Research Methods in Life Sciences Commons^™

Abcds Of Triggerfish In Pemba And Misali Island: Abundance, Biodiversity, Behaviour, Cultural Significance And Distribution, Hannah Ng Shueh Yi

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study takes a socioecological approach to understanding triggerfish (Balistidae) in Pemba Island, using Misali Island reefs as a sample ecological site. Two reef sites on Misali Island and three of four districts in Pemba were observed during the study. The abundance of Balistipus undulatus at one of two study sites is close to the maximum carrying capacity of the reef. Overall observed biodiversity was low. Behavioural trends point to distinct species specific defence strategies and species aggression taking different forms. Triggerfishes cultural significance was primarily as a food fish, though it is not highly sought after. With polarised responses …

Adaptive Plasticity Of Coloration In Response To Environmental Change, Karissa Coffield

2023 Midwest Ecology & Evolution Conference

When rapid environmental changes occur, different selective forces can create phenotypic trade-offs in which a trait can provide fitness benefits or costs under different environmental conditions. Amphibians are particularly vulnerable to environmental change, and previous research has revealed that some species will plastically respond to variation in temperature and ultra-violet radiation (UVR) by altering their coloration. Divergent selection on coloration may change with elevation and climate induced shifts in temperature because high temperatures are likely to result in lighter color morphs but as elevation increases, UVR exposure increases leading to the prediction that darker color morphs will be more common. …

Rapid Assesment Of Aquatic Insect Diversity And Abundance Used To Evaluate The Quality Of Stream Restoration, Kaleb Stephen Kindoll

2023 Midwest Ecology & Evolution Conference

Stream and wetland restoration activities seek to improve the function of aquatic ecosystems. Measurement of the diversity and abundance of aquatic insects are commonly used to evaluate the success of restoration efforts, but these measurements are often very time consuming. In this study, we attempt to construct an efficient method that can be used to rapidly assess the diversity and abundance of aquatic insects as a measure of the quality of stream restoration. We suspended uniform sized pieces of cardboard paper coated with adhesive to trap insects in three different environments: one restored and two unrestored streams with similar characteristics. …

Assessing The Performance Of Dna Extraction Kits And Loci For Dna Metabarcoding Diet Analysis Of Pastured Chickens, Kantima Thongjued

2023 Midwest Ecology & Evolution Conference

Diet analysis is a valuable tool to understand animal feeding behavior. However, validation of workflows for DNA-based diet analysis often lack experimental evaluation with positive controls. To establish a methodology for diet analysis in organic, pasture-raised chickens (as part of ongoing research), we conducted a feeding trial experiment with a mock diet community to determine the efficacy of commonly used DNA extraction kits and primer sets. Six backyard hens were hand fed 22 known food items including insects and plants and monitored for their defecation for eight hours. We evaluated the efficacy of three DNA extraction kits, three primer sets …

Mycorrhizal Fungi And Reforestation In An Eastern Lowland Rainforest Of Madagascar, Sophia Gibby

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Most terrestrial plants worldwide make associations with mycorrhizal fungi, yet the fungal diversity of Madagascar is vastly unknown. This research project is a preliminary investigation into the mycorrhizal status of 19 tree species in and near Ranomafana National Park (RNP), a lowland tropical forest on the southeast coast of Madagascar. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) colonization in these species was studied in root samples under the microscope in the laboratory of Centre ValBio (CVB). The degree of AM infection was assessed for three study areas: one directly adjacent to a protected area and two reforestation sites supported by CVB. For the 19 …

Understory Epiphyte Hydrology: Analyzing Water Storage Capacity Of Epiphytes Along An Elevational Gradient In Western Ecuadorian Cloud Forest, Angelina Dodge

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Epiphytes are defined as plants that grow on a host, often another plant, and acquire their nutrients and water from the atmosphere. As such is true, epiphyte composition is largely dependent upon atmospheric and thus climactic conditions. Due to high levels of atmospheric water availability that results from the frequent presence of mist, clouds, and high humidity, epiphytic plants grow and thus store water within the above ground region of the Andean cloud forest at levels higher than in any other ecosystem found in Ecuador. This study was done in hopes of revealing any trends of epiphytic water storage capacity …

Understanding Invasive Predation: Detections Of Feral Cats (Felis Catus) On Kangaroo Island’S Western River Refuge, Leah Boget

