Genetics and Genomics Commons^™

Connections In The Underworld: A Morphological And Molecular Study Of Diversity And Connectivity Among Anchialine Shrimp., Robert Eugene Ditter

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research investigates the distribution and population structure of crustaceans, endemic to anchialine systems in the tropical western Atlantic focusing on cave-dwelling shrimp from the family Barbouriidae. Taxonomic and molecular tools (genetic and genomic) are utilized to examine population dynamics and the presence of phenotypic hypervariation (PhyV) of the critically endangered species Barbouria cubensis (von Martens, 1872). The presence of PhyV and its geographic distribution is investigated among anchialine populations of B. cubensis from 34 sites on Abaco, Eleuthera, and San Salvador, Bahamas. Examination of 54 informative morphological characters revealed PhyV present in nearly 90% (n=463) of specimens with no …

Genetics Fall 2020 Infographics, Robyn Puffenbarger

Genetics Fall 2020

No abstract provided.

Integrate Structural Analysis, Isoform Diversity, And Interferon-Inductive Propensity Of Ace2 To Predict Sars-Cov2 Susceptibility In Vertebrates, Eric R. Sang, Yun Tian, Yuanying Gong, Laura C. Miller, Yongming Sang

Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Faculty Research

The current new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has caused globally over 0.4/6 million confirmed deaths/infected cases across more than 200 countries. As the etiological coronavirus (a.k.a. SARS-CoV2) may putatively have a bat origin, our understanding about its intermediate reservoir between bats and humans, especially its tropism in wild and domestic animals are mostly unknown. This constitutes major concerns in public health for the current pandemics and potential zoonosis. Previous reports using structural analysis of the viral spike protein (S) binding its cell receptor of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), indicate a broad potential of SARS-CoV2 susceptibility in wild and particularly domestic animals. …

The P-Glycoprotein Repertoire Of The Equine Parasitic Nematode Parascaris Univalens, Alexander P. Gerhard, Jürgen Krücken, Emanuel Heitlinger, I. Jana I. Janssen, Marta Basiaga, Sławomir Kornaś, Céline Beier, Martin K. Nielsen, Richard E. Davis, Jianbin Wang, Georg Von Samson-Himmelstjerna

Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center Faculty Publications

P-glycoproteins (Pgp) have been proposed as contributors to the widespread macrocyclic lactone (ML) resistance in several nematode species including a major pathogen of foals, Parascaris univalens. Using new and available RNA-seq data, ten different genomic loci encoding Pgps were identified and characterized by transcriptome-guided RT-PCRs and Sanger sequencing. Phylogenetic analysis revealed an ascarid-specific Pgp lineage, Pgp-18, as well as two paralogues of Pgp-11 and Pgp-16. Comparative gene expression analyses in P. univalens and Caenorhabditis elegans show that the intestine is the major site of expression but individual gene expression patterns were not conserved between the two nematodes. In P. …

Genome Diversity And The Origin Of The Arabian Horse, Elissa J. Cosgrove, Raheleh Sadeghi, Florencia Schlamp, Heather M. Holl, Mohammad Moradi-Shahrbabak, Seyed Reza Miraei-Ashtiani, Salma Abdalla, Ben Shykind, Mats H. T. Troedsson, Monika Stefaniuk-Szmukier, Anil Prabhu, Stefania Bucca, Monika Bugno-Poniewierska, Barbara Wallner, Joel Malek, Donald C. Miller, Andrew G. Clark, Douglas F. Antczak, Samantha A. Brooks

Veterinary Science Faculty Publications

The Arabian horse, one of the world's oldest breeds of any domesticated animal, is characterized by natural beauty, graceful movement, athletic endurance, and, as a result of its development in the arid Middle East, the ability to thrive in a hot, dry environment. Here we studied 378 Arabian horses from 12 countries using equine single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) arrays and whole-genome re-sequencing to examine hypotheses about genomic diversity, population structure, and the relationship of the Arabian to other horse breeds. We identified a high degree of genetic variation and complex ancestry in Arabian horses from the Middle East region. Also, …

