Biology Commons^™

Investigating Large Repeats In The Arabidopsis Thaliana Mitochondrial Genome Using Mitotalens, Megan Gusso

Honors Theses

This lab project explores the complexity of the mitochondrial genome by investigating large genomic repeats and their effect on flowering plants’ reproduction and viability. Mitochondria are the site of cellular respiration to create energy and contain their own DNA. This is counterintuitive because the byproducts of cellular respiration impose a threat of mutation for the stored DNA. The mitochondrial genome differs in size between animals and plants. Plant mitochondrial DNA is larger due to the presence of large, noncoding repeated sequences, and a large amount of DNA of unknown function. These sequences undergo high levels of recombination and rearrangement. The …

The Development Of A New Water-Soluble Zinc Porphyrin, Zntpp--5ap, For Photodynamic Therapy, Kaylee Johnson

Honors Theses

This research focuses on synthesizing a new water-soluble porphyrin with a zinc core that can be used as a photosensitizing agent in photodynamic therapy. Photodynamic therapy is a process in which light is used to activate a photosensitizer to cause cell death. For this study, the porphyrin was synthesized by adding 5-amino-1-pentanol to the ZnTPPC. Once the porphyrin was synthesized it was purified using column chromatography through Sephadex LH-20 and G-50. The structure of the purified ZnTPP-5AP was then analyzed using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), infrared spectroscopy (IR), and ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis). Purity of the ZnTPP-5AP was tested using …

Exploration Of Cytotoxicity Of _Rabidosa Rabida_ Venom On Invertebrate And Vertebrate Cell Cultures, Martina Gooden

Honors Theses

Venom has been observed in thousands of species across different taxa. It can be adapted for different purposes, including prey capture or predator defense. Venom is found almost universally in spiders, but there has been little exploration of spiders that are not medically significant. Rabidosa rabida, the rabid wolf spider, is a common species whose venom has not been adequately investigated. Previous studies indicate that they do not require venom to apprehend easy prey in a laboratory setting, raising a question as to what their venom is adapted to do. To evaluate its effect on mammalian cells, L929 murine fibroblasts …

A Dietary Variety: Analyzing The Impacts Of Diverse Vs Worm-Exclusive Diets On The Blanding’S Turtle (Emydoidea Blandingii), Caitlin F. Copenhaver

Honors Theses

The endangered Blanding’s turtle (Emydoidea blandingii) is a species with a generally diverse diet in their freshwater wetland habitats; they consume prey such as crayfish and snails. In captivity, these options often become more limited due to logistical reasons. As ex situ conservation efforts such as captive rearing and head-starting are becoming more popular for this species, it will be important to gain more insight on how these more limited diets might affect these turtles. This study describes a comparison between diets in six captive Blanding’s turtles from September to November of 2023, with three turtles receiving only …

Acid Attack: How Escherichia Coli Strains Resist Acid Stress, Lindsey Miller

Honors Theses

The systems used by Escherichia coli to combat heightened levels of acidity within their environment are varied and complex. Four distinct systems used by E. coli to resist acid-induced stress were identified in 2004 by Foster (1), though six now are known today. These systems include the glucose-repressed, glutamate-dependent, arginine-dependent, lysine-dependent, ornithine-dependent, and serine-dependent acid resistance systems. Each system is also known by its corresponding abbreviation, AR1-AR6. What is known about each system varies due to identification date, complexity of the pathway, and amount of research completed. Within this paper, each system will be identified and the pathway defined, combining …

Hazards And Perceptions Of Cigarette And E-Cigarette Waste, Jossalyn Rogalski

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Violence Against Healthcare Workers, Nichole Osgood

Honors Theses

Workplace violence is any act or threat of physical violence, harassment, intimidation, or other threatening disruptive behavior that occurs at work (US Department of Labor, 2023). There are a handful of different types of workplace violence that include but are not limited to physical violence, verbal abuse and threats, sexual harassment, and psychological trauma (US Department of Labor, 2023). Workplace violence, a multifaceted phenomenon, is not a new concern, but its pervasiveness and intensity in healthcare settings have reached alarming proportions in recent years. In a meta-analysis, it was noted that workplace violence against healthcare workers of any kind was …

We Are The Reason We Stand Still In The Face Of Climate Change., Sydney Hemp

Honors Theses

Many different factors can impact the way any information is received but it is especially important to see how scientific information is received because it is often backed up by a great deal of evidence, especially in the case of global climate change. Many of these factors have nothing to do with science and everything to do with social influences, political parties, and other demographic measures. Discussion of these relationships is important when discussing communication in a broad sense, but it can be even more important when bringing up things like global climate change, which has become a political topic …

The Unexpected Significance Of Myosin A In Organization Of M-Line Protein Unc-89/Obscurin Within Striated Muscle Cells Of Caenorhabditis Elegans, Kar Men Lee