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Feral cats (Felis catus) are a priority-level threat for small to medium-sized native vertebrates across Australia and especially so in insular environments like that of Kangaroo Island, South Australia. The island is home to several endangered and geographically restricted species, including the Kangaroo Island Dunnart (Sminthopsis aitkeni), an endangered marsupial endemic to Kangaroo Island. When bushfires spread across the island and burned x percent of native vegetation in late 2019 to early 2020, these populations were critically impacted and post-fire feral cat predation on the island risked their extinctions, motivating the creation of a refuge with …

Impact Of Wildlife Provisioning On Species Diversity, Relative Frequency, And Richness In New South Wales, Alanah Cohen-Tigör

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Wildlife provisioning and camera trapping are two recently evolving methods of conservation and wildlife management, aimed at protecting animals in the face of ever worsening climate change. Habitats are being destroyed by climate disruption, decreasing species diversity and abundance worldwide. It is imperative that methods of protecting species are developed to slow or reverse this era of extinction. By providing supplementary food and water to ecological communities, the hope is that species will have improved survivorship and reproduction, making them more resilient and resistant to population decline. Camera trapping is product of modern technology, allowing researchers to monitor species without …

A Comparative Plague Study Of Cacao Fungal Disease In Cacao Pods Within Monocultures And Indigenous Agroforests In Ecuador’S Napo Province, Seamus Mccarthy

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study analyzes the composition of three major fungal diseases in Theobroma cacao fruits compared between monocultures and chakra agroforests in the Napo province of Ecuador with the goal of noting similarities and differences in the disease composition between the two systems, as well as investigate possible variation within this poorly understood category of agroforest to better structure future studies. Cacao pods on sampled trees were counted and fungal infections identified visually and by touch. Chakra systems were selected in the communities of Cinco de Enero and Seis de Marzo to the Southwest of Tena, Ecuador. Monoculture data was collected …

Movement, Behavior, And Trophic Ecology Of A Pelagic Predator Guild In The Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean, Ryan Keith Logan

All HCAS Student Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations

Pelagic apex predators exert strong influences on ecological communities, and often support valuable commercial or recreational fisheries worldwide. Yet, due to their rarity and pelagic lifestyle, many species, such as billfishes, have proven particularly difficult to study at resolutions necessary to define dynamics of recovery from fishery interaction, physical interaction with environmental features and prey exploitation, and competitive interactions among other billfish predators. This leads to a paucity of knowledge on billfish ecology and habitat use, and hinders management efforts. With the ever-improving and miniaturization of technology and oceanographic datasets, the ability to define and quantify these interactions of fish …

Chronic Kidney Disease Promotes Cerebral Microhemorrhage Formation, Chuo Fang, Wei Ling Lau, Jiahong Sun, Rudy Chang, Adrian Vallejo, Donghy Lee, Jihua Liu, Han Liu, Yu-Han Hung, Yitong Zhao, Annlia Paganini-Hill, Rachita K. Sumbria, David H. Cribbs, Mark J. Fisher

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Background

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is increasingly recognized as a stroke risk factor, but its exact relationship with cerebrovascular disease is not well-understood. We investigated the development of cerebral small vessel disease using in vivo and in vitro models of CKD.

Methods

CKD was produced in aged C57BL/6J mice using an adenine-induced tubulointerstitial nephritis model. We analyzed brain histology using Prussian blue staining to examine formation of cerebral microhemorrhage (CMH), the hemorrhagic component of small vessel disease and the neuropathological substrate of MRI-demonstrable cerebral microbleeds. In cell culture studies, we examined effects of serum from healthy or CKD patients and …

Comparison Of Dna Extraction Methods For Soft Tissue Samples, Steve Guzman, Nathaniel E. Hill, Mujtaba Shah, Jonathon Reynolds, Cole Farnsworth, Molly Henley, Alfred Amendolara, Laura Minor, John Dougherty Jr., John A. Kriak, Kyle B. Bills, David W. Sant

Annual Research Symposium

No abstract provided.

A Composition Of Phytonutrients For Glycemic And Weight Management, Yasuyo Urasaki

Annual Research Symposium

No abstract provided.

