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Articles 241 - 270 of 283
Full-Text Articles in Biology
An Analysis Of Genetic Complexity, Gabriel Proulx, Dr. Keith Crandall
An Analysis Of Genetic Complexity, Gabriel Proulx, Dr. Keith Crandall
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Sequencing genomes still requires considerable equipment and resources. While a full sequencing of all known species is obviously the end goal, analyzing ESTs, short sequences of expressed genes, can suffice in the meantime as an easier and less resource-intensive method to mapping out a species’ expressed genes. ESTs, however, are limited in both length and quality.
Phenotypic Divergence In Boldness/Shyness In Brachyraphis Fishes, Scott Miller, Dr. Jerry Johnson
Phenotypic Divergence In Boldness/Shyness In Brachyraphis Fishes, Scott Miller, Dr. Jerry Johnson
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Among some of the most exciting research in evolutionary biology involves animal social behavior. Of particular interest is whether social behaviors are inheritable. If social behaviors are inheritable, they become a selective force and are capable of shaping the life history of an animal. Dr. Culum Brown has pioneered much of the research in this field with fishes. My research is based on his preliminary research and supplemented with work by Dr. Jerry Johnson. The goal of my research was to test if behaviors evolve in response to differences in mortality pressures in the environment. A greater understanding of how …
Evaluating The Fitness Costs Of Rnai Resistance In C. Elegans, Stephen Jenkins, Dr. Byron Adams
Evaluating The Fitness Costs Of Rnai Resistance In C. Elegans, Stephen Jenkins, Dr. Byron Adams
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Plant-parasitic nematodes cause an estimated $125 billion worth of crop losses globally each year. Fifteen percent of nematode species are plant-parasitic nematodes, and the most significant species parasitize roots. While the parasites don’t always kill the plants, they disrupt water transport and divert nutrients to themselves, causing considerable impact on crop yields. The most significant contributors are root-knot nematodes and cyst nematodes.
Isolation And Characterization Of A North American Species Of Phasmarhabditis Sp., Nate Keplinger, Dr. Byron Adams
Isolation And Characterization Of A North American Species Of Phasmarhabditis Sp., Nate Keplinger, Dr. Byron Adams
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Slugs and snails are pests that destroy various food crops throughout the entire world. To control their outbreak, Europeans have utilized the nematode Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita, a mollusc pathogen. This nematode has not been introduced into US agriculture because it has not been found in a mollusc pathogenic stage in the United States and could have detrimental non-target effects. Thus, slug and snail control methods in the US are currently limited to petrochemical methods of pest management. I have recently discovered an unidentified species of the genus Phasmarhabditis. that rapidly and consistently kills slugs, snails and grubs. I propose a more …
Antarctic Plectus Biodiversity: A Molecular And Morphological Analysis, Adam Clayton, Dr. Byron Adams
Antarctic Plectus Biodiversity: A Molecular And Morphological Analysis, Adam Clayton, Dr. Byron Adams
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Nematodes are known to play important roles in ecosystem functioning, however their specific roles may vary across different taxonomic levels. Correct identification of nematode species is necessary when analyzing their diversity in order to effectively assign their functional role(s).
Molecular Identification Of Nematode Gut Contents, Quinn Martin, Dr. Byron Adams
Molecular Identification Of Nematode Gut Contents, Quinn Martin, Dr. Byron Adams
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Species-specific food web relationships involving free-living microbivorous nematodes are not well established, yet critical to our understanding of their involvement in nutrient cycling and ecosystem function. Antarctic soil ecosystems are the simplest on earth and serve as a model system for exploring the role of biodiversity in ecosystem function. To establish which bacteria are involved in trophic relationships with nematodes, we surface-sterilized nematodes and extracted their DNA, including bacterial DNA from the gut contents of the nematodes. From this bacterial DNA we PCR amplified the 16S gene and sequenced the product in order to determine the identity of the gut …
Meloidogyne Phylogeny: A Supertree Approach, Camille Finlinson Porter, Dr. Byron Adams
Meloidogyne Phylogeny: A Supertree Approach, Camille Finlinson Porter, Dr. Byron Adams
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Meloidogyne nematodes are agricultural pests that cause approximately 5% of global crop loss each year. In order to develop more effective control strategies, a clearer image of how the many species of Meloidogyne are related is needed.
