Biology Commons^™

Discovering Teamwork - A Novel Cooperative Learning Activity To Encourage Group Interdependence, Maureen T. Knabb

Biology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Los Coquís De Puerto Rico: Su Historia Natural Y Conservación, Rafael O. De Sá

Biology Faculty Publications

As the title indicates, this well-illustrated (115 photographs and 76 illustrations) book summarizes the current knowledge about the natural history of the 16 species of Eleutherodactylus inhabiting Puerto Rico. The book consists of eight chapters (including the epilogue) and it is clearly stated that it was written to serve both the scientific community and the nonspecialist reader. The goal of bridging these two audiences is ambitious and usually difficult; however, the book has probably accomplished this goal. The technical reader, i.e., students and professional herpetologists, will find a good summary of data and enough information to continue reading with interest. …

Reflections On Science And Technology, Ursula Goodenough

Biology Faculty Research

Science and technology are frequently confused. This essay points out the bases for this confusion and then focuses on a basic distinction, namely, that whereas science brings us information that we have little choice but to absorb and reflect upon, technology is something that humans elect to do and, hence, can also elect not to do. It is proposed that technological ethics are most cogently undertaken with scientific understanding as the linchpin and religious/artistic sensibilities as the muse.

Brown-Headed Cowbird Brood Parasitism In Bison-Grazed And Ungrazed Tallgrass Prairie, Alexandra C. Latham '00

Honors Projects

The Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater has long been associated with bison (Bos bison) in North America on the Great Plains (Friedmann 1929). As a result, I anticipated that cowbirds would parasitize host nests more frequently in the presence of bison than in their absence. I predicted that several common ground-nesting avian species, Dickcissels (Spiza americana), Grasshopper Sparrows (Ammodramus savannarum), and Eastern Meadowlarks (Sturnella magna), would suffer higher frequencies of brood parasitism in bison-grazed habitat than in ungrazed habitat on the tallgrass Konza Prairie Research Natural Area, located in northeastern Kansas. The frequency of cowbird parasitism for all species combined was …

Biochemical And Genetic Conservation Of Fission Yeast Dsk1 And Human Srpk1, Zhaohua Irene Tang, Tiffany Kuo, Jenny Shen, Ren-Jang Lin

WM Keck Science Faculty Papers

Arginine/serine-rich (RS) domain-containing proteins and their phosphorylation by specific protein kinases constitute control circuits to regulate pre-mRNA splicing and coordinate splicing with transcription in mammalian cells. We present here the finding that similar SR networks exist in Schizosaccharomyces pombe. We previously showed that Dsk1 protein, originally described as a mitotic regulator, displays high activity in phosphorylating S. pombe Prp2 protein (spU2AF59), a homologue of human U2AF65. We now demonstrate that Dsk1 also phosphorylates two recently identified fission yeast proteins with RS repeats, Srp1 and Srp2, in vitro. The phosphorylated proteins bear the same phosphoepitope found in mammalian SR proteins. Consistent …

Estimation Of Base Temperatures For Nine Weed Species, Scott J. Steinmaus, Timothy S. Prather, Jodie S. Holt

Biological Sciences

Experiments were conducted to test several methods for estimating low temperature thresholds for seed germination. Temperature responses of nine weeds common in annual agroecosystems were assessed in temperature gradient experiments. Species included summer annuals (Amaranthus albus, A. palmeri, Digitaria sanguinalis, Echinochloa crus-galli, Portulaca oleracea, and Setaria glauca), winter annuals (Hirschfeldia incana and Sonchus oleraceus), and Conyza canadensis, which is classified as a summer or winter annual. The temperature below which development ceases (T_base) was estimated as the x-intercept of four conventional germination rate indices regressed on temperature, by repeated probit analysis, …

Genetic Variation Among Endosymbionts Of Widely Distributed Vestimentiferan Tubeworms, Carol A. Di Meo, Ami E. Wilbur, William E. Holben, Robert A. Feldman, Robert C. Vrijenhoek, S. Craig Cary

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Vestimentiferan tubeworms thriving in sulfidic deep-sea hydrothermal vents and cold seeps are constrained by their nutritional reliance on chemoautotrophic endosymbionts. In a recent phylogenetic study using 16S ribosomal DNA, we found that endosymbionts from vent and seep habitats form two distinct clades,vith little variation within each clade. In the present study, we used two different approaches to assess the genetic variation among biogeographically distinct vestimentiferan symbionts, DNA sequences were obtained for the noncoding, internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions of the rRNA operons of symbionts associated with six different genera of vestimentiferan tubeworms. ITS sequences from endosymbionts of host genera collected …

