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Molecular, Genetic, and Biochemical Nutrition Commons

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Theses/Dissertations

2020

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Articles 1 - 24 of 24

Full-Text Articles in Molecular, Genetic, and Biochemical Nutrition

Antioxidant Properties And Anti-Cancer Effects Of Polyphenols In Sweetpotato Leaves, Josue Bolanos Dec 2020

Antioxidant Properties And Anti-Cancer Effects Of Polyphenols In Sweetpotato Leaves, Josue Bolanos

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Although the root is widely consumed, sweetpotato leaves (SPL) are often discarded and are only consumed in a few countries. In the United States, SPL consumption is limited to private gardens, particularly in the Southeastern United States. Not only are SPL a good source of nutrients such as vitamins and minerals, but they also contain polyphenol compounds including the caffeoylquinic acid derivatives and carotenoids such as lutein. Several studies have shown the polyphenol contents and antioxidant capacities of SPL, which vary based on year and variety, while few studies have shown anti-colon cancer effects of SPL. Therefore, this study investigated …


Anti-Inflammatory Properties Of Blackberry Phenolic And Volatile Compounds, Pauline Morin Dec 2020

Anti-Inflammatory Properties Of Blackberry Phenolic And Volatile Compounds, Pauline Morin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Berries are known for many health benefits including anti-inflammatory properties that lower risks of chronic diseases. These properties have been linked to high concentrations of phenolic compounds, especially anthocyanins. However, the present study hypothesized that volatiles could contribute to the berries’ bioactive properties. Thus, the objectives of this research are to profile the phenolic and volatile composition of 16 blackberry genotypes harvested at the Fruit Research Center of the University of Arkansas and to evaluate the antiinflammatory capacities of three selected genotypes on inflamed cells. Phenolic and volatile profiles were evaluated using chromatographic techniques. The three genotypes A2528T, A2587T and …


The Effect Of Epa And Dha On Skeletal Muscle Physiology And Energy Balance, Saeed Jebor Ghnaimawi Dec 2020

The Effect Of Epa And Dha On Skeletal Muscle Physiology And Energy Balance, Saeed Jebor Ghnaimawi

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supplementation commonly suggested during pregnancy confers many health benefits on offspring and more recently improves fetal BAT development and induces myoblast trans-differentiation into adiopocytes through activating PPARs expression. Embryonic myoblast is a highly flexible cell showing great capacity to change its phenotype into adipocyte in response to EPA and DHA supplementation in many in vitro models. However, a little is known about the identity of derived adipocytes, whether, they change into brown or white adipocyte, and in vivo evidence is still missing. Given that the myogeneis process is initiated at the mid of …


Ionic Mechanism Of Lysosomal Function And Cell Metabolism, Jian Xiong Dec 2020

Ionic Mechanism Of Lysosomal Function And Cell Metabolism, Jian Xiong

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

Two Pore Channels (TPCs) are endolysosomal ion channels that are permeable to sodium and calcium. Defects in TPCs have been implicated to impair vesicle trafficking, autophagy and cell metabolism control; however, the detailed mechanism remains largely unknown. In this study, I show that TPCs are critical for appropriate cargo delivery to the lysosomes and deletion of either TPC1 or TPC2 leads to delayed clearance of autophagosomes, resulting in enlarged lysosomes and accumulated contents inside the lysosomes. Cells with both TPC deleted also exhibit 50% reduction in lysosomal amino acids under normal culture conditions, leading to reduced homeostatic mTORC1 activation.

Glutamine …


Roles Of Select Cytochrome P450 Epoxygenases In Brown Adipogenesis, Katherine Marie Graham Dec 2020

Roles Of Select Cytochrome P450 Epoxygenases In Brown Adipogenesis, Katherine Marie Graham

Masters Theses

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) has recently emerged as a novel target for obesity treatment and prevention. Cytochrome P450 (CYP) epoxygenases, primarily CYP2J and CYP2C isoforms, produce epoxy fatty acids (EpFAs), which have been suggested to play important roles in the regulation of white adipogenesis and obesity. However, adipocyte-specific expression of CYP epoxygenases has not been extensively analyzed, and the roles of CYP epoxygenases in brown adipogenesis remain unexplored. In this study, we examined mRNA levels of Cyp2j and Cyp2c isoforms during murine and human brown and white adipocyte differentiation and in various adipose tissue depots of high-fat diet (HFD)-fed and …


Dietary Development And Nutritional Ontogeny In Gorilla Beringei : A Multi-Layered, -Omics Approach, Emma C. Cancelliere Sep 2020

