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2021

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Articles 1711 - 1740 of 2057

Full-Text Articles in Biology

Comparison Of Antibiotic Resistance In Biofilm, Sediment, And Planktonic Communities Of The James River, Mary Bernadette Coughter Jan 2021

Comparison Of Antibiotic Resistance In Biofilm, Sediment, And Planktonic Communities Of The James River, Mary Bernadette Coughter

Theses and Dissertations

Antibiotic resistance spread within aquatic bacterial communities, particularly ones in urban areas, is in part driven by wastewater inflows that may contain both elevated concentrations of antibiotics and increased abundance of antibiotic resistant bacteria. These can be transmitted into the environment via release of treated wastewater, since removal of these compounds by most wastewater treatment facilities is inadequate, or by release of untreated waste from leaking wastewater treatment networks and overflow of combined sewer systems. This study used the James River and the City of Richmond wastewater network as a model urban waterway to study both types of impacts. Shotgun …

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The Interspecific Growth–Mortality Trade-Off Is Not A General Framework For Tropical Forest Community Structure, Sabrina E. Russo, Sean M. Mcmahon, Matteo Detto, Glenn Ledder, S. Joseph Wright, Richard S. Condit, Stuart J. Davies, Peter S. Ashton, Sarayudh Bunyavejchewin, Chia-Hao Chang-Yang, Sisira Ediriweera, Corneille E.N. Ewango, Christine Fletcher, Robin B. Foster, C.V. Savi Gunatilleke, I.A.U. Nimal Gunatilleke, Terese Hart, Chang-Fu Hseih, Stephen P. Hubbell, Akira Itoh, Abdul Rahman Kassim, Yao Tze Leong, Yi Ching Lin, Jean-Remy Makana, Mohizah Bt. Mohamad, Perry Ong, Anna Sugiyama, I-Fang Sun, Sylvester Tan, Jill Thompson, Takuo Yamakura, Sandra L. Yap, Jess K. Zimmerman Jan 2021

The Interspecific Growth–Mortality Trade-Off Is Not A General Framework For Tropical Forest Community Structure, Sabrina E. Russo, Sean M. Mcmahon, Matteo Detto, Glenn Ledder, S. Joseph Wright, Richard S. Condit, Stuart J. Davies, Peter S. Ashton, Sarayudh Bunyavejchewin, Chia-Hao Chang-Yang, Sisira Ediriweera, Corneille E.N. Ewango, Christine Fletcher, Robin B. Foster, C.V. Savi Gunatilleke, I.A.U. Nimal Gunatilleke, Terese Hart, Chang-Fu Hseih, Stephen P. Hubbell, Akira Itoh, Abdul Rahman Kassim, Yao Tze Leong, Yi Ching Lin, Jean-Remy Makana, Mohizah Bt. Mohamad, Perry Ong, Anna Sugiyama, I-Fang Sun, Sylvester Tan, Jill Thompson, Takuo Yamakura, Sandra L. Yap, Jess K. Zimmerman

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Resource allocation within trees is a zero-sum game. Unavoidable trade-offs dictate that allocation to growth-promoting functions curtails other functions, generating a gradient of investment in growth versus survival along which tree species align, known as the interspecific growth–mortality trade-off. This paradigm is widely accepted but not well established. Using demographic data for 1,111 tree species across ten tropical forests, we tested the generality of the growth–mortality trade-off and evaluated its underlying drivers using two species-specific parameters describing resource allocation strategies: tolerance of resource limitation and responsiveness of allocation to resource access. Globally, a canonical growth–mortality trade-off emerged, but the trade-off …

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Vertebrate Subfossil Localities In Taylorsville Metropark, Montgomery County, Ohio, Usa, Ryan Shell, Kristin Zimmerman, David Peterman, Charles Ciampaglio, Lauren Fuelling, Stephen J. Jacquemin Jan 2021

Vertebrate Subfossil Localities In Taylorsville Metropark, Montgomery County, Ohio, Usa, Ryan Shell, Kristin Zimmerman, David Peterman, Charles Ciampaglio, Lauren Fuelling, Stephen J. Jacquemin