Honors Theses

This research investigates the unexpected significance of Myosin A in the organization of M-line protein UNC-89/obscurin within striated muscle cells of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans). The study employs immunofluorescence techniques to examine the spatial and temporal dynamics of UNC-89/obscurin and Myosin A during embryonic development. The sarcomere, a fundamental unit in muscle cells, is governed by the 'sliding filament model,' where the M-line serves as a crucial anchor for Myosin A. This research seeks to understand the relationship between muscle function in humans and C. elegans, utilizing the latter's simple anatomy and genetic tractability. The …

Odorant Binding Causes Cytoskeletal Rearrangement, Leading To Detectable Changes In Endothelial And Epithelial Barrier Function And Micromotion, Annabella Nilon

Honors Theses

Non-olfactory cells have excellent biosensor potential because they express functional olfactory receptors (ORs) and are non-neuronal cells that are easy to culture. ORs are G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs), and there is a well-established link between different classes of G-proteins and cytoskeletal structure changes affecting cellular morphology that has been unexplored for odorant sensing. Thus, the present study was conducted to determine if odorant binding in non-olfactory cells causes cytoskeletal changes that will lead to cell changes detectable by electric cell-substrate impedance sensing (ECIS). To this end, we used the human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), which express OR10J5, and the …

Evaluating The Impact Of Temperature And Artificial Light At Night On The Growth, Swimming Performance, And Corticosterone Levels Of Southern Leopard Frog (Lithobates Sphenocephalus) Tadpoles, Skylar Alexander

Honors Theses

Anthropogenic activities caused by urbanization have considerably altered our world’s ecosystems which has led to a global amphibian population decline. Encroaching and unyielding urbanization by humans has contributed to a rise in artificial light at night due to light pollution as well as increased temperature due to climate change. Both rising temperatures and artificial light at night (ALAN) have been shown to individually have negative effects on amphibian physiology such as increased stress and decreased behavior. However, due to the drastic nature of human imposition, amphibians typically encounter these anthropogenic stressors in combination. Therefore, it is important to understand how …

Sleep Duration Is Associated With Caudate Volume And Executive Function, Nicole Jones

Honors Theses

The ineligible role of the caudate nucleus in sleep has been implicated throughout multiple scientific studies. Previous literature has shown that greater caudate volume is associated with longer habitual sleep duration in older adults- ranging from 55 years of age and up. However, the association between sleep duration and caudate volume remains unknown in the younger population. In this study, we examined the caudate volume in youth to older adults (10 to 85 years old) with a greater sample size (N=464) to increase statistical power. The volumetric size of the caudate nucleus showed significantly positive association with habitual sleep duration, …

Is Vdac1 A Novel Bcl2 Family Member That Binds Bax?, Claire Pearson

Honors Theses

Apoptosis is a type of regulated cell death important for normal embryonic development and maintenance of adult tissues by removing excess or dysfunctional cells to ensure proper functioning of organs. The Bcl-2 family of proteins determines whether apoptosis remains suppressed or becomes activated through the balance of interactions among pro-survival and pro-death members. A defining feature of the Bcl-2 family is a BH3 domain that drives interactions between the family members. Isoform 1 of the voltage dependent anion channel (VDAC1) has an important role in metabolism, but was recently found to have high homology with known BH3 domains. This study …

Does Vdac2 Have A Bh3 Domain?, Lillian Ferkany

Honors Theses

Mitochondrial outer membrane permeabilization (MOMP) by Bax oligomerization triggers apoptosis. BCl-2 family proteins, classified as BH3 only proteins, pro-survival proteins, or pro-apoptotic proteins, control apoptosis partly through their agonist or antagonistic effects on Bax, which are mediated by their conserved BH3 domains. All BH3 domains form an alpha helix containing 5-7 conserved hydrophobic residues, designated H0-H5, and one conserved aspartic acid that drive interaction with Bax and other ‘multi-domain’ BCl-2 members. BH3 agonists induce Bax oligomerization, while BH3 antagonists sequester Bax to prevent MOMP. We discovered that voltage dependent anion channels (VDACs) in the MOM contain a putative BH3-like domain …

Education, Beliefs, And Health Literacy Of Care Providers On Mouth Care Of Older Adults, Molly Lakin

Honors Theses

Oral health is important to one’s overall health and quality of life as it can lead to chronic illnesses such as cardiovascular disease, stroke, and neurodegenerative disorders (Haumschild et al. 2021). In long-term care facilities, it is important that dependent older adults are provided mouth care to maintain their oral health and decrease their chances of developing a chronic illness; however, there are barriers affecting the level, quality, and quantity of mouth care being provided in these facilities. A survey was developed to look at the education, beliefs, and health literacy of care providers on providing mouth care in hopes …