Dietary Development And Nutritional Ontogeny In Gorilla Beringei : A Multi-Layered, -Omics Approach, Emma C. Cancelliere

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In species who consume folivorous diets, immature individuals must contend with the challenges of extracting nutrients from fibrous foods before dietary adaptations and strategies are fully developed. Additionally, immatures have distinct nutritional needs to support their stage-specific metabolic and biophysiological requirements. To meet these stage-specific needs, while constrained by underdeveloped feeding strategies and digestive capacities, immatures may adopt distinct diets better suited to their specific developmental context. However, where dietary modification is constrained by low dietary diversity or landscape homogeneity, it is unclear how immature individuals compensate through alternative strategies. In turn, little is known about the nutritional and life …


Development Of Valuable And Functional Protein-Based Food Ingredients From Invasive Green Crabs, Bouhee Kang Aug 2020

Development Of Valuable And Functional Protein-Based Food Ingredients From Invasive Green Crabs, Bouhee Kang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

European green crabs (Carcinus maenas L.) are an invasive species unintentionally introduced from Europe to the U.S. Their predation and burrowing activities have had detrimental effects on our marine habitats, aquaculture, and commercially important fisheries. Despite the large population of green crabs, they are not commercially utilized in North America as food products. The specific objectives of my research were to: 1) determine functional properties of protein recovered from green crab by isoelectric solubilization and precipitation (ISP) for potential food application, 2) investigate the application of enzymatic hydrolysis for deriving bioactive compounds from green crab proteins and examine the …


Effects Of Broccoli And Carrots On Fecal Microrna Expression In Infants: A Short-Term Feeding Study, Kaleigh E. Beane Jul 2020

Effects Of Broccoli And Carrots On Fecal Microrna Expression In Infants: A Short-Term Feeding Study, Kaleigh E. Beane

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Diets, through multiple mechanisms, cause significant impact on human health and disease etiology; proposed modes of action include modulation of non-coding RNAs and influences on the gut microbiome. Specifically, phytochemicals change human miRNA expression thereby impacting gut microbiome and/or increasing host immune functions. Apiaceous and cruciferous vegetables have been linked to decreased chronic inflammation, which is closely related with the host immune system, yet it is not investigated how these two classes of vegetables influence the colonic miRNA profile. In this study, therefore we aimed to determine the effects of short-term feeding of broccoli and carrot to infants on fecal …


Optimization Of Dna Extraction From Human Milk, Cassandra Z. Rutherford May 2020

Optimization Of Dna Extraction From Human Milk, Cassandra Z. Rutherford

Graduate Theses

Background: Techniques are emerging for determining the best and most cost-effective way to test for human milk adulteration. Currently, the literature is focused on the use of qPCR testing, a technique used to isolate and amplify pieces of DNA for analysis. However, no recommendation currently exists on the best DNA extraction kit to use to achieve optimal DNA yield or purity from human milk samples for downstream qPCR use. Thus, the objective of this study is to assess and compare two DNA extraction kits for use with human milk samples for future DNA-based analysis in the testing for bovine milk …


Liver Transcriptomic Analysis After Short- And Long-Term Feeding Of Soy Protein Isolate And Its Ability To Reduce Liver Steatosis In Obese Zucker Rats, Melisa Kozaczek May 2020

Liver Transcriptomic Analysis After Short- And Long-Term Feeding Of Soy Protein Isolate And Its Ability To Reduce Liver Steatosis In Obese Zucker Rats, Melisa Kozaczek

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) the prevalence of obesity in adults in the United States during 2017-2018 was a 42.4%, a high number considering all the risks factors associated with this disorder, such as cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance, diabetes type 2, and fatty liver disease, among others. Fatty liver disease is the accumulation of lipids in the liver that can account for more than 5 to 10% of the liver’s weight. There are two types of fatty liver disease, alcoholic fatty liver disease (AFLD), and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). AFLD is the detrimental accumulation …


Nutritional Supplementation And Skeletal Muscle Health In Chronic Diseases, Hexirui Wu May 2020

Nutritional Supplementation And Skeletal Muscle Health In Chronic Diseases, Hexirui Wu

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Prevalence of chronic diseases in the United States keeps increasing in recent years. There are approximately four in ten adults having chronic diseases in America. Chronic diseases include obesity, aging, heart diseases, cancer and many others. This thesis mainly focuses on obesity and aging. Skeletal muscle performance is impaired in obesity and aging conditions. One common reason causing this could be higher fat mass and lower muscle mass. However, there is no study showing what pathways are involved in the imbalance of body composition. Therefore, the first objective of the thesis is to determine gene expression of selected pathways in …