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Karst features in the Silurian dolomites of Taylorsville MetroPark (Dayton Metropolitan Area, Ohio, United States) were explored from 2017 to 2018 to identify sites of paleontological interest. Initial landscape surveys recovered 124 skeletal elements (from 12 sites) that were attributed to 17 vertebrate species--including evidence of such extirpated animals as bobcats (Lynx rufus) and rattlesnakes (Crotalus sp.). Of the 12 sites, 9 sites contained remains from the historical era and 3 sites contained much older remains (n = 17) that were radiocarbon dated to approximately 1,400 years before present (YBP). Human remains at one site, butchered bones at another, and …

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Evaluating Winter Malting Barley Grain Yield With Fractional Green Canopy Cover, Gregory J. Mcglinch, Stephen J. Jacquemin, Laura E. Lindsey Jan 2021

Evaluating Winter Malting Barley Grain Yield With Fractional Green Canopy Cover, Gregory J. Mcglinch, Stephen J. Jacquemin, Laura E. Lindsey

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Because of growth in the craft brewing industry, farmers in the eastern United States are planting winter malting barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) to meet demands for locally sourced grain. However, given that barley is a relatively new crop in this region, basic agronomic information relating to stand assessment is needed. This is particularly relevant in this region, as climatic variability from extreme temperature fluctuations during the winter and spring can reduce a barley stand, creating the need for farmers to estimate grain yield potential. The objective of the research was to evaluate the relationship between spring stem counts, fractional …

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Importance Of Fossil And Archaeological Occurrence Data For Understanding The Evolution And Distribution Of The Freshwater Drum (A. Grunniens)., Stephen J. Jacquemin, Lauren J. Fuelling, G. Stringer, A. Smith, Charles N. Ciampaglio Jan 2021

Importance Of Fossil And Archaeological Occurrence Data For Understanding The Evolution And Distribution Of The Freshwater Drum (A. Grunniens)., Stephen J. Jacquemin, Lauren J. Fuelling, G. Stringer, A. Smith, Charles N. Ciampaglio

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

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Importance And Challenges Of Monitoring Harmful Algal Blooms In Grand Lake St Marys, Stephen J. Jacquemin, M. Morden, C. Ewing, J. C. Doll Jan 2021

Importance And Challenges Of Monitoring Harmful Algal Blooms In Grand Lake St Marys, Stephen J. Jacquemin, M. Morden, C. Ewing, J. C. Doll

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

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Seed Priming With Phytohormones: An Effective Approach For The Mitigation Of Abiotic Stress, Mohammad Saidur Rhaman, Shahin Imran, Farjana Rauf, Mousumi Khatun, Carol C. Baskin, Yoshiyuki Murata, Mirza Hasanuzzaman Jan 2021

Seed Priming With Phytohormones: An Effective Approach For The Mitigation Of Abiotic Stress, Mohammad Saidur Rhaman, Shahin Imran, Farjana Rauf, Mousumi Khatun, Carol C. Baskin, Yoshiyuki Murata, Mirza Hasanuzzaman

Biology Faculty Publications

Plants are often exposed to abiotic stresses such as drought, salinity, heat, cold, and heavy metals that induce complex responses, which result in reduced growth as well as crop yield. Phytohormones are well known for their regulatory role in plant growth and development, and they serve as important chemical messengers, allowing plants to function during exposure to various stresses. Seed priming is a physiological technique involving seed hydration and drying to improve metabolic processes prior to germination, thereby increasing the percentage and rate of germination and improving seedling growth and crop yield under normal and various biotic and abiotic stresses. …

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Use Of Lymesim 2.0 To Assess The Potential For Single And Integrated Management Methods To Control Blacklegged Ticks (Ixodes Scapularis; Acari: Ixodidae) And Transmission Of Lyme Disease Spirochetes, Shravani Chitineni, Elizabeth R. Gleim, Holly D. Gaff Jan 2021

Use Of Lymesim 2.0 To Assess The Potential For Single And Integrated Management Methods To Control Blacklegged Ticks (Ixodes Scapularis; Acari: Ixodidae) And Transmission Of Lyme Disease Spirochetes, Shravani Chitineni, Elizabeth R. Gleim, Holly D. Gaff

