Biology Commons^™

Sinorhizobium Meliloti Changes Motility Phenotypes In The Presence Of Serum, Eris K. Bisal

Theses and Dissertations

Sinorhizobium meliloti is a nitrogen-fixing flagellated soil bacterium that engages in a mutual symbiotic relationship with the legume Medicago sativa. Using its flagella, S. meliloti is chemotactic in response to varying environmental cues thereby directed to a target, which is typically the root hairs of M. sativa. Lu et al, 2012 suggested that a signal from the plant can switch S. meliloti from a free-living flagellated microbe to a host-invading non-flagellated microbe, although this signal has not been identified. This switch is thought to occur inside curled root hairs of the plant, and after becoming non-flagellated, S. …

Effect Of Vaping And Estrogen/Progesterone On Coagulation Of Blood In Danio Rerio: A Literature Review, Kristen Mccausland

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

With an increase in popularity among young adults using vaping devices (electronic cigarettes) instead of cigarettes, the effects of these vapors combined with other substances, such as oral contraceptives, is not widely studied. Women who smoke traditional cigarettes while taking oral contraceptives have a greater risk for cardiovascular disease, stroke, and thromboembolism. Due to similarities between cigarettes and e-cigarettes, further studies need to examine the effects of e-cigarettes while taking oral contraceptives. This literature review discusses the hypotheses associated with the combined use of vaping devices while taking oral contraceptives. Proposed experimentation includes zebrafish as the model organism. The fish …

High-Throughput Two-Stage Dereplication Of Cave Bacteria To Discover Novel Antibiotic Compounds, Alexander Archey

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Since their discovery over a century ago, antibiotics have been a staple of combating infectious diseases. However, bacteria develop resistance to antibiotics through a variety of mechanisms. Efforts to identify new antibiotics often fail by discovering already-known antibiotics, or failing to synthesize new antibiotics that are safe for clinical use. The aim of this research was to dereplicate bacteria- to screen for antibiotic production in- normally isolated in cave ecosystems. Using two new technologies, the Antibiotic Resistance Platform (ARP) and a data acquisition and bioinformatics technique (IDBac), my dereplicating method allowed high throughput of bacterial screening for antibiotics. In this …

Neuroanatomy Of The Blackspotted Rockskipper, Entomacrodus Striatus, Pooja Dayal

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Here I characterized the central neuroanatomy of the Blackspotted Rockskipper, Entomacrodus striatus, native to French Polynesia. The neuroanatomy of E. striatus has not been studied prior to this paper. I used several histology and antibody staining techniques to accomplish this, including Crystal Violet, immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, and Bielschowsky’s Silver Nitrate staining. This paper describes the most successful techniques used, identifies major structures in the species’ neuroanatomy, and also explains why studying E. striatus is important in the future of vertebrate research.

Pennuto Et Al. Goby Migration Data, Christopher Pennuto

Biology Faculty Datasets

These are data used for a manuscript on round goby nearshore/offshore migration behavior in Lake Ontario. The file is an Excel format that includes raw data for number of fish observed, their sizes, size of gobies in sturgeon guts.

Non-Native Microstegium Vimineum Populations Collapse With Fungal Leaf Spot Disease Outbreak, Robert Warren

Biology Faculty Datasets

Abstract

Non-native plants may meet little resistance in the novel range if they leave their biological enemies at home. As a result, species invasion can be rapid and appear unlimited. However, with time, organisms may acquire novel enemies in the novel range, or home-range enemies also may colonize the novel range. For plants, several authors have suggested that enemy release may give way to enemy acquisition in which pathogens accumulate and suppresses non-native plants. The ‘naturalization’ that occurs with acquired enemies may take decades to develop, yet most species invasion research lasts less than 4 years, and data tracking plant …

Identification Of Imiquimod As A Potential Combination For Anti-Cd47 Antibodies In Cancer Therapy, Nicole Brittaney Pang

Scripps Senior Theses

The avenues of targeted immunotherapy offers a promise of less toxic treatment options for those battling different forms of cancer. Specifically, the process of hijacking a patient’s own immune system to fight cancer from within versus using external treatments like chemotherapy which is extremely damaging to the patient. One such avenue includes the usage of monoclonal antibodies as an effective modality for immunotherapy. Cluster of Differentiation 47 (CD47), also known as the ‘don’t eat me signal’, aids in cell proliferation and evasion of phagocytosis and has been found to be a target for stopping tumorigenesis. Previous research has been successful …

The Development Of Complex Abdominal Spot Patterns In Three Drosophila Species, William A. Dion

