Biology Commons^™

Importance Of Local Weather And Environmental Gradients On Demography Of A Broadly Distributed Temperate Frog, Hallie Lingo, James C. Munger

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Amphibian populations are sensitive to environmental temperatures and moisture, which vary with local weather conditions and may reach new norms and extremes as contemporary climate change progresses. Using long-term (11–16 years) mark-recapture data from 10 populations of the Columbia spotted frog (Rana luteiventris) from across its U.S. range, we addressed hypotheses about how demographic relationships to weather depend upon a population’s position along climate gradients. We estimated the effect of seasonal weather on annual survival probability and recruitment rates both within populations and across the species’ range from subalpine forests to semi-arid deserts. We calculated population-specific weather variables …

Endemism, Projected Climate Change, And Identifying Species Of Critical Concern In The Scrub Mint Clade (Lamiaceae), Andre A. Naranjo, Anthony E. Melton, Douglas E. Soltis, Pamela S. Soltis

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Recent studies have revealed that narrow endemics, particularly those native to the North American Coastal Plain, are experiencing range contractions due to human development and anthropogenic-driven climate warming. We model how the projected distributions of a group of scrub-adapted plant species with similar evolutionary histories change in response to warming climates. The Scrub Mint clade (Lamiaceae) (SMC), which comprises 24 species in Dicerandra, Conradina, Stachydeoma, Piloblephis, and Clinopodium, including federally or state-listed threatened and endangered species, occurs in the scrub and sandhill biomes of the North American Coastal Plain. Georeferenced occurrence points were used to …

Drivers Of Flight Performance Of California Condors (Gymnogyps Californianus), Sophie R. Bonner, Sharon A. Poessel, Joseph C. Brandt, Molly T. Astell, James R. Belthoff, Todd E. Katzner

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Flight behavior of soaring birds depends on a complex array of physiological, social, demographic, and environmental factors. California Condors (Gymnogyps californianus) rely on thermal and orographic updrafts to subsidize extended bouts of soaring flight, and their soaring flight performance is expected to vary in response to environmental variation and, potentially, with experience. We collected 6298 flight tracks described by high-frequency GPS telemetry data from five birds ranging in age from 1 to 19 yr old and followed over 32 d in summer 2016. Using these data, we tested the hypothesis that climb rate, an indicator of flight performance, …

Genome-Wide Identification Of Novel Srnas In Streptococcus Mutans, Madeline Claire Krieger, Justin Merritt, Rahul Raghavan

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Streptococcus mutans is a major pathobiont involved in the development of dental caries. Its ability to utilize numerous sugars and to effectively respond to environmental stress promotes S. mutans proliferation in oral biofilms. Because of their quick action and low energetic cost, non-coding small RNAs (sRNAs) represent an ideal mode of gene regulation in stress response networks, yet their roles in oral pathogens have remained largely unexplored. We identified 15 novel sRNAs in S. mutans and show that they respond to four stress-inducing conditions commonly encountered by the pathogen in human mouth: sugar-phosphate stress, hydrogen peroxide exposure, high temperature, and …

Mitonuclear Mismatch Is Associated With Increased Male Frequency, Outcrossing, And Male Sperm Size In Experimentally-Evolved C. Elegans, Brent W. Bever, Zachary P. Dietz, Jennifer Anne Sullins, Ariana M. Montoya, Ulfar Bergthorsson, Vaishali Katju, Suzanne Estes

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

We provide a partial test of themitonuclear sex hypothesiswith the first controlled study of how male frequencies and rates of outcrossing evolve in response to mitonuclear mismatch by allowing replicate lineages of C. elegans nematodes containing either mitochondrial or nuclear mutations of electron transport chain (ETC) genes to evolve under three sexual systems: facultatively outcrossing (wildtype), obligately selfing, and obligately outcrossing. Among facultatively outcrossing lines, we found evolution of increased male frequency in at least one replicate line of all four ETC mutant backgrounds tested—nuclear isp-1, mitochondrial cox-1 and ctb-1, and an isp-1 IV; ctb-1M mitonuclear double mutant—and confirmed for …

Recombination Mediator Proteins: Misnomers That Are Key To Understanding The Genomic Instabilities In Cancer, Justin Courcelle, Travis K. Worley, Charmain Courcelle

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Recombination mediator proteins have come into focus as promising targets for cancer therapy, with synthetic lethal approaches now clinically validated by the efficacy of PARP inhibitors in treating BRCA2 cancers and RECQ inhibitors in treating cancers with microsatellite instabilities. Thus, understanding the cellular role of recombination mediators is critically important, both to improve current therapies and develop new ones that target these pathways. Our mechanistic understanding of BRCA2 and RECQ began in . Here, we review the cellular roles of RecF and RecQ, often considered functional homologs of these proteins in bacteria. Although these proteins were originally isolated as genes …

Diversity, Biology, And History Of Psilocybin-Containing Fungi: Suggestions For Research And Technological Development, R. C. Van Court, K. W. Meyer, M. S. Wiseman, Daniel J. Ballhorn, K. R. Amses, J. C. Slot, B.T. M. Dentinger, R. Garibay-Orijel, J. K. Uehling

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Therapeutic use of psilocybin has become a focus of recent international research, with preliminary data showing promise to address a range of treatment-resistant mental health conditions. However, use of psilocybin as a healing entheogen has a long history through traditional consumption of mushrooms from the genus Psilocybe. The forthcoming adoption of new psilocybin-assisted therapeutic practices necessitates identification of preferred sources of psilocybin; consequently, comprehensive understanding of psilocybin-containing fungi is fundamental to consumer safety. Here we examine psilocybin producing fungi, discuss their biology, diversity, and ethnomycological uses. We also review recent work focused on elucidation of psilocybin biosynthetic production pathways, especially …

Interactions Between Strains Govern The Eco-Evolutionary Dynamics Of Microbial Communities, Akshit Goyal, Leonora S. Bittleston, Gabriel E. Leventhal, Lu Lu, Otto X. Cordero

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Genomic data has revealed that genotypic variants of the same species, that is, strains, coexist and are abundant in natural microbial communities. However, it is not clear if strains are ecologically equivalent, and at what characteristic genetic distance they might exhibit distinct interactions and dynamics. Here, we address this problem by tracking 10 taxonomically diverse microbial communities from the pitcher plant Sarracenia purpurea in the laboratory for more than 300 generations. Using metagenomic sequencing, we reconstruct their dynamics over time and across scales, from distant phyla to closely related genotypes. We find that most strains are not ecologically equivalent and …

New Opportunities And Untapped Scientific Potential In The Abyssal Ocean, Jeffrey J. Marlowe, Rika E. Anderson, Anna-Louise Reysenbach, Jeffrey S. Seewald, Timothy M. Shank, Andreas P. Teske, V. Dorsey Wanless, S. Adam Soule

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

The abyssal ocean covers more than half of the Earth’s surface, yet remains understudied and underappreciated. In this Perspectives article, we mark the occasion of the Deep Submergence Vehicle Alvin’s increased depth range (from 4500 to 6500 m) to highlight the scientific potential of the abyssal seafloor. From a geologic perspective, ultra-slow spreading mid-ocean ridges, Petit Spot volcanism, transform faults, and subduction zones put the full life cycle of oceanic crust on display in the abyss, revealing constructive and destructive forces over wide ranges in time and space. Geochemically, the abyssal pressure regime influences the solubility of constituents such as …

Review Of The Invasive Forage Grass, Guinea Grass (Megathyrsus Maximus): Ecology And Potential Impacts In Arid And Semi-Arid Regions, Pushpa Soti, Vanessa Thomas

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Several introduced African grasses are known to present recurring patterns of invasiveness and cause a severe impact on the diversity and functioning of ecosystems worldwide. Megathyrsus maximus (Guinea grass), a forage grass species native to South Africa, is reported to be highly invasive and pose a serious threat to native biodiversity in the introduced range. Despite the severe ecological threats posed by M. maximus worldwide, there is a dearth of information on the ecological and agroecological impact of M. maximus when growing in unintended areas. In this review, we present general information on M. maximus, its distribution and ecological …

Mule Deer Do More With Less: Comparing Their Nutritional Requirements And Tolerances With White-Tailed Deer, Anna R. Staudenmaier, Lisa A. Shipley, Meghan J. Camp, Jennifer S. Forbey, Ann E. Hagerman, Abigail E. Brandt, Daniel H. Thornton

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Congeneric species often share ecological niche space resulting in competitive interactions that either limit co-occurrence or lead to niche partitioning. Differences in fundamental nutritional niches mediated through character displacement or isolation during evolution are potential mechanisms that could explain overlapping distribution patterns of congenerics. We directly compared nutritional requirements and tolerances that influence the fundamental niche of mule (Odocoileus hemionus) and white-tailed deer (O. virginianus), which occur in allopatry and sympatry in similar realized ecological niches across their ranges in North America. Digestible energy and protein requirements and tolerances for plant fiber and plant secondary …

Assessment Of Two Novel Host-Derived Beauveria Bassiana (Hypocreales: Cordycipitaceae) Isolates Against The Citrus Pest, Diaphorina Citri (Hemiptera: Liviidae), Jonathan Cisneros, Justin Wendel, Stefan Jaronski, Christopher Vitek, Matthew Ciomperlik, Daniel Flores

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Asian citrus psyllid (ACP), Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Liviidae), vectors ‘Candidatus Liberibacter spp.’, the causative agent of Citrus Greening Disease (CGD) or Huanglongbing (HLB). Managing populations of psyllids in the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV), TX, United States is imperative given a continuous increase in HLB-positive trees. A component of integrated pest management (IPM) program is the use of strains of entomopathogenic fungi for the biological control of D. citri. In an attempt to find endemic strains of entomopathogenic fungi that grow favorably under LRGV environmental conditions and naturally infect D. citri, psyllids were collected from …

Culturable Fungal Endophyte Communities Of Primary Successional Plants On Mount St. Helens, Wa, Usa, Emily R. Wolfe, Robyn Dove, Cassandra Webster, Daniel J. Ballhorn

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background: While a considerable amount of research has explored plant community composition in primary successional systems, little is known about the microbial communities inhabiting these pioneer plant species. Fungal endophytes are ubiquitous within plants, and may play major roles in early successional ecosystems. Specifically, endophytes have been shown to affect successional processes, as well as alter host stress tolerance and litter decomposition dynamics—both of which are important components in harsh environments where soil organic matter is still scarce.

Results: To determine possible contributions of fungal endophytes to plant colonization patterns, we surveyed six of the most common woody …

Screening Commercial Entomopathogenic Fungi For The Management Of Diaphorina Citri Populations In The Lower Rio Grande Valley, Texas, Usa, Justin Wendel, Jonathan Cisneros, Stefan Jaronski, Christopher Vitek, Matthew Ciomperlik, Daniel Flores

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Ten strains of entomopathogenic ascomycete fungi, sourced from commercial formulations of blastopore or conidiospore formulations, were tested in 14 different formulations in a primary acquisition/direct spray bioassay against adult Asian citrus psyllid (Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Liviidae)). The Cordyceps (Isaria) javanica Apopka 97-C (conidia) strain was used as the standard. A statistical ranking system was established in which top performing pathogenic strains were selected for further screening and eventual field trials. Modified Potter-type spray towers were utilized to deliver a range of doses of viable spores to adult D. citri in an aqueous spray consistent with …

The Nutritional Condition Of Moose Co-Varies With Climate, But Not With Density, Predation Risk, Or Diet Composition, Jennifer S. Forbey, Daniel P. Melody

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

A fundamental question about the ecology of herbivore populations pertains to the relative influence of biotic and abiotic processes on nutritional condition. Nutritional condition is influenced in important, yet poorly understood, ways by plant secondary metabolites (PSMs) which can adversely affect a herbivore’s physiology and energetics. Here we assess the relative influence of various abiotic (weather) and biotic (intraspecific competition, predation risk and diet composition) factors on indicators of nutritional condition and the energetic costs of detoxifying PSMs for the moose population in Isle Royale National Park (U.S.A.). Specifically, we observed interannual variation in the ratio of urea nitrogen to …

The Relevance Of Pedigrees In The Conservation Genomics Era, Stephanie J. Galla, Julie A. Heath

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Over the past 50 years conservation genetics has developed a substantive toolbox to inform species management. One of the most long-standing tools available to manage genetics—the pedigree—has been widely used to characterize diversity and maximize evolutionary potential in threatened populations. Now, with the ability to use high throughput sequencing to estimate relatedness, inbreeding, and genome-wide functional diversity, some have asked whether it is warranted for conservation biologists to continue collecting and collating pedigrees for species management. In this perspective, we argue that pedigrees remain a relevant tool, and when combined with genomic data, create an invaluable resource for conservation genomic …

Species-Specific Interactions In Avian–Bryophyte Dispersal Networks, Matthew Chmielewski, Sarah Eppley

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Studies from seed plants have shown that animal dispersal fundamentally alters the success of plant dispersal, shaping community composition through time. Our understanding of this phenomenon in spore plants is comparatively limited. Though little is known about species-specific dispersal relationships between passerine birds and bryophytes, birds are particularly attractive as a potential bryophyte dispersal vector given their highly vagile nature as well as their association with bryophytes when foraging and building nests. We captured birds in Gifford Pinchot National Forest to sample their legs and tails for bryophyte propagules. We found 24 bryophyte species across 34 bird species. We examined …

Phylogenetics And Genetic Variation Of Heligmosomoides Thomomyos In Western Pocket Gophers (Thomomys Spp.), Malorri R. Hughes, Alexandra A. Gibson, Emily R. Wolfe, Cecily D. Bronson, Deborah A. Duffield

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

The host specificities and systematics of North American Heligmosomoides species remain particularly uncertain. The primary aim of this study was to verify that a species described previously based only on morphology, H. thomomyos, from pocket gopher (Rodentia: Geomyidae) hosts in Oregon represented a monophyletic lineage. In order to address this aspect, as well as to further understand relationships and geographic patterns, we carried out phylogenetic, genetic diversity, and population dynamic analyses using partial 18S rRNA and COI mtDNA sequences of Heligmosomoides specimens. Phylogenetic analyses suggested that there are likely multiple Heligmosomoides species present in these hosts. This was supported by …