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Annual Lyme disease cases continue to rise in the U.S. making it the most reported vector-borne illness in the country. The pathogen (Borrelia burgdorferi) and primary vector (Ixodes scapularis; blacklegged tick) dynamics of Lyme disease are complicated by the multitude of vertebrate hosts and varying environmental factors, making models an ideal tool for exploring disease dynamics in a time- and cost-effective way. In the current study, LYMESIM 2.0, a mechanistic model, was used to explore the effectiveness of three commonly used tick control methods: habitat-targeted acaricide (spraying), rodent-targeted acaricide (bait boxes), and white-tailed deer targeted acaricide (4-poster …

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Qualitative And Quantitative Characterization Of Epithelial Cell Mixtures Using Hormone Antibody Probes And Flow Cytometry, Luke Baldridge Jan 2021

Qualitative And Quantitative Characterization Of Epithelial Cell Mixtures Using Hormone Antibody Probes And Flow Cytometry, Luke Baldridge

Master of Science in Forensic Science Directed Research Projects

“Touch” DNA is evidence that consists of epidermal cells deposited by handling objects and it is becoming more common in evidence samples processed in crime labs. Because “touch” DNA evidence samples may be low-template DNA and are often mixtures, there is a need to both nondestructively estimate the amount of DNA present prior to DNA purification and to identify and characterize mixtures prior to DNA typing. The purpose of this study was to test the use of FITC-labeled anti-testosterone antibodies as a potential tool to estimate the number of contributors in two-, three-, and four-person mixtures of epidermal skin cells, …

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Quantifying The Effects Of Early Competition On Niche Specialization: A Natural Experiment In A Restored System, Christy Nicole Wails Jan 2021

Quantifying The Effects Of Early Competition On Niche Specialization: A Natural Experiment In A Restored System, Christy Nicole Wails

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Islands support the greatest numbers of endemic species but are highly vulnerable to human activities. In particular, the introduction of invasive, predatory mammals (e.g., rodents) has resulted in sharp declines of island fauna due to a lack of evolved behavioral capacities to avoid depredation. Because of this, invasive species are considered to be one of the most detrimental impacts to biodiversity. To combat this biodiversity loss, the eradication of invasive mammals is now a primary conservation tool, with > 700 attempts globally. However, mammal eradications are predicated on the assumption that islands will naturally return to their pre-invaded condition. Yet many …

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Chemical Niche Divergence In Sympatric Lemurs: Understanding Species' Food Selection, Chloe Nicole Marie Gherardi Jan 2021

Chemical Niche Divergence In Sympatric Lemurs: Understanding Species' Food Selection, Chloe Nicole Marie Gherardi

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The integration of nutritional ecology into primatology has provided considerable insight into the feeding strategies of primates, and the ecological factors limiting populations - critical knowledge in a world of rapidly changing habitats. The eastern rainforest of Madagascar is home to one of the world’s most diverse primate communities, often hosting over 12 sympatric lemur species; however, the ecological mechanisms by which these species are able to coexist are not well understood. Two species within this community that have been especially understudied are the nocturnal and folivorous Avahi laniger and Lepilemur mustelinus. My research team observed and collected feeding data …

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Lynn Margulis And Boris Kozo-Polyansky: How The Symbiogenesis Was Translated From Russian, Victor Fet Jan 2021

Lynn Margulis And Boris Kozo-Polyansky: How The Symbiogenesis Was Translated From Russian, Victor Fet

Biological Sciences Faculty Research

This contribution details the complex history of the early work by Boris Kozo-Polyansky (1924) that became available in English translation 86 years after it was published in Russian. The great American naturalist Lynn Margulis—whose serial endosymbiosis theory was presciently predated by Kozo-Polyansky by four decades—was instrumental in organizing this resurrection and ‘horizontal transfer’ of knowledge, forgotten by that time even in Russia.

