Biology Commons^™

Diel Activity Patterns Of Vector Mosquito Species In The Urban Environment: Implications For Vector Control Strategies, André Barretto B. Wilke, Adequate Mhlanga, Allisandra G. Kummer, Chalmers Vasquez, Maday Moreno, William D. Petrie, Art Rodriguez, Christopher Vitek, Gabriel L. Hamer, John-Paul Mutebi, Marco Ajelli

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Mathematical models have been widely used to study the population dynamics of mosquitoes as well as to test and validate the effectiveness of arbovirus outbreak responses and mosquito control strategies. The objective of this study is to assess the diel activity of mosquitoes in Miami-Dade, Florida, and Brownsville, Texas, the most affected areas during the Zika outbreak in 2016–2017, and to evaluate the effectiveness of simulated adulticide treatments on local mosquito populations. To assess variations in the diel activity patterns, mosquitoes were collected hourly for 96 hours once a month from May through November 2019 in Miami-Dade County, Florida, and …

Warm Land Surface Temperatures And Eastern Asian Homo, Robert Patalano, Hong Yang

Biological and Biomedical Sciences Department Faculty Journal Articles

Climate change and hominin evolution are inextricably linked. Pleistocene climate variability, for example, is thought to have had major influences on hominin morphology, brain size, and diversity. However, clear cause-and-effect relationships between specific climatic events and major evolutionary occurrences are difficult to establish due to temporal and spatial gaps in paleoclimatic, paleoenvironmental, and archaeological records. A new branched GDGT paleotemperature record from the Lantian Basin of Central China (Lu et al., 2022), a location known for the earliest hominin presence in East Asia, illustrates warm land surface temperatures over a two-million-year period between 2.6 and 0.6 Ma, a critical time …

Promiscuous Feeding Across Multiple Honey Bee Hosts Amplifies The Vectorial Capacity Of Varroa Destructor, Zachary S. Lamas, Serhat Solmaz, Eugene V. Ryabov, Joseph Mowery, Matthew Heermann, Daniel Sonenshine, Jay D. Evans, David J. Hawthorne

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Varroa destructor is a cosmopolitan pest and leading cause of colony loss of the European honey bee. Historically described as a competent vector of honey bee viruses, this arthropod vector is the cause of a global pandemic of Deformed wing virus, now endemic in honeybee populations in all Varroa-infested regions. Our work shows that viral spread is driven by Varroa actively switching from one adult bee to another as they feed. Assays using fluorescent microspheres were used to indicate the movement of fluids in both directions between host and vector when Varroa feed. Therefore, Varroa could be in either …

Use Of Amino Acid Isotope Analysis To Investigate Capital Versus Income Breeding Strategies In Migratory Avian Species, Nico Lübcker, John P. Whiteman, Oliver N. Shipley, Keith A. Hobson, Seth D. Newsome

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

1. Income and capital breeding represent opposing ends of a continuum of reproductive strategies. Quantifying nutrient allocation to reproduction is challenging, but recent advances in compound-specific stable isotope analysis hold promise for tracing the source of individual compounds allocated to reproduction.

2. Here, we describe a novel approach of using measured carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotope values of individual amino acids (AAs) in pectoral muscle of egg-laying females and egg yolk as a useful tool to quantify the reliance on income versus capital breeding in migrating species. We used white-fronted (Anser albifrons frontalis), lesser snow (A. …

[Research Note] The Random Somatic Mutation Is Not Quite Random, Florentin Smarandache

Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications

This research note challenges the idea that Random Somatic Mutations are entirely random, highlighting their non-equiprobable nature and their influence on evolution, involution, or indeterminacy. It recalls the Neutrosophic Theory of Evolution, extending Darwin’s theory, and emphasizes the importance of distinguishing between different senses of “random mutation” in evolutionary theory.