A Survey Of Dance Flies (Diptera: Empididae) In Mongolia, Paul Frandsen, Dr. C. Riley Nelson
A Survey Of Dance Flies (Diptera: Empididae) In Mongolia, Paul Frandsen, Dr. C. Riley Nelson
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Dance flies from the super family Empidoidea (Diptera:Empididae, Hybotidae) were collected from western Mongolia in June and July 2009. Historical published records of Empididae in Mongolia along with unpublished, more recently collected records from the Selenge River Basin were compared with the samples from western Mongolia. Thirteen genera were identified from western Mongolia in 2009, with eight of these new for the country. Although 23 genera are now know for Empedoidea in Mongolia, only five were found in both the Selenge River and the 2009 collection from western Mongolia, suggesting distinct differences in faunal composition between the two areas.
“A Rose By Any Other Name…” A Study Of Flowering Plant Classification And Species Recognition, Angela Jensen, Dr. Leigh Johnson
“A Rose By Any Other Name…” A Study Of Flowering Plant Classification And Species Recognition, Angela Jensen, Dr. Leigh Johnson
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Speciation is a scientific “gray area.” Conservation biologists are familiar with the many different proposed definitions for a species, encased in the 10 or so existing species concepts. Individual organisms of the same species are inherently different, possessing a wide variety of characteristics and behaviors. When is an individual a new species? Why does it matter?
Family-Level Phylogeny Of Orthoptera (Arthropoda: Insecta) Based On Complete Mitochondrial Genome Data, Kevin Hiatt, Dr. Michael Whiting
Family-Level Phylogeny Of Orthoptera (Arthropoda: Insecta) Based On Complete Mitochondrial Genome Data, Kevin Hiatt, Dr. Michael Whiting
Journal of Undergraduate Research
The insect order Orthoptera (grasshoppers, katydids, and crickets) is the most diverse member of the group of polyneopteran insect orders, with more than 23,000 described species (Kevan 1982). Previous studies have recovered the monophyly of the two orthopteran suborders Caelifera (grasshoppers) and Ensifera (crickets and katydids); however, the family-level phylogeny of the order remains largely unresolved. Flook et al. (1995) sequenced the first entire orthopteran mitochondrial genome (mtgenome), and 25 complete mtgenomes are currently available on GenBank. These available mtgenomes only represent two caeliferan and four ensiferan families. Flook et al. (1995) also discovered a tRNA rearrangement (a reversal of …
A Study Of Biological Photonic Crystals In The Internal Opal Scale Structures Of Iridescent Beetle Species In The Cerambycidae Family, Lauren Richey, Dr. John Gardner
A Study Of Biological Photonic Crystals In The Internal Opal Scale Structures Of Iridescent Beetle Species In The Cerambycidae Family, Lauren Richey, Dr. John Gardner
Journal of Undergraduate Research
A photonic crystal is a periodic structure that confines, manipulates, and guides photons. Such structures affect the propagation of electromagnetic waves by defining allowed and forbidden frequency bands known as photonic band gaps. Therefore, a photonic crystal can be thought of as the optical counterpart of a semiconductor, allowing only certain frequencies, or wavelengths, to propagate through the crystal. It is difficult to create photonic crystals operating in the visible frequencies due to the requirement of small periodicities to interact with visible light frequencies.
An Evalutaion Of Robber Fly (Diptera: Asilidae) Diversity In Mongolia, Tristan Mcknight, Dr. C. Riley Nelson
An Evalutaion Of Robber Fly (Diptera: Asilidae) Diversity In Mongolia, Tristan Mcknight, Dr. C. Riley Nelson
Journal of Undergraduate Research
The last few decades have seen an explosion of agricultural expansion and mining in Mongolia. These developments—loosely regulated at best—strain the ecological health of the steppe environment with pollution and overgrazing. Robber flies (Fig. 1) are small predators common in most terrestrial ecosystems that may play an important, yet frequently overlooked role in maintaining balanced insect populations. Unfortunately, very little baseline data exist for evaluating robber fly diversity in Mongolia. Our study set out to provide a comprehensive catalogue of Mongolian robber flies which we hope will assist future efforts to manage and conserve Mongolia’s ecosystems.