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Results Of Bdistmds And Barclay Are Generally Similar And Confirm Baraminological Conclusions For The Landfowl, Timothy R. Brophy Jan 2021

Results Of Bdistmds And Barclay Are Generally Similar And Confirm Baraminological Conclusions For The Landfowl, Timothy R. Brophy

Faculty Publications and Presentations

Wood (2020a, b) recently introduced BARCLAY, a statistical baraminology web application designed to revise and replace BDISTMDS (Wood 2008). Revisions included use of Jaccard distances in addition to classical “baraminic distances,” replacement of parametric Pearson correlations with the nonparametric Spearman, and addition of medoid partitioning (PAM) and fuzzy analysis (FANNY) clustering techniques (Kaufman and Rousseeuw 1990). A BDISTMDS analysis of the landfowl (Aves: Gallifomes) suggested the possibility of four holobaramins within this order (Brophy and Mullis in press). Hybridization, however, connected three of these holobaramins and the authors ultimately concluded that the landfowl were composed of only two holobaramins (Megapodiidae …

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The Relationship Between Population Dynamics And Dietary Preferences Within Two Snake Genera (Storeria And Thamnophis), Molly M. Dixon Jan 2021

The Relationship Between Population Dynamics And Dietary Preferences Within Two Snake Genera (Storeria And Thamnophis), Molly M. Dixon

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Amidst massive losses in biodiversity, it is vital to identify the factors driving species declines. The main objective of this research was to assess dietary differences between Storeria dekayi and Thamnophis sirtalis and their less abundant and more geographically restricted sister species, Storeria occipitomaculata and Thamnophis butleri, in Illinois and Michigan. I hypothesized that greater abundance and more cosmopolitan distribution are associated with consuming a wide variety of prey and more nonnative prey. To assess diets, I conducted field surveys of Storeria and Thamnophis and analyzed DNA metabarcoding data from fecal samples. I found no significant difference in the …

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Novel Insights To Be Gained From Applying Metacommunity Theory To Long-Term, Spatially Replicated Biodiversity Data, Sydne Record, Nicole M. Voelker, Phoebe L. Zarnetske, Nathan I. Wisnoski, Jonathan D. Tonkin, Christopher Swan, Luca Marazzi, Nina Lany, Thomas Lamy, Ado Compagnoni, Max C. N. Castorani, Riley Andrade, Eric R. Sokol Jan 2021

Novel Insights To Be Gained From Applying Metacommunity Theory To Long-Term, Spatially Replicated Biodiversity Data, Sydne Record, Nicole M. Voelker, Phoebe L. Zarnetske, Nathan I. Wisnoski, Jonathan D. Tonkin, Christopher Swan, Luca Marazzi, Nina Lany, Thomas Lamy, Ado Compagnoni, Max C. N. Castorani, Riley Andrade, Eric R. Sokol

Biology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Global loss of biodiversity and its associated ecosystem services is occurring at an alarming rate and is predicted to accelerate in the future. Metacommunity theory provides a framework to investigate multi-scale processes that drive change in biodiversity across space and time. Short-term ecological studies across space have progressed our understanding of biodiversity through a metacommunity lens, however, such snapshots in time have been limited in their ability to explain which processes, at which scales, generate observed spatial patterns. Temporal dynamics of metacommunities have been understudied, and large gaps in theory and empirical data have hindered progress in our understanding of …

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Responses Of Stomatal Features And Photosynthesis To Porewater N Enrichment And Elevated Atmospheric Co2 In Phragmites Australis, The Common Reed, Julian R. Garrison, Joshua S. Caplan, Vladimir Douhovnikoff, Thomas J. Mozdzer, Barry A. Logan Jan 2021

Responses Of Stomatal Features And Photosynthesis To Porewater N Enrichment And Elevated Atmospheric Co2 In Phragmites Australis, The Common Reed, Julian R. Garrison, Joshua S. Caplan, Vladimir Douhovnikoff, Thomas J. Mozdzer, Barry A. Logan

Biology Faculty Research and Scholarship

PREMISE Biological invasions increasingly threaten native biodiversity and ecosystem services. One notable example is the common reed, Phragmites australis, which aggressively invades North American salt marshes. Elevated atmospheric CO2 and nitrogen pollution enhance its growth and facilitate invasion because P. australis responds more strongly to these enrichments than do native species. We investigated how modifications to stomatal features contribute to strong photosynthetic responses to CO2 and nitrogen enrichment in P. australis by evaluating stomatal shifts under experimental conditions and relating them to maximal stomatal conductance (g(wmax)) and photosynthetic rates.