Extranodal Tumors And Chromosomal Abnormalities Associated With Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma In T(14;18)-Positive Patients, Alexis Finch

Honors Theses

Nebraska is mostly an agricultural state with a non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) incidence rate of 20.1 per 100,000 individuals, which is greater than the US incidence rate of 19 per 100,000 individuals. It is possible that the higher incidence rate in Nebraska is due to an increase in pesticide usage. Pesticide exposure is linked to t(14;18), a genetic translocation involving the BCL2 gene that regulates apoptosis. The dysregulation of apoptosis could contribute to the proliferation of NHL. This exploratory study utilized the Nebraska Lymphoma Study Group, which consists of patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Hodgkin disease, or some other neoplastic hematologic disorder …

Importance Of Pelvic Floor Education And Rehabilitation Techniques For Adolescents And Young Adults: A Review, Katherine Laura Schmidt

Honors Theses

The pelvic floor is the collection of many muscles forming what is often called the pelvic girdle. Understanding the different muscles and their roles is an important part of pelvic floor education. Although both males and females have pelvic floors, there is a lack of knowledge of basic anatomy seen in adolescents and young adults. This review analyzes the importance of providing more education for students about the pelvic floor, gives examples of common pelvic disorders for young adults, and provides details on the physical therapy rehabilitation techniques offered today to treat these conditions.

Investigation Of The Vira Linker Domain To Characterize Its Phenol Interactions, Jessica Garofalo

Honors Theses

The soil bacterium Agrobacterium tumefaciens causes tumors in plants through interkingdom gene transfer. This transfer is initiated upon a wounding event that results in the release of plant signaling factors such as phenols and sugars that are recognized by protein machinery in the periplasm and inner membrane of A. tumefaciens. The histidine kinase protein VirA, in combination with the periplasmic protein ChvE, recognizes these signals and initiates induction of virulence genes via a signaling pathway, culminating with the insertion of tumor-inducing T-DNA into the wounded plant cells. While the interaction between the Periplasmic domain of VirA and sugar-bound ChvE …

Are Rising Seas Pushing Ghost Crabs Out Of Their Comfort Zone?, Finn Gillette

Honors Theses

Ghost crabs (Ocypode quadrata) can be found on sandy beaches bordering the western Atlantic Ocean. These semiterrestrial crustaceans are often found between the swash zone and the dunes on beaches. Dunes are critical refuges for ghost crabs during storms and extreme tide events. This makes them a useful indicator species for monitoring the effects of global warming-induced sea level rise on beach biota, as their distribution patterns among beach zones may correlate with shifts found in other species. Beach surveys conducted from 2015 onward assessed the population density of ghost crabs on beaches of Horry and Georgetown counties …

Analysis Of Wild Rodent Gut Microbiota As A Function Of Exposure To Ticks And Tick-Borne Pathogens, Joshua Pandian

Honors Theses

Due to advances in high-throughput parallel sequencing, researchers have conducted novel studies exploring relationships between microbiome compositions and different aspects of organism health. Some of these studies have shown that the gut microbiome of rodent models has effects on organism health and behavior and that infection with pathogens and the composition of the skin microbiome are linked to changes in gut microbiome composition. While previous studies have shown how vector microbiota impact vector behavior and pathogen transmission, the effect vectors have on reservoir species microbiomes has been a less prominent focus. We were interested in the relationships between tick parasitism, …

Study Budgets In Human Anatomy And Physiology Students: Assessments Of Time On Tasks As Affected By Student Motivation And Assessment Weighting, Mattie C. Derivaux

Honors Theses

The extent to which a student is motivated, along with the root of that motivation, can significantly influence the nature of a student’s experience in a course, especially in a rigorous science course such as Human Anatomy and Physiology (HAP). Students’ perceptions of specific course elements, coupled with how they perceive their purposes, can alter their motivation to succeed, which in turn can affect their performance. This study sought to analyze student motivation in an undergraduate HAP course at the University of Mississippi by focusing on students’ attitudes towards the weight distribution of course assessments, effort exertions, and time allotted …

Anti-Microbial Peptide Screen For Crop Protection, Sydney Chen

Honors Theses

Vestaron currently uses an established and reliable peptide discovery and development research platform, particularly for the development of insecticidal peptides. The platform centers around a proprietary yeast expression system for peptide production (“Vestaron’s yeast expression system"). Vestaron aims to expand their portfolio and provide clean solutions in crop protection using peptide technologies to protect plants not only from insect pests but also microbial pests including phytopathogenic fungi and bacteria. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have been studied extensively. However, it is questionable whether Vestaron’s yeast expression system can express AMPs heterologously. In this study, thirteen promising antimicrobial peptides were selected from literature …