Update – Food & Drug Administration’S Animal Testing Mandate, Andrew N. Rowan

WellBeing News

Following the end of the Second World War, the World Medical Association developed new ethical guidelines regarding research involving human subjects. These guidelines included requirements to obtain informed consent from research subjects but also emphasized the importance of conducting animal research before engaging in human clinical trials and other human research. This principle was included in legislation mandating the FDA to require prior animal research before permitting human trials of new drugs. That mandate was recently eliminated by new US legislation cosponsored by Senators Cory Booker and Rand Paul. The FDA can now encourage non-animal methods and no longer has …

Differential Strain-Dependent Ovarian And Metabolic Responses In A Mouse Model Of Pcos, April K. Binder, Danielle L. Peecher, Amanda J. Qvigstad, Silvia D. Gutierrez, Jennifer Magaña, David B. Banks, Kenneth S. Korach

Biology Faculty Scholarship

Several mouse models have been developed to study polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), a leading cause of infertility in women. Treatment of mice with dihydrotestosterone (DHT) for 90-days causes ovarian and metabolic phenotypes similar to women with PCOS. We used this 90-day DHT treatment paradigm to investigate the variable incidence and heterogeneity in two inbred mouse strains, NOD/ShiLtJ and 129S1/SvlmJ. NOD mice naturally develop type 1 diabetes, and recent meta-analysis found increased androgen excess and PCOS in women with type 1 diabetes. 129S1 mice are commonly used in genetic manipulations. Both NOD and 129S1 DHT treated mice had early vaginal opening, …

Loss-Of-Function KCa2.2 Mutations Abolish Channel Activity, Young-Woo Nam, Mohammad Asikur Rahman, Grace Yang, Razan Orfali, Meng Cui, Miao Zhang

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Small-conductance Ca²⁺-activated potassium channels subtype 2 (K_Ca2.2, also called SK2) are operated exclusively by a Ca²⁺-calmodulin gating mechanism. Heterozygous genetic mutations of K_Ca2.2 channels have been associated with autosomal dominant neurodevelopmental disorders including cerebellar ataxia and tremor in humans and rodents. Taking advantage of these pathogenic mutations, we performed structure-function studies of the rat K_Ca2.2 channel. No measurable current was detected from HEK293 cells heterologously expressing these pathogenic K_Ca2.2 mutants. When co-expressed with the K_Ca2.2_WT channel, mutations of the pore-lining amino acid residues (I360M, Y362C, G363S …

Exploring The Potential Of Intranasally Administered Naturally Occurring Quercetin Loaded Into Polymeric Nanocapsules As A Novel Platform For The Treatment Of Anxiety, Shady Swidan, Khaled Younis Mahmoud, Nahla Ahmed Elhesaisy, Abdelrahman Rashed, Ebram Mikhael, Mahmoud Fadl, Mahmoud Elsadek, Merna Mohamed, Merna Mostafa, Mohamed Hassan, Omar Halema, Youssef Elnemer

Pharmacy

Anxiety is one of the most prevalent forms of psychopathology that afects millions worldwide. It gained more importance under the pandemic status that resulted in higher anxiety prevalence. Anxiolytic drugs such as benzodiazepines have an unfavorable risk/beneft ratio resulting in a shift toward active ingredients with better safety profle such as the naturally occurring quercetin (QRC). The delivery of QRC is hampered by its low water solubility and low bioavailability. The potential to enhance QRC delivery to the brain utilizing polymeric nanocapsules administered intranasally is investigated in the current study. Polymeric nanocapsules were prepared utilizing the nanoprecipitation technique. The best …

Passive Chlorination: Providing Clean Drinking Water To Rural Ecuadorian Communities, C.D. Tatko, Kyle Borror

Summer Research

In 2002, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that nearly 1.7 million deaths worldwide were caused by unclean water. The risk of death is elevated for young children, for which the second cause of death worldwide is diarrheal disease, which is largely caused by microbes; these microbes, when unaddressed, can proliferate in drinking water. Health risks are further elevated in rural communities, which often lack access to the technology necessary to treat water for microbial contamination. This can be seen in Ecuador, in which only 52.8% of rural households have access to safe drinking water.