METHODS Plants were grown in situ in open-top chambers under ambient …

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Studies Of Insect Temporal Trends Must Account For The Complex Sampling Histories Inherent To Many Long-Term Monitoring Efforts, Ellen A.R. Welti, Anthony Joern, Aaron M. Ellison, David C. Lightfoot, Sydne Record, Nicholas Rodenhouse, Emily H. Stanley, Michael Kaspari Jan 2021

Studies Of Insect Temporal Trends Must Account For The Complex Sampling Histories Inherent To Many Long-Term Monitoring Efforts, Ellen A.R. Welti, Anthony Joern, Aaron M. Ellison, David C. Lightfoot, Sydne Record, Nicholas Rodenhouse, Emily H. Stanley, Michael Kaspari

Biology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Crossley et al. (2020)1 examine patterns of change in insect abundance and diversity across US Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) sites, concluding “a lack of overall increase or decline”. This is notable if true, given mixed conclusions in the literature regarding the nature and ubiquity of insect declines across regions and insect taxonomic groups2–6. The data analyzed, downloaded from and collected by US LTER sites, represent unique time series of arthropod abundances. These long-term datasets often provide critical insights, capturing both steady changes and responses to sudden unpredictable events. However, a number of the included datasets are not …

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Broadening The Ecological Mindset, Ellison M. Aaron, Audrey A. Barker Plotkin, Manisha V. Patel, Sydne Record Jan 2021

Broadening The Ecological Mindset, Ellison M. Aaron, Audrey A. Barker Plotkin, Manisha V. Patel, Sydne Record

Biology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Over the past three decades, the Harvard Forest Summer Research Program in Ecology (HF-SRPE) has been at the forefront of expanding the ecological tent for minoritized or otherwise marginalized students. By broadening the definition of ecology to include fields such as data science, software engineering, and remote sensing, we attract a broader range of students, including those who may not prioritize field experiences or who may feel unsafe working in rural or urban field sites. We also work towards a more resilient society in which minoritized or marginalized students can work safely, in part by building teams of students and …

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A Test Of Species Distribution Model Transferability Across Environmental And Geographic Space For 108 Western North American Tree Species, Noah D. Charney, Sydne Record, Beth E. Gerstner, Cory Merow, Phoebe L. Zarnetske, Brian J. Enquist Jan 2021

A Test Of Species Distribution Model Transferability Across Environmental And Geographic Space For 108 Western North American Tree Species, Noah D. Charney, Sydne Record, Beth E. Gerstner, Cory Merow, Phoebe L. Zarnetske, Brian J. Enquist

Biology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Predictions from species distribution models (SDMs) are commonly used in support of environmental decision-making to explore potential impacts of climate change on biodiversity. However, because future climates are likely to differ from current climates, there has been ongoing interest in understanding the ability of SDMs to predict species responses under novel conditions (i.e., model transferability). Here, we explore the spatial and environmental limits to extrapolation in SDMs using forest inventory data from 11 model algorithms for 108 tree species across the western United States. Algorithms performed well in predicting occurrence for plots that occurred in the same geographic region in …

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Ecocomdp: A Flexible Data Design Pattern For Ecological Community Survey Data, Margaret O'Brien, Colin A. Smith, Eric R. Sokol, Corinna Gries, Nina Lany, Sydne Record, Max C. N. Castorani Jan 2021

Ecocomdp: A Flexible Data Design Pattern For Ecological Community Survey Data, Margaret O'Brien, Colin A. Smith, Eric R. Sokol, Corinna Gries, Nina Lany, Sydne Record, Max C. N. Castorani

Biology Faculty Research and Scholarship

The idea of harmonizing data is not new. Decades of amassing data in databases according to community standards - both locally and globally - have been more successful for some research domains than others. It is particularly difficult to harmonize data across studies where sampling protocols vary greatly and complex environmental conditions need to be understood to apply analytical methods correctly. However, a body of longterm ecological community observations is increasingly becoming publicly available and has been used in important studies. Here, we discuss an approach to preparing harmonized community survey data by an environmental data repository, in collaboration with …

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The Iron-Responsive Genome Of The Chiton Acanthopleura Granulata, Rebecca M. Varney, Daniel Isaac Speiser, Carmel Mcdougall, Bernard M. Degnan, Kevin M. Kocot Jan 2021

