Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

First Record Of The Tropical House Gecko Hemidactylus Mabouia (Moreau De Jonnès, 1818) In Texas, Alejandro Fierro-Cabo, August Rentfro

School of Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Invasions of the tropical house gecko Hemidactylus mabouia (Moreau de Jonnes, 1818) in the tropical Americas are well documented. While this gecko has been reported as well established and expanding its range in Florida, here we document the first record in the United States outside of this state. We detected a small reproducing population in Cameron County, Brownsville, Texas. We expect a rapid colonization of buildings by this species in southern Texas. We consider that this potential invasion poses novel obstacles to the continued presence of the earlier invasive Mediterranean gecko Hemidactylus turcicus (Linnaeus, 1758) across Texas

Exposure To Traffic Pollution, Acute Inflammation And Autonomic Response In A Panel Of Car Commuters, Jeremy A. Sarnat, Rachel Golan, Roby Greenwald, Amit U. Raysoni, Priya Kewada, Andrea Winquist, Stefanie E. Sarnat, W. Dana Flanders, Maria C. Mirabelli, Jennifer E. Zora

School of Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background

Exposure to traffic pollution has been linked to numerous adverse health endpoints. Despite this, limited data examining traffic exposures during realistic commutes and acute response exists. Objectives: We conducted the Atlanta Commuters Exposures (ACE-1) Study, an extensive panel-based exposure and health study, to measure chemically-resolved in-vehicle exposures and corresponding changes in acute oxidative stress, lipid peroxidation, pulmonary and systemic inflammation and autonomic response.

Methods

We recruited 42 adults (21 with and 21 without asthma) to conduct two 2-h scripted highway commutes during morning rush hour in the metropolitan Atlanta area. A suite of in-vehicle particulate components were measured in …

Isolation And Characterization Of Polychlorinated Biphenyl (Pcb) Degrading Bacteria Isolated From A Pcb Contaminated Reservoir In Donna, Tx, Sergio Cepeda

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

The Donna Irrigation System (DIS) located in Donna, Hidalgo County, TX, was confirmed to be contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in 1993 and remediation of the site will be attempted in the future. The need to isolate novel PCB degrading bacteria for bioremediation has been an active area of research in recent decades; thus, it was hypothesized that a variety of microorganisms able to degrade PCBs could be isolated from sediments taken from the DIS. Two genes of the PCB degradation pathway, bphA1 and bphC, were detected in 43 bacterial isolates grown from DIS sediments using molecular and culture-based methodology, …

Monitoring Citrus Nutrition In The Rio Grande Valley For Fertilizer Recommendations, Iram Lopez

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Soil fertility and plant nutrition is crucial for a better yield and consistent harvest in the Rio Grande Valley for local farmers growing citrus trees. A field of oranges and a field of grapefruits were monitored and nutrition deficiencies were noticed that played an important role during fruit set. Soil samples that were taken throughout the year were analyzed via a carbon dioxide extraction method that mimics the way plants naturally take up nutrients or extract nutrients from every soil type. Macronutrients such as the N, P, K, Na, Ca, Mg and some of the micronutrients (Zn, Fe, Mn, and …

Restoration Of Tryptophan Hydroxylase Functions And Serotonin Content In The Atlantic Croaker Hypothalamus By Antioxidant Treatment During Hypoxic Stress, Md. Saydur Rahman, Peter Thomas

School of Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Antioxidants are prototypical scavengers of oxygen-free radicals and have been shown to prevent neuroendocrine dysfunction in vertebrates during oxidative stress. In the present study, we investigated whether antioxidant treatment can reverse hypoxia-induced down-regulation of hypothalamic tryptophan hydroxylase (TPH) and serotonergic functions in Atlantic croaker. Hypothalamic neuronal contents of TPH-1 and TPH-2 proteins, serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) and its precursor, 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) as well as hypothalamic TPH-1 and TPH-2 mRNA expression and TPH activity were measured in croaker after exposure to hypoxia and treatment with pharmacological agents. Multiple injections of N-ethylmaleimide, a sulfhydryl alkylating agent, caused comparable decreases in hypothalamic TPHs functions …

Prepubertal Exposure To Arsenic(Iii) Suppresses Circulating Insulin-Like Growth Factor-1 (Igf-1) Delaying Sexual Maturation In Female Rats, Michael P. Reilly, James C. Saca, Alina Hamilton, Rene F. Solano, Jesse R. Rivera, Wendy Innis-Whitehouse, Jason Parsons, Robert K. Dearth

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Arsenic (As) is a prevalent environmental toxin readily accessible for human consumption and has been identified as an endocrine disruptor. However, it is not known what impact As has on female sexual maturation. Therefore, in the present study, we investigated the effects of prepubertal exposure on mammary gland development and pubertal onset in female rats. Results showed that prepubertal exposure to 10 mg/kg of arsenite (As(III)) delayed vaginal opening (VO) and prepubertal mammary gland maturation. We determined that As accumulates in the liver, disrupts hepatocyte function and suppresses serum levels of the puberty related hormone insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) …

Temperature And Relative Humidity Effects On Water Loss And Hemolymph Osmolality Of Littoraria Angulifera (Lamarck, 1822), Phillip J. Rose

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Desiccation stress is considered to be one of the more significant determining factors that influence how organisms are distributed in the marine littoral. Gastropods living above the high tide mark, referred to as eulittoral fringe gastropods are not wetted as regularly and face unpredictable and prolonged periods of emersion. Consequently, adaptations displayed by eulittoral fringe gastropods are aimed at minimizing water loss and surviving prolonged periods of desiccation stress. Littoraria angulifera, is a tropically distributed marine eulittoral fringe gastropod. Because L. angulifera spends a majority of its time emersed there was interest in studying how the weight loss and hemolymph …

Influence Of Constant And Periodic Experimental Hypoxic Stress On Atlantic Croaker Otolith Chemistry, John Mohan, Md. Saydur Rahman, Peter Thomas, Benjamin Walther

School of Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

The chemical composition of fish otoliths may provide information on the environmental exposure histories of fishes if ‘vital effects’ on element incorporation are minimal. In order to use redox-sensitive geochemical proxies, such as manganese, in otoliths to quantify sublethal exposure to hypoxia, the relative influence of endogenous and exogenous controls on otolith composition must first be validated. Controlled laboratory experiments were conducted on Atlantic croaker Micropogonias undulatus to examine the response of otolith Sr:Ca, Ba:Ca, Mg:Ca, Mn:Ca, and Na:Ca ratios to either constant or periodic hypoxia treatments for 4 and 10 wk, respectively. Although fish somatic growth and condition were …

Sedimentation And Barnacle Recruitment And Growth In A Shallow Coastal Lagoon Of South Texas, John Jack Gray

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, one of this nation’s greatest concerns to the receiving waters of an aquatic system is the impairment of water quality due to sediment transport. Thus, an aquatic system whose receiving waters are subject to unrestrained sediment transport from a spoil bank, which is an unstabilized depository for sediment acquired during a dredge, should be a concern. In this study an attempt was made to assess sedimentation and its effect on the life cycle of sessile aquatic life over a year. South Bay was chosen for the study site because it is adjacent …