The Use Of A Habitat Quality Stress Index To Evaluate Stress As An Analog For Proximate Fitness In The American Crow Within A Matrix Of Landcover Characteristics To Assess Its Potential Contribution To Disease Etiologies, Theodore Lee Grabarz

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

All organisms occur within spatial and temporal environments to maximize proximate fitness (health) and thus life history outcomes. Previous work has examined the temporal and behavioral aspects of proximate fitness on life history outcomes particularly regarding highly perturbed environments (i.e., climate and land use change, resource extraction, agricultural erosion, etc.). My work focuses on the less examined spatial aspect of these perturbed environments. More specifically, this dissertation examines habitat selection and quality as the basis for understanding stress response (negative and positive feedback mechanisms) to environmental stressors within the larger context of regional or gamma (ɣ) biodiversity. Through the lens …

Survival Analysis And Prognostic Factors Of The Carcinoma Of Gallbladder, Zainab Feroz, Priyanka Gautam, Sonia Tiwari, Girish C. Shukla, Munish Kuma

Biological, Geological, and Environmental Faculty Publications

Background: The present study aims to evaluate the survival status of patients with gallbladder cancer (GBC) and explore the prognostic factors for the improvement and preventions.
Methods: The study consists of 176 patients with clinically diagnosed gallbladder cancer; the study was conducted between 2019 and 2021 registered at Kamala Nehru Memorial Cancer Hospital, Prayagraj, India. The survival rates were analyzed by the Kaplan-Meier method; survival rate difference was analyzed by log-rank test, prognosis factors; and hazard ratio for mortality outcomes was estimated using Cox regression method.
Results: The overall median survival time of patients was 5 months with the 1-year, …

Oxidative Stress Strongly Restricts The Effect Of Codon Choice On The Efficiency Of Protein Synthesis In Escherichia Coli, Lorenzo Eugenio Leiva, Sara Elgamal, Sebastian A. Leidel, Omar Orellana, Michael Ibba, Assaf Katz

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Introduction

The response of enterobacteria to oxidative stress is usually considered to be regulated by transcription factors such as OxyR and SoxR. Nevertheless, several reports have shown that under oxidative stress the levels, modification and aminoacylation of tRNAs may be altered suggesting a role of codon bias in regulation of gene expression under this condition.

Methods

In order to characterize the effects of oxidative stress on translation elongation we constructed a library of 61 plasmids, each coding for the green fluorescent protein (GFP) translationally fused to a different set of four identical codons.

Results

Using these reporters, we observed that …

A Molecular Chemodosimeter To Probe “Closed Shell” Ions In Kidney Cells, Rashid Mia

Faculty Publications

Two quinidine-functionalized coumarin molecular probes have been synthesized and have been found to bind metal cations (Cd2+, Co2+, Cu2+, Fe2+, Hg2+, Ni2+, and Zn2+) with high affinity in organic–aqueous media (DMSO–HEPES). The chemodosimeters coordinate with the Zn2+ ions in a two-to-one ratio (molecular probe : Zn2+) with a log β of 10.0 M−2. Upon the addition of the closed-shell metal ions studied, a fluorescence turn-on via an excimer formation is seen at 542 nm due to the quinaldine moiety adopting a syn arrangement when coordinated to the metal Zn2+ ions. Confocal microscopy monitored free Zn2+ ions in the Human Embryonic …

Transcriptomics-Based Network Medicine Approach Identifies Metformin As A Repurposable Drug For Atrial Fibrillation, Jessica C. Lal, Chengsheng Mao, Yadi Zhou, Shamone R. Gore-Panter, Julie H. Rennison, Beth S. Lovano, Et. Al

Biological, Geological, and Environmental Faculty Publications

Effective drugs for atrial fibrillation (AF) are lacking, resulting in significant morbidity and mortality. This study demonstrates that network proximity analysis of differentially expressed genes from atrial tissue to drug tar-gets can help prioritize repurposed drugs for AF. Using enrichment analysis of drug-gene signatures and functional testing in human inducible pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived atrial-like cardiomyocytes, we identify metformin as a top repurposed drug candidate for AF. Using the active compactor, a new design analysis of large-scale longitudinal electronic health record (EHR) data, we determine that metformin use is significantly associated with a reduced risk of AF (odds ratio = …

