holder, Katrina Gee, Wayne Beckham, Sameh Basta, Sunil Krishnan, Devika B Chithrani

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The success of nanoparticle-based cancer therapeutics relies on their efficient tumor uptake and retention. Given this, improving nanoparticle localization in tumors is paramount to maximize their therapeutic potential. A common approach to achieve this is to functionalize nanoparticles with active targeting moieties that bind to specific tumor-associated receptors. Among these, arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) peptides have shown a potential to promote tumor accumulation by targeting the ανβ3 integrin receptor, a receptor commonly overexpressed by tumors owing to its role in promoting angiogenesis, metastasis and proliferation. Yet, its efficacy is commonly assessed using immunocompromised mice models. While useful, these models do not …