Biology Commons^™

The Effects Of Sodium Lauryl Sulfate On The Abundance Of Producers And Grazers In Aquatic Communities Using Freshwater Microcosms, Stephanie R. Shipley

Honors College Theses

With increases in environmental awareness, industry has responded with products that reduce negative impacts on aquatic ecosystems. Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), a rapidly degrading chemical commonly found in cleaners labeled as ‘environmentally friendly,’ has been shown to have low toxicity in single species toxicity tests. However, that organisms have different sensitivities to SLS suggests a need for measuring effects at the community level. We exposed communities of microalgae (Chlorella sp.) and invertebrate grazers (a benthic snail, Elimia sp. and pelagic microcrustacean Daphnia magna) to 0, 0.5 or 1.5 mgL^-1 SLS. Water quality and invertebrate abundance were measured …

Α-Latrotoxin Genes Are Highly Divergent Between Species Of Widow Spiders (Genus Latrodectus), Kacy M. Bennett

Honors College Theses

Widow spiders (genus Latrodectus) possess neurotoxic venom that varies in potency among species. α-latrotoxin is the main protein in widow venom that affects vertebrates, including humans. The European black widow, Latrodectus tredecimguttatus, is currently the only species in this genus where the gene for α-latrotoxin has been characterized. The study presented here characterizes the genetic composition of α-latrotoxin from two additional species, the brown widow (L. geometricus) and the southern black widow (L. mactans). Genetic differences among the three species were quantified for α-latrotoxin. Between species genetic divergence in α-latrotoxin was also compared to …

Selective Inhibition Of Angiotensin Receptor Signaling Through Erk1/2 Pathway By A Novel Peptide, Jun Liu, Gina L.C. Yosten, Hong Ji, Dan Zhang, Wei Zheng, Robert C. Speth, Willis K. Samson, Kathryn Sandberg

Biological Sciences Faculty Research & Creative Works

A seven-amino acid peptide (PEP7) is encoded within a short open reading frame within exon 2 (E2) in the 5′-leader sequence (5′LS) upstream of the rat ANG 1a-receptor (rAT1aR) mRNA. A chemically synthesized PEP7 markedly inhibited ANG II-induced Erk1/2 activation in cell culture by 62% compared with a scrambled PEP7 (sPEP7) [pErk1/2/Erk1/2 (AU): ANG II, 1.000 ± 0.0, ANG II+PEP7, 0.3812 ± 0.086, ANG II+sPEP7, 1.069 ± 0.18; n = 3]. Under these same conditions, PEP7 had no effect on ANG II-stimulated inositol-trisphosphate production. PEP7 also had no effect on epidermal growth factor- and phorbol methyl ester-induced Erk1/2 activation, suggesting …

Biol 10: The Living World Textbook Alternatives, Mary Poffenroth

Textbook Alternatives Project Posters 2014

Poster summarizing cost saving textbook alternatives for BIOL 10: The Living World.

Uncoupling Reproduction From Metabolism Extends Chronological Lifespan In Yeast, Saisubramanian Nagarajan, Arthur L. Kruckeberg, Karen H. Schmidt, Evgueny Kroll, Morgan Hamilton, Kate Mcinnerney, Ryan Summers, Timothy Taylor, Frank Rosenzweig

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Studies of replicative and chronological lifespan in Saccharomyces cerevisiae have advanced understanding of longevity in all eukaryotes. Chronological lifespan in this species is defined as the agedependent viability of nondividing cells. To date this parameter has only been estimated under calorie restriction, mimicked by starvation. Because postmitotic cells in higher eukaryotes often do not starve, we developed a model yeast system to study cells as they age in the absence of calorie restriction. Yeast cells were encapsulated in a matrix consisting of calcium alginate to form ~3 mm beads that were packed into bioreactors and fed ad libitum. Under these …

The Effects Of Gold Nanorods On The Rate Of Apoptosis Of Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cells, Mattie E. Raiford

