Biology Commons^™

In Vitro Propagation Of Morchella Esculenta And Study Of Its Life Cycle, Nazish Kanwal, Kainaat William, Kishwar Sultana

Journal of Bioresource Management

Among the edible mushrooms, Morchella esculenta (Pers.) is a highly prized mushroom which consists of a short stalk and a conical, pitted, hollow pileus. It is commonly known as a morel or sponge mushroom, or gucchi, etc. It belongs to the class Ascomycetes, order Pezizales and family Morchellaceae. It is found throughout the world. In Pakistan, it is found in northern areas from Murree, Patriata, and Gilgit under pine vegetation. It is therapeutic in nature; therefore its medicinal and biochemical properties are under investigation throughout the world, especially in regard to treating the hazardous diseases such as cancer, tumors, …

Association Of Rs2476601 And Rs1544410 With Onset Of T1d In Youngsters Of Lahore, Pakistan, Andleeb Batool, Maryam Mukhtar, Iram Qayyum, Romessa Shakeel

Journal of Bioresource Management

The PTPN22 gene plays vital role in T1D onset by encoding Lymphoid-specific phosphatase (LYP) that lead to T-cell receptor-associated CsK kinase inactivation and preventing T-cell spontaneous activation by dephosphorylation. VDR gene encoded for VDR receptor is involved indirectly in prevention of T1D onset by promoting insulin production. The present study was conducted to determine the mutations on rs2476601 and rs1544410 polymorphic sites on the PTPN22 and VDR genes respectively. We genotyped 50 patients and 50 control subjects from Lahore by using sequencing and Polymerase Chain Reaction-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP) techniques. It was observed that the allelic frequency of r …

Tick-, Mosquito-, And Rodent-Borne Parasite Sampling Designs For The National Ecological Observatory Network [Special Feature: Neon Design], Yuri P. Springer, David Hoekman, Pieter T.J. Johnson, Paul A. Duffy, Rebecca A. Hufft, David T. Barnett, Brian F. Allan, Brian R. Amman, Christopher M. Barker, Roberto Barrera, Charles B. Beard, Lorenza Beati, Mike Begon, Mark S. Blackmore, William E. Bradshaw, Dustin Brisson, Charles H. Calisher, James E. Childs, Maria A. Diuk-Wasser, Richard J. Douglass, Rebecca J. Eisen, Desmond H. Foley, Janet E. Foley, Holly D. Gaff, Scott Lyell Gardner, Howard S. Ginsberg, Gregory E. Glass, Sarah A. Hamer, Mary H. Hayden, Brian Hjelle, Christina M. Holzapfel, Steven A. Juliano, Laura D. Kramer, Amy J. Kuenzi, Shannon L. Ladeau, Todd P. Livdahl, James N. Mills, Chester G. Moore, Serge Morand, Roger S. Nasci, Nicholas H. Ogden, Richard S. Ostfeld, Robert R. Parmenter, Joseph Piesman, William K. Reisen, Harry M. Savage, Daniel E. Sonenshine, Andrea Swet, Michael J. Yabsley

Scott L. Gardner Publications

Parasites and pathogens are increasingly recognized as significant drivers of ecological and evolutionary change in natural ecosystems. Concurrently, transmission of infectious agents among human, livestock, and wildlife populations represents a growing threat to veterinary and human health. In light of these trends and the scarcity of long-term time series data on infection rates among vectors and reservoirs, the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) will collect measurements and samples of a suite of tick-, mosquito-, and rodent-borne parasites through a continental-scale surveillance program. Here, we describe the sampling designs for these efforts, highlighting sampling priorities, field and analytical methods, and the …

Flowering And Seed Production In The Subtropical Seagrass, Halodule Wrightii (Shoal Grass), Joseph L. Kowalski, Hudson R. Deyoe

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

Reproductive structures of the seagrass, Halodule wrightii Ascherson (shoal grass) are cryptic and ephemeral, but were found on several occasions at several sites over more than a decade in the subtropical Laguna Madre (USA). Structures align with descriptions for H. wrightii. Male, but no female flowers were found, but the numerous fruit-bearing shoots imply the occurrence of pistillate flowers. Mean seed bank density was 890 seeds m-2 (1900–5200 m-2). Sexual reproduction in H. wrightii is more common than previously believed and the seed bank reserve may contribute to its ecological role as a colonizer of disturbed sediments.