The Iron-Responsive Genome Of The Chiton Acanthopleura Granulata, Rebecca M. Varney, Daniel Isaac Speiser, Carmel Mcdougall, Bernard M. Degnan, Kevin M. Kocot

Faculty Publications

Molluscs biomineralize structures that vary in composition, form, and function, prompting questions about the genetic mechanisms responsible for their production and the evolution of these mechanisms. Chitons (Mollusca, Polyplacophora) are a promising system for studies of biomineralization because they build a range of calcified structures including shell plates and spine- or scale-like sclerites. Chitons also harden the calcified teeth of their rasp-like radula with a coat of iron (as magnetite). Here we present the genome of the West Indian fuzzy chiton Acanthopleura granulata, the first from any aculiferan mollusc. The A. granulata genome contains homologs of many genes associated …

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Fishes Of The Cypress Creek System, Tennessee River Drainage, Jeffery M. Ray, Mitchell S. Lovell, Benjamin S. Wilson, Stuart W. Mcgregor, Gary A. Hastert Jan 2021

Fishes Of The Cypress Creek System, Tennessee River Drainage, Jeffery M. Ray, Mitchell S. Lovell, Benjamin S. Wilson, Stuart W. Mcgregor, Gary A. Hastert

Biology

Cypress Creek is a northern tributary to the Tennessee River (Pickwick Lake) in Lauderdale County, Alabama, and Wayne County, Tennessee, with a drainage area of 214 square miles. Although repeatedly sampled for fishes such as Slackwater Darter, Etheostoma boschungi, Tuscumbia Darter, E. tuscumbia, and Flame Chub, Hemitremia flammea, over the past several decades, the last comprehensive fish survey of the watershed was conducted in 1971, and changes in the fish fauna and community composition may have occurred. Historical data (1845‐ 2019) containing 5,105 records was compiled for 109 species reported at least once from the Cypress Creek system. Samples from …

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Examining A Functional Interaction Between Chromatin Remodeler Chd1 And Histone H1 In D. Melanogaster, Breanna Kim Jan 2021

Examining A Functional Interaction Between Chromatin Remodeler Chd1 And Histone H1 In D. Melanogaster, Breanna Kim

Scripps Senior Theses

Chromodomain-helicase-DNA-binding-protein-1 (CHD1) is a highly conserved ATP- dependent remodeling protein. It is localized to active genes and directs nucleosome spacing, while its loss has been linked to various human diseases, such as human prostate cancer. In Drosophila, CHD1 is important for fertility and wing development, and overexpression of CHD1 leads to severe wing vein defect phenotypes. The Linker Histone H1, which is known for maintaining heterochromatin and is associated with inactive genes, had been previously identified as a possible functional partner of CHD1, though the exact nature of their interaction is unclear. I undertook a genetic approach to examining the …

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Effect Of Tropical Cyclones On Coastal Marine Ecosystems, Xenia Neal Jan 2021

Effect Of Tropical Cyclones On Coastal Marine Ecosystems, Xenia Neal

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Tropical cyclone activity is predicted to intensify with anthropogenic climate change. Therefore, there has been a call to action in the scientific community to increase knowledge of the impacts of tropical cyclones on ecosystems. In particular, there is a wide knowledge gap in the understanding of how tropical cyclones influence coastal marine ecosystems. Using a standardized Web of Science database search, I identified 101 peer-reviewed articles documenting the impacts of tropical cyclones on coastal marine ecosystems in the North Atlantic Ocean, including coral reefs, mangrove forests, salt marshes, and seagrass meadows. Here, I summarize the results of these articles with …

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Intrabodies Reveal Critical Steps Involved In Ricin's Interactions With The Ribosome, Timothy Francis Czajka Jan 2021

Intrabodies Reveal Critical Steps Involved In Ricin's Interactions With The Ribosome, Timothy Francis Czajka

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Ricin is a highly lethal protein toxin derived from the seeds of the castor plant, Ricinus communis. It is a Type II ribosome inactivating protein (RIP), meaning it is a heterodimer with one subunit, ricin toxin B (RTB), that mediates cell surface attachment and intracellular trafficking and a second subunit, ricin toxin A (RTA), that irreversibly shuts down protein synthesis in the cytosol. During trafficking, RTA and RTB necessarily separate in the endoplasmic reticulum, wherein RTA unfolds and translocates into the cytosol where it refolds into an enzymatically active conformation. RTA is remarkably fast acting and efficient, with few molecules …