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Complex color patterns like the spots on leopards and butterfly wings beg the question – how did these traits evolve? To understand the evolution of novel morphologies, we need to study the differences in morphogenesis between closely related species. Here, I examine and compare the development of complex abdominal spot patterns among three species of Drosophila closely related in evolutionary time. Through in situ hybridization, I have characterized the expression patterns of three pigmentation genes among the fruit fly species. Additionally, I have built upon previous work in our lab regarding the regulation of pigmentation by beginning to develop an …

Using Unmanned Aircraft Systems To Identify Invasive Species, Tithe Ahmed

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Invasive species serve as a threat to native biodiversity and ecosystem sustainability. Combatting the spread of invasive species requires long-term physical and monetary commitments. In Balule Nature Reserve of Greater Kruger National Park, South Africa, Opuntia ficus-inidica (the common prickly pear) has been a relentless invader, displacing the local flora and fauna. The goal of this project is to battle invasive species such as prickly pear using efficient and inexpensive technology: unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones) and multispectral sensors.

Using a 4-bandwidth Parrot Sequoia multispectral sensor in tandem with the DJI Phantom Pro 3^TM UAV, images of land …

Biology News 2020, University Of Northern Iowa. Department Of Biology.

Biology News

Contents:

Letter from the Department Head --- 2
Welcome to Our New Staff Members --- 3
Undergraduate Research --- 4
What's New in Our Department --- 7
Spotlight on Outstanding Teaching --- 9
Outdoors on Campus --- 10
Year in Review for UNI Biology --- 12
Thank you to Donors --- 13
Donor Form / Make a Gift --- 14

Fzr-1 Knockdown In C. Elegans To Test The Role Of Apc/CCdh1 In The Abbreviated Cell Cycle, Cassandra Rigor

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Cancer is characterized by defects in the cell cycle, the program cells use to replicate and divide. One important factor controlling the cell cycle is a protein complex known as the anaphase promoting complex (APC/C^Cdh1). This complex controls the canonical cell cycle, but whether it functions similarly in the abbreviated cell cycle, a non-canonical form of the cell cycle, is unknown. Neural stem cells and embryonic stem cells are examples of cell types that undergo this alternative form of the cell cycle, which is characterized by a shortened G1 phase. We hypothesized that APC/C^Cdh1 is not required …

Combined Genome And Transcriptome Analyses Of The Ciliate Schmidingerella Arcuata (Spirotrichea) Reveal Patterns Of Dna Elimination, Scrambling, And Inversion, Susan A. Smith, Xyrus X. Maurer-Alcalá, Ying Yan, Laura A. Katz, Luciana F. Santoferrara, George B. Mcmanus

Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Schmidingerella arcuata is an ecologically important tintinnid ciliate that has long served as a model species in plankton trophic ecology. We present a partial micronuclear genome and macronuclear transcriptome resource for S. arcuata, acquired using single-cell techniques, and we report on pilot analyses including functional annotation and genome architecture. Our analysis shows major fragmentation, elimination, and scrambling in the micronuclear genome of S. arcuata. This work introduces a new nonmodel genome resource for the study of ciliate ecology and genomic biology and provides a detailed functional counterpart to ecological research on S. arcuata.

Complementary Metagenomic Approaches Improve Reconstruction Of Microbial Diversity In A Forest Soil, L. V. Alteio, F. Schulz, R. Seshadri, N. Varghese, W. Rodriguez-Reillo, E. Ryan, D. Goudeau, S. A. Eichorst, R. R. Malmstrom, R. M. Bowers, Laura A. Katz, J. L. Blanchard, T. Woyke

Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Soil ecosystems harbor diverse microorganisms and yet remain only partially characterized as neither single-cell sequencing nor whole-community sequencing offers a complete picture of these complex communities. Thus, the genetic and metabolic potential of this “uncultivated majority” remains underexplored. To address these challenges, we applied a pooled-cell-sorting-based mini-metagenomics approach and compared the results to bulk metagenomics. Informatic binning of these data produced 200 mini-metagenome assembled genomes (sorted-MAGs) and 29 bulk metagenome assembled genomes (MAGs). The sorted and bulk MAGs increased the known phylogenetic diversity of soil taxa by 7.2% with respect to the Joint Genome Institute IMG/M database and showed clade-specific …

The Utilization Of Eukaryotic Cell Types In Microbiomes For Semen, Vaginal Fluid, And Menstrual Blood Identification Using 18s Rdna, Ines Benaissa