Honors College Theses

Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a subtype of breast cancer that is most often found in African American females that is characterized by the lack of the progesterone receptor (PR), the estrogen receptor (ER), and the human epithelial growth factor receptor two (HER2).TNBC is a very aggressive form of breast cancer because it does not respond to hormone therapy, due to the lack of the three vital receptors. Since the current treatment is not affective, the project used porphyrin to specifically target cancer in the body because it has an increased affinity for many cancer types. Gold nanorods were …

Expression Of Gene Product 126 From Phage Gizmo And Creation Of A Substrate, Manish Mandava, David Bollivar, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

Endonucleases are enzymes which cleave DNA at specific nucleotide sequences. Homing Endonucleases (HEase) are a group of endonucleases that reside as open reading frames within self-splicing introns or inteins. After expression of the gene containing the HEase the HEase goes on to cleave a target site in a homolog of the hosting gene to induce homologous recombination turning the vacant homolog into a homing endonuclease gene (HEG). It is predicted that gene product (gp126) from the mycobacteriophage Gizmo encodes a HEase. To test whether the gene encodes a HEase the phage sequence of gp126 Gizmo was transferred into the his-tag …

Creating And Implementing A Teaching Module For The High School Biology Classroom, Elizabeth Smith, William Jaeckle, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

The “nature of science” is an educational concept that encourages science teachers to teach students about the origin, nature, methods, and limits of human knowledge. One way for students to experience the nature of science is through the creation and implementation of hands-on experiments. As a future biology teacher, I created a teaching module that incorporates an inquiry-based experiment that could be implemented into a high school biology curriculum. In this experiment, egg masses from the locally common freshwater snail Physa acuta were used to test the effect of rearing temperature on the rate of embryo development and survival. Within …

To What Extent Is The Established Conceptual Framework Of Animal Behaviour Portrayed In Textbooks?, Andrea M. K. Bierema, Renee S. Schwartz

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

In 1963, Tinbergen revolutionized the study of animal behaviour by revamping the conceptual framework of the discipline. His framework suggests an integration of four questions: causation, ontogeny, survival value, and evolution. The National Research Council Committee on Undergraduate Biology Education to Prepare Research Scientists for the 21st Century (2003) suggests alignment between current research and undergraduate education. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to determine if the conceptual framework used by animal behaviour scientists, as presented in current primary literature, aligns with what students are exposed to in undergraduate biology education. After determining the most commonly listed textbooks from …

Parallel Integration Of Visual Inputs Evoking Discrete Motor Patterns Leading To Coordinated Avoidance Behaviors, John Jellies

Faculty Research and Creative Activities Award (FRACAA)

Each moment nervous systems are sampling inputs from many sensory sources in parallel and making decisions on what actions, if any, to take. Indeed, it is a universal feature of animal behavior to obtain information from multiple and varied external and intimal sensory systems simultaneously and these in ways that result in adaptive behavioral responses. Visual stimuli are important across all Phyla. The medicinal leech, Hirudo has an intricate visual system with 5 pairs of pigmented cephalic eyes at the anterior margin of the anterior sucker and a set of 7 pairs of simple sensilla including photoreceptors arranged dorsal to …

Visual Responses Of Adult Asian Citrus Psyllid (Hemiptera: Liviidae) To Colored Sticky Traps On Citrus Trees, Mamoudou Setamou, A. Sanchez, R. R. Saldaña, J. M. Patt, Kenneth R. Summy

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences (Formerly Dept. of Biology)

The effects of five differently-colored sticky traps in capturing adult Diaphorina citri were evaluated in citrus orchards. Trap catches of D. citri were monitored fortnightly on blue, green, red, white and yellow sticky cards placed on three citrus varieties during D. citri active flight period from April to July in south Texas. Evaluation of mean trap catches of each color by repeated measures analysis of variance produced three separate groups: yellow traps caught significantly more D. citri adults than the other four traps; red and green traps caught significantly more D. citri than blue and white traps, which were not …

Host-Parasite Interactions In An Invasive Songbird, Courtney A.C. Coon

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Introduced species are the greatest threat to biodiversity after habitat loss. Understanding the processes that permit organisms to become successful invaders may provide opportunities to prevent or limit their dispersal and establishment and thereby alleviate some of their harmful effects. The goal of my dissertation research has been to investigate whether invasive species have distinctive interactions with parasites, and some of the mechanisms that may underlie that variation. I used one of the world's most successful vertebrate invaders as a case study: the house sparrow (Passer domesticus; Introduction).