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The Role Of Conserved Poly(A) Sequences In The 3'Utr Of Zika Virus Gene Expression, Kristen Kaytes Jan 2021

The Role Of Conserved Poly(A) Sequences In The 3'Utr Of Zika Virus Gene Expression, Kristen Kaytes

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Following its discovery in 1947, Zika virus garnered little attention in the global stage until 2015, when a rapidly spreading epidemic brought the virus, and its devastating clinical manifestations to light. Zika virus pathologies include Congenital Zika Syndrome, a known causative of microcephaly, as well as spontaneous miscarriages and the development of Guillain Barré syndrome. Despite recent advances in research, the molecular biology of Zika virus is largely unknown.

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Identification Of Ires Activity In Cellular Mrnas And Viral Rna Using A Circular Rna Construct, Priyanka Sehta Jan 2021

Identification Of Ires Activity In Cellular Mrnas And Viral Rna Using A Circular Rna Construct, Priyanka Sehta

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Translation initiation is a critical step in the process of protein synthesis. The canonical way of translation initiation involves ribosomes being recruited to the 7-methyl guanosine cap present at the 5’end of the untranslated region (5’ UTR) of the RNAs. However, viral RNAs and some cellular mRNAs lack this 5’ cap structure and thus deploy an alternate non-canonical translation initiation mechanism. In non-canonical translation initiation, ribosome recruitment is facilitated by the RNA secondary structures called Internal Ribosome Entry Site (IRES) present most often in the 5’ UTR. To measure IRES-mediated translation, the dual luciferase assay has been the gold standard. …

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Study Of Primary Cilium Structure And Intraflagellar Transport, Shufeng Sun Jan 2021

Study Of Primary Cilium Structure And Intraflagellar Transport, Shufeng Sun

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Primary cilia are hair-like protrusions that stem from the basal bodies in the cytoplasm and extend into the extracellular space to sense signals. Intraflagellar transport (IFT) functions to transport cargo molecules into and out of the ciliary compartment to assemble, maintain, and disassemble the cilia. Accurate knowledge of the three-dimensional (3D) structure of primary cilia and precise details of the IFT profile is the foundation for understanding the sensory functions of primary cilia. This work covers three aspects of primary cilia. Firstly, we obtained and analyzed the overall 3D architecture of the complete primary cilia axoneme region using serial section …

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Long Noncoding Rna Ak001796 As A Mediator Of Epithelial-To-Mesenchymal Transition In Metastatic Breast Cancer, Sumayya Adib Alchalabi Jan 2021

Long Noncoding Rna Ak001796 As A Mediator Of Epithelial-To-Mesenchymal Transition In Metastatic Breast Cancer, Sumayya Adib Alchalabi

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are emerging as key molecules regulating several cellular pathways and contributing to the development and progression of different diseases including cancer. The epithelial-to- mesenchymal transition (EMT), a molecular reprogramming process that plays a critical role in cancer metastasis, involves a complex interaction between protein coding and non-coding transcripts including lncRNAs. Understanding the biological significance of those lncRNAs of relatively unknown function, may help to uncover potential therapeutic targets for the aggressive subtypes of breast and other cancers. In this study, we examined the expression profiles of more than 17,000 lncRNAs in a large set of patients’ …

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Residual Spatial Autocorrelation In Macroecological And Biogeographical Modeling: A Review, Guetchine Gaspard Jan 2021

Residual Spatial Autocorrelation In Macroecological And Biogeographical Modeling: A Review, Guetchine Gaspard

Theses and Dissertations--Geography

Macroecological and biogeographical modelers have predicted the distribution of species across space relying on the relationship between biotic processes and environmental variables. Such a method employs data associated, for instance, with species abundance or presence/absence, climate, geomorphology, and soils. Statistical analyses found in previous studies have highlighted the importance of accounting for the effects of spatial autocorrelation (SAC), which indicates a level of dependence between pairs of nearby observations. A consensus has existed that residual spatial autocorrelation (rSAC) can substantially impact modeling processes and inferences. However, more emphasis should be put on identifying the sources of rSAC and the degree …

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