Master of Science in Forensic Science Directed Research Projects

The accurate identification of body fluids is vital for crime scene investigation and forensic analysis. While many body fluids can be presumptively identified, there is a lack of confirmatory testing for verification. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine if body fluids (menstrual blood, vaginal fluid, and semen) could be differentiated based on their eukaryotic microbial communities. The target area of interest was the V9 hyper-variable region of 18S ribosomal DNA (18S rDNA). The samples were extracted, barcoded using a duel-index strategy, and PCR amplified before undergoing high throughput sequencing using the Illumina Miseq FGx instrument. The samples …

Development Of A Quantitative Pcr (Qpcr) Based Method For Studying Temporal Dna Degradation In Waterlogged Bone, Isis Thornton

Master of Science in Forensic Science Directed Research Projects

Human activities are often centered around the presence of water, thus it is not surprising that there are many water-related human deaths. Accumulated degree days (ADD), and other aquatic variables may affect DNA retrieval from waterlogged bone. Calcium and collagen in bone can inhibit the PCR necessary to produce an STR profile; the current solution is a time-consuming organic extraction. While there are examples of research on DNA degradation in terrestrial bone over time, there has been little work done on submerged bone samples and they are usually limited to case studies. The major aim of this study was to …

Biological Pathways Associated With Wild And Domestic Animals, Cayla Steemer, Laura Carson, Jim Hu, Gloria Regisford

Pursue: Undergraduate Research Journal

Background: Zoonotic diseases are problematic, in that, they impact both wild and domestic animals alike. Thus, there is a need to investigate the genomes of wild and domestic. Gene ontology (GO) is a major bioinformatics initiative, whereby descriptions of gene products across the database are developed and unified to describe all species. This process is performed by biocurators, who gather, annotate, and validate information on the databases, consequently affording easy access to accurate and updated data. In this study, we investigated the biocuration of two biological processes, DNA integration, which is used for DNA coding, and the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) …

Energy Content Of Seeds Of Common Sunflowers (Helianthus Annuus) In The Diet Of Scaled Quail (Callipepla Squamata) In Southeastern New Mexico, John L. Hunt, Matthew E. Grilliot, Troy L. Best, Dixie Lozano-Lopez, Emily R. Neilson, Isaac C. Castillo

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

We analyzed the energy content of seeds of common sunflowers (Helianthus annuus) obtained from the crops of scaled quail (Callipepla squamata) collected from plains-mesa sand-scrub habitat in Eddy and Lea counties, New Mexico. Seeds were removed from crops and dried for 48 hours at 60°C to remove moisture and to standardize masses. Seeds were then analyzed for gross caloric value (i.e., energy content) in an oxygen bomb calorimeter. Energy content of seeds of common sunflowers from New Mexico was greater than that of many seeds previously reported from the diet of scaled quail and other granivorous …

Helminth Parasites Of Eastern Screech Owl, Megascops Asio (Aves: Strigiformes: Strigidae) From Arkansas, Chris T. Mcallister, Henry W. Robison

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

The eastern screech owl (Megascops asio) is a small owl that is relatively common in eastern North America. Nothing is known of the parasites of this owl in Arkansas. Here, we document 3 helminths from a single injured M. asio that subsequently died and was donated by a rehabilitation center for parasitic examination. Found were 2 digenetic trematodes, Brachylaima mcintoshi and Neodiplostomumamericanum, and a habronematid nematode, Excisa excisiformis. The former trematode represents a new host record for M. asio, and B. mcintoshi and E. excisiformis are reported from Arkansas for the first time.

Characterisation Of Carbapenem-Resistant Gram-Negative Organisms From Clinical Specimens In Yola, Nigeria, Shuwaram A. Shettima, Isabella A. Tickler, Caitlin M. Dela Cruz, Fred C. Tenover

Biology Faculty Publications

Objectives: This study aimed to identify carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacteria from clinical specimens of patients in Yola, Nigeria.

Methods: Routine clinical specimens were screened for the presence of carbapenem-resistant Gramnegative bacteria using chromogenic agar plates. Susceptibility of all presumptive isolates to carbapenems was tested by MIC and disk diffusion methods. Real-time PCR was used to test for the presence of carbapenemase genes.

