Cell and Developmental Biology Commons^™

Hgs-3 The Influence Of A Tandem Cycling Program In The Community On Physical And Functional Health, Therapeutic Bonds, And Quality Of Life For Individuals And Care Partners Coping With Parkinson’S Disease, Leila Djerdjour, Jennifer L. Trilk

SC Upstate Research Symposium

Purpose Statement: Several studies have shown that aerobic exercise can have a positive impact on alleviating symptoms experienced by individuals with Parkinson's disease (PD). Despite this evidence, the potential benefits of exercise for both PD patients and their care partners (PD dyad) remain unexplored. This research project investigates the effectiveness, therapeutic collaborations, and physical outcomes of a virtual reality (VR) tandem cycling program specifically designed for PD dyads.

Methods: Following approval from the Prisma Health Institutional Review Board, individuals with PD were identified and screened by clinical neurologists. The pre-testing measures for PD dyads (N=9) included emotional and cognitive status …

Species Delimitation Of Slimy Salamanders, Plethodon Kisatchie And Plethodon Mississippi, Across The Lower Mississippi River, Brock Hunter Stevenson

Master's Theses

Species are fundamental units of biodiversity yet delimiting species can be challenging. Slimy Salamanders of the Plethodon glutinosus species complex are a classic example of cryptic species for which species boundaries and relationships have proved difficult to determine. Once thought to be a single species ranging across the eastern United States, protein analysis revealed high genetic divergences among geographically distinct groups of populations, leading to 16 species being recognized within the group. Two of these species, the Louisiana Slimy Salamander (Plethodon kisatchie) and the Mississippi Slimy Salamander (Plethodon mississippi), are closely related but occur on opposite sides of the Mississippi …

Breaking Virulent: The Coincidental Evolution Of Virulence Factors In Bacteria., Rhiannon Emmanuelle Cecil

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Understanding how innocuous organisms can evolve to be pathogenic to humans is of increasing global concern. Further, understanding how existing pathogens may evolved to be more virulent is also vital to our ability to provide healthcare to people afflicted with diseases that promote chronic bacterial infections, such as cystic fibrosis. With the rise of antibiotic resistance in both bacteria and fungi it is paramount that new therapeutics are identified. Understanding what mutations occur that result in increased virulence in microbes can potentially provide new targets for antimicrobial drugs to combat antibiotic resistance. The Coincidental Evolution Hypothesis is a fundamental hypothesis …

Brown Anole (Anolis Sagrei) Hoxa5: Insights Into The Divergence Of Hoxa5 Gene Expression And Regulation Across Evolutionarily Divergent Gnathostome Vertebrates, Jennifer A. Lange, Amber L. Rittgers, Adam Davis

Georgia Journal of Science

Hox genes are evolutionarily conserved developmental regulatory genes that function, in part, to pattern the anterior-posterior (AP) axis of organs and organ systems during animal embryonic development. Hoxa5, specifically, is shown to be expressed in the spinal cord, somites, or transient compartments giving rise to the vertebrae and ribs, developing gut, lungs, and limbs of the mouse (Mus musculus). The cis-regulatory elements (CREs), or short DNA sequences, that direct Hoxa5 expression in these embryonic domains have been mapped and functionally tested in the mouse as well. Similar Hoxa5 expression patterns have been observed in chicken ( …

Ethical Issues And Standards Of Responsible Research Conduct And Monitoring In An Adventist Institution Of Higher Learning - The Babcock Experience, Kayode O. Ogunwenmo, Godswill N. Anyasor, Grace O. Tayo

Adventist Human-Subject Researchers Association

Ethical issues and standards of responsible research conduct involving human participants are important considerations in any institution of higher learning and in particular Adventist institutions. Research conduct and ethics are reviewed and approved before they begin by the Babcock University Health Research Ethics Committee (BUHREC)

Evaluation Of Nutrient Digestibility Of Weaned Calves From Early And Late Shedding Dams, Jennifer Keele