Genetic Analysis Of Flower Color Differences Between A Hummingbird-Pollinated And A Self-Pollinated Monkeyflower (Mimulus) Species, Caitlin Foster

University Scholar Projects

Flower color plays an important role in pollinator discrimination and speciation. Understanding the genetic contributions to flower color differences between two closely related species, Mimulus cardinalis and Mimulus parishii, can improve understanding of how they developed different pollination syndromes and diverged from a recent common ancestor. M. cardinalis is hummingbird-pollinated and has large, bright red flowers while M. parishii is self-pollinated and has small, pale pink flowers. An F2 hybrid population between these two species was created to establish a platform for analysis of the genetic architecture controlling the differences in anthocyanin pigmentation. Statistical analysis of anthocyanin concentration distribution …

Evolutionary And Ecological Determinism Of Host Specificity In Arthropod Parasites, Joseph Levey

UCARE Research Products

Understanding why some diseases infect more species than others is crucial for predicting where and when disease will spread, which can inform the management of wildlife, agriculture, and human health. Currently, large scale patterns of host-parasite dynamics are being studied to understand where to look for and how to manage emerging human diseases (Leroy 2005; Benelli 2018). Previous research has used the Global Mammal Parasite Database (GMPD) to look at host breadth—the number and diversity of species a pathogen can infect—for various groups of parasites, e.g. helminths, arthropods, fungi, etc., from a host-centric perspective (Stephens et al. 2017; Park et …

Genetic Studies Of Wildlife, Brittaney L. Buchanan

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Genetic techniques are being more frequently used to understand the biology and management of wildlife species. The wild turkey is one species of genetic interest because the correct identification of individuals to the subspecies level is difficult using traditional methods. Currently phenotypic differences in plumage, especially the upper tail coverts, are used to assign individuals to subspecies. To hunters wanting to complete a “grand slam,” identification of birds’ subspecies is important. This study focuses on the five extant subspecies: Eastern (M. g. silvestris), Osceola (M. g. osceola), Rio Grande (M. g. intermedia), Merriam’s ( …

10th Annual Postdoctoral Science Symposium, University Of Texas Md Anderson Cancer Center Postdoctoral Association

Annual Postdoctoral Science Symposium Abstracts

The Annual Postdoctoral Science Symposium (APSS) was initiated on August 4, 2011, by the MD Anderson Postdoctoral Association to provide a platform for talented postdoctoral fellows throughout the Texas Medical Center to present their work to a wider audience.

APSS is a scientific symposium organized by postdoctoral fellows from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center that welcomes submissions and presentations from postdoctoral fellows from all Texas Medical Center affiliated institutions and other Houston area institutions. The APSS provides a professional venue for postdoctoral scientists to develop, clarify and refine their research as result of formal reviews and critiques …

A Look At Gene Control: Tracking The Ccnd1 Gene, Bryan Anders

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Cancer occurs when the cell does not properly control its own cell cycle. It then replicates in an out of control fashion leading to the death of various organs and then the demise of the organism as a whole. As it seems to have always been a problem for cell-based life, certain safeguards against cancer have been evolved over time. One such method comes in the form of prevention via cyclin proteins, which are encoded from cyclin genes. The gene that is the focus of this research is the CCND1, or cyclin D1, gene that controls the progression through various …

Genetic Analysis Of The Endangered Gray Bat Species (Myotis Grisescens), Emma Fitzgerald

Lewis Honors College Capstone Collection

This study attempts to analyze the genetics using specific haplotype sequences of the endangered gray bat to determine genetic events that have happened in the past as well as determining how the species population has changed over time. We were able to conduct a Tajima’s D test to investigate whether a potential bottleneck has occurred. A linear regression of the genetic vs. geographical distance was produced to investigate the patterns of haplotype distribution. The species past distribution was compared to the current distribution using known collected specimens. A map of future predictions was constructed using present and future climate layers …