Zoonosis At The Huanan Seafood Market: A Critique, Daoyu Zhang, Gilles Demaneuf, Adrian Jones, Steven Massey, Steven Quay, Yuri Deigin, Louis R. Nemzer

Chemistry and Physics Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures

Since the Hunan Seafood Market (HSM) in Wuhan, China was first suggested as the source of the COVID-19 pandemic in late January 2020, debate has continued over the evidence supporting this claim. Here, we assess the evidence provided in support of zoonotic spillover at the HSM as the origin of human infection of SARS-CoV-2. We find that the datasets and analyses put forward in support of zoonosis are biased, and lack sufficient verifiable data to support this hypothesis. The earliest COVID-19 case at the HSM was not at or near a wildlife stall, the distribution of cases at the HSM …

The Effect Of Infection Risk On Female Blood Transcriptomics, Brenna M. G. Gormally, Patricia C. Lopes

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Defenses against pathogens can take on many forms. For instance, behavioral avoidance of diseased conspecifics is widely documented. Interactions with these infectious conspecifics can also, however, lead to physiological changes in uninfected animals, an effect that is much less well understood. These changes in behavior and physiology are particularly important to study in a reproductive context, where they can impact reproductive decisions and offspring quality. Here, we studied how an acute (3 h) exposure to an immune-challenged male affected female blood transcriptomics and behavior. We predicted that females paired with immune-challenged males would reduce eating and drinking behaviors (as avoidance …

Drone-Based Water Sampling And Characterization Of Three Freshwater Harmful Algal Blooms In The United States, Regina Hanlon, Stephen J. Jacquemin, Johnna A. Birbeck, Judy A. Westrick, Charbel Harb, Hope Gruszewski, Andrew P. Ault, Durelle Scott, Hosein Foroutan, Shane D. Ross, Javier González-Rocha, Craig Powers, Lowell Pratt, Harry Looney, Greg Baker, David G. Schmale

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Freshwater harmful algal blooms (HABs), caused mostly by toxic cyanobacteria, produce a range of cyanotoxins that threaten the health of humans and domestic animals. Climate conditions and anthropogenic influences such as agricultural run-off can alter the onset and intensity of HABs. Little is known about the distribution and spread of freshwater HABs. Current sampling protocols in some lakes involve teams of researchers that collect samples by hand from a boat and/or from the shoreline. Water samples can be collected from the surface, from discrete-depth collections, and/or from depth-integrated intervals. These collections are often restricted to certain months of the year, …

Human Cryptosporidiosis: A Review And Staining Method, Amatullah Ahmad

Honors College

Cryptosporidiosis is increasingly emerging as the most significant cause of infectious diarrhea in humans and livestock. In humans, studies show that Cryptosporidiosis disease is more prevalent in the immunocompromised and young ones. However, outbreaks from contaminated water sources have caused disease in healthy adults, too. Two main species of the protozoan causative agent,Cryptosporidium parvum and Cryptosporidium hominis are responsible for most human infections. Cattle, pets, mice, and other livestock can transmit theCryptosporidiumparvumvariantsto humans through fecal transmission. Other species of Cryptosporidium can infect domestic animals, but their host range is narrow; therefore, they are not of significant concern to human health. …

Parasitism Of Corn Earworm, Helicoverpa Zea (Boddie) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), By Tachinid Flies In Cultivated Hemp, Armando Falcon-Brindis, John O. Stireman Iii, Zenaida J. Viloria, Raul T. Villanueva

