An Ims/Atp Assay For The Detection Of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis In Urine, 2012 University of South Florida
An Ims/Atp Assay For The Detection Of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis In Urine, Dawn M. Hunter, Daniel V. Lim
Molecular Biosciences Faculty Publications
Background. Although sputum smears are the gold standard for diagnosis of tuberculosis, sensitivity in HIV/TB coinfection cases is low, indicating a need for alternative methods. Urine is being increasingly evaluated. Materials and Methods. A novel method for detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) in synthetic urine using a combined IMS/ATP assay was evaluated. Preliminary work established standard ATP conditions and the sensitivity and specificity of the MTB antibody. Eighty-four blinded samples in four replicate assays were evaluated for the presence of MTB using labeled immunomagnetic beads for capture. Beads were separated, washed, and resuspended in broth and added to a …
Development And Validation Of A Novel Reporter Assay For Human Papillomavirus Type 16 Late Gene Expression, 2012 Technological University Dublin
Development And Validation Of A Novel Reporter Assay For Human Papillomavirus Type 16 Late Gene Expression, Beatrice Orru, Ciaran Cunniffe, Fergus Ryan, Stefan Schwartz
Articles
To facilitate the investigations of HPV-16 late gene expression HPV-16 reporter plasmids were generated using previously described sub-genomic HPV-16 plasmids, named pBEL and pBELM, that, similar to the full viral genome, produce primarily HPV-16 early mRNAs and very little, if any, late mRNAs in cervical cancer cells. The HPV-16 late L1 gene was replaced by the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) reporter gene, or green fluorescent protein (GFP), preceded by the poliovirus internal ribosome entry site (IRES). Results show that the reporter genes mimic the expression of L1 from these plasmids. For example, overexpression of adenovirus E4orf4 protein (E4orf4), polypyrimidine tract binding …
Analyses Of Kings Creek Water And Watershed Runoff Samples For Bacteroidales Using Qpcr To Detect Human Fecal Contamination, 2012 Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Analyses Of Kings Creek Water And Watershed Runoff Samples For Bacteroidales Using Qpcr To Detect Human Fecal Contamination, Howard Kator, Kimberly S. Reece
Reports
The purpose of this work was to evaluate and analyze water samples collected from the Kings Creek watershed using a qPCR-based method to detect both total Bacteroidales and Bacteroidales reported to be associated with human fecal contamination. Quantitative real-time PCR assays were used to significantly reduce processing times and at the same time yield estimates of target concentrations. Initial efforts focused on evaluation of various Bacteroidales primer sets reported in the literature tested against human and animal fecal samples collected from the Kings Creek watershed. Most samples, both animal and human, were positive with the universal (i.e. general or total) …
Mutation In The Plasmodium Falciparum Crt Protein Determines The Stereospecific Activity Of Antimalarial Cinchona Alkaloids, 2012 Old Dominion University
Mutation In The Plasmodium Falciparum Crt Protein Determines The Stereospecific Activity Of Antimalarial Cinchona Alkaloids, Carol E. Griffin, Jonathan M. Hoke, Upeka Samarakoon, Junhui Duan, Jianbing Mu, Michael T. Ferdig, David C. Warhurst, Roland A. Cooper
Biological Sciences Faculty Publications
The Cinchona alkaloids are quinoline aminoalcohols that occur as diastereomer pairs, typified by (-)-quinine and (+)-quinidine. The potency of (+)-isomers is greater than the (-)-isomers in vitro and in vivo against Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasites. They may act by the inhibition of heme crystallization within the parasite digestive vacuole in a manner similar to chloroquine. Earlier studies showed that a K76I mutation in the digestive vacuole-associated protein, PfCRT (P. falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter), reversed the normal potency order of quinine and quinidine toward P. falciparum. To further explore PfCRT-alkaloid interactions in the malaria parasite, we measured the in …
Changes To The Equine Hindgut Microflora In Response To Antibiotic Challenge, 2012 University of Kentucky
Changes To The Equine Hindgut Microflora In Response To Antibiotic Challenge, Brittany E. Harlow
Theses and Dissertations--Animal and Food Sciences
Antibiotics are important to equine medicine, but can cause detrimental side-effects including reduced feed intake, allergic reactions, and diarrhea. Antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD) is attributed to disruption of the hindgut microflora, permitting proliferation of pathogenic microbes. The objectives were to evaluate the effects of antibiotics on beneficial fecal bacteria, AAD-associated pathogens, microbial species richness and fermentation. Horses were assigned to treatment groups: control (no antibiotics, n=6), trimethoprim-sulfadiazine (oral, n=6), or sodium ceftiofur (IM, n=6). Fecal samples were taken during adaptation (3 wk), antibiotic challenge (1 wk), and withdrawal (1 wk). Fecal cellulolytics decreased by >99% during challenge and did not recover …
In Vitro Antimicrobial Effect Of A Cold Plasma Jet Against Enterococcus Faecalis Biofilms, 2012 Old Dominion University
In Vitro Antimicrobial Effect Of A Cold Plasma Jet Against Enterococcus Faecalis Biofilms, Chunqi Jiang, Christoph Schaudinn, David E. Jaramillo, Paul Webster, J. William Costerton
Bioelectrics Publications
The hypothesis that a cold plasma jet has the antimicrobial effect against Enterococcus faecalis biofilms was tested in vitro. 27 hydroxyapatite discs were incubated with E. faecalis for six days to form a monoculture biofilm on the disc surface. The prepared substrata were divided into three groups: the negative control, the positive control (5.25% NaOCl solution), and the plasma treatment group. Resultant colony-forming unit counts were associated with observations of bacterial cell morphology changes using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Treatment of E. faecalis biofilm with the plasma and 5.25% NaOCl for 5min resulted in 93.1% and 90.0% kill (P < 0.0001), respectively. SEM detected that nearly no intact bacteria were discernible for the plasmaexposed HA disc surfaces. The demonstrated bactericidal effect of the plasma with direct surface contact may be due to the enhanced oxidation by the locally produced reactive plasma species.
Lymphangioma Circumscriptum In The Scrotum: A Case Report, 2012 Aga Khan University
Lymphangioma Circumscriptum In The