It Turned Into A Bioblitz: Urban Data Collection For Building Scientific Literacy And Environmental Connection, Kelly O'Donnell, Lisa Brundage

Publications and Research

In 2013, Macaulay Honors College redesigned its required science curriculum to focus on scientific literacy skills rather than content. Central to this shift was inclusion of a data collection event, a BioBlitz, to provide students with the basis for their own semester-long research projects. Students are teamed with naturalists in an urban green space to find as many species as they can in 24 h and to contribute to a global biodiversity database via the app iNaturalist. We have learned two important lessons: (1) developing an interdisciplinary curriculum with a high degree of experiential learning is more successful when both …

Orb-Web Spider Argiope (Araneidae) As Indigenous Arrow Poison Of G/Ui And G//Ana San Hunters In The Kalahari, Tharina L. Bird, Smith Moeti, Robert K. Hitchcock, Melinda C. Kelly, Lefang L. Chobolo, Nonofo Gotcha, Kgosi K. Moatlhodi, Leungo D. Mukoka, Emmanuel K. Sekopo, Caroline Simmrita Chaboo

University of Nebraska State Museum: Staff and Affiliates, Publications

Hunting has been crucial in early human evolution. Some San (Bushmen) of southern Africa still practice their indigenous hunting. The use of poisons is one remarkable aspect of their bow-and-arrow hunting but the sources, taxonomic identifications of species used, and recipes, are not well documented. This study reports on fieldwork to investigate recent indigenous hunting practices of G/ui and G//ana San communities in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve (CKGR), Botswana. Here we discuss their use of spider poison. The hunters use the contents of the opisthosoma (‘abdomen’) of a spider as sole ingredient of the arrow poison and discard the …

An Automatic System To Evaluate Bait Station Visitation By Brown Treesnakes And Mongooses, Robert T. Sugihara, William C. Pitt, Are R. Berentsen, Francis L. Benevides Jr.

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Understanding the temporal, spatial, and behavioral patterns of the free-ranging target species in response to candidate baits and baiting strategies is important to ensure control success. This information can also assist in the development and deployment of feeding stations and can exclude non-target species while constituting effective bait delivery and control strategies for certain invasive animals, especially at environmentally sensitive sites. We used passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags in conjunction with very-high frequency radio-telemetry to remotely record bait station visitations and evaluate bait attractiveness in separate field research studies of brown treesnakes (Boiga irregularis) on Andersen Air Force …

Evaluating The Influence Of Concurrently Available Non-Drug Reinforcers On Drug Reinforcement Using Sophisticated Preclinical Models Of Substance Use Disorder, Madison M. Marcus

Theses and Dissertations

The maladaptive allocation of behavior towards cocaine and away from other concurrently available non-drug reinforcers (e.g., family, health, work, etc.) is a key characteristic of cocaine use disorder (CUD) that is embedded into multiple diagnostic criteria for CUD. Accordingly, basic research conducted in a drug-vs-food “choice” context has improved our fundamental knowledge of the behavioral and neurobiological mechanisms of drug reinforcement. However, to date, these preclinical studies have only been conducted with food as the alternative reinforcer. The extent to which other non-drug reinforcers compete with cocaine-taking behavior is unknown. The studies in this dissertation establish two sophisticated discrete-trial cocaine-vs-alternative …

Determining Species-Specific False-Positive Rates Using Visual And Auditory Cues: A Case Study With Sagebrush Steppe Songbirds, Amelia K. Evavold

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

Errors in wildlife field data threaten to bias resulting abundance and occupancy estimates if not properly accounted for or minimized. Methods to account for false-positive errors in wildlife data have not been as thoroughly developed as those for false-negative errors despite false-positives being present across diverse wildlife taxa and study systems. The calibration method to account for false-positives involves assessing the field detection method to determine how often false-positive errors occur in the field data. Rates can then be incorporated into estimations based on the field data to improve estimation accuracy. This study presents an application of the calibration approach …

Evaluation Of Autonomous Recording Unit Performance In Detecting Black-Billed Cuckoos, Jenna L. Asnault

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

Black-billed Cuckoos (Coccyzus erythropthalmus) are classified as a species of concern in Montana and have declined due to habitat loss and fragmentation. Cuckoos are challenging to study, as they do not move or call frequently in the presence of people. This makes researching and managing these birds difficult. Autonomous acoustic survey methods offer the potential to be more effective than traditional avian survey methods. Autonomous recording units (ARUs) are small, programmable, relatively inexpensive acoustic detectors, and have been used in several other studies. Cuckoos, however, nest and perch in dense riparian vegetation, potentially limiting the detection capabilities of …

A Growth Model For Arctica Islandica: The Performance Of Tanaka And The Temptation Of Von Bertalanffy—Can The Two Coexist?, John M. Klinck, Eric N. Powell, Kathleen M. Hemeon, Jillian R. Sower, Daniel R. Hennen