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

In a survey on hemp grown in western Kentucky we found an average of 27.8 CEW larvae per plant. We recorded 45% parasitism of CEW in these fields by two species of tachinid flies, Winthemia rufopicta and Lespesia aletiae. Most parasitized larvae were third to sixth instars at the time of collection. We found up to 22 tachinid eggs per host larva, 89% of which typically bore between 1 and 5 eggs on the thorax. 45.9% of CEW bearing eggs died. The number of tachinid eggs per host was unrelated to host body mass, but both the number of tachinid …

Regaining Effort-Based Food Motivation: The Drug Methylphenidate Reverses The Depressive Effects Of Tetrabenazine In Female Rats, Deanna Pietrorazio

Honors Scholar Theses

Tetrabenazine (TBZ), a vesicular monoamine transporter type 2 (VMAT-2) inhibitor, depletes dopamine and induces motivational deficits and other depressive symptoms in humans. Methylphenidate (MPH) is a dopamine transport blocker that is used to enhance motivational function. Previous studies have shown that in male rats, TBZ induces a shift in effort-related choice such that a low-effort bias is induced. In male rats this occurs at a dose range of 0.75-1.0 mg/kg TBZ, and this effect is reversible with co-administration of MPH. Recent studies have shown that females need a higher dose of TBZ (2.0 mg/kg) to show the low-effort bias. The …

Optical Illusions To Schizophrenic Delusions: How Your Brain Can Alter Reality, Kathryn Stanislaski

Honors College

Widely misunderstood, stigmatized and understudied, schizophrenia is often misdiagnosed and incorrectly treated. While people diagnosed with schizophrenia are often thought to misinterpret reality, they may be more adept at processing visual sensory information and perceive reality better than those without schizophrenia. Studies involving patients with schizophrenia have shown consistent and extensive insusceptibility of these patients to a variety of optical illusions. In this paper, I propose that when processing visual information, people with schizophrenia rely greater upon the dorsal stream and areas in the brain associated with bottom-up processing, as opposed to those without schizophrenia that utilize the ventral stream …

Exercise In The Heat: Perceptual Measures In Hydrated And Dehydrated Conditions, John Kromer

Honors Scholar Theses

Introduction: Athletes, warfighters, and laborers are often exposed to extreme environmental conditions that can result in heat-related illnesses negatively impacting performance and productivity.

Purpose: To evaluate Total Mood Disturbance (TMD) from pre-trial to post-trial surrounding exercise in the heat. The secondary purpose was to compare post-trial measures between hydration status as well as environmental conditions.

Methods: Twenty-six male and female subjects performed four trials. Two trials were conducted in temperate conditions (24 ℃, 55% relative humidity) and two in extreme heat conditions (35 ℃, 55% relative humidity), in both hydrated and dehydrated conditions. The Profile of Moods States survey was …

The Various Nervous System Drugs Commonly Used For Treatment And The Disparities In Availability Of These Drugs In Minority Groups, Iman Haurami

Honors Scholars Collaborative Projects

The nervous system is a complex network in our body that is responsible for actions, reflexes, and even sensations. With the brain being part of the CNS, many common nervous system disorders are due to a defect in the central nervous system and the functions of this organ. These disorders include mental health problems, degenerative diseases, seizures, infections, and other possible genetic diseases. Many of these diseases are common in society and constantly researched. Even though these diseases are common, treatment accessibility and effects on people of minority groups are overlooked compared to the focus on majority groups. For drug …

Volume 13, Payton Davenport, Audrey Lemons, Jacob Shope, Haley Smith, Cassandra Poole, Rachel Cannon, Rachel Boch, Suzanne Stetson

Incite: The Journal of Undergraduate Scholarship

Introduction Dr. Roger A. Byrne, Dean

From the Editor Dr. Larissa “Kat” Tracy

From the Designers Rachel English, Rachel Hanson

The Effect of Compliment Type on the Estimated Value of the Compliment by Payton Davenport, Audrey Lemons, and Jacob Shope

The Imperial Japanese Military: A New Identity in the Twentieth Century, 1853–1922 by Haley Smith