Development Of Arkansas Net Energy Equation, Katie Hilton May 2020

Development Of Arkansas Net Energy Equation, Katie Hilton

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The modern broiler is growing at a rapid rate generating tremendous amounts of heat. A sensitive Net Energy (NE) system is needed to measure body heat production (HP) generated primarily by daily maintenance and synthesis and degradation of myofibrillar and sarcoplasmic protein. The first two chapters present evaluation of the classic way to calculate NE versus a new methodology; the Arkansas NE (Ark NE) system, with birds from two genetic lines fed diets with different AA content or different ME content in two different environmental temperatures.

Utilizing together the Net Energy maintenance (NEm), determined from indirect calorimetry, and Net Energy …


The Effects Of Retinoic Acid And Insulin On Glycogenesis In Hl1c Hepatoma Cells, Addison J. Bond, Guoxun Chen Dr. May 2020

The Effects Of Retinoic Acid And Insulin On Glycogenesis In Hl1c Hepatoma Cells, Addison J. Bond, Guoxun Chen Dr.

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.


The Effects Of Skeletal Muscle Specific Cpt1b Knock Out On Genetically Obese Ay Mice, Allison Stone Apr 2020

The Effects Of Skeletal Muscle Specific Cpt1b Knock Out On Genetically Obese Ay Mice, Allison Stone

LSU Master's Theses

Fatty acid oxidation inhibition is one approach to reducing blood glucose levels in type II diabetes. Skeletal muscle specific Carnitine Palmitoyltransferase 1b knockout mice (Cpt1bm-/-) cannot transport long-chain fatty acids into the mitochondria to be oxidized in order to produce energy. Cpt1bm-/- mice have debilitated fat oxidation, less fat mass and improved glucose utilization compared to control C57BL/6 mice fed a 25% fat diet.

We hypothesized that CPT1b inhibition could reduce fat mass and lower blood glucose levels in a genetic mouse model of obesity and diabetes. To test this, we bred Cpt1bm-/- mice to A …


การแบ่งกลุ่มย่อยตามลักษณะทางคลินิกรูปแบบใหม่โดยอาศัยปัญญาประดิษฐ์ ร่วมกับการวิเคราะห์โอมิกส์แบบบูรณาการหลายระดับ เพื่อระบุกลุ่มตัวแทนสารบ่งชี้ทางชีวภาพสำหรับภาวะออทิซึมสเปกตรัม, กัลยภัสสร์ หัสเสม Jan 2020

การแบ่งกลุ่มย่อยตามลักษณะทางคลินิกรูปแบบใหม่โดยอาศัยปัญญาประดิษฐ์ ร่วมกับการวิเคราะห์โอมิกส์แบบบูรณาการหลายระดับ เพื่อระบุกลุ่มตัวแทนสารบ่งชี้ทางชีวภาพสำหรับภาวะออทิซึมสเปกตรัม, กัลยภัสสร์ หัสเสม