Genetic Structure Of Faucet Snail, Bithynia Tentaculata Populations In North America, Based On Microsatellite Markers, Kathryn E. Perez, Rebecca L. Werren, Christopher A. Lynum, Levi A. Hartman, Gabor Majoros, Rebecca A. Cole

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

Bithynia tentaculata is believed to have been extirpated from North America during the last glacial maximum. It was reintroduced into North America via the Great Lakes basin in the 1800’s and has recently been expanding its geographic range. This snail serves as intermediate host for three trematodes that cause extensive recurring morbidity and mortality events in migratory water birds along the Mississippi River. Using twelve microsatellite loci for ~200 individual snails from 11populations in North America and Europe, we examined one of the three major geographic regions from which founding populations into the Great Lakes typically originate. Our data supports …

Translating Ecology, Physiology, Biochemistry And Population Genetics Research To Meet The Challenge Of Tick And Tick-Borne Diseases In North America, Maria Dolores Esteve-Gassent, Ivan Castro-Arellano, Teresa Patricia Feria-Arroyo, Ramiro Patino, Andrew Y. Li, Raul F. Medina, Adalberto A. Pérez De León, Roger Iván Rodríguez-Vivas

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

Emerging and re-emerging tick-borne diseases threaten public health and the wellbeing of domestic animals and wildlife globally. The adoption of an evolutionary ecology framework aimed to diminish the impact of tick-borne diseases needs to be part of strategies to protect human and animal populations. We present a review of current knowledge on the adaptation of ticks to their environment, and the impact that global change could have on their geographic distribution in North America. Environmental pressures will affect tick population genetics by selecting genotypes able to withstand new and changing environments and by altering the connectivity and isolation of several …

Characterization Of The Interaction Between Asic And Bk Channels In Glioma Derived Cell Lines, Michael Young

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Glioma are the most common form of brain tumor and carry a particularly poor prognosis that has remained unchanged over the past two decades. Increased activity of large conductance voltage gated and calcium activated potassium channels (BK channels) have been associated with the characteristic invasiveness and proliferation of the disease. Previous work has shown that these channels are inhibited by acid-sensing ion channels (ASIC) at physiological pH (7.4) and that this inhibition is relieved at acidic pH (6.0) commonly found in tumors (Petroff et al. 2008, Petroff et al. 2012). Previous work in our lab has shown that that this …

Influence Of Row Spacing And Frequency Of Cuttings On Spinach (Spinacia Oleracea) Production, Daud Ahmad Awan, Faheem Ahmad, Madeeha Imdad

Journal of Bioresource Management

To study the effect of row spacing and frequency of cuttings on spinach (Spinacia oleracea), an experiment was carried out at the Kitchen Gardening Training Center for Women at 61 JB Dharorh Faisalabad, Pakistan, during 2014. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with factorial arrangements having three replications with a plot size of 3 m × 6 m. This experiment was comprised of two factors, i.e. row spacing (Broadcast, 30 cm apart rows and 45 cm apart rows) and cutting frequency (45 days after sowing and 30 after the first cutting). The result …

In Silico Mechanistic Study Of Abscisic Acid (Aba) Mediated Drought Tolerance In Crops, Bushra Shaheen, Tayyaba Shaheen, Shahid Ur Rehman, Mahmood Ur Rahman, Muhammad Nawaz, Muhammad Tahir Ul Qamar

Journal of Bioresource Management

Drought is one of the major environmental stresses that produces adverse effects on plants. Vast areas of agricultural land is susceptible to drought. Drought induced yield loss of crops has negative effects on the economy of a country. Among phytohormones, Abscisic Acid (ABA) induces abiotic stress tolerance in plants, and directs a complex regulatory network involving multiple transporters, up-regulation of ABA biosynthesis genes and various signalling pathways that enable plants to withstand low water availability. The current study was designed to understand ABA synthesis, its transport across the plant during stress and its mechanism to induce stomatal closure by using …

