Genetics and Genomics Commons^™

Role Of Age And Sex In The Effects Of Repeated Methamphetamine Exposure On Hedonic Tone In Sprague Dawley Rats, Cameron Lewis, Conor Strumberger, Joshua M. Gulley

PRECS student projects

Anhedonia is defined as a reduced or complete loss of pleasure from a previously pleasurable stimulus, and it is comprised of two dimensions:

• Hedonic anhedonia consists of a distinct loss of pleasure in consumption of a normally pleasurable stimulus.
• Motivational anhedonia involves the goal directed behavior to obtain a reward.

Withdrawal induced anhedonia following use of methamphetamine (METH) is thought to contribute to relapse behaviors^1,2 . The anhedonic effects of drug withdrawal largely depend on dose, frequency, and the duration of drug exposure^4,5,6.

The role of sex and age of exposure in this context has yet to …

How Fungicide Alters The Hidden Mycobiome Of A Restored Prairie System, Mya Reyes, Noah Brown, Anthony Yannarell

PRECS student projects

• Fungal Endophytes are microscopic fungi that live inside plant tissues and form a symbiotic relationship that influences the fitness of both parties.

• Fungicides are a widely used method of crop disease control in agriculture, but fungicides can be carried into other environments by water and wind.

• This experiment looks at how long-term fungicide exposure affects diversity of fungal endophytes that are grown in vitro as well as screens them for phosphate solubilization ability.

• Phosphate is a vital macronutrient that is essential for making nucleic acids (DNA, RNA) as well as playing a vital role in energy transfer throughout the plant's …

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Effect Of Varied Macronutrient Ratios On Honey Bee Tolerance To Iapv Infection, Caitlin Lennon-Puthoff, Alex Payne, Adam Dolezal

PRECS student projects

Honey bees are killed by Israeli acute paralysis virus (IAPV). Because this virus has no cure, it is important to lessen its impact on bees through proper nutrition. This project explores the effects of differing protein to lipid (P:L) ratios in pollen on honey bee susceptibility to this virus.

Over three trials, bees in cages were incubated for 3 days to resemble hive conditions. Two doses of IAPV (10^-3 & 10^-2) and a negative control were used, along with five P:L ratios (1.5, 2.5, 11.5, 16.5, & 21.5:1) and a sucrose-only diet. These treatment groups were combined …

Evaluating The Enzymatic Activity Of Transformed X. Cucurbitae, Emily Beger, Iris Lee, Sarah Hind

PRECS student projects

Introduction

• The United States’ pumpkin industry exceeds one billion dollars [1], with Illinois contributing to over 90% of processing pumpkin production.
• Pumpkin growers face a rising concern due to the increasing occurrence of Xanthomonas cucurbitae , the pathogen that causes bacterial spot disease in cucurbits, including pumpkins.
• X. cucurbitae infection leads to the appearance of small, sunken, beige spots on cucurbit fruits and leaves.
• Over time, the bacterium can compromise fruit integrity by breaking down the epidermis and cuticle. • Bacterial spot disease also creates opportunities for other bacteria and fungi to infiltrate the affected fruits, leading to fruit rot …

The Tomato Strikes Back: Plant Response To Environmental Stress, Maya K. Davis, Erinn Dady, Esther N. Ngumbi

PRECS student projects

Introduction

• Tomato is an important vegetable. Its production is threatened due to altered weather patterns which increase environmental stressors such as flooding^{1, 2} and herbivory³ to crops.
• Plants respond in many ways. Stressed plants strike back to environmental stress by altering their chemistry⁴:

1. Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) emissions
2. Defensive secondary metabolites²

• Stress induced physiological changes in plants impact growth and development of insects.
• This study is broken into two experiments:

1. The plant response to flooding stress
2. The insect performance on flooded plants

Confirming Presence And Mobilization Of Partner Quality Genes In Sinorhizobium Meliloti, Ethan Perez, Ivan Sosa Marquez, Katy Heath

PRECS student projects

• Mutualism is an interaction in which two organisms benefit from each other.
• The symbiotic relationship between the bacterium Sinorhizobium meliloti and the plant Medicago truncatula is dictated by the bacterial plasmids.
• The Heath lab has a collection of 191 Sinorhizobium meliloti strains with different symbiotic plasmids that vary across populations (Riley et al., 2022).
• Each strain can be a better or worse partner for its plant host in symbiosis with the variation in fitness being called partner quality (Fig. 1)
• These traits can be traced back to the genetic elements that underlie this effect (Batstone et al.,
• These genetic elements …

Revisiting The Reproductive Behaviors Of Blackspotted Stickleback, Cassidy Constant, Megan Tucker, Colby Behrens, Alison M. Bell

PRECS student projects

Why Blackspotted Stickleback?

How Behaviors Evolve Comparing closely related species can give insights into how behavior evolves.

Well studied: Three-spined Stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus)

• Model organism for natural variation in behavioral evolution 1.
• Divergence in parental care in two ecotypes1,2.
• White and common ecotypes recently diverged 2.

Lesser studied: Blackspotted Stickleback (Gasterosteus wheatlandi)

• Three-spined’s closest living relative.
• Possible behavioral intermediate of commons & whites.
• Blackspotted egg dispersal is similar to white three-spined 3.

Fusarium Isolates Adapt To Specific Wheat Tissues, Liam Kent, Mara Krone, Santiago Mideros

PRECS student projects

Introduction

Tissue specificity is a pathogen’s preference for infecting one section of tissue (i.e., root, stem, or head) over another. 1 Having a better understanding of a pathogen’s ability to cause disease on specific tissues could contribute to new mechanisms of disease control. This will allow growers to make the best decision on effective pathogen management. In 2022, Fusarium isolates were collected from wheat heads and roots across Illinois. These isolates were used in a pathogen aggressiveness assay on wheat roots, in an in vitro growth rate experiment , and in the development of a spore quantification protocol. The phenotypic …

Identifying Genes Influencing The Efficiency Of Photosynthesis, Jason M. Rivera, Steven Burgess

PRECS student projects

• Photosynthesis adapts to environmental conditions over time.¹

• Varying environmental conditions lead to stress accumulation on the plant.²

• A genetic library has been assembled for forward genetic screening of Arabidopsis thaliana.³

• Arabidopsis Thaliana is a model plant used as a model organism in growth experiments.

• This research project aims to identify and analyze candidate genes that impact the efficiency of photosynthesis.

• These genes can be transplanted into commercial crops to increase efficiency of photosynthesis and crop yields.

Potential Implications Of Elevated Co2 For Enhanced Rock Weathering In Croplands, Hannah Maher, Megan Allen, Lisa Ainsworth

PRECS student projects

• Atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) levels are increasing by 2.37 ppm year, and levels have increased from about 370 ppm in 2000 to about 420 ppm in 2023¹
• Increased CO₂ levels result in climate change, including increased temperatures and drought which impacts soybean crops
• Enhanced Rock Weathering (ERW) is the process of spreading basalt on fields to accelerate the natural reaction between rocks, CO2, and water²
• Enhanced Rock Weathering is a possible way to combat increasing CO₂ levels because of its carbon sequestration properties²

Acth Challenge: Stress Response Across Tadpole Development, Lauren W. Mobo, Lucas Jimenez, Lisa L. Surber-Cunningham, Eva K. Fischer

PRECS student projects

Research Questions

1. Do tadpoles excrete more cortisol or corticosterone?
2. Do tadpoles excrete more corticosterone after ACTH injections?
3. Does the ACTH stress response change across development?