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

โรคออทิซึมสเปกตรัมเป็นความผิดปกติเกี่ยวกับพัฒนาการในช่วงเริ่มแรกของระบบประสาทและสมองซึ่งมีอาการทางคลินิกที่หลากหลายมาก ปัจจุบันยังไม่มีสารบ่งชี้เพื่อช่วยในการวินิจฉัยและแบ่งผู้ป่วยเป็นกลุ่มย่อย แต่การวินิจฉัยที่รวดเร็วเป็นสิ่งสำคัญที่จะช่วยให้ผู้ป่วยออทิซึมสเปกตรัมสามารถได้รับการเรียนรู้และพัฒนาพฤติกรรมที่จำเป็นในการดำรงชีวิตได้ การวินิจฉัยโรคออทิซึมสเปกตรัมตามมาตรฐานสากลใช้แบบสอบถามที่มีความซับซ้อนและใช้เวลามาก ซึ่งในปัจจุบันมีการนำเอาเทคโนโลยีปัญญาประดิษฐ์มาประยุกต์ใช้ในการวิเคราะห์ข้อมูลขนาดใหญ่ที่มีความซับซ้อน อย่างไรก็ตามการนำเอาปัญญาประดิษฐ์มาใช้วิเคราะห์อาการทางคลินิกของผู้ป่วยออทิซึมสเปกตรัมยังไม่แพร่หลายนัก ในการศึกษานี้ผู้วิจัยต้องการนำเอาปัญญาประดิษฐ์มาใช้แบ่งผู้ป่วยออทิซึมสเปกตรัมจำนวน 85 ราย ออกเป็นกลุ่มย่อยตามอาการทางคลินิกจากข้อมูลแบบทดสอบในการวินิจฉัยผู้ป่วยออทิซึมสเปกตรัม ADI-R จำนวน 123 ข้อ จากนั้นได้ทำการสร้างโมเดลในการจัดกลุ่มและเปรียบเทียบประสิทธิภาพรวมถึงจำนวนข้อคำถามที่ใช้ในแต่ละโมเดล นอกจากนี้ผู้วิจัยได้ศึกษาหาสารบ่งชี้ทางชีวภาพที่เป็นตัวแทนของโรคออทิซึมสเปกตรัมกลุ่มย่อยจากลักษณะอาการทางคลินิกโดยอาศัยการบูรณาการโอมิกส์หลายระดับ จึงได้ดำเนินการวิเคราะห์รูปแบบทรานสคริปโตม และวิเคราะห์รูปแบบโปรตีโอมของผู้ป่วยออทิซึมสเปกตรัมโดยใช้เซลล์เพาะเลี้ยงชนิดลิมโฟบลาสต์เป็นต้นแบบ โดยใช้เทคนิคการแยกโปรตีนด้วยกระแสไฟฟ้า 2 มิติ (2D-GE) จากนั้นจะทำการระบุโปรตีนด้วยเทคนิค LC-MS/MS เพื่อหาโปรตีนที่ถูกรบกวนการทำงานอย่างมีนัยสำคัญ และบูรณาการข้อมูลเพื่อศึกษาความสอดคล้องและสัมพันธ์กันระหว่างการแสดงออกของโปรตีนและยีน และทำการยืนยันระดับการแสดงออกที่ผิดปกติไปของยีนด้วยเทคนิค Real-time qPCR และโปรตีนด้วยเทคนิค Western blot ในการศึกษาครั้งนี้จากผลการวิเคราะห์ข้อมูลลักษณะอาการทางคลินิกของผู้ป่วยออทิซึมสเปกตรัมจากแบบทดสอบ ADI-R 123 ข้อ พบว่าวิธี K-means clustering ที่แบ่งผู้ป่วยออกเป็น 4 กลุ่มย่อยนั้นให้ประสิทธิภาพในการแบ่งดีที่สุด และเมื่อทำการสร้างโมเดลในการจัดกลุ่มผู้ป่วยตามผลการแบ่งกลุ่มดังกล่าว พบว่าอัลกอริทึม Random forest ที่มีจำนวนต้นไม้ 10 ต้น โดยกระบวนการคัดเลือกข้อมูลแบบ Forward selection ให้ผลการทำนายถูกต้องมากที่สุด (100%) โดยใช้ข้อคำถาม ADI-R เพียง 5 ข้อ ในการแบ่งผู้ป่วยออกเป็นกลุ่มย่อย และจากการวิเคราะห์รูปแบบโปรตีโอมจากเซลล์เพาะเลี้ยงชนิดลิมโฟบลาสต์ของผู้ป่วยออทิซึมสเปกตรัมและออทิซึมสเปกตรัมกลุ่มย่อยด้วยเทคนิค 2D-GE ผู้วิจัยได้ทำการคัดเลือกจุดโปรตีนที่มีการแสดงออกผิดปกติอย่างมีนัยสำคัญและมีค่าสัดส่วนความเข้มแตกต่างกันอย่างน้อยสองเท่ามา 19 จุด เพื่อทำการระบุชนิดของโปรตีนด้วยเทคนิค LC-MS/MS โดยพบว่าจากโปรตีนทั้งหมด HNRNPA2B1 มีระดับการแสดงออกเพิ่มขึ้นในผู้ป่วยออทิซึมสเปกตรัมกลุ่มย่อยที่ไม่มีความผิดปกติด้านภาษารุนแรง โดยที่โปรตีน HNRNPA2B1 MDH2 DLD และ MSN มีระดับการแสดงออกลดลงในผู้ป่วยออทิซึมสเปกตรัมกลุ่มย่อยที่มีความผิดปกติด้านภาษารุนแรง ดังนั้นจากการศึกษาวิจัยในครั้งนี้ได้แสดงให้เห็นว่าการใช้เทคโนโลยีปัญญาประดิษฐ์ในการแบ่งผู้ป่วยออทิซึมสเปกตรัมออกเป็นกลุ่มย่อยตามลักษณะอาการทางคลินิกนั้น สามารถลดความหลากหลายตามลักษณะอาการที่แสดงออกของโรคออทิซึมสเปกตรัมในการวิเคราะห์รูปแบบทรานสคริปโตมและโปรตีโอม รวมถึงการค้นหาโปรตีนที่จำเพาะต่อผู้ป่วยออทิซึมสเปกตรัมกลุ่มย่อย ได้อย่างมีประสิทธิภาพมากขึ้น ซึ่งโปรตีนเหล่านี้อาจใช้เป็นโปรตีนบ่งชี้ในการศึกษาเชิงลึกในประชากรผู้ป่วย เพื่อพัฒนาเป็นสารบ่งชีทางชีวภาพ (Biomarker) หรือศึกษากลไกพยาธิสภาพในระดับชีวโมเลกุลของโรคออทิซึมสเปกตรัมได้ต่อไปในอนาคต