CCPO Publications

Organisms increase in size over time (age) due to excess assimilation over metabolic (respiration) energy demands. Most organisms reach a maximum size with increasing age as gain and loss balance. The von Bertalanffy length-at-age relationship, which is commonly used in fishery assessment calculations, imposes such a maximum size. However, some fished species, such as ocean quahogs, Arctica islandica, are long lived and continue to grow at old age. The Tanaka age-at-length relationship has continued growth at old age, but is rarely used in stock assessment models. A modified form of the von Bertalanffy model is presented, which mimics the …

Comparative Hptlc Study For Simultaneous Determination Of Ivabradine And Metoprolol Using Uv And Fluorescence Detectors, Mohamed Rizk, Shereen Mowaka, Mariam Mohamed, Maha Abou El-Alamin

Pharmacy

New, simple, accurate, sensitive and validated high performance thin layer chromatographic (HPTLC) method coupled with UV absorbance mode and fluorescence (FL) detectors which were used for simultaneous determination of ivabradine (IVA) and metoprolol (MET) in their bulk and pharmaceutical dosage form using TLC silica 60 F254 plates and non-fluorescent TLC silica gel 60 plates. The developing system was chloroform: methanol: formic acid: ammonia (8.5:1.5:0.2:0.1, v/v). Desnitometric analysis in UV absorbance mode was set at λ = 275 nm. While, fluorescence mode was performed with excitation at 260 nm for quantitative simultaneous determination of IVA and MET using optical filter K320. …

Genetic Evaluation Of The Current Distribution And Possible Diffrentations Between Lasiurus Borealis And Lasiurus Frantzii In Southwestern North America, Zeinab M. Haidar

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Several recent accounts of overlap and historic misidentifications regarding two species of the genus Lasiurus, Western red bat (Lasiurus frantzii) and Eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis), have cast doubt on our understanding of their distribution, assumed spatial allopatry, and interactions in the United States Southwest. With the use of morphometrics and genetic sequencing, utilizing tissue collected from specimens throughout California and adjoining states, we have reassessed the current distribution, best practices for field identification, and genetic differentiation between both species. Appropriate species classification by region was achieved utilizing mitochondrial DNA, targeting the cytochrome c oxidase …

Characterizing Cellular Injury And Inflammation With Aldob-/-Mouse Model Of Mafld, Andy Rashid

All Master's Theses

Metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) affects 1 in 3 people in the US and is a healthcare burden on the order of billions of dollars. MAFLD is characterized by pathological lipid accumulation in the liver, excess production of triglycerides and cholesterol, and export of LDL particles that raise serum lipid levels. These metabolic perturbations can lead to the development of liver fibrosis, chronic inflammation, and insulin resistance. Diagnosing MAFLD prior to fibrosis is crucial for successful intervention and prevention of advanced liver disease and other metabolic complications. Fructose-1Phospahte (F1P) accumulation from fructose overconsumption can drive hepatic lipogenesis and MAFLD progression. …

Effects Of Social Context On Salivary Cortisol And Attention In Tufted Capuchins (Cebus [Sapajus] Apella), Andrew Desana

Master’s Theses

Social context alters cognitive performance, but the mechanisms for this remain unclear. One possibility is that stressors associated with social contexts mediate changes in cognitive performance by influencing attention. We conducted two experiments to investigate how social context affects performance on an attention task in capuchin monkeys (Cebus [Sapajus] apella). We additionally validated and measured physiological stress through salivary cortisol. In experiment one, capuchins were exposed to three conditions where they were either isolated or paired with an affiliative or agonistic social partner separated by a barrier. In experiment two, subjects received affiliative and agonistic conditions without barriers to allow …

The Effects Of Sex On Zebrafish Bone Metabolism, Simon Bagatto

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

I investigated the effects of diet and sex on zebrafish bone metabolism. Zebrafish were subjected to either a high-calorie or low-calorie diet over a five-week period. After this diet, zebrafish scales were used to measure alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) enzyme activity with a fluorescent substrate. The enzyme activities were markers of the osteoblasts (ALP) and the osteoclasts (TRAP). These data were compared among sex and diet of the zebrafish using a repeated measures ANOVA statistical test. I also measured the number of resorption lacunae per scale (another indicator of osteoclast activity). The results showed higher TRAP …