Longwood University’s campus: Human-cultivated Soil has Higher Microbial Diversity than Soil Collected from Wild Sites by Cassandra Poole

Reminiscent Modernism: Poetry Magazine’s Modernist Nostalgia for the Past by Rachel Cannon

Challenges Faced by Healthcare Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Preliminary Study of Age and …

Variation In Student Perceptions Of Higher Education Course Quality And Difficulty As A Result Of Widespread Implementation Of Online Education During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Joseph Cavanaugh, Stephen J. Jacquemin, Christine Junker

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

The onset of the COVID-19 global pandemic affected higher education in a myriad of ways. One of the most notable effects however was the rapid and sudden transition of nearly all courses at most institutions to an online environment. And while there are a growing number of courses offered online already, this transition to nearly 100% remote education presented numerous challenges for instructors and students of face-to-face and hybrid style courses. Since student perceptions are closely tied to recruitment and retention, it is important to know if there are differences in student perceptions present in the way different courses are …

Understanding Exosomal Extracellular Vesicles And Morphine In The Neuropathology Of Human Immunodeficiency Virus And Differential Zika Virus Strain-Associated Pathology, Allen Caobi

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Exosomal Extracellular Vesicles (xEVs), integral to intercellular communication and regulation of immune responses, have functional effects based on their contents, which they transport to neighboring cells. However, in the context of infection, EV cargo can be modulated, by either infected or uninfected cells. We hypothesize that CNS-associated neuropathology, is partially, due to the cargo transported by the exosomes. We theorize that the cargo released from infected cell-derived xEVs may either facilitate or inhibit viral neuropathogenicity. Here we investigated xEVs in the case of two neurotropic viruses, Zika virus (ZIKV) and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). The hallmark characteristic of ZIKV-infection is …

Dissecting Mutational Allosteric Effects In Alkaline Phosphatases Associated With Different Hypophosphatasia Phenotypes: An Integrative Computational Investigation, Fei Xiao, Ziyun Zhou, Xingyu Song, Mi Gan, Jie Long, Gennady M. Verkhivker, Guang Hu

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Hypophosphatasia (HPP) is a rare inherited disorder characterized by defective bone mineralization and is highly variable in its clinical phenotype. The disease occurs due to various loss-of-function mutations in ALPL, the gene encoding tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase (TNSALP). In this work, a data-driven and biophysics-based approach is proposed for the large-scale analysis of ALPL mutations-from nonpathogenic to severe HPPs. By using a pipeline of synergistic approaches including sequence-structure analysis, network modeling, elastic network models and atomistic simulations, we characterized allosteric signatures and effects of the ALPL mutations on protein dynamics and function. Statistical analysis of molecular features computed for the …

Zoonotic Pathogens From Illegally Traded Wildlife Justify Adopting The One Health Perspective In Disease Response, Marianne Allison G. Lee, Vinyl Joseph S. Valeza, Jonathan Patrick H. Yan, Ronald Allan L. Cruz

Biology Faculty Publications

Recent studies have described a direct relationship between the illegal wildlife trade (IWT) and the prevalence of zoonotic pathogens in human populations. In the Philippines, the Philippine Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (PIDSR) framework outlines the monitoring, response, and management of disease outbreaks, but needs to be updated in the wake of zoonoses from IWT. Here, we identified zoonotic pathogens that may be introduced to human populations through the IWT, pinpointed potential outbreak hotspots, and provided recommendations on how to improve the Philippines’ public health response while considering One Health. Using seizure data from the Biodiversity Management Bureau (DENR-BMB) covering …

Early Evidence Of The Sars-Cov-2 B.1.1.529 (Omicron) Variant In Community Wastewater: United States, November–December 2021, Amy Kirby, Rory M. Welsh, Zachary Marsh, Davida S. Smyth, Et Al.