Protective Effects Of Tiger Milk Mushroom (Lignosus Rhinocerus) Extracts On Oxidative Stress-Induced Neurotoxicity And Aging In Ht22 Cells And C. Elegans, Parinee Kittimongkolsuk Jan 2020

Protective Effects Of Tiger Milk Mushroom (Lignosus Rhinocerus) Extracts On Oxidative Stress-Induced Neurotoxicity And Aging In Ht22 Cells And C. Elegans, Parinee Kittimongkolsuk

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Lignosus rhinocerus (LR) or Tiger Milk Mushroom, a fork medicinal mushroom, has been reported for several pharmacological effects including asthma treatment, anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative, immuno-modulating effects, promote neurite outgrowth in PC-12 cells, anti-HIV-1 activity, and antioxidants properties. However, the antioxidant properties have only focus on in vitro and no or few studies have reported their protective effects in mouse hippocampal (HT22) cells and Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans). This study aims to investigate the neuroprotective effect of three extracts of LR against oxidative stress in both HT22 cells and. C. elegans as well as longevity in C. elegans. In HT22 cells, we …


Non-Invasive Method For Leptin Supplementation In Zebrafish (Danio Rerio), Regan Mcnamara Jan 2020

Non-Invasive Method For Leptin Supplementation In Zebrafish (Danio Rerio), Regan Mcnamara

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

I tested the hypothesis that recombinant leptin protein can be introduced to zebrafish in vivo through non-invasive soaking in a solution containing the protein. One way to study various molecules’ effects in vivo is through intraperitoneal or intracerebroventricular injections during the embryonic or larval stage, which is invasive, difficult to administer, and can have a high mortality rate. 48 hours post fertilization (hpf) zebrafish were soaked in a His-tagged recombinant leptin protein solution at 10 nM and 100 nM concentrations (produced by Genscript). After soaking, zebrafish larvae were washed extensively to remove all recombinant protein on their exterior before homogenization. …


Assessment Of Protein Quality, Lipid Metabolism, Hepatic Transcriptome And Safety Of A Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys Molitrix) Derived Sarcoplasmic Protein Powder., Derek Cole Warren Jan 2020

Assessment Of Protein Quality, Lipid Metabolism, Hepatic Transcriptome And Safety Of A Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys Molitrix) Derived Sarcoplasmic Protein Powder., Derek Cole Warren

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Fishery resources are currently operating either near optimal yield or at levels with elevated risk for fish stock depletion. A solution for overcoming limitations of natural fish resources is through utilization of less desirable fish species and fish processing by-products. Water-soluble sarcoplasm proteins consist of 25 – 30% of protein in carp, are lost in wash water during processing and can be recovered and freeze-dried to produce a protein-rich powder (CSP). The objective of this project was to evaluate the protein quality and safety of CSP, assess diets consisting of CSP or commercial milk proteins effects on lipid metabolism, and …


Apoe As A Metabolic Regulator In Humans, Mice, And Astrocytes, Brandon C. Farmer Jan 2020

Apoe As A Metabolic Regulator In Humans, Mice, And Astrocytes, Brandon C. Farmer

Theses and Dissertations--Physiology

Altered metabolic pathways appear to play central roles in the pathophysiology of late-onset Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Carrier status of the E4 allele of the APOE gene is the strongest genetic risk factor for late-onset AD, and increasing evidence suggests that E4 carriers may be at an increased risk for neurodegeneration based on inherent metabolic impairments. A new appreciation is forming for the role of APOE in cerebral metabolism, and how nutritional factors may impact this role. In chapter 1, the literature on nutritional interventions in E4 carriers aimed at mitigating disease risk is reviewed. Studies investigating the mechanism by which …


Appetite-Regulating Hormones In Energy Compensation With Exercise, Jack Moreland Jan 2020

Appetite-Regulating Hormones In Energy Compensation With Exercise, Jack Moreland

Theses and Dissertations--Nutrition and Food Systems

Background: The appetite-regulating hormones may influence compensatory increases in energy intake with exercise, although this causal relationship has been difficult to prove in a longitudinal trial.