Final Envrionmental Impact Statement: Iron Point Exploration License -- Iron Point Coal Lease Tract -- Elk Creek Coal Lease Tract, Volume 1, United States Department Of Agriculture -- Forest Service, United States Departement Of The Interior -- Bureau Of Land Management

Environmental Assessments (CO)

The Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) describes the physical, biological, social, and economic resources that would be potentially affected by leasing of the Iron Point and Elk Creek Coal Lease tracts as well as issuing an exploration license for an area within and surrounding the Iron Point Coal Lease Tract. The federal decisions to be made involve the approval or disapproval of coal leasing (the Iron Point and Elk Creek tracts) and of an exploration license. Some of the key issues for these proposed actions include: the potential effects of transporting over 19 million tons of coal per year from …

Roles Of Hof1p, Bni1p, Bnr1p, And Myo1p In Cytokinesis In Saccharomyces Cerevisiae, Elizabeth Ann Vallen, J. Caviston, E. Bi

Biology Faculty Works

Cytokinesis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae occurs by the concerted action of the actomyosin system and septum formation. Here we report on the roles of HOF1,BNI1, and BNR1 in cytokinesis, focusing on Hof1p. Deletion of HOF1 causes a temperature-sensitive defect in septum formation. A Hof1p ring forms on the mother side of the bud neck in G2/M, followed by the formation of a daughter-side ring. Around telophase, Hof1p is phosphorylated and the double rings merge into a single ring that contracts slightly and may colocalize with the actomyosin structure. Upon septum formation, Hof1p splits into two rings, disappearing upon cell separation. Hof1p …

Contribution Of Autosomal Loci And The Y Chromosome To The Stress Response In Rats, Pierre Dumas, Zdenka Pausova, Vladimir Kren, Drahomira Krenova, Michal Pravenec, Marc Dumont, Daniel Ely, Monte E. Turner, Yulin Sun, Johanne Tremblay, Pavel Hamet

Biology Faculty Research

Stress is a critical contributor to cardiovascular diseases through its impact on blood pressure variability and cardiac function. Familial clustering of reactivity to stress has been demonstrated in human subjects, and some rodent models of hypertension are hyperresponsive to stress. Therefore, the present study was designed to uncover the genetic determinants of the stress response. We performed a total genome linkage search to identify the loci of the body temperature response to immobilization stress in a set of recombinant inbred strains (RIS) originating from reciprocal crosses of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) with a normotensive Brown Norway Lx strain. Two quantitative …

Stress And Developmental Stability: Vegetation Removal Causes Increased Fluctuating Asymmetry In Shrews, Alexander V. Badyaev, Kerry R. Foresman, Miguel V. Fernandes

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Environmental stress can increase phenotypic variation in populations by affecting developmental stability of individuals. While such increase in variation results from individual differences in ability to buffer stress, groups of individuals and different traits may have different sensitivity to stressful conditions. For example, the sex that is under stronger directional selection for faster growth may be more sensitive to stressful conditions during development. On an individual level, stress-induced variation in a trait may be related to the strength of stabilizing selection that acts on the trait. We experimentally examined sensitivity of mandibular development to stress in a free-living population of …

Integronlike Structures In Campylobacter Spp. Of Human And Animal Origin, Brigid Lucey, D. Crowley, P. Moloney, B. Cryan, M. Daly, F. O'Halloran, E. J. Threlfall, S. Fanning

Department of Biological Sciences Publications

Resistance to antimicrobial agents used to treat severe Campylobacter spp. gastroenteritis is increasing worldwide. We assessed the antimicrobial resistance patterns of Campylobacter spp. isolates of human and animal origin. More than half (n = 32) were resistant to sulphonamide, a feature known to be associated with the presence of integrons. Analysis of these integrons will further our understanding of Campylobacter spp. epidemiology.

