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Research Methods in Life Sciences Commons™
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Articles 1 - 21 of 21
Full-Text Articles in Research Methods in Life Sciences
Beat Behind The Bark: Investigating The Effects Of Music Tempo On Canine Physiological And Psychological States, Marley Lanier
Beat Behind The Bark: Investigating The Effects Of Music Tempo On Canine Physiological And Psychological States, Marley Lanier
Honors Theses
This study explores how the tempo of music, measured in beats per minute (BPM), affects dogs' heart rate and oxytocin levels, adding to past research that shows that music affects physiological and behavioral states in dogs. Being able to understand these effects holds practical implications for improving overall well-being in canines in environments such as homes, shelters, and clinical environments. Using a within-subjects design, the dogs were exposed to slow and fast versions of one instrumental track, along with a white noise baseline condition before each randomized condition. Heart rate was recorded continuously throughout the session, and oxytocin saliva samples …
Bottles, Butterflies, And Biomass: Recycled Glass Sand, Microbial Additions, And Herbivory Effects On Milkweed Growth, Kealey Skinner
Bottles, Butterflies, And Biomass: Recycled Glass Sand, Microbial Additions, And Herbivory Effects On Milkweed Growth, Kealey Skinner
Honors Theses
Plant-soil-microbe interactions are integral components of ecological networks and drive ecosystem function from the bottom-up. Whereas herbivores regulate ecosystem function from the top-down, having opposing and potentially complementary effects on ecosystem function. My thesis sought to understand how below-ground microbial communities contribute to herbivore preference and plant biomass across varied soil substrates. My thesis asked: how do substrate and soil microbial communities influence herbivore preference and plant biomass accumulation on swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)? To address this question, seedlings of A. incarnata were sown in 2.5 cm wide × 10 cm deep pots filled with either natural beach sand or …
Acute Effects Of The Psychoactive Pollutant Fluoxetine On The Antipredator Behavior Of The Gulf Killifish (Fundulus Grandis), Semyra Reus
Honors Theses
Pharmaceutical contaminants are increasingly prevalent in aquatic environments, yet their sublethal effects on ecologically relevant behaviors remain poorly understood, particularly in estuarine systems. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), such as fluoxetine, are of particular concern due to the conserved role of serotonin in regulating behavior across vertebrates. Here, we investigated how acute exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of fluoxetine influences anti-predator behavior in Gulf killifish (Fundulus grandis), a key estuarine fish commonly found in saltmarsh habitats. Killifish were exposed to control (0 ng/L), low (17.8 ng/L), and high (596 ng/L) fluoxetine concentrations and subsequently tested in the presence …
Impacts Of Polyploidization On Endocrine Regulation And Vocalization In The Gray Treefrog Complex, Avery Thigpen
Impacts Of Polyploidization On Endocrine Regulation And Vocalization In The Gray Treefrog Complex, Avery Thigpen
Honors Theses
Comparative genomics data suggest that vertebrates are descendants of ancestral polyploids and that historical polyploidization events fueled evolutionary innovations. For example, polyploidization can modify gene expression patterns and/or increase gene mutation rates to alter the phenotype. While considerable emphasis has been placed on the evolutionary impact of ancient polyploidization events, less is known regarding phenotypic modifications in extant polyploids. I examined circulating levels of adrenal glucocorticoids and gonadal steroids in the diploid-tetraploid gray treefrog complex to understand how polyploidization has impacted hormonal regulation. Furthermore, I examined the relationships between levels of these hormones and acoustic signals to examine if and …
Decoding Bacterial Resilience: Srnas And Sigma Factors In Stress Adaptation And Persistence Of Salmonella, Anita Nguyen
Decoding Bacterial Resilience: Srnas And Sigma Factors In Stress Adaptation And Persistence Of Salmonella, Anita Nguyen
Honors Theses
Small RNAs (sRNAs) are noncoding RNA molecules in bacteria that function primarily to regulate gene expression, including those associated with stress. The Borchert Lab has identified 173 sRNAs and > 500 sRNAs that are responsive to desiccation and carbon starvation (c-starvation), respectively. Prokaryotic transcription involves an RNA Polymerase (RNAP) that transcribes DNA into RNA. RNAP involves sigma factors, which recognize promoters for the initial steps of RNA synthesis. The Borchert Lab has determined that there are significant overlaps between sRNAs expressed in cells subjected to both short-term durations and long-term durations of carbon starvation. Salmonella enterica serovars can have outbreaks associated …