Methods: 37 participants (29 female) aged 18 to 40 years performed aerobic exercise 6 days (6d), 2 days (2d), or 0 days per week for 12-weeks. Concentrations of ghrelin, leptin, glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1), and insulin were assessed before (fasting, minute 0) and after a standardized meal at minute 15, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, 150, and 180. Linear mixed-effects models were used to model the relationships between time point (12 weeks vs. baseline) …


The Effects Of A High-Fat Diet On The Brain; A Meta-Analysis Of Microglia In The Hypothalamus, Emily Karabeika Jan 2020

The Effects Of A High-Fat Diet On The Brain; A Meta-Analysis Of Microglia In The Hypothalamus, Emily Karabeika

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

The typical ‘Western Diet’ includes a diet high in fats and sugars. This thesis explores the problems that this type of diet could have on the brain. A meta-analysis was conducted to show activated microglia count in the hypothalamus of mice after a high-fat diet. The results showed a large effect size with the included studies, showing that a high fat diet significantly increases microglia count across studies. Increased activated microglia leads to chronic inflammation in the hypothalamus, which is linked to metabolic problems like insulin resistance, leptin resistance and glucose intolerance.


Developmental Mechanisms For The Diversification Of Polyphenic Morphs In The Head Horn Of Onthophagine Beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae Onthophagus Taurus): Plasticity Through Nutrition, Logan Paul Zeigler Jan 2020

Developmental Mechanisms For The Diversification Of Polyphenic Morphs In The Head Horn Of Onthophagine Beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae Onthophagus Taurus): Plasticity Through Nutrition, Logan Paul Zeigler

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Developmental plasticity is the phenotypic variation between organisms that is caused by environmental interactions affecting the developmental systems of organisms. The research focused primarily on nutrition-responsive developmental plasticity. In this research we used the nutritionally determined head horn development of Onthophagus taurus to better understand the developmental mechanisms and genetic underpinnings of nutrition-responsive trait development. We focused specifically on altering the availability of specific nutrition-related primary metabolites, cholesterol and palmitic acid, identified in the activity of The Hedgehog pathway, a critical pathway in head horn development. By altering diet composition using cholesterol, reducing transcript expression of an acyltransferase gene, rasp …


Arthropod Resistant Tomatoes: Screening Tools, Yield And Nutritional Quality Of Interspecific Hybrids, Mohammad Hasan Salman Ali Dawood Jan 2020

Arthropod Resistant Tomatoes: Screening Tools, Yield And Nutritional Quality Of Interspecific Hybrids, Mohammad Hasan Salman Ali Dawood

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is one of the most economically important vegetable crops grown around globe but is a host for numerous pests and pathogens. In the future, tomato breeders will have to focus on increasing fruit quantity and on enhancing pest resistance. Many accessions of the wild relative of tomato, S. habrochaites display high levels of resistance towards arthropods such as spider mites. The presence of the sesquiterpene hydrocarbon, 7-epi-zingiberene, found in S. habrochaites type IV trichomes has been associated with arthropod resistance. However, the presence of other compounds in its trichome secretions may also be related …


The Effects Of Internal Physiology On Polyphenic Horn Development In The Dung Beetle Onthophagus Taurus, Naomi Garrett Williamson Jan 2020

The Effects Of Internal Physiology On Polyphenic Horn Development In The Dung Beetle Onthophagus Taurus, Naomi Garrett Williamson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

An organism’s phenotype can be affected in development by alterations to gene expression based on environmental inputs. Nutrition is one such environmental input and the central regulator of development of large horn or small horn phenotypes in the dung beetle species, Onthophagus taurus. However, little is known about the nature of chemical compounds that are critical to this plastic horn development. To better understand these compounds, we are utilizing an untargeted metabolomic approach as well as a targeted gene approach. Through the metabolomic approach, it was uncovered that environmental conditions tend to have a greater impact on metabolomic composition …