The Misapplication Of Dna Barcodes To Taxonomic Classification, Taylor Southwick, Dr. Keith Crandall
The Misapplication Of Dna Barcodes To Taxonomic Classification, Taylor Southwick, Dr. Keith Crandall
Journal of Undergraduate Research
The classification of organisms into different taxa is a central issue in biology. If similar organisms are grouped together, then comparative analyses can be used from the genome to the systems level to understand how they work, both biologically and behaviorally. There are two ways to perform this classification: morphologically and phylogenetically. Morphological demarcations are based on visual differences in anatomical structure and physiological function. Phylogenetic classification is based upon the evolutionary relationship among the individuals in the population quantified by the similarity or dissimilarity of their DNA strands.
Evolution Of Nuclear Mitochondrial Pseudogenes Of Three Genes Within Orthoptera (Arthropoda:Insecta), Matthew Moulton, Dr. Michael Whiting
Evolution Of Nuclear Mitochondrial Pseudogenes Of Three Genes Within Orthoptera (Arthropoda:Insecta), Matthew Moulton, Dr. Michael Whiting
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Mitochondria are unique organelles that contain their own genomes. Metazoan mitochondrial genomes typically encode 37 genes (13 protein-coding, 22 transfer RNA, and 2 ribosomal RNA genes) that are used for cellular respiration.
Phylogeography And Population Structure Of Scottnema Lindsayae, Mac Martin, Dr. Byron Adams
Phylogeography And Population Structure Of Scottnema Lindsayae, Mac Martin, Dr. Byron Adams
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Glaciologists have suggested that because of the extent of the ice sheets during the last glacial maximum (LGM) in Antarctica no terrestrial species could have survived these harsh conditions. However, substantial evidence suggests that some invertebrate species did indeed survive the LGM. We hypothesize that S. lindsayae survived the LGM in Antarctica through hypothetical refugia, areas that remained ice-free during the LGM. These are coastal areas characterized by high elevation, which would have remained ice-free during the LGM and would not have been inundated under episodes of elevated sea levels.
What Can Phylogeographic Breaks In The Livebearer Poeciliopsis Turrubarensis Tell Us About Fish Community Boundaries In Western Costa Rica?, April Larson, Dr. Jerald B. Johnson
What Can Phylogeographic Breaks In The Livebearer Poeciliopsis Turrubarensis Tell Us About Fish Community Boundaries In Western Costa Rica?, April Larson, Dr. Jerald B. Johnson
Journal of Undergraduate Research
One active area of study in ecology, termed biogeography, is the determination of how communities are formed. A basic knowledge of what factors have shaped the formation of ecological communities leads to greater understanding of a system as a whole and specific species interactions. One possible factor that is rarely taken into account when studying biogeography is the effect that early earth history events could have playing in the shaping of community boundaries. Molecular phylogeographic data is a useful tool in helping to determine the contribution of vicariant events in community formation. If single species genetic breaks coincide with community …
Exploring Phylogenetic Relationships, Origins Of Claws, And Loss Of Functional Eyes In Decapod Lobsters (Infraorder Astacidea, Achelata, Glypheidea, Polychelida), Dohyup Kim, Dr. Keith Crandall
Exploring Phylogenetic Relationships, Origins Of Claws, And Loss Of Functional Eyes In Decapod Lobsters (Infraorder Astacidea, Achelata, Glypheidea, Polychelida), Dohyup Kim, Dr. Keith Crandall
Journal of Undergraduate Research
The order Decapoda represents a species-rich and economically important group of crustaceans. Among decapods, lobsters play a huge role of monetary significance, bringing in billions of dollars each year to world fisheries.
Resolving Genetic Relationships Within Shrimp-Like Decapods And Tracing The Phylogenetic Significance Of Morphological Traits Within Caridea (Crustacea: Decapoda), Jennifer Rasmussen, Dr. Keith Crandall
Resolving Genetic Relationships Within Shrimp-Like Decapods And Tracing The Phylogenetic Significance Of Morphological Traits Within Caridea (Crustacea: Decapoda), Jennifer Rasmussen, Dr. Keith Crandall
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Shrimp-like decapods–including sergestoids, penaeoids, carideans, procaridids, and stenopodideans–are a species-rich and morphologically diverse group of crustaceans. Some taxa, such as the penaeoids and carideans, are economically important, bringing in billions of dollars each year to world fisheries. The economic importance of this group, together with their distinctive morphology and ecological diversity, makes shrimp-like decapods popular research subjects in all fields of biology.