Ghosts In Glass: Ghost Crabs As Judges Of Glass Sand For Coastal Restoration, Emily Parrish
Ghosts In Glass: Ghost Crabs As Judges Of Glass Sand For Coastal Restoration, Emily Parrish
Honors Theses
Over 60% of the Gulf of Mexico coastline is actively eroding, which has resulted in thousands of miles of lost coastline over the last 100 years. This drastic loss of coastal land highlights the dire need for coastal restoration across the entirety of the Gulf Coast. A vital aspect of restoring these eroded areas is replenishing eroded substrate, traditionally conducted through offshore dredging of substrates which comes with high economic and ecological costs. Recycled glass sand may be able to fill this role and reduce our reliance on dredging while lowering the amount of glass waste entering landfills each year. …
Assessing The Behavioral Impact Of Pyridostigmine Bromide In Rats, Noah A. Martin
Assessing The Behavioral Impact Of Pyridostigmine Bromide In Rats, Noah A. Martin
Honors Theses
Pyridostigmine bromide (PB) is an organophosphate (OP) nerve agent prophylactic used to protect warfighters against chemical warfare agents. OPs inhibit the neural enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE) in the brain. This leads to the buildup of acetylcholine, causing respiratory failure, seizures, and death. PB functions by inhibiting ~30% of peripheral AChE temporarily, protecting the enzymes so that the body is able to restore sufficient cholinergic function post-exposure. PB does not cross the blood-brain barrier, though it may still indirectly affect toxicity in the brain due to repeated AChE inhibition throughout treatment, or by inhibition of non-target ChE’s in the blood. The aim …
Designing An Optimal Thermal Preference Arena For Southern Cricket Frog (Acris Gryllus) Juveniles, Eleanor E. Briggs, David M. Phillips Jr.
Designing An Optimal Thermal Preference Arena For Southern Cricket Frog (Acris Gryllus) Juveniles, Eleanor E. Briggs, David M. Phillips Jr.
Honors Theses
Climate change has been altering ecosystems across the world at a substantial rate, disrupting the delicate ecophysiological relationships between ecosystems and the organisms that live in them. Ectotherms, such as amphibians, rely on external temperatures to behaviorally thermoregulate, making it especially imperative to study their thermal biology. Thermal preference, which assesses the environmental temperature an organism would seek out in the absence of external stimuli, provides valuable information about an amphibian’s thermal biology and can be used to predict the effects of climate change on a species or population. A commonly used method to measure thermal preference is an arena …
Development Of A Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience (Cure) Using The Bess Beetle, Sreya Maddali
Development Of A Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience (Cure) Using The Bess Beetle, Sreya Maddali
Honors Theses
Participating in scientific research has increasingly been important in helping students develop necessary science learning skills, like critical thinking. One way of introducing students to these experiences is a Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE). CUREs enable students to improve in similar ways to internships and are more accessible to students from diverse backgrounds. The goal was to create a CURE centered around ecological genetics, using the Bess Beetle (Odontotaenius disjunctus) as the focal organism of a 16-week course. This species was selected because of its wide geographic range and divergent genetic lineages based on mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COI) …
Lmpact Of Salmonella Enterica Effector Proteins On Plant Physiology And Immunity, Sara Qader
Lmpact Of Salmonella Enterica Effector Proteins On Plant Physiology And Immunity, Sara Qader
Honors Theses
Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium are primarily recognized as pathogens associated with foodborne illnesses in humans. Salmonella also can colonize plant tissue effectively. The pathogen relies on type III secretion systems (T3SS) to infect mammals and plants successfully and counteract the immune response. Understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying Salmonella’s interactions with plants is essential for developing effective strategies to reduce its impact on human health and agriculture. Effector proteins, known for their role in modulating host-pathogen interactions, have been implicated in the virulence and pathogenicity of Salmonella. However, their specific functions and contributions to Salmonella’s interactions with plants remain largely unknown. …
Impacts Of Disturbance And Nutrient Addition On Coastal Dune Arthropod Communities, Kayla Beitzel
Impacts Of Disturbance And Nutrient Addition On Coastal Dune Arthropod Communities, Kayla Beitzel
