Immunology and Infectious Disease Commons^™

The Ecology And Epidemiology Of Malaria Parasitism In Wild Chimpanzee Reservoirs, Erik J. Scully, Weimin Liu, Yingying Li, Jean-Bosco N. Ndjango, Martine Peeters, Shadrack Kamenya, Anne E. Pusey, Elizabeth V. Lonsdorf, Crickette M. Sanz, David B. Morgan, Alex K. Piel, Fiona A. Stewart, Mary K. Gonder, Nicole Simmons, Caroline Asiimwe, Klaus Zuberbuehler, Kathelijne Koops, Colin A. Chapman, Rebecca Chancellor, Aaron S. Rundus, Michael A. Huffman, Nathan D. Wolfe, Manoj T. Duraisingh, Beatrice H. Hahn, Richard W. Wrangham

Anthropology & Sociology Faculty Publications

Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) harbor rich assemblages of malaria parasites, including three species closely related to P. falciparum (sub-genus Laverania), the most malignant human malaria parasite. Here, we characterize the ecology and epidemiology of malaria infection in wild chimpanzee reservoirs. We used molecular assays to screen chimpanzee fecal samples, collected longitudinally and cross-sectionally from wild populations, for malaria parasite mitochondrial DNA. We found that chimpanzee malaria parasitism has an early age of onset and varies seasonally in prevalence. A subset of samples revealed Hepatocystis mitochondrial DNA, with phylogenetic analyses suggesting that Hepatocystis appears to cross species barriers more easily than Laverania. …

Exploring The Relationships Between South Texas Northern Bobwhite Populations And Cecal Worms Via System Dynamics, Nicole J. Traub, Benjamin L. Turner, Leonard A. Brennan, Alan M. Fedynich

National Quail Symposium Proceedings

Community ecology historically focused on plants and free-living organisms; however, problems such as defining habitat boundaries and obtaining adequate sample sizes arise when evaluating such communities. The unique nature of host-helminth systems allows parasite community ecologists to avoid these problems when testing ecological hypotheses. Unlike free-living communities that have artificially constructed boundaries, parasite communities have well-defined unambiguous boundaries within host individuals. Due to the inherently complex and dynamic nature of ecological systems, traditional experimental methods often require expensive, long-term trials beyond investigators’ time and resource budgets. Conversely, a system dynamics approach facilitates learning about such systems via simulation of ecosystem …

The Influences Of Disperser Behavior, Host Availability, And Environmental Conditions On The Distribution Of Oak Mistletoe [Phoradendron Leucarpum (Raf.) Reveal & M. C. Johnst.] In Eastern Virginia And North Carolina, Nicholas Pearce Flanders

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

Mistletoes are shrubs that typically parasitize the branches of host trees and rely on avian frugivores for seed dispersal. Because mistletoes are restricted to a narrow range of suitable recruitment sites and avian frugivores are more visible than other guilds of seed dispersers, mistletoe-frugivore systems afford opportunities for assessing the roles of dispersal limitation and local environment in determining plant distribution. These mechanisms have been proposed as determinants of the observed association of oak mistletoe [Phoradendron leucarpum (Raf.) Reveal & M. C. Johnst.] with forested wetlands in eastern Virginia and North Carolina, USA. I tested the alternative hypothesis that …

Insights To Protein Pathogenicity From The Lens Of Protein Evolution, Janelle Nunez-Castilla

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As protein sequences evolve, differences in selective constraints may lead to outcomes ranging from sequence conservation to structural and functional divergence. Evolutionary protein family analysis can illuminate which protein regions are likely to diverge or remain conserved in sequence, structure, and function. Moreover, nonsynonymous mutations in pathogens may result in the emergence of protein regions that affect the behavior of pathogenic proteins within a host and host response. I aimed to gain insight on pathogenic proteins from cancer and viruses using an evolutionary perspective. First, I examined p53, a conformationally flexible, multifunctional protein mutated in ~50% of human cancers. Multifunctional …

Characterizing Endogenous Dicer Products To Unravel Novel Rnai Biogenesis Pathways, Jacob Oche Peter

Dissertations

ABSTRACT

RNA interference (RNAi) is a pervasive gene regulatory mechanism in eukaryotes based on the action of multiple classes of small RNA (sRNA). Exploiting RNAi pathways in non-model systems have great potential for creating potent RNAi technologies. Here, we accessed RNAi-mediated control of gene expression in the two-spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae (T. urticae) using engineered dsRNA designed to modulate the host RNAi pathway and increase RNAi efficacy. Analysis of Dicer (Dcr) generated fragments revealed how exogenous RNAs access the host RNAi pathway in this animal, opening avenues for designing RNAi technology for their control. Further, some organisms …

Maternal Responses In The Face Of Infection Risk, Patricia C. Lopes, Brenna M. G. Gormally, Aubrey Emmi, Delilah Schuerman, Chathuni Liyanage, Ursula K. Beattie, L. Michael Romero

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

When animals are sick, their physiology and behavior change in ways that can impact their offspring. Research is emerging showing that infection risk alone can also modify the physiology and behavior of healthy animals. If physiological responses to environments with high infection risk take place during reproduction, it is possible that they lead to maternal effects. Understanding whether and how high infection risk triggers maternal effects is important to elucidate how the impacts of infectious agents extend beyond infected individuals and how, in this way, they are even stronger evolutionary forces than already considered. Here, to evaluate the effects of …