Retrospective Food Web Analysis Of Gila River Fishes Reveals Hydrologic Parameters Influence Non-Native Species Effects, Rosalee Anne Reese

Biology ETDs

The relatively pristine upper Gila River in New Mexico is a stronghold for endemic native fishes despite the presence of non-native fishes. In other, more severely human-impacted tributaries in the Colorado River basin, non-native fishes are a major factor in native species decline and extirpation. I tested whether presumed negative effects of non-natives on natives are compounded during drought using an approach based on Stable Isotope Analysis (SIA) and comparisons of resource use overlap during different flow conditions. Fish specimens were selected from natural history collections to represent a time series that encompassed wet and dry years, as well as …

Using Intrinsic Properties Of Polyaniline To Sense Expression Of The Microrna Let-7, Jared N. Gloria

Honors Theses

MicroRNAs are approximately 22-nucleotide long RNA molecules that function through decay and translational repression of messenger RNA. The microRNA let-7 is found to play a role in maintaining the fate of differentiated cells in humans. Thus, expression level of this microRNA is a reliable biomarker of tumor cell phenotype. However, there are significant limitations in the current profiling techniques of microRNA. The current methods like northern blotting, microarrays, RT-PCR, or using locked nucleic acid (LNA) for in-situ hybridization are either laborious, semi-quantitative, or expensive. In this research we try to address this issue by developing a fast, specific, and inexpensive …

Investigation Of Parasympathetic Effects Of Lavender Essential Oil In Humans, Haakon Robert Nelson, Rachel Ann Burkhart, Daniel Morin, Nicole Grace Weissenfluh, Michael R. Korn

Montview Journal of Research & Scholarship

The purpose of this study will be to investigate the claim that administration of lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) essential oil (topically, orally, and/or respiratorily) produces a relaxative effect in human subjects. This investigation will theoretically be conducted in two stages. Stage one will focus primarily on determining the presence of therapeutic effects and the relative effectiveness of lavender in several application modalities. Stage two will proceed based on findings from stage one. If significant parasympathetic effects are observed in relation to one or more of the lavender oil modalities described above, a more focused investigation will be conducted in stage two …

Factors Affecting Tree Swallow (Tachycineta Bicolor) Nestling Resting Metabolic Rate, Brooke M. Piepenburg

All College Thesis Program, 2016-2019

Metabolism is the major force that maintains the most rudimentary of functions, and, therefore, maintains life in every organism. Because of the immense effect metabolism can have on an individual’s life history, it is key that the factors influencing metabolic rate are investigated. This study was designed to investigate the influential factors affecting Tree swallow, Tachycineta bicolor, nestling resting metabolic rates by observing maternal effects, early developmental conditions, age, and body mass in Tree swallow nestlings within collection sites at the Saint John’s Abbey Arboretum and Kraemer Lake-Wildwood County Park in Stearns County, Minnesota. Due to the fact that …

Predictors Of Litter Pollution In Suburban Parks, Ilanna Gibson

Honors Scholar Theses

Very few studies have been conducted that examine litter pollution in terrestrial habitats. Most pollution studies are directed toward marine environments. This study looks at the relationship between litter found in thirteen different suburban parks in Rockland County, NY and three separate socio-economic factors of the areas in which each of the parks are found. Using linear multiple regression models, the abundance of litter found in each park was compared to (a) the median income of the people in that specific area, (b) the median home value and (c) the number of environmental programs offered in that area. Results showed …

Nuclear Architecture And Patterns Of Molecular Evolution Are Correlated In The Ciliate Chilodonella Uncinata, Xyrus X. Maurer-Alcalá, Laura A. Katz

Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

The relationship between nuclear architecture and patterns of molecular evolution in lineages across the eukaryotic tree of life is not well understood, partly because molecular evolution is traditionally explored as changes in base pairs along a linear sequence without considering the context of nuclear position of chromosomes. The ciliate Chilodonella uncinata is an ideal system to address the relationship between nuclear architecture and patterns of molecular evolution as the somatic macronucleus of this ciliate is composed of a peripheral DNA-rich area (orthomere) and a DNA-poor central region (paramere) to form a “heteromeric” macronucleus. Moreover, because the somatic chromosomes of C. …