Screening Of Secondary Chemicals From Selected Species Of North American Lichens Against Various Pathologenic Bacteria, Jocelyn Raphael, Dr. Larry St. Clair
Screening Of Secondary Chemicals From Selected Species Of North American Lichens Against Various Pathologenic Bacteria, Jocelyn Raphael, Dr. Larry St. Clair
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Lichens consist of a fungus occurring symbiotically with a photosynthetic organism (such as an alga and/or cyanobacterium). Lichens are known to produce a high number of secondary metabolites. Studies have shown that these secondary compounds have various biological roles such as antibiotic, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative, antioxidant, etc. (Huneck, 1999; Molnar & Farkas, 2010). There is a great need for new forms of antibiotics as bacterial infection is an ongoing problem and many bacteria have become resistant to available treatments. To develop new forms of antibiotics many different potential compounds need to be tested. The purpose of this project was to …
Early Parental Death, Genetic Variants And Risk For Alzheimer’S Disease: Building A Risk Profile From The Cache County Study On Memory, Health And Aging, Michael Peterson, Dr. John Kauwe
Early Parental Death, Genetic Variants And Risk For Alzheimer’S Disease: Building A Risk Profile From The Cache County Study On Memory, Health And Aging, Michael Peterson, Dr. John Kauwe
Journal of Undergraduate Research
A person’s predisposition to Alzheimer’s Disease is known to be influenced by both genetic factors as well as environmental factors. One know environmental factor is that known to affect risk for disease is early parental death. The purpose of this research is to better understand the complex factors that influence the disease by analyzing the relationship between the environmental factor of early parental death with genetic variants known to influence the disease.
Genetic Relationships Of Cottus Bairdii In Butterfield Springs, Nevada, To Other Population Of Cottus Bairdii, Sun Yeong Oh, Dr. Dennis Shiozawa
Genetic Relationships Of Cottus Bairdii In Butterfield Springs, Nevada, To Other Population Of Cottus Bairdii, Sun Yeong Oh, Dr. Dennis Shiozawa
Journal of Undergraduate Research
The goal for this project was to evaluate the genetic relationships of the freshwater sculpin, Cottus bairdii, in Butterfield Springs, Nevada, with other populations of C. bairdii. We planned to examine several mitochondrial genes, ND1, ND2, and the control region, to identify the most likely origin of this population. We hypothesized that these sculpins were from Colorado River Basin as Scoppettone speculated (Scoppettone, Rissler & Shea, 2004).
Teasing Out The “Why’S” Of Evolution: A Functional Assessment Of B-Class Protein Complexes, Holly Waddel, Dr. Clinton Whipple
Teasing Out The “Why’S” Of Evolution: A Functional Assessment Of B-Class Protein Complexes, Holly Waddel, Dr. Clinton Whipple
Journal of Undergraduate Research
The evolution of floral development is caused by changes in gene function. The model for floral morphology is the ABC model of floral development (Coen & Meyerowits, 1991). In this model, A genes control sepals, A + B genes control petals, B + C genes control stamen, and C genes control carpels (See fig. 1). If B genes are removed, the resulting flower would contain only sepals and carpels, no petals or stamen.
The Effects Of Daidumene Lineata On The Intertidal Rock Pools, Preston Wilson, Russell Rader
The Effects Of Daidumene Lineata On The Intertidal Rock Pools, Preston Wilson, Russell Rader
Journal of Undergraduate Research
My experiment was to test the effect Diadumene lineata has on the marine life of the intertidal rock pools in the northwest.