Previous research in the house sparrow suggested that loss of …

A Satellite Data Driven Biophysical Modeling Approach For Estimating Northern Peatland And Tundra Co2 And Ch4 Fluxes, J. D. Watts, John S. Kimball, F. J. W. Parmentier, T. Sachs, J. Rinne, D. Zona, W. Oechel, T. Tagesson, M. Jackowicz-Korczynski, M. Aurela

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

The northern terrestrial net ecosystem carbon balance (NECB) is contingent on inputs from vegetation gross primary productivity (GPP) to offset the ecosystem respiration (Reco) of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and methane (CH₄) emissions, but an effective framework to monitor the regional Arctic NECB is lacking. We modified a terrestrial carbon flux (TCF) model developed for satellite remote sensing applications to evaluate wetland CO₂ and CH₄ fluxes over pan-Arctic eddy covariance (EC) flux tower sites. The TCF model estimates GPP, CO2 and CH4 emissions using in situ or remote sensing and reanalysis-based climate data as inputs. …

A Century Of Change In Kenya’S Mammal Communities: Increased Richness And Decreased Uniqueness In Six Protected Areas, Aniko B. Toth, S. Kathleen Lyons, Anna K. Behrensmeyer

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

The potential for large-scale biodiversity losses as a result of climate change and human impact presents major challenges for ecology and conservation science. Governments around the world have established national parks and wildlife reserves to help protect biodiversity, but there are few studies on the long-term consequences of this strategy. We use Kenya as a case study to investigate species richness and other attributes of mammal communities in 6 protected areas over the past century. Museum records from African expeditions that comprehensively sampled mammals from these same areas in the early 1900’s provide a baseline for evaluating changes in species …

Choose Your Daddy: Genetic Genealogy To Prevent Dairy Cow Production-Related Diseases, Nalani Yamada, Beverly Roeder

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Dairy cows are bred and utilized to produce large quantities of milk daily and are held to high production standards. Greater production or manipulated production activity can affect the homeostasis state of an animal and lead to production-related metabolic diseases (PRMDs). In a previous study focused on predicting PMRDs in dairy cows utilizing carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios performed at Brigham Young University, the results suggested that there is a correlation between carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios in hair, freeze-dried feces, erythrocytes, plasma, and PRMDs. In collaboration with this study previously and based on the results, it was …

Genetic Factors That Influence Tau Protein Levels In Csf And Risk For Alzheimer’S Disease, David Patty, Dr. John S. K. Kauwe

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Alzheimer’s Disease, the most common form of dementia, affects nearly 6 million Americans. Its effects on the individual range from mild impairment of memory to the complete destruction of the victim’s identity and their ability to perform everyday tasks. They become a heavy burden on their family, requiring constant medical care that often leaves the family with not only emotional problems, but financial stress as well. A study involving a clinical diagnosis of the disease, or case-control study, is limited by the accuracy of a psychiatrist’s judgment of the severity of the disease. This is obtained by a verbal and …

Determining The Presence Of Micro Rna In The Untranslated Regions Of Adipoq, A Metabolism Gene, Victoria Scott, Dr. John Keoni Kauwe

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of this project is to sequence the untranslated region of the AdipoQ gene and interrogate it for novel genetic variation and potential microRNA sequences. This work will illuminate how adiponectin levels are regulated and provide insights into type II diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and obesity.