The Effect Of Antibiotics On Gastrointestinal Motility And Gut Microbiota, Catherine Chen

IMSAloquium Student Investigation Showcase

Antibiotics are widely used to treat infectious diseases caused by pathogenic bacteria in many disease states. While eliminating pathogens, antibiotics also affect gut commensal bacteria composition, leading to long-lasting gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms associated with GI motility problems. In this study, the mechanism by which the broad-spectrum antibiotic cefoperazone, gram-positive specific antibiotic vancomycin, and gram-negative specific antibiotic neomycin affect GI motility and gut microbial composition was examined. To assess alterations in the host after antibiotic treatment, whole gut transit time was measured by gavaging and tracing charcoal dye. Significantly delayed GI transit time in antibiotic-treated mice was observed, especially in the …

Factors Affecting The Transformation Of 76r Variety Rio-Grande Tomatoes To Induce Expression Of Hopz3 Effector Protein, Vadini Agrawal '17

IMSAloquium Student Investigation Showcase

In order to study the plant immune system for benefits in crop production, a protocol was developed to effectively transform the 76R variety Rio-Grande tomato to express the HopZ3 effector protein which is found in Pseudomonas syringae, a bacteria which is pathogenic to plants. Cotyledons from the 76R variety were infected with Agrobacteria to insert HopZ3 bacterial genes into plant cells, and these cotyledons were placed in media with a selection agent and hormones to induce callous growth, plantlet growth, shoot growth, and root growth until only transformed cells remain. In the most successful test thus far, cotyledons have …

Lungs Of The Planet Presentation, Virginia Raguin

Documentation

This slide presentation traces the creative process of Lungs of the Planet, a tile mural depicting line drawings on individual 6 x 6 inch tiles, as well as larger color images of blossoms, fruit, and birds to symbolize the cycle of life.

The mural was created as a collaborative art project by students in the Natural World Cluster of the Monserrat First Year Program at the College of the Holy Cross. The project was led by Virginia Raguin, Distinguished Professor of Humanities at the College. Particpants included students, faculty, staff and community members.

The mural was installed on the west …

Genetically Engineering Plasmid Expression Vectors To Study Cellular Localization Of Reporter Proteins, Rachel Ann Thomas

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

Proteins can enter the nucleus by simple diffusion or by a facilitated transport mechanism known as nuclear import. Facilitated transport requires the presence of a nuclear localization signal (NLS), a relatively short, eight amino acid peptide embedded in the primary structure of the protein (Alberts et al. 2008). The long-term goal of this research project is to create recombinant plasmid expression vectors that can be used by future undergraduate students to study the cellular localization of proteins, including an expression vector to study nuclear import and the nuclear localization signal (NLS). Due to its relatively high molecular weight and its …

Epigenetic Profiles Signify Cell Fate Plasticity In Unipotent Spermatogonial Stem And Progenitor Cells, Ying Liu, Eugenia G. Giannopoulou, Duacheng Wen, Ilaria Falciatori, Oliver Elemento, C. David Allis, Shahin Rafii, Marco Seandel

Publications and Research

Spermatogonial stem and progenitor cells (SSCs) generate adult male gametes. During in vitro expansion, these unipotent murine cells spontaneously convert to multipotent adult spermatogonial-derived stem cells (MASCs). Here we investigate this conversion process through integrative transcriptomic and epigenomic analyses. We find in SSCs that promoters essential to maintenance and differentiation of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are enriched with histone H3-lysine4 and -lysine 27 trimethylations. These bivalent modifications are maintained at most somatic promoters after conversion, bestowing MASCs an ESC-like promoter chromatin. At enhancers, the core pluripotency circuitry is activated partially in SSCs and completely in MASCs, concomitant with loss of …

Origins And Relationships Of The Mixed Mesophytic Forest Of Oregon-Idaho, China, And Kentucky: Review And Synthesis, Jerry M. Baskin, Carol C. Baskin