Biology Faculty Publications

Notes from the Field: Early Evidence of the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.529 (Omicron) Variant in Community Wastewater — United States, November–December 2021

Covers: California, Colorado, New York City, Houston

Self-Conscious Emotions And The Right Fronto-Temporal And Right Temporal Parietal Junction, Adriana Lavarco, Nathira Ahmad, Qiana Archer, Matthew Pardillo, Ray Nunez Castaneda, Anthony Minervini, Julian Keenan

Department of Biology Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

For more than two decades, research focusing on both clinical and non-clinical populations has suggested a key role for specific regions in the regulation of self-conscious emotions. It is speculated that both the expression and the interpretation of self-conscious emotions are critical in humans for action planning and response, communication, learning, parenting, and most social encounters. Empathy, Guilt, Jealousy, Shame, and Pride are all categorized as self-conscious emotions, all of which are crucial components to one’s sense of self. There has been an abundance of evidence pointing to the right Fronto-Temporal involvement in the integration of cognitive processes underlying the …

Impacts Of Covid-19 On Global Healthcare Management And Research, Stephanie Autore, Santanu De

Biology Faculty Articles

The Coronavirus Infectious Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has affected most nations at all levels of functioning, individual to governmental. Therefore, it is imperative to evaluate the effects the virus has had on one of the most important socioeconomic global sectors, healthcare. This literature review explores key, recent research and management strategies that have been undertaken in healthcare systems around the world in order to make meaningful attempts at identifying the etiology, diagnosis, and treatment of the disease, and combating the spread of this deadly virus. Healthcare facilities have implemented a variety of changes, all geared towards reducing non-emergency patient visits …

Comparison Of Effects Of Sleep Fragmentation On Pro-Inflammatory Cytokine Il-1Β Of Male And Female Adult Mice, Manzar Rzayeva

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Sleep plays an essential role throughout the body by affecting the physiological function and regulation of many systems. One of these systems that receives effects as a result of the adequacy of sleep is the immune system. Previous studies have demonstrated effects of sleep fragmentation upon the immune system; however, sexual differences of these effects have not been studied in depth. To analyze these variances amongst the genders, male and female adult mice were subjected to acute sleep fragmentation (SF) for 24 hours in an automated SF cage that includes a bar sweeping across the cage every two minutes. Meanwhile, …

Inflammatory Response To Sleep Fragmentation In Skeletal, Cardiac, And Smooth Muscle Tissues In Female Mice, Patton Allen

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Sleep is a critical process that the body undergoes. When sleep is interrupted, so that an individual is awakened for some period before going back into sleep, the sleep can be described as fragmented. Studies in the past have shown that sleep fragmentation (SF) promotes an inflammatory environment, especially in the brain and peripheral tissue. However, studies have not been conducted to observe inflammatory responses in muscle. To examine this, C57BL/6J female mice were subjected to either a control group (no SF) or a SF group which involved using an automated SF chamber to disrupt sleep every 2 min over …

Whole Exome Sequencing Identifies A Novel Mutation In Aspm And Ultra-Rare Mutation In Cdk5rap2 Causing Primary Microcephaly In Consanguineous Pakistani Families, Ehtisham Ul Haq Makhdoom, Haseeb Anwar, Shahid Mahmood Baig, Ghulam Hussain

Department of Biological & Biomedical Sciences

Background & objectives: Primary Microcephaly (MCPH) is a rare neurogenetic disease, manifesting congenitally reduced head circumference and non-progressive intellectual disability (ID). To date, twenty-eight genes with biallelic mutations have been reported for this disorder. The study aimed for molecular genetic characterization of Pakistani families segregating MCPH.
Methods: We studied two unrelated consanguineous families (family A and B) presenting >2 patients with diagnostic symptoms of MCPH, born to asymptomatic parents. We employed whole-exome sequencing (WES) of probands to find putative causal mutations. The candidate variants were further confirmed and analyzed for co-segregation by Sanger sequencing of all available members of each …