Molecular Diversity Compared To Associated Morphological Differences Between Two Species Of Southern Chilean Crabs, Andres Mallipudi, Erwin Barria, Carlos G. Jara, Keith A. Crandall

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The biologically diverse region of Patagonia is under constant threat of urban development from both external and internal sources. Gaining a thorough understanding of the ecological roles of this area’s organisms is essential to preserving Patagonia’s rich biodiversity. Researching the differences between Southern Chilean crab subspecies led to a better understanding of this taxon, which will help determine its ecological role and will contribute to gaining a deeper understanding of the ecological environment of the area. Examining genetic relationships, divergence times, and morphometric variations between two different types of southern Chilean crabs (A. denticulata denticulata and A. denticulata lacustris) allows …

Alzheimer’S Disease And Mitochondrial Genome Copy Number, Miles Mckee, Dr. John Kauwe

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of this research project was to identify genetic variation, or more specifically variation in the average number of mitochondria per cell, and determine how these variations relate to risk for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The project started off with a measurement of the ratio of mitochondrial genome copies to nuclear genome copies by using Q-PCR. We checked this because mitochondrial concentration is necessary for normal energy metabolism and cell growth. This heritable trait may be regulated by genetic variation in the mitochondrial genome. We are currently attempting to determine if there is an association that exists between the measured …

Validation Of Genetic Association Between Variants In Ppp3r1 And Mapt And Rate Of Progression Of Alzheimer’S Disease, David Peterson, Dr. John S. K. Kauwe

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disease, affecting more than 4.5 million people in the US. Genetic studies of AD have previously identified mutations in three genes (APP, PSEN1 and PSEN2) and polymorphism in APOE as risk factors. These findings have led to a better understanding of the underlying disease mechanisms. However, half of all AD cases have no known genetic risk factors for disease. Most studies are designed to identify variants associated with risk or age at onset, but rarely cover other important facets of AD, such as disease progression or duration. Previously, Cruchaga et al. identified …

Phenotypic Divergence Of Boldness In Brachyrhaphis Fishes, Joseph Nelson, Jerald B. Johnson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The general public has a fairly good understanding of evolution and how physical characteristics of a species can change to adapt to environmental inconsistencies. In times of drought, flood, or other natural stress that commonly occur in nature, animals must adapt to their surroundings, or die. The example of the Galapagos finches is one of the most popular used illustrations of this concept. The size, shape and usefulness of a finch’s beak were some few of the things that the great scientist Charles Darwin first noticed on his trip to the Galapagos Islands over 170 years ago. As Darwin determined …

Photobiostimulation In C. Elegans As A Model For Low Level Light Therapy, Michael J. Spoto, Daryl D. Hurd

Science Scholars

Low-Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) is a developing therapeutic technique that has been gaining recognition in the scientific community in recent years. Previous experiments performed in LLLT research projects have been primarily mammalian and cell culture based. These experiments have produced results showing accelerated tissue repair. In this experiment, we introduce a new model, Caenorhabitidis elegans, a free-living soil nematode, to be used in LLLT research by testing the effects of exposure of the organism to various wavelengths and intensities of light commonly used in LLLT. C. elegans was shown to respond to photobiostimulation when exposed to specific wavelengths of …

Search For Genomic Factors That Influence Cerebrospinal Fluid Levels Of Ykl40, A Novel Biomarker For Alzheimer’S Disease, Mo Lee, Dr. John S. K. Kauwe

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia in the United States. It is a complex neurodegenerative disorder featured by gradual onset and progression of memory loss combined with deficits in executive functioning, language, visuospatial abilities, personality, behavior and self-care. There are basically two types of Alzheimer’s Disease, familial Alzheimer’s disease and late-onset Alzheimer’s Disease respectively.