Genomic Insights Into Mechanisms Of Microbial Evolution And Evolution-Inspired Strategies To Combat Pathogen Diversity, Saymon Akther

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

We live in an era of emerging infectious diseases that are increasingly common, rapidly spreading, and gravely devastating. Lyme disease, caused by bacteria belonging to the genus Borreliella, is rapidly rising in the Northern Hemisphere because of geographic range expansion of both the tick vectors and the pathogens. Evolutionary comparative analysis of Borreliella genomes is a key to understanding the phylogeographic history and mechanisms of their global diversification. Moreover, genomic variations in Borreliella associated with human pathogenicity, e.g., at loci encoding cell-surface antigens interacting with the vertebrate hosts, have not been fully identified. Similarly, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, caused …

Native And Non-Native Ant Impacts On Soil Microbes, Hannah A. Stewart

Biology Theses

Organisms produce chemical weapons for defense, but target organisms can develop resistance. In their introduced range, non-native species may bring “novel weapons” against which native organisms have not co-evolved resistance. The invasive European fire ant (Myrmica rubra) may have brought antimicrobial secretions to the Northeastern United States that are novel weapons against native fungal and bacterial soil organisms. I hypothesized that M. rubra would better inhibit seed pathogens resulting in greater emergence of native myrmecochorous Viola sororia seeds and, as a side effect, more strongly inhibit arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi than a native seed dispersing ant (Aphaenogaster picea …

Microplastics Exposure In At-Risk Myotis Lucifugus Bats Of The Northeastern United States, Leah Crowley

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Understanding The Natural History Of Juvenile Amblyomma Maculatum In Southeastern Virginia, Christina Espada, Holly Gaff

College of Sciences Posters

Amblyomma maculatum, the Gulf Coast tick, is a species of increasing public health concern. Adult A. maculatum is a known vector of several pathogens including Rickettsia parkeri, the causative agent of Rickettsia parkeri rickettsiosis. Amblyomma maculatum has expanded northward from its historic range along the Gulf Coast, with populations reportedly establishing in southeastern Virginia in 2010. Recently established populations of A. maculatum tend to have higher R. parkeri infection prevalence compared to longer established populations. This pattern holds for all populations found so far in southeastern Virginia, with a prevalence of R. parkeri in about 60% of A. …

Effects Of Experimental Malaria Infection On Migration Of Yellow-Rumped Warblers (Setophaga Coronata), Rebecca J. Howe

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The potential of migratory animals to spread infectious diseases depends on how infection affects movement. If infection delays or slows the speed of travel, transmission to uninfected individuals may be reduced. Whether and how malaria (Plasmodium spp.) affects bird migration has received little experimental research. I captured 40 actively-migrating Yellow-rumped Warblers (Setophaga coronata) at a migration stopover site and held them in captivity. I inoculated 25 with P. cathemerium while 15 received sham inoculations. After 12 days the birds were released. Six P. cathemerium-inoculated birds (24%) developed P. cathemerium infections after inoculation. I radio-tagged all birds, …

Final Report Floating Upwelling System Harvest Road Oceans, Robert Michael, Scott Bennett

Fisheries occasional publications

A Floating Upwelling System or FLUPSY is a mechanical system for the culture of seed stock during the nursery stage of commercial bivalve production.

A Post-Pneumonia Epizootic Evaluation Of The Rapid City, South Dakota Bighorn Sheep Herd, Amanda N. Ensrud

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Pneumonia is a major factor affecting populations of free-ranging bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) across western North America. Pneumonia can occur in large-scale epizootics, during which greater than half of the population typically dies. After these epizootics, surviving ewes continue to conceive and bear lambs. However, lamb recruitment may remain low due to periodic or annual pneumonia outbreaks causing high lamb mortality rates, sometimes greater than 90%. Our study focused on the Rapid City, South Dakota bighorn sheep (BHS) herd that has recorded pneumonia-induced population decline since 2009. The first objective was to improve lamb health and survival by identifying and …

Circling The Drain: The Extinction Crisis And The Future Of Humanity, Rodolfo Dirzo, Gerardo Ceballos, Paul R. Ehrlich

Harold W. Manter Laboratory: Library Materials

Humanity has triggered the sixth mass extinction episode since the beginning of the Phanerozoic. The complexity of this extinction crisis is centered on the intersection of two complex adaptive systems: human culture and ecosystem functioning, although the significance of this intersection is not properly appreciated. Human beings are part of biodiversity and elements in a global ecosystem. Civilization, and perhaps even the fate of our species, is utterly dependent on that ecosystem’s proper functioning, which society is increasingly degrading. The crisis seems rooted in three factors. First, relatively few people globally are aware of its existence. Second, most people who …

Avian Haemosporidian Blood Parasite Diversity, Prevalence, And Distribution In Michigan’S Western Upper Peninsula, Maria M. Ferrer

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Avian haemosporidian parasites, known as avian malaria (phylum Apicomplexa) can diminish an individual bird’s fitness by causing parasitemia, anemia, and reduced survival. Climate change is predicted to increase the spread of malarial parasites into more northerly latitudes where little is known about community compositions of these parasites. I assessed the prevalence and diversity of haemosporidian parasites in the first-ever community-level sampling of malaria in songbirds across the western Upper Peninsula of Michigan. In total, 179 blood samples were collected from birds representing 17 species, at five locations in the Upper Peninsula, including a mature forest, an early successional forest, and …