Honors Theses
Coastal dune ecosystems are globally distributed ecosystems that occur from the tropics to the poles and serve as the first line of defense during storms. They are critical habitats for a variety of organisms and also play a critical role in stabilizing coastal habitats. These systems face increased pressure via urban development, recreational expansion, and sea-level rise (Newman et al. 2023; Webster et al. 2005). Insects are vital consumers in coastal ecosystems and act as regulators of plant growth. Low-diversity ecosystems, like coastal dune systems, often contain a higher abundance of low-diverse insect consumers (Ripple et al. 2021), which can …
Evaluating The Impact Of Temperature And Artificial Light At Night On The Growth, Swimming Performance, And Corticosterone Levels Of Southern Leopard Frog (Lithobates Sphenocephalus) Tadpoles, Skylar Alexander
Honors Theses
Anthropogenic activities caused by urbanization have considerably altered our world’s ecosystems which has led to a global amphibian population decline. Encroaching and unyielding urbanization by humans has contributed to a rise in artificial light at night due to light pollution as well as increased temperature due to climate change. Both rising temperatures and artificial light at night (ALAN) have been shown to individually have negative effects on amphibian physiology such as increased stress and decreased behavior. However, due to the drastic nature of human imposition, amphibians typically encounter these anthropogenic stressors in combination. Therefore, it is important to understand how …
Analysis Of Wild Rodent Gut Microbiota As A Function Of Exposure To Ticks And Tick-Borne Pathogens, Joshua Pandian
Analysis Of Wild Rodent Gut Microbiota As A Function Of Exposure To Ticks And Tick-Borne Pathogens, Joshua Pandian
Honors Theses
Due to advances in high-throughput parallel sequencing, researchers have conducted novel studies exploring relationships between microbiome compositions and different aspects of organism health. Some of these studies have shown that the gut microbiome of rodent models has effects on organism health and behavior and that infection with pathogens and the composition of the skin microbiome are linked to changes in gut microbiome composition. While previous studies have shown how vector microbiota impact vector behavior and pathogen transmission, the effect vectors have on reservoir species microbiomes has been a less prominent focus. We were interested in the relationships between tick parasitism, …
Developing A Novel Place Preference Assay To Compare Drosophila Species Over Time, Martha M. Brinson
Developing A Novel Place Preference Assay To Compare Drosophila Species Over Time, Martha M. Brinson
Honors Theses
Across phylogeny, integration of external factors, memory, and internal states of the organism dictate organismal behavior and mechanisms. The underlying genetic components can affect these behaviors such as in genomic changes arising from speciation. In this thesis, a new place preference assay was evaluated in the analysis and investigation of two species of Drosophila flies (D. melanogaster and D. simulans) to measure similarities and differences and their attraction to two different food substrates. Sleep and circadian measurements were also recorded during experimentation. The Drosophila Activity Monitor 5M (DAM5M) System and Sleep Circadian Analysis MATLAB Program (SCAMP) analysis were …
Characterizing The Roles Of Cannabinoid Receptor 1 & 2 In Zebrafish Behavior, Metabolism, And Seizure-Induced Activity, Kayci Kimmons
Characterizing The Roles Of Cannabinoid Receptor 1 & 2 In Zebrafish Behavior, Metabolism, And Seizure-Induced Activity, Kayci Kimmons
Honors Theses
Epileptic disorders like Dravet Syndrome require novel studies to determine the most ideal treatment. New research linking the endocannabinoid system (ECS) to epileptic disorders is arising, but there is still much to be discovered about the function and regulatory impact of the endocannabinoid system and its receptors in epilepsies like Dravet. In this study, knockout models of larval and adult zebrafish (Danio rerio) were used to investigate the roles of cannabinoid receptors 1 & 2 in behavior, brain mitochondrial metabolism, and seizure-induced activity following exposure to THC and CBD. Larval zebrafish which lacked cannabinoid receptor 1 exhibited increased …
Nectar Source Preferences Of The Hummingbird: A Field Study From South Texas, Jasmine Benavidez
Nectar Source Preferences Of The Hummingbird: A Field Study From South Texas, Jasmine Benavidez
Honors Theses