Biology Faculty Publications

The Arcto-Tertiary Geoflora concept of Ralph Chaney, that the Mixed Mesophytic Forest of eastern Asia and eastern North America are relicts of a Northern Hemisphere high-latitude circumglobal deciduous forest of the Late Cretaceous–Early Tertiary that migrated south to the temperate zone as an intact unit, was shown by Wolfe and others to be invalid. To explain the origin and development of these disjunct forests, Wolfe and Tiffney developed the boreotropical hypothesis. Accordingly, a paratropical (near-tropical) rainforest flora containing a mixture of tropical, paratropical, and temperate genera developed at several places in the middle latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere in the …

Effects Of Germination Season On Life History Traits And On Transgenerational Plasticity In Seed Dormancy In A Cold Desert Annual, Juan J. Lu, Dun Y. Tan, Carol C. Baskin, Jerry M. Baskin

Biology Faculty Publications

The maternal environment can influence the intensity of seed dormancy and thus seasonal germination timing and post-germination life history traits. We tested the hypotheses that germination season influences phenotypic expression of post-germination life history traits in the cold desert annual Isatis violascens and that plants from autumn- and spring-germinating seeds produce different proportions of seeds with nondeep and intermediate physiological dormancy (PD). Seeds were sown in summer and flexibility in various life history traits determined for plants that germinated in autumn and in spring. A higher percentage of spring- than of autumn-germinating plants survived the seedling stage, and all surviving …

The Value Of Long-Term Stream Invertebrate Data Collected By Citizen Scientists, Patrick M. Edwards

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

The purpose of this investigation was to systematically examine the variability associated with temporally-oriented invertebrate data collected by citizen scientists and consider the value of such data for use in stream management. Variability in invertebrate data was estimated for three sources of variation: sampling, within-reach spatial and long-term temporal. Long-term temporal data were also evaluated using ordinations and an Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI). Through two separate investigations over an 11-year study period, participants collected more than 400 within-reach samples during 44 sampling events at three streams in the western United States. Within-reach invertebrate abundance coefficient of variation (CV) ranged …

A Review On The Respiratory System Toxicity Of Carbon Nanoparticles, Maricica Pacurari, Kristine L. Lowe, Paul B. Tchounwou, Ramzi Kafoury

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

The respiratory system represents the main gateway for nanoparticles’ entry into the human body. Although there is a myriad of engineered nanoparticles, carbon nanoparticles/nanotubes (CNPs/CNTs) have received much attention mainly due to their light weight, very high surface area, durability, and their diverse applications. Since their discovery and manufacture over two decades ago, much has been learned about nanoparticles’ interactions with diverse biological system models. In particular, the respiratory system has been of great interest because various natural and man-made fibrous particles are known to be responsible for chronic and debilitating lung diseases. In this review, we present up-to-date the …

Integrative Analysis Reveals Clinical Phenotypes And Oncogenic Potentials Of Long Non-Coding Rnas Across 15 Cancer Types, Ze-Lin Wang, Bin Li, Stephen R. Piccolo, Xiao-Qin Zhang, Jun-Hao Li, Hui Zhou, Jian-Hua Yang, Liang-Hu Qu

Faculty Publications

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been shown to contribute to tumorigenesis. However, surprisingly little is known about the comprehensive clinical and genomic characterization of lncRNAs across human cancer. In this study, we conducted comprehensive analyses for the expression profile, clinical outcomes, somatic copy number alterations (SCNAs) profile of lncRNAs in ~7000 clinical samples from 15 different cancer types. We identified significantly differentially expressed lncRNAs between tumor and normal tissues from each cancer. Notably, we characterized 47 lncRNAs which were extensively dysregulated in at least 10 cancer types, suggesting a conserved function in cancer development. We also analyzed the associations between …

Molecular Self-Assembly Strategy For Generating Catalytic Hybrid Polypeptides, Yoshiaki Maeda, Justin Fang, Yasuhiro Ikezoe, Douglas H. Pike, Vikas Nanda, Hiroshi Matsui