Decreased Thin Filament Density And Length In Human Atrophic Soleus Muscle Fibers After Spaceflight, Danny A. Riley, James L. W. Bain, Joyce L. Thompson, Robert H. Fitts, Jeffrey J. Widrick, Scott W. Trappe, Todd A. Trappe, David L. Costill

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Soleus muscle fibers were examined electron microscopically from pre- and postflight biopsies of four astronauts orbited for 17 days during the Life and Microgravity Sciences Spacelab Mission (June 1996). Myofilament density and spacing were normalized to a 2.4-μm sarcomere length. Thick filament density (~1,062 filaments/μm²) and spacing (~32.5 nm) were unchanged by spaceflight. Preflight thin filament density (2,976/μm²) decreased significantly (P < 0.01) to 2,215/μm² in the overlap A band region as a result of a 17% filament loss and a 9% increase in short filaments. Normal fibers had 13% short thin filaments. The 26% decrease in thin filaments …

Substrate Profile In Rat Soleus Muscle Fibers After Hindlimb Unloading And Fatigue, Varvara P. Grichko, Anne R. Heywood-Cooksey, Kameha R. Kidd, Robert H. Fitts

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Limb muscles from rats flown in space and after hindlimb unloading (HU) show an increased fatigability, and spaceflight has been shown to result in a reduced ability to oxidize fatty acids. The purpose of this investigation was to determine the effects of HU on the substrate content in fast- and slow-twitch fibers and to assess the substrate utilization patterns in single slow type I fibers isolated from control and HU animals.Asecond objective was to assess whether HU altered the ability of the heart or limb muscle to oxidize pyruvate or palmitate. After 2 wk of HU, single fibers were isolated …

Responses Of Phytoplankton And Pfiesteria-Like Dinoflagellate Zoospores To Nutrient Enrichment In The Neuse River Estuary, North Carolina, Usa, James L. Pinckney, Hans W. Paerl, Elin Haugen, Patricia A. Tester

Faculty Publications

The recently described toxic dinoflagellate Pfiestena piscicida and morphologically similar Pfiesteria-like dinoflagellates have become a major water quality issue with possible fish mortality and reported human health implications. The linkages between accelerated nutrient loading, eutrophication, and the proliferation of this group of dinoflagellates, however, are not well established for natural Systems. Phytoplankton pnmary production may provide a key link between nutrient inputs and potential outbreaks of Pfiesteria-like biflagellated zoospores in the Neuse River Estuary, North Carolina. The impacts of nutrient (NO₃^- -nitrogen and PO₄^3- -phosphorus) supply rates, sediment-water column exchange, water column mixing, and phytoplankton prey …

Determining The Phylogenetic Relationships Among The Northern Pike (Esox Lucius), The Muskellunge (Esox Masquinongy), And The Silver Pike, Steven W. Foster

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Prioritization of taxa has become a necessity due to limited resources available for conservation. Conservation efforts are often concentrated on those threatened and endangered species with the highest taxonomic importance. The silver pike is a rare game fish, often accounting for less than 1% of a total pike population where it is found. Although silver pike are normally found in association with northern pike, they have distinct morphological characteristics and have not been shown to hybridize with the northern pike. Still, many fisheries biologists consider the silver pike to be a color variant of the northern pike, and to date …

The Life History Of The Cave Salamander, Eurycea Lucifuga Rafinesque, In West Virginia, Andrew James Longenecker

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

In West Virginia, as throughout its range, there is limited information about the life history of the cave salamander (Eurycea lucifuga). The purpose of this study was to describe the natural history of this species in West Virginia. The objectives of this study were to determine habitat selection of the cave salamander, to ascertain its environmental characteristics, and to study its reproductive and non-reproductive biology. Three study caves were located in Greenbrier County, West Virginia. All sites were examined at least once each month from May 1999 through April 2000. Caves were divided into three zones: entrance, twilight, …

Ecology And Sympatric Relations Of Crevice Salamanders In Randolph County, West Virginia, Jayme Linn Waldron

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

By implementing a mark-recapture study, I investigated the ecology of three species of sympatric plethodontid salamanders (Aneides aeneus, Desmognathus ochrophaeus, and Plethodon glutinosus) on rock outcrops in the Westvaco Wildlife and Ecosystem Research Forest, Randolph County, West Virginia. By examining activity patterns, vertical stratification, and habitat preference for A. aeneus, D. ochrophaeus, and P. glutinosus, I attempted to offer some insight into how these sympatric species avoid competition on small, isolated rock outcrops. Twenty-one surveys, both nocturnal and diurnal, were performed between 11 May and 17 October, 1999. During this time, 89 salamanders, encompassing five species ( …