Results: Screening of 1741 clinical specimens yielded 119 (6.8%) presumptive carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacteria. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing confirmed carbapenem resistance in 105 of these isolates. New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase (blaNDM) gene was detected in 26 isolates and Verona integron-encoded metallo-β-lactamase (bla …

Spatial And Temporal Genetic Structure Of Winter-Run Steelhead (Oncorhynchus Mykiss) Returning To The Mad River, California, Steven R. Fong

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Distinct populations of steelhead in the wild are in decline. The propagation of steelhead in hatcheries has been used to boost population numbers for recreational fisheries and for use in conservation. However, hatchery breeding practices of steelhead can result in changes in genetic structure. I investigated the genetic structure of winter-run steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) returning to the Mad River, California, where a hatchery has been used enhance production for recreational fisheries since 1971. Genetic variability in Mad River steelhead was evaluated using 96 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) among 4203 individuals, including the Mad River and nearby locations, and …

The Effects Of Induced Polycystic Ovary Syndrome In Nag-1 Transgenic Mice, Nicholas Werner

All Master's Theses

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the leading cause of infertility among women in the US and the most common endocrine disorder among women. PCOS is characterized by cystic ovaries, hyperandrogenism (heightened levels of male sex hormones), altered menstrual cycles and various metabolic dysfunctions. The metabolic symptoms associated with PCOS are difficult to treat, as they are a result of hormonal imbalances, rather than diet. The human Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug Activated Gene (NAG-1) been shown to prevent diet-induced metabolic disorders and weight gain in mice. We hypothesized that the expression of NAG-1 may also prevent hormonal-induced metabolic disorders. To test this …

Group Differences In Mother-Infant Macaca Fascicularis Behavior, Parasite Load, And Body Condition Within An Anthropogenically Altered Forest, Elizabeth M.C. Coggeshall

All Master's Theses

This study aimed to establish preliminary health and behavioral data, as well as understand group variation for a large population of Macaca fascicularis individuals within an anthropogenically altered monkey forest. A parasitic analysis of 40 mother and infant individuals showed that M. fascicularis carried 13 different parasitic taxa, and that there was parasitic variation between groups. Body condition scores were determined using a newly created and adapted body condition scale from 146 sampled mother macaques. Body condition scores were significantly different between groups, specifically the pond group when compared to the three other groups. Mother-infant behavioral differences were seen between …

Effects Of Western Spruce Budworm Herbivory On Forest Soils And Litter Decomposition In Central Washington, Izak R. Neziri

All Master's Theses

Disturbances by herbivores can drive nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems by adding frass, carcasses, and molts to the forest floor which are broken down into nitrogen, phosphorous, and other elements to be recycled into biomass. Western spruce budworms are defoliators native to the central Cascades and their herbivory could increase the decomposition rate of forest materials by adding essential nutrients and/or by increasing light and rainfall penetration to the forest floor by thinning the forest canopy during outbreaks. Budworm defoliation events are expected to increase in severity as the climate warms, potentially altering forest ecosystem function. The purpose of this …

The Utilization Of Sex Hormone Antibodies For Screening And Separation Of Trace Biological Mixtures, Kristin N. Jones

Master of Science in Forensic Science Directed Research Projects

Touch or trace evidence consists of epidermal cells deposited by contact with items such as handled objects, touched surfaces, or worn clothes. This type of evidence has surpassed most other sample types submitted to forensic labs and typically consists of low quantities of DNA and multiple contributors. In this study epithelial skin cells, i.e., “touch/trace evidence,” were used as they are estimated to constitute approximately half of the casework evidence items submitted for DNA analysis. For the optimization of antibody staining, male and female skin epithelial samples from donors were incubated and hybridized with antibodies of various concentrations of Alexa …

Coculture Model Of Blood-Brain Barrier On Electrospun Nanofibers, Mustafa Görkem Özyurt, Ece Bayir, Şule Doğan, Şükrü Öztürk, Ayli̇n Şendemi̇r

Turkish Journal of Biology

The blood-brain barrier (BBB) is a control mechanism that limits the diffusion of many substances to the central nervous system (CNS). In this study, we designed an in-vitro 3-dimensional BBB system to obtain a fast and reliable model to mimic drug delivery characteristics of the CNS. A support membrane of polycaprolactone nanofiber surfaces was prepared using electrospinning. After confirming the fiber morphology and size, endothelial cells (HUVEC) and glial cells were cultured on either side of this membrane. The model's similarity to in vivo physiology was tested with a home-designed transmembrane resistance (TR) device, with positive and negative control molecules. …

Poly (I:C)- And Doxorubicin-Loaded Magnetic Dendrimeric Nanoparticles Affect The Apoptosis-Related Gene Expressions In Mcf-7 Cells, Rouhollah Khodadust, Aktan Alpsoy, Gözde Ünsoy, Ufuk Gündüz