Publications and Research

Recently, catalytic peptides were introduced that mimicked protease activities and showed promising selectivity of products even in organic solvents where protease cannot perform well. However, their catalytic efficiency was extremely low compared to natural enzyme counterparts presumably due to the lack of stable tertiary fold. We hypothesized that assembling these peptides along with simple hydrophobic pockets, mimicking enzyme active sites, could enhance the catalytic activity. Here we fused the sequence of catalytic peptide CP4, capable of protease and esterase-like activities, into a short amyloidogenic peptide fragment of Aβ. When the fused CP4-Aβ construct assembled into antiparallel β- sheets and amyloid …

Data For Amino Acid Alignment Of Japanese Stingray Melanocortin Receptors With Other Gnathostome Melanocortin Receptor Sequences, And The Ligand Selectivity Of Japanese Stingray Melanocortin Receptors, Akiyoshi Takahashi, Perry Davis, Christina Reinick, Kanta Mizusawa, Tatsuya Sakamoto, Robert Dores

Biological Sciences: Faculty Scholarship

This article contains structure and pharmacological characteristics of melanocortin receptors (MCRs) related to research published in “Characterization of melanocortin receptors from stingray Dasyatis akajei, a cartilaginous fish” (Takahashi et al., 2016) [1]. The amino acid sequences of the stingray, D. akajei, MC1R, MC2R, MC3R, MC4R, and MC5R were aligned with the corresponding melanocortin receptor sequences from the elephant shark, Callorhinchus milii, the dogfish, Squalus acanthias, the goldfish, Carassius auratus, and the mouse, Mus musculus. These alignments provide the basis for phylogenetic analysis of these gnathostome melanocortin receptor sequences. In addition, the Japanese stingray melanocortin …

Comparative Analysis Of Ear-Hole Closure Identifies Epimorphic Regeneration As A Discrete Trait In Mammals, Thomas R. Gawriluk, Jennifer Simkin, Katherine L. Thompson, Shishir K. Biswas, Zak Clare-Salzler, John M. Kimani, Stephen G. Kiama, Jeramiah James Smith, Vanessa O. Ezenwa, Ashley W. Seifert

Biology Faculty Publications

Why mammals have poor regenerative ability has remained a long-standing question in biology. In regenerating vertebrates, injury can induce a process known as epimorphic regeneration to replace damaged structures. Using a 4-mm ear punch assay across multiple mammalian species, here we show that several Acomys spp. (spiny mice) and Oryctolagus cuniculus completely regenerate tissue, whereas other rodents including MRL/MpJ ‘healer’ mice heal similar injuries by scarring. We demonstrate ear-hole closure is independent of ear size, and closure rate can be modelled with a cubic function. Cellular and genetic analyses reveal that injury induces blastema formation in Acomys cahirinus. …

Genetically Engineering Plasmid Expression Vectors For Nuclear Localization Studies, Kristina Chantel Krumpos

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

Due to its natural fluorescence, Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) is a preferred reporter protein for cellular localization studies. For use in nuclear localization studies, a fusion protein consisting of multiple copies of GFP must be used to eliminate simple diffusion as a mechanism through which the protein can enter the nucleus. The long-term goal of this research project is to create a plasmid expression vector containing three copies of the GFP gene linked to a single monopartite nuclear localization signal (3GFP-1NLS) and containing the commonly used pCMV eukaryotic promoter. The specific objective of the research study reported here was to …

Elevational Variation In Body-Temperature Response To Immune Challenge In A Lizard, Francisco Javier Zamora-Camacho, Senda Reguera, Gregorio Moreno-Rueda

Dartmouth Scholarship

Immunocompetence benefits animal fitness by combating pathogens, but also entails some costs. One of its main components is fever, which in ectotherms involves two main types of costs: energy expenditure and predation risk. Whenever those costs of fever outweigh its benefits, ectotherms are expected not to develop fever, or even to show hypothermia, reducing costs of thermoregulation and diverting the energy saved to other components of the immune system. Environmental thermal quality, and therefore the thermoregulation cost/benefit balance, varies geographically. Hence, we hypothesize that, in alpine habitats, immune-challenged ectotherms should show no thermal response, given that (1) hypothermia would be …