Environmental Health Commons^™

Molecular Characterization Of Hemoglobin Protein In Larvae Of 4th Instar Chironomidae For Evaluating Environmental Quality, Jun Taek Oh

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Studying environmental quality is a challenging task. It is a complicated exercise since the environment is constantly influenced by numerous variables such as climate change, anthropogenic activities, and unexpected natural disasters. Traditionally, exposure to chemical pollutants depended on chemical and physical analysis of environmental media. Unfortunately, this approach has not taken into consideration bioavailability of the chemical(s) of interest to exposed organisms and/or modification of the chemical (bioactivation/detoxification) by the organism. Benthic macroinvertebrates (BMIs) have been chosen as bioindicators for numerous environmental biomonitoring programs geared towards the assessment of aquatic ecosystems. Biomonitoring requires a more subtle measure – a biomarker …

Rapid Method Of Processing Sperm For Nucleic Acid Extraction In Clinical Research, Matthew K. De Gannes

Masters Theses

Background: Sperm contain highly compact nuclei, inhibiting DNA extraction using traditional techniques. Current methods extracting sperm DNA involve lengthy lysis and no means of stabilizing DNA, hindering clinical research.

Objective: We sought to optimize an efficient method of extracting high quality human sperm DNA.

Methods: Sperm from three volunteers were isolated using PureCeption. We tested 1) proteinase K with DNA/RNA Shield, 2) DTT and TCEP as reducing agents, 3) QIAshredder homogenization, and 4) stability of sperm DNA fresh (baseline) or after 4 weeks of storage at 4^OC in DNA/RNA Shield using modified Quick-gDNA MiniPrep. DNA was PCR amplified …

Water Water Everywhere: Analyzing Long Island's Water Issues And Finding Solutions For A Sustainable Future, Anthony T. Becker

2014 Student Theses

Over three million people call Long Island their home. With access to beautiful landscapes, world-renowned beaches, and proximity to New York City, it is no wonder that so many proudly call this geographic stretch of glacial till their home. However, throughout the years our actions do not necessarily reflect this affection we have to our home. Years of sprawl and human infestation across the island have resulted in widespread environmental degradation. Specifically, the water we drink and the beaches we enjoy have become endangered. I plan on studying the urban ecology of how intensified population growth led to the eutrophication …

Carbon Nanomaterials In Freshwater Ecosystems: An Chronic, Multi-Generational, And Genomic Assessment Of Toxicity To Daphnia Magna, Devrah Anne Arndt

Theses and Dissertations

Carbon nanomaterials are synthesized with a variety of core structures and surface chemistries to make them more biocompatible for application in different industries, but variation in core structure and functionalization can change the toxicity of carbon nanomaterials to organisms. In addition, current literature is dominated by data from acute toxicity assays, but meta-data is necessary to improve our understanding of nanomaterial toxicity. This project identifies specific core structures and surface chemistries that make carbon nanomaterials more and less toxic using chronic toxicity assays and multi-generational assays to generate a dataset on the sub-lethal impacts of nanomaterials to Daphnia magna. In …

Exploration Of Freshwater Cyanobacteria, Mariya Campbell

Georgia State Undergraduate Research Conference

No abstract provided.

The Performance Of Simple Artificial Floating Wetland Communities And Their Effects On Aquatic Nutrient Levels And Algal Abundance, Bradley L. Sleeth

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Harmful algal blooms are exponential increases in autotrophic microorganisms that proliferate in such a way that the surrounding environment, the local economy and the health of regional populations are negatively affected. Among the causes of these blooms are anthropogenic inputs of excess nitrogen and phosphorus into the environment through overfertilization. Floating treatment wetlands (FTW) have emerged as a novel method of reducing the negative impacts of these nutrient inputs by using artificial rafts to float normally emergent wetland plants on the surface of water bodies to assimilate excess nutrients. Because their use is so new, only limited research has been …

The Effects That Liquid And Solid Cattle Manure Have On The Water Quality Of Drainage Ditches In Putnam County, Ohio, Janelle Horstman

Honors Projects

Lake Erie has experienced harmful algal blooms with increased frequency since the mid-1990s due to excess nutrients from Rivers, such as the Maumee River, and largely agricultural watersheds. Nonpoint source pollution from agriculture contributes to eutrophication, algal blooms, and the degradation of water quality. This creates stress on aquatic fauna, reduced aesthetic quality, odor, and limits of the water for usage of drinking, recreation, and industry. This research paper asks what the contributions of having access to manure application records, soil records, and information about antibiotics have on what is known about manure management and antibiotic resistance, which has been …