Theses and Dissertations

Researchers have investigated several factors that could alter fetal growth, including nutrient restriction (Valiente et al., 2021), hair shedding (Gray et al., 2011), and extreme hot and cold temperatures (Davidson et al., 2022). Hot temperatures and increased humidity percentages in the southeast United States caused researchers to investigate the hair coats of Angus cattle in the commercial production setting. An improvement in fiber digestibility and calf birth and weaning weights has been observed in Angus dams that shed 50% of the winter hair coat by May (Gray et al., 2011; Burnett et al., 2021). Our objective of this experiment was …

Rattus Norvegicus As A Biological Detector Of Clandestine Remains And The Use Of Ultrasonic Vocalizations As A Locating Mechanism, Gabrielle M. Johnston

Master's Theses

In investigations, locating missing persons and clandestine remains are imperative. One way that first responder and police agencies can search for the remains is by using cadaver dogs as biological detectors. Cadaver dogs are typically used due to their olfactory sensitivity and ability to detect low concentrations of volatile organic compounds produced by biological remains. Cadaver dogs are typically chosen for their stamina, agility, and olfactory sensitivity. However, what is not taken into account often is the size of the animal and the expense of maintaining and training the animal. Cadaver dogs are typically large breeds that cannot fit in …

Trace Dna Detection Using Diamond Dye: A Recovery Technique To Yield More Dna, Leah Davis

Master's Theses

This study aspires to find a new screening approach to trace DNA recovery techniques to yield a higher quantity of trace DNA from larger items of evidence. It takes the path of visualizing trace DNA on items of evidence with potential DNA so analysts can swab a more localized area rather than attempting to recover trace DNA through the general swabbing technique currently used for trace DNA recovery. The first and second parts consisted of observing trace DNA interaction with Diamond Dye on porous and non-porous surfaces.

The third part involved applying the Diamond Dye solution by spraying it onto …

Analysis Of Wild Rodent Gut Microbiota As A Function Of Exposure To Ticks And Tick-Borne Pathogens, Joshua Pandian

Honors Theses

Due to advances in high-throughput parallel sequencing, researchers have conducted novel studies exploring relationships between microbiome compositions and different aspects of organism health. Some of these studies have shown that the gut microbiome of rodent models has effects on organism health and behavior and that infection with pathogens and the composition of the skin microbiome are linked to changes in gut microbiome composition. While previous studies have shown how vector microbiota impact vector behavior and pathogen transmission, the effect vectors have on reservoir species microbiomes has been a less prominent focus. We were interested in the relationships between tick parasitism, …

The Links To Cancer: How Golf Became Dangerous And What We Can Do To Save The Game, Meredith Boos

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

This study is a comprehensive meta-analysis on health claims linked to exposure to golf courses, more specifically the chemicals used to maintain their appearance. It provides a brief history of the golf industry and how its growth exacerbated the environmental impact as well as an explanation of the legal landscape that will affect golf course management. Golf courses can disrupt local ecologies, contaminate ground water, rivers, lakes and streams with run-off, and be responsible for the bioaccumulation of chemicals which remain dangerous for decades. Despite the adverse effects of golf courses on the environment, there remains an opportunity to transform …

Proposing An Rna Interference (Rnai)-Based Treatment For Human Immunodeficiency Virus (Hiv) By Analyzing The Post-Transcriptional Gene Targeting Of Sars-Cov-2, Hepatitis C Virus, And A549 Lung Cancer Cells, Arjun Jagdeesh

Undergraduate Research Posters

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that infects CD4+ T cell lymphocytes in humans, leading to the development of Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) if left untreated. While current treatment methods, including antiretroviral combination treatments, effectively limit HIV replication, HIV can evade these treatments due to its high mutation rate. Long-term antiretroviral treatment can also be toxic to patients, meaning patients would benefit from a new mechanism of HIV treatment. RNA interference (RNAi) is an antiviral pathway found in mammals, plants, and insects that involves a small-interfering RNA that is incorporated into a protein complex called the RNA-induced Silencing Complex …

A Cladoxylopsid With Complex Vascular Architecture From The Early Devonian Battery Point Formation (Québec, Canada), Jessica Chu