The Evolution Of Color Vision In Dragonflies And Damselflies (Odonata), Kelsy Johnson, Dr. Michael F. Whiting

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Opsins are the genes present in the eye that are responsible for color vision in all animals (Briscoe et al., 2001). Insect vision is particularly interesting because they are able to see different wavelengths of light due to the number and types of opsins present in the eye. Odonata have very large and complex visual systems. However, the only visual system data that has been gathered on Odonates is physiological data, and no molecular data has been recovered yet to support the physiological data. A previous study by Yang and Osorio (1991) identified 5 opsin copies present in odonates. My …

Characterization Of 10 Polymorphic Microsatellite Loci In The South American Lizard Liolaemus Fitzingerii With Cross-Amplification In L. Chehuachekenk, Nathan Hanna, Dr. Jack Sites

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Liolaemus is a genus of lizards that is very common in South America, particularly the southern regions. Distinguishing differences between separate species within the Liolaemus genus has been an ongoing pursuit, one in which Jack Sites and his lab have been extensively engaged. Liolaemus chehuachekenk is a species that is very similar to Liolaemus fitzingerii. Both are found throughout central regions of Patagonia. The purpose of this project has been to provide data to help in distinguishing boundaries, gene flow, historical divergence, and population structure between the two species.

Perfect Pets And Delicious Delicacies: Resolving The Phylogenetic Relationships Within Anomura (Decapoda), Maren Ettinger, Dr. Keith Crandall

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of phylogenetics is to understand how organisms are related and how they have evolved. My project focused on understanding the relationships within the Anomura infraorder of the Decapoda. Anomurans encompass a variety of economically important and morphologically diverse crustaceans. They include hermit crabs, mole crabs, king crabs, squat lobsters, porcelain crabs, hairy crabs, and yeti crabs. The anomurans are economically important, especially the king and hermit crabs. King crabs provide monetary revenue in fisheries and are a popular menu item at seafood restaurants. Hermit crabs are commonly found in aquaria trade. Other anomurans are kept as pets or …

Proteomics Approach To Solving Alzheimer’S Disease, Ryan Egbert, Dr. John Kauwe

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Our project has gone according to plan, with a few small modifications along the way. Initially, we had proposed to incorporate gender profiling in attempt to understand the differences in serum proteomics profiles in men and women. Due to the difficulties in carrying out this aspect of the project, we simplified our project to analyze serum differences between Alzheimer’s and non-Alzheimer’s individuals only. Utilizing the novel capillary liquid chromatography method outlined in my proposal we were able to analyze our serum samples. By comparing the resulting mass spectra using specialized statistical methods we have been able to identify several biomarkers. …

Finding Novel Variants In App, Ps1 And Ps2, That Alter Gene Functionality And Lead To Familial Alzheimer’S Disease, Matthew Cable-Fabiszak, Dr. John Kauwe

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The planned objective of this mentored research opportunity was to identify families in the Cache County Aging Study that harbored mutations in three specific genes known to cause familial Alzheimer’s disease: APP, PS1, and PS2. This knowledge would have been beneficial because it would have provided important information concerning novel variation that causes disease as well as identify specific families who could be important resources for future studies of Alzheimer’s disease.

Prior Experience Affects Allocation To Current Reproduction In A Burying Beetle, Eric J. Billman, J. Curtis Creighton, Mark C. Belk

Faculty Publications

The cost of reproduction hypothesis predicts that the level of reproductive investment to current reproduction is constrained by an individual’s future reproductive potential or residual reproductive value. Therefore, age, or differences between young and old individuals in residual reproductive value, is expected to influence reproductive investment. However, recent theoretical work suggests that residual reproductive value is also influenced by an individual’s state or condition which may in part be determined by prior reproductive experience. We evaluated the reproductive investment of same-aged female burying beetles (Nicrophorus orbicollis) to determine how prior reproductive experience affects current reproduction. Consistent with previous …

An Investigation Into The Habitat, Behavior And Opportunistic Feeding Strategies Of The Protected Goliath Grouper (Epinephelus Itajara), Angela Collins

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Groupers (Epinephelidae: Epinephelinae) are apex predators within many reef communities worldwide. Grouper landings contribute significantly to global fisheries, and many populations are suffering from unsustainable levels of exploitation. The large size, site specificity and catchability of most groupers increase susceptibility to fishing pressure, and a large number of grouper species throughout the world are currently overfished. Multiple species are listed as endangered or threatened, and many have suffered local extirpations across their range. Removal of these upper level predators can significantly alter community structure and result in second order effects that may have critical ecological implications. The economic and ecological …