Turkish Journal of Biology

Use of nanoparticles as drug carrier vectors has great potential to circumvent the limitations associated with chemotherapy, including drug resistance and destructive side effects. For this purpose, magnetic generation 4 dendrimeric nanoparticles were prepared to carry chemotherapeutic agent doxorubicin (G:4-DOX) and immune modulator polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid [Poly(I:C)]. As previously reported, DOX and Poly(I:C) was loaded onto G4 nanoparticles (PIC-G4-DOX). Cellular internalization study using confocal microscopy demonstrated high levels of cellular internalization of PIC-G4-DOX nanoparticles by MCF-7 cells. This resulted in higher efficacy of PIC-G4-DOX nanoparticles in killing MCF-7 breast cancer cells. Alteration in the expression levels of selected genes was determined …

Ubiquitin-Specific Protease 7 Downregulation Suppresses Breast Cancer In Vitro, Taha Bartu Hayal, Ayşegül Doğan, Hati̇ce Burcu Şi̇şli̇, Bi̇nnur Kiratli, Fi̇kretti̇n Şahi̇n

Turkish Journal of Biology

Because breast cancer is complicated at the pathological, histological, clinical, and molecular levels, identification of new genetic targets against carcinogenic pathways is required to generate clinically relevant treatment options. In the current study, ubiquitinspecific protease 7 (USP7), which regulates various cellular pathways including Mdm2, p53, and NFκB, was selected as a potential gene editing strategy for breast cancer in vitro. Anticancer activity of USP7 gene suppression has been evaluated through cell proliferation, gene expression, cell cycle, sphere dissemination, and cell migration analysis. Here, siRNA and shRNA strategies and an allosteric small-molecule inhibitor of USP7 were used to define potential anticancer …

Akt-Mediated Phosphorylation Of Twist1 Is Essential For Breast Cancer Cell Metastasis, Mustafa Gökhan Ertosun, Suray Pehli̇vanoğlu, Sayra Di̇lmaç, Gamze Tanriöver, Osman Ni̇dai̇ Özeş

Turkish Journal of Biology

Previously, it was shown that human TWIST1 (basic helix-loop-helix (b-HLH) is phosphorylated by Akt kinase at S42, T121, and S123. To show in vivo effect of these phosphorylations, we created mouse TWIST1 expression vector and converted the codons of S42, T125, and S127 to unphosphorylatable alanine and phosphorylation mimicking Glutamic acid. We hypothesized that alanine mutants would inhibit the metastatic ability of 4T1 cells while glutamic acid mutants would convert nonmetastatic 67NR cells into metastatic phenotype. To confirm this hypothesis, we created metastatic 4T1 and nonmetastatic 67NR cells expressing alanine mutants and glutamic acid mutants mouse TWIST1, respectively. Then, we …

Simultaneous Production Of Alpha And Beta Amylase Enzymes Using Separate Gene Bearing Recombinant Vectors In The Same Escherichia Coli Cells, Di̇lek Özcan Yardim, Hi̇kmet Murat Si̇pahi̇oğlu

Turkish Journal of Biology

The present study describes the simultaneous expression of thermostable industrial alpha (α) and beta (ß) amylase enzymes that have been used widely in starch industry. Genomic DNA of Bacillus stearothermophilus DSM 22 strain for α amylase and, Thermoanaerobacterium (Clostridium) thermosulfurogenes DSM 2229 strain for ß amylase were used as gene sources. Both genes were ligated into pETDuet-1 expression vector separately and resulting recombinant vectors were transformed into Escherichia coli BL21 competent cells by electroporation. The cells were first transformed by pETDuet-1/ αAmy recombinant plasmid, then the competent cells carrying this plasmid were prepared for the transformation of pETDuet-1/ ßAmy plasmid. …

Prediction, Isolation, Overexpression And Antifungal Activity Analysis Of Medicago Truncatula Var. Truncatula Putative Thaumatin Like Proteins (Tlp-1, -2, -3, -4 And -5), Maryam Saeidi, Reza Zareie

Turkish Journal of Biology

Pathogenesis-related proteins (PR-proteins) are induced in response to environmental stresses such as osmotic and drought stress, wounding, microbial infections and treatment with specific plant hormones and elicitors. These proteins are classified into several groups (PR-1 through PR-17) based on their amino acid sequence and biochemical functions. The present study focuses on prediction, isolation, over-expression and analysis of the antifungal activities of the thaumatin-like proteins (i.e. PR-5) in the model legume M. truncatula var. truncatula. Analysis of M. truncatula genome sequence, available freely on the NCBI website, indicated the presence of at least 15 PR-5 Open Reading Frames (ORFs), 5 of …