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Cladoxylopsids are seed-free plants that formed the world’s earliest forests and gave rise to horsetails (sphenopsids), but their evolutionary origins are poorly understood. Here, I describe a new Early Devonian cladoxylopsid from the Emsian (400-395 Ma) Battery Point Formation (Québec, Canada). The structural features of this plant indicate taxonomic affinity to cladoxylalean cladoxylopsids and its phylogenetic position supports placement in genus Cladoxylon (the proposed name, Cladoxylon kespekianum sp. nov., to be formalized by peer-reviewed publication). Specimens of this plant are permineralized in calcium carbonate and were studied using the acetate peel technique with light and electron microscopy. Cladoxylon kespekianum is …

Genetic Evaluation Of The Current Distribution And Possible Diffrentations Between Lasiurus Borealis And Lasiurus Frantzii In Southwestern North America, Zeinab M. Haidar

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Several recent accounts of overlap and historic misidentifications regarding two species of the genus Lasiurus, Western red bat (Lasiurus frantzii) and Eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis), have cast doubt on our understanding of their distribution, assumed spatial allopatry, and interactions in the United States Southwest. With the use of morphometrics and genetic sequencing, utilizing tissue collected from specimens throughout California and adjoining states, we have reassessed the current distribution, best practices for field identification, and genetic differentiation between both species. Appropriate species classification by region was achieved utilizing mitochondrial DNA, targeting the cytochrome c oxidase …

Isolation And Characterization Of Cellulose Degrading Microorganisms Generating Electricity Using Microbial Fuel Cell, Lama Fayad, Rania Amer, Ahmad Abd El Nabi, Ali Hammoud, Hoda Yusef

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Global warming and the accumulation of organic waste constitute a serious environmental problem. Therefore, microbial fuel cells (MFC) are an eco-friendly device that have significant capability for the production of electricity using biodegradable waste as fuel. Microorganisms used as catalysts in the anode compartment, execute a principal function in operating MFCs. The present study was conducted to isolate and to screen potential bioelectricity generating microorganisms from dumpsite soil samples and also to construct a domestic dual-chambered microbial fuel cell (MFC). Streptomyces fimicarius was found to be the best isolate for the degradation of cellulose and the production of bioelectricity. The …

Roles Of Behavioral Novelty And Organismal Energetics In The Evolution Of Extreme Encephalization, Erika Laurie Schumacher

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Brains and their component brain regions vary widely in size and structure across vertebrates. However, extreme increases in total brain size relative to body size (extreme encephalization) and increases in specific major brain region sizes independent of other brain regions (mosaic brain evolution) are relatively rare. There are several hypotheses as to why, but the energetic cost of increased brain tissue and the regional interconnectedness in both brain development and function likely constrain how brains are able to change in response to selection. In this dissertation, I sought to address both how behavioral novelty relates to evolutionary changes in brain …

Inferring Adaptation In Social Microbes From Experimental Evolution Under Relaxed Selection, Tyler John Larsen

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Microbes exist against a backdrop of other organisms, and the interactions between microbes have major consequences on their traits, their evolution, and their impact on the world. Microbial interactions and the adaptations that enable them are extremely diverse – they can unlock abilities beyond the reach of individual cells or lead to a population’s destruction, they can be temporary or permanent, they can be between genetically identical cells or different species entirely. The first chapter of this dissertation reviews microbial interactions and the related concept of the evolution of conflict and cooperation.To be certain a trait is an adaptation at …

Cooperation And Conflict In The Social Amoeba Dictyostelium Discoideum And Its Paraburkholderia Endosymbionts, James Medina

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A big question in biology is how organisms compete in an environment of competitors for scarce resources. Part of the answer lies in distinguishing friend from foe and in forging cooperative bonds in the face of cheaters. The social amoeba – bacteria system I have studied here is an excellent place to explore these tensions. The first part of my thesis research involves a review of cooperation and conflict in the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum and a study of the limits on obligate social cheating in this species. The second part focuses on the benefits of associating with D. discoideum …

Light And Temperature Entrainment Of Two Circadian-Driven Behaviors In The Flesh Fly Sarcophaga Crassipalpis, Raven Ragsdale