With the rise of urbanization, comes a rise in urban-like activities—most notable is birdfeeding. Given the increasing popularity of bird-feeding, especially in hummingbird feeding, concern for implications, if any, has mounted. There is reason to believe that artificial feeders can impact the surrounding environment; that is, it is possible that feeders could attract pollinators away from flowering plants, which, in turn, could bring repercussions for pollination and all associated with it. However, literature, on the matter, is rather limited. To add to this, past studies provide two opposing arguments. This study aims to explore the nectar source preferences of hummingbirds …
Conditioned Territory Defense In Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches (Gromphadorhina Portentosa), Macy R. Albaitis
Conditioned Territory Defense In Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches (Gromphadorhina Portentosa), Macy R. Albaitis
Honors Theses
In male blue gourami fish (Trichogaster trichopterus), signaled presentation of a male rival produces an aggressive conditioned response that results in an increased likelihood of the male winning the contest (Hollis, 1984). I replicated this classic study in a species that also shows territorial aggression: the Madagascar hissing cockroach (MHC; Gromphadorhina portentosa). During training, four adult male MHCs were designated as “CS+” animals and received a light (NS) followed by visual access to a rival male (US). Simultaneously, another group of four adult male MHCs designated as “UNC” animals received the light (NS) and visual access to a …
Responses To Fine Particulate Matter (Pm2.5) Exposures In Two Wild-Type Zebrafish Strains, Connor Necaise
Responses To Fine Particulate Matter (Pm2.5) Exposures In Two Wild-Type Zebrafish Strains, Connor Necaise
Honors Theses
Atmospheric fine particulate matter (PM2.5) exposure poses great health risks across the globe, causing both acute and chronic illnesses in humans. Therefore, a more complete understanding of the mechanisms in which PM2.5 induces these adverse health effects is urgently needed. Oxidative stress due to PAHs and other common components of PM2.5 is a proposed mechanism for its adverse health effects. However, little is known about the actual mechanisms of PM2.5 damage in humans. This study aimed to distinguish behavioral differences in two lines of zebrafish (AB & 5D) as a result of developmental exposure to …
The Relationship Between Glucocorticoids And The Humoral Immune Response To Mycoplasma Gallisepticum Challenges In Eastern Bluebirds, Joshua Smith
Honors Theses
Numerous studies have examined relationships between adrenal glucocorticoids and the immune system’s ability to fight disease. The relationship can vary, with glucocorticoids having either stimulatory or inhibitory effects. The pathogenic bacterium Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) elicits an adaptive immune response in birds, in which B cells produce MG-specific antibodies to fight the infection and prevent reoccurrence. Previous research found that Eastern Bluebirds that produce the most antibodies in response to MG infection also have the highest glucocorticoid levels. This finding led to the current study investigating whether corticosterone, the primary glucocorticoid in birds, stimulates production of antibodies in response to immune …
Impacts Of Embryonic Exposure To Cannabidiol Or ∆9-Tetrahydrocannabinol On Zebrafish (Danio Rerio) Frailty In F0 And F1 Generations, Anika Faruque
Impacts Of Embryonic Exposure To Cannabidiol Or ∆9-Tetrahydrocannabinol On Zebrafish (Danio Rerio) Frailty In F0 And F1 Generations, Anika Faruque
Honors Theses
Exposure to cannabinoids during critical development periods has increased with epileptic children being commonly prescribed CBD for seizures and pregnant women taking it recreationally. Many studies have been done on the possible benefits and drawbacks of cannabinoid exposure on the human brain, but not much is known about how it can affect the developing brain long-term. To see the potential adverse effects of cannabinoid exposure during critical stages of development and discover potential developmental origins of disease in consuming cannabinoids during embryogenesis, zebrafish embryos (6-96 hours post fertilization) were exposed to varying concentrations of CBD (0.02, 0.1, 0.5 µM), THC …
Amplification And Potential Transformation Of Human Syntaxin-17 Into Model E. Coli, Taylor H. Gore
Amplification And Potential Transformation Of Human Syntaxin-17 Into Model E. Coli, Taylor H. Gore
Honors Theses
Membrane fusion is key to organism homeostasis and occurs when a transport vesicle fuses with a target compartment, merging the two membranes into one while releasing the contents of the transport vesicle into the target compartment. This process is controlled by SNARE proteins. Syntaxin-17 protein plays a crucial role in the fusion of the autophagosome membrane with the lysosome membrane, allowing for degradation of misfolded intracellular components and pathogens. Intriguingly, Syntaxin 17 has been identified as a target of herpesvirus tegument proteins, although the pathological significance of the Syntaxin 17 and tegument protein interaction is unclear. As a first step …