Changes Among Ohio River Fish Populations Due To Water Quality Improvements And High-Lift Dams, Benjamin Lowman

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Fish populations in the Ohio River have been monitored extensively by the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission (ORSANCO), along with state and Federal agencies, for over 40 years. The population data, collected via lock chamber rotenone surveys, showed that many species of Ohio River fish have demonstrated marked increases in abundance since these studies began. These trends in population density, both gradual and sharp, are likely associated with water quality improvements and the construction of high-lift dams. Pearson-r correlation through linear regression analyses showed 23 species or 42% of populations examined exhibit significant density increases from 1957 to 1998. …

Whole Animal And Cellular Strategies In The Regulation Of Bone Mass In The Rat, Weidong Geng

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

In order to determine the strategies in regulation of bone mass in the rat and better understand the pathophysiological mechanism of the postmenopausal osteoporosis, a series of studies were conducted at the whole animal and cellular level. At the whole animal level, female Sprague-Dawley rats were ovariectomized (Ovx) or sham-operated (control) at 18 weeks and the entire skeleton obtained at 24 weeks (baseline) or after an additional 31 day (28 week) interval on a normal (1.0%) or deficient (0.02%) calcium diet. Ovx rats on the normal calcium diet showed a 42% increase in whole body bone resorption and a 70% …

Mitochondrial 16s Rrna Gene As A Tool For Scorpion Systematics, Mark D. Barker

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The use of morphological analysis in the classification and phylogeny of scorpions often has led to confusion and controversy. In order to clarify these problems other character sets should be considered for analysis. One such tool is the use of molecular comparisons between organisms. This study used a section of the mitochondrial 16S ribosomal RNA gene. This technique was applied to investigate four scorpion genera belonging to three families: Hadruru, Anuroctonus (luridae), Euscorpius (Euscorpiidae), and Centruroides (Buthidae). Total DNA was extracted with a standard phenol/chloroform method; a gene of interest was amplified using PCR; and resulting DNA sequence analysis was …

Single-Cell, Real-Time Measurements Of Extracellular Oxygen And Proton Fluxes From Spirogyra Grevilleana, D. M. Porterfield, P. J.S. Smith

Biological Sciences Faculty Research & Creative Works

We have adapted the self-referencing microelectrode technique to allow sensitive and noninvasive measurement of oxygen fluxes around single cells. The self-referencing technique is based on the translational movement of a selective microelectrode through the gradient next to the cell wall or membrane. The electrode is moved at a known frequency and between known points. The differential electrode output values are converted into a directional measurement of flux by the Fick equation. By coupling the newly developed oxygen-selective self-referencing electrochemical microelectrode (SREM-O2) system with self-referencing ion-selective proton measurements (SRIS-H+) we have characterized oxygen and proton fluxes from a single cell of …

Raccoons As Potential Vectors Of Radionuclide Contamination To Human Food Chains From A Nuclear Industrial Site, Karen F. Gaines, Christine G. Lord, C. Shane Boring, I. Lehr Brisbin Jr., Michael Gochfeld, Joanna Burger

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

Although the raccoon (Procyon lotor) is commonly harvested and consumed throughout the southeastern United States, little is known regarding the fate and effects of environmental pollutants to this species, and the potential for it to act as a contaminant vector to humans or other predators. Muscle and liver tissues were collected from 76 raccoons from locations on and near the Department of Energy's Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina and analyzed for radiocesium (137Cs). Raccoons were trapped from areas near a former reactor cooling reservoir known to be contaminated from former nuclear production activities, a stream drainage system also …

Additive And Nonadditive Effects Of Herbivory And Competition On Tree Seedling Mortality, Growth, And Allocation, Scott J. Meiners, Steven N. Handel

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

The interaction between simulated cotyledon herbivory and interspecific competition was studied in a greenhouse experiment using two species of trees, Acer rubrum and Quercus palustris, which commonly invade abandoned agricultural fields. Herbivory treatments were applied as a gradient of cotyledon removal for A. rubrum with 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100% of cotyledon tissue removed. Cotyledons from Q. palustris were clipped and removed (control, early, and late removal) to create a gradient of seed reserve availability. The competition treatment consisted of plugs of old-field vegetation that filled the pots with perennial cover. Mortality of seedlings was higher with competition. There …