Phylogeny Of Acridoidea (Orthoptera: Caelifera) Based On Complete Mitochondrial Genome Data: Testing Partition Strategies, James Leavitt, Dr. Michael Whiting
Phylogeny Of Acridoidea (Orthoptera: Caelifera) Based On Complete Mitochondrial Genome Data: Testing Partition Strategies, James Leavitt, Dr. Michael Whiting
Journal of Undergraduate Research
The orthopteran superfamily Acridoidea (Orthoptera, Caelifera), which includes grasshoppers and their nearest relatives, is the largest of the orthopteran superfamilies and provides an excellent model for studying the evolution of mitochondrial genomes. Ultimately I was able to reconstruct a phylogeny for Caelifera based on entire mitochondrial genomes (mtgenomes) in order to (1) evaluate the relative effectiveness of various data partitioning strategies within a Maximum Likelihood (ML) framework; (2) evaluate the conservation of anti-codons across the group and elucidate patterns among the start and stop codons of the mitochondrial protein coding genes (MPCGs); and (3) specifically test the monophyly of Acridoidea …
The Effect Of Male Dominance On Female Mate Choice In Poecilia Gillii, Michael Mcentire, Dr. Jerald Johnson
The Effect Of Male Dominance On Female Mate Choice In Poecilia Gillii, Michael Mcentire, Dr. Jerald Johnson
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Female mate choice (intersexual selection) and male dominance interactions (intrasexual selection) can each play important roles in sexual selection. These two mechanisms tend to be discussed in isolation. The goal of this study is to explore the interaction between these two forms of sexual selection. To test this idea, we focused on the livebearing tropical fish system Poecilia gillii (See Figure 1). We grouped males into similarly sized pairs and observed them for a week to determine which male was dominant. These pairs were then presented to females in mate choice trials to ascertain female preference. Our data appears to …
Interaction – Characterizing The Effect Of Chromosome 21 On Both Tau And Aß42 In Alzheimer’S Disease, Mo Lee, Dr. John Kauwe
Interaction – Characterizing The Effect Of Chromosome 21 On Both Tau And Aß42 In Alzheimer’S Disease, Mo Lee, Dr. John Kauwe
Journal of Undergraduate Research
It turns out that the data for chromosome 21 didn’t come to me at all. There were some problem with the data itself according to our co-researchers. However, the data for the phenotype YKL40, which is a promising gene that might affect the pathology of Alzheimer’s Disease. Dr. Kauwe decided that we should utilize the ORCA grant on this data that we had.
What Fatty Acids In Dairy Cow Feces May Predict Resistance Or Susceptibility To Production-Related Metabolic Diseases, Brian Melville, Beverly Roeder
What Fatty Acids In Dairy Cow Feces May Predict Resistance Or Susceptibility To Production-Related Metabolic Diseases, Brian Melville, Beverly Roeder
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Dairy cows supply an important food source for humans, and any disease that hurts production threatens this source. Once a cow has a PRMD (production related metabolic disease) there are many signs and symptoms that are readily observed and tested for, but it would be useful to use diagnostic techniques to discover if an animal is at risk of a future disease when the cow is clinically normal. These diagnostic tools could be used with clinically normal healthy appearing cows, empowering producers to make more informed decisions about animal care to improve milk production. Other exciting possibilities exist, such as …
Polyomavirus Phylogenetics In Relation To Host Switches, David Morris, Dr. Keith Crandall
Polyomavirus Phylogenetics In Relation To Host Switches, David Morris, Dr. Keith Crandall
Journal of Undergraduate Research
Evolutionary Biology is not a branch of biology that spends much time in the public eye. It just doesn’t have flashy results like cloning or evocative naturalist documentaries to captivate the imagination. However, this doesn’t mean that evolutionary biology is any less essential to our understanding of life and how it may eventually impact people in their daily lives.
Validation Of Possible Blood Serum Biomarkers Linked To Genetic Risk Of Alzheimer’S Disease, Jesse Cobell, Dr. John Kauwe
Validation Of Possible Blood Serum Biomarkers Linked To Genetic Risk Of Alzheimer’S Disease, Jesse Cobell, Dr. John Kauwe
Journal of Undergraduate Research
In 2011, the Alzheimer’s Association released in their annual facts and figures that 5.4 million people suffer from Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States and is the only disease in the top ten that cannot be prevented or cured. The report explains that diagnosis is a significant difficulty and emphasizes the importance of identifying another method such as serum biomarkers to use in the diagnosis of the disease (Alzheimer’s Association). The ability to diagnose early or detect risk factors before onset would make an enormous impact on management of the disease for …
Genetic Diversity And Conservation Of Old-Growth Cross Timbers Forest, Warren Chatwin, Dr. Leigh Johnson
Genetic Diversity And Conservation Of Old-Growth Cross Timbers Forest, Warren Chatwin, Dr. Leigh Johnson
Journal of Undergraduate Research
My project “Genetic Diversity and Conservation of Old-Growth Cross Timbers Forest” has been undoubtedly the best learning experience of my undergraduate career. The project did not go at all like I had planned, but it gave me a taste of realworld scientific exploration and allowed me to practice some of the things I’ve learned in class. I’ve adapted to challenges, changed my plans, overcome obstacles through creative thinking and sheer diligence, and collaborated with colleagues who are working on the same organism. These skills will be invaluable in my future career as a research professor. I will see this project …