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Circadian rhythms dictate the timing of both once-in-a-lifetime adult emergence (eclosion) and daily locomotor activity rhythms in the flesh fly S. crassipalpis. Light cycles are considered the primary environmental time cue (zeitgeber), but the life history of S. crassipalpis suggests that temperature cycles (thermocycles) may also play a key role. This work evaluates the efficacy of thermocycling as a zeitgeber in S. crassipalpis. We found that shifting both light and temperature cycles of sufficient amplitude affect the phasing of eclosion and locomotor activity, but result in different patterns. Additional experiments suggest greater thermocycle sensitivity during the late metamorphic …

Save The Frogs, Mackenzie Johnson, Alison Bohlen, Andie Ellis, Ryan Pinto

Student Work

The species Xenopus laevis is native to sub saharan Africa, but ever since its discovery in effectiveness in pregnancy tests, the frog now lives invasively around the world. Today the Xenopus Laevis is used mostly in laboratories as a model organism for studying developmental biology (Willigan 2001). The commercialized herbicide Atrazine, has been found to interact with this model organism species in an odd way you might not have guessed (Sanders 2010). Atrazine is primarily absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract and has been shown to have neuroendocrine, reproductive, and developmental effects on experimental animals such as Xenopus laevis (ATSDR 2004). …

Du Undergraduate Showcase: Research, Scholarship, And Creative Works: Abstracts, Emma Aggeler, Elena Arroway, Daisy T. Booker, Justin Bravo, Kyle Bucholtz, Megan Burnham, Nicole Choi, Spencer Cockerell, Rosie Contino, Jackson Garske, Kaitlyn Glover, Caroline Hamilton, Haley Hartmann, Madalyne Heiken, Colin Holter, Leah Huzjak, Alyssa Jeng, Cole Jernigan, Chad Kashiwa, Adelaide Kerenick, Emily King, Abigail Langeberg, Maddie Leake, Meredith Lemons, Alec Mackay, Greer Mckinley, Ori Miller, Guy Milliman, Katherine Miromonti, Audrey Mitchell, Lauren Moak, Megan Morrell, Gelella Nebiyu, Zdenek Otruba, Toni V. Panzera, Kassidy Patarino, Sneha Patil, Alexandra Penney, Kevin Persky, Caitlin Pham, Gabriela Recinos, Mary Ringgenberg, Chase Routt, Olivia Schneider, Roman Shrestha, Arlo Simmerman, Alec Smith, Tessa Smith, Nhi-Lac Thai, Kyle Thurmann, Casey Tindall, Amelia Trembath, Maria Trubetskaya, Zachary Vangelisti, Peter Vo, Abby Walker, David Winter, Grayden Wolfe, Leah York

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

Abstracts from the DU Undergraduate Showcase.

Just Cut It Out, Jack Barbosa, Ashley Curcio, Emiliana Martinez-Nobrega, Matthew Robledo

Student Work

Why should we care about trees? Social, Economic, and Environmental benefits.

What Uv Is What You Get, Jaylin Chlosta, Cassidy Mills, Mason Peckar, Nicholas Schaertl

Student Work

Vitamin D deficiency affects people differently and causes multiple health problems. Supplements may help when UV exposure is insufficient to generate Vitamin D in the body.

Investigating The Potential Role For The Nervous System In Controlling Regeneration In Nematostella Vectensis, Kristen Malir

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Nematostella vectensis is a marine sea animal that has become a model for developmental and evolutionary research. Included in the phylum Cnidaria, N. vectensis’ was chosen as the model for this research. Not only can this animal go through asexual and sexual reproduction, but it also has the ability to regenerate. Although much research has been put forth in an effort to understand regeneration better, much is still unknown. The underlying mechanisms of regeneration in Cnidaria are illusive; however, studies within vertebrates have shown the substantial role of the nervous system. The objective of this experiment is to test if …

Connexin 43 Contributes To Phenotypic Variability Of The Mouse Skull, Elizabeth Jewlal