Predation Of Juvenile Acipenser Fulvescens By Micropterus Punctulatus And Ictalurus Punctatus, Mark Sandoval

Capstone Research Projects

The predation of lake sturgeon, Acipenser fulvescens, by spotted bass, Micropterus punctulatus, and channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, was investigated under artificial conditions. Experiments were conducted in a 27,600-liter tank at the Southeast Aquatic Research Institute. Spotted bass were provided bluegill, Lepomis macrochirus, as a potential food source during the first four days of each experiment, and lake sturgeon were provided as a potential food source during the latter four days of each experiment. Channel catfish were given either chow or lake sturgeon separately or chow and lake sturgeon concurrently as food sources. Spotted bass consumed 85 bluegill (x = 6.87 …

The Chattanooga Procedure: A New Technique Used For Anterior Multi-Level Cervical Fusions, Elizabeth Van Horn, Scott D. Hodges, S. Craig Humphreys, Jason Eck, Laurie Covington, Joseph E.D. Peterson

Capstone Research Projects

STUDY DESIGN: A preliminary assessment of anterior cervical fusion performed with interbody cage and DOC plate.

OBJECTIVES: To describe and evaluate the efficacy and safety of the "Chattanooga Procedure", a modified technique in achieving anterior cervical fusion.

SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Anterior cervical fusion with interbody bone graft and anterior plating is connnonly performed. Unfortunately, the plate has been reported to shield the graft from loading thus reducing fusion rates. The use of interbody fusion cages has been effective in the lumbar spine and has gained acceptance in the cervical spine.

METHODS:. Twenty-five patients received "The Chattanooga Procedure" between 7/24/98 …

Use Of Bradford And Quantigold Assays In Determining Protein Content In Water Samples, Kati A. Chaffin

Capstone Research Projects

Water samples from seven different sites at the Amnicola marsh in Chattanooga, TN, were analyzed for the amount of protein present. Four sets of samples were concentrated using three methods--one using an ultrafiltration cell, one using a lyophilizer, and two utilizing a household food dehydrator. Two protein assays, the Bradford assay and the Quantigold assay (two sets of samples each), were used to determine the amount of protein present by measuring the absorbance of light at 595 nm. These data were compared with data from the standard curves of bovine serum albumin (BSA) to estimate the amount of protein in …

Additive And Nonadditive Effects Of Herbivory And Competition On Tree Seedling Mortality, Growth, And Allocation, Scott Meiners, Steven Handel

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

The interaction between simulated cotyledon herbivory and interspecific competition was studied in a greenhouse experiment using two species of trees, Acer rubrum and Quercus palustris, which commonly invade abandoned agricultural fields. Herbivory treatments were applied as a gradient of cotyledon removal for A. rubrum with 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100% of cotyledon tissue removed. Cotyledons from Q. palustris were clipped and removed (control, early, and late removal) to create a gradient of seed reserve availability. The competition treatment consisted of plugs of old-field vegetation that filled the pots with perennial cover. Mortality of seedlings was higher with competition. There …

The Effects Of Drought On Foraging Habitat Selection Of Breeding Wood Storks In Coastal Georgia, Karen F. Gaines, A. Lawrence Bryan Jr., Philip M. Dixon

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

Foraging habitat use by Wood Storks (Mycteria americana) during the breeding season was studied for three coastal colonies during a drought year and compared to habitat use during normal rainfall years. Information on the distribution of wetland habitat types was derived using U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Wetland In- ventory (NWI) data within a Geographic Information System (GIS). Foraging locations were obtained by following storks from their colonies in a fixed-winged aircraft. Differences in hydrologic condition and, the resulting prey availability in coastal zone freshwater wetlands greatly affected foraging habitat use and breeding success of the three stork colonies. …

Season And Distance From Forest - Old Field Edge Affect Seed Predation By White-Footed Mice, Scott J. Meiners, James T. Mccormick

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

We studied the spatial pattern of seed predation across a forest-old field edge in both fall and winter to assess the potential for seed predators to influence plant spatial patterns. We used a 100 x 100 m grid that began 30 m inside the forest and extended 60 m into the old field. Inside this grid we placed seed stations at regular 10 m intervals and monitored seed removal. Seed predation varied significantly across the edge gradient in both fall and winter with the highest rate of seed removal at the edge in both trials. The spatial pattern of seed …