Literature Replication: Insect Gut Cell Isolation Protocols, Sophie Pickelner

Honors Theses

A large problem in science is the lack of literature replication, especially for subjects in which there is little published research. Literature replication is an integral part of the scientific method and is important for validating methods and results of published studies. A study from Nature found that out of 1,500 scientists interviewed, over 70% have been unable to reproduce literature studies and over half of them have been unable to reproduce even their own studies (Baker, 2016). This problem is even more pronounced in the field of biology, with 80% of scientists reporting that they are unable to replicate …

Inhibiting Effects Of Methyllycaconitine (Mla) On Pnu-282987 Induced Neurogenesis In Blast-Exposed Mouse Retinas, Nastia Zhiyew Chan

Honors Theses

Irreversible vision loss can be caused by retinal damage, disease, or aging. In recent years, the prevalence of ocular damage due to blast trauma has been increasing due to the modernization of warfare. Adult mammalian retinal neurons were previously thought to lack the capacity for regeneration to reverse vision loss, which deemed the effects of many ocular damages permanent. However, recent studies from this lab have shown that PNU-282987, an agonist to the alpha 7 subtype of neural nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, will result in neural regeneration in adult mammalian cells. For this research project, I will be using Methyllycaconitine (MLA), …

Effects Of Actin-Destabilizing Drugs On Motor Function In Drosophila Melanogaster, Caden Sullivan

Honors Theses

Actin dynamics influence many cellular processes including neural connectivity and function. One way to better understand and study the regulation of these dynamics is to manipulate actin dynamics and observe the effects in motor function as a proxy to changes on the neuromuscular junctions in developing neural tissue. On that line, this investigation hypothesized that changing the actin dynamics during development via drug manipulation results in observable effects in locomotion. One of the common actin regulatory drugs used throughout the literature includes Latrunculin A, which was used in this study. Methods included applying this actin destabilizing drug on developing wildtype …

A Look Into The Physiological Impacts Of Childhood Cancers And Modeling Of Tumor Growth Rate, Erica Steiner, Kimberly Hansen, Marissa Stanton

Honors Theses

Cancer is one of the deadliest diseases present in the world. Children have different reactions to diseases and treatments; thus, it is important to study those reactions specifically in children. Knowing how children are impacted by these factors can be helpful in diagnosis and treatment of cancer. I performed this study by researching the different types of cancer I was interested in and using MATLAB to code for and simulate a growth curve of a brain tumor. I found that there are many different physiological impacts of different cancers in children. As for the modeling, I was able to get …

College Students' Relationship With Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder And Learning Accommodations At The University Of Nebraska-Lincoln, Brianna Danehey, Kim Hansen Dr., Chelsea Witt Dr.

Honors Theses

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can provide many challenges for college students due to difficulties focusing, multi-tasking, and staying organized. Colleges are required to offer academic accommodations to students with disabilities in an attempt to provide students with an equitable learning environment. However, accommodations may be ineffective if they are highly unattainable, unused by the student once granted, or hindered by university faculty.

The objective of this study was to identify barriers to receiving effective and beneficial academic accommodations for individuals with ADHD at the University level and to provide insight into college students' knowledge and relationships relating to the …

Social Transmission Of Predator Information Through Referential Alarm Calls Within And Across Species, Carly Trebac

Honors Theses

Animals can encode information about a predator’s size, identity, or threat through alarm calls. This can provide referential information that can be used by individuals within and across species receiving the information. Referential alarm calls can encode information through changes in structure or rate of the call, and these variances in their call can elicit different responses, such as fleeing or mobbing, in conspecifics and heterospecifics. We aimed to investigate whether white-breasted nuthatch alarm calls can encode referential information and elicit different responses from conspecifics. Previous studies showed that a related species of nuthatch varies their call rate in the …

“Exploring The Advantages And Disadvantages Of Universal Electronic Medical Records”, Zachary Mcclenny

Honors Theses

A universal electronic medical record (EMR) is a platform where all of a patient's medical information, history, and data is stored and maintained by providers over time. A universal platform allows all of the medications, tests, procedures, labs, scans, notes, and any other clinical information for that patient to be kept in a record for any provider to view and make changes to while under their care. Although in the United States today, as well as many other countries, EMRs are owned and operated by privately ran businesses and institutions. Only the private institutions that have access to the EMR …

Biomechanics Of Mantis Prey Capture, Danielle S. Taylor

Honors Theses

Mantis species have a variety of different morphologies, so do the extreme forms of mantis limbs trade prey catching capability for camouflage? We hypothesize that some extreme forms of mantis limbs that are associated with cryptic species may be associated with a tradeoff of the capability of those limbs. Previous research has developed 2D morphologies of several hundred species of mantises. We are creating a 3D morphology by using micro dissection, micro CT imaging to construct our 3D biomechanical model. We found the attachment points of the ligaments and muscles from a Tenodera forearm and have constructed a 2D biomechanical …