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The purpose of this study was to determine whether connexin 43 (Cx43) contributes to craniofacial phenotypic variability. Skull shape and variation were compared within and among two heterozygous mutant mouse models (G60S/+ and I130T/+) that exhibit different levels of Cx43 channel function when compared to their wildtype counterparts (~80% and ~50% reduction in function, respectively). Results indicated mutants have significant differences in skull shape compared to wildtype littermates. Similar patterns of shape difference were found in both mutants. Increased skull shape variation and a disruption in the covariation of skull structures were observed in G60S/+ mutants only. These results show …

Modeling Jadera Haematoloma’S Phenotypic Variation In The Context Of Its Developmental Plasticity, Michael C. Yorsz

Honors Theses

Phenotypic plasticity is the ability of an organism to integrate information from environmental cues to inform the development of its phenotype and remains understudied in biology. Models of plasticity are needed because evolution in the presence of plasticity is poorly understood. Jadera haematoloma, a hemimetabolous true bug, is an excellent animal model of plasticity, exhibiting a non-linear plastic response to juvenile nutrition that biases adult development into groups with differences in flight capability, wing shape, and fecundity. However, there is a lack of literature consensus regarding the range of developmental outcomes in the species. Some publications report the presence …

Of Course Crustaceans Are Sentient: But There's More To The Story, Arthur S. Reber, Frantisek Baluska, William B. Miller Jr.

Animal Sentience

We are in basic agreement with Crump et al. that animal welfare, particularly with regard to the experience of pain, is a topic of importance. However, we come to the issue from a different perspective, one in which all species are sentient and can feel pain. The implications of this theory are discussed.

Generalizing Frameworks For Sentience Beyond Natural Species, Michael Levin

Animal Sentience

Crump et al. (2022) offer a well-argued example of an essential development: a rigorous framework for assessing sentience from the perspective of moral concern over an agent’s welfare. Current and forthcoming developments in bioengineering, synthetic morphology, artificial intelligence, biorobotics, and exobiology necessitate an expansion and generalization of this effort. Verbal reports (the Turing Test) and homology to human brains are utterly inadequate criteria for assessing the status of novel, unconventional agents that offer no familiar touchstone of phylogeny or anatomy. We must develop principled approaches to evaluating the sentience of (and thus, our responsibility to) beings of unfamiliar provenance and …

Nutrient Scarcity And Cellular Cooperation In A Clonal Hydroid, Weam S. El Rahmany

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Biological complexity forms when lower-level units (e.g., genes, cells, organisms) cooperatively band together. This complexity may be exemplified by multicellularity, the cooperation between the cells of the same species, or symbiosis, cooperation between the cells of different species. This cooperation is under continual threat, as defection, the opposite of cooperation, is favored by default by lower-level units (i.e., cells). Animal cancers may be the most well-known phenomena that exemplify the concept of cellular defection. Cancer cells have been shown to feature morphological and metabolic traits, developed through differential gene expression or mutations, that favor their growth at the cost of …

Getting To The Root Cause: The Genetic Underpinnings Of Root System Architecture And Rhizodeposition In Sorghum, Farren Smith

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Plants are some of the most diverse organisms on earth, consisting of more than 350,000 different species. To understand the underlying processes that contributed to plant diversification, it is fundamental to identify the genetic and genomic components that facilitated various adaptations over evolutionary history. Most studies to date have focused on the underlying controls of above-ground traits such as grain and vegetation; however, little is known about the “hidden half” of plants. Root systems comprise half of the total plant structure and provide vital functions such as anchorage, resource acquisition, and storage of energy reserves. The execution of these key …

Identifying The Human Homologs Of Yeast Rab Proteins Ypt10 & Ypt11 And A Global-Scale Louse Endosymbiont Genome Variation, Nathaniel P. Smith

Theses and Dissertations

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a late-onset fatal neurodegenerative disease that causes loss of upper and/or lower motor neurons, and currently has no treatment or cure available. Over 90% of cases occur spontaneously with unknown causes, highlighting the complexity of the disease, and only 10% of cases are linked to heritable genetic mutations. Numerous ALS-linked genes are conserved through evolution, and model organisms may therefore provide opportunities to understand disease pathology at a molecular or cellular level, proving instrumental in identifying therapeutic targets. ALS subtype 8 (ALS8) is caused by an autosomal dominant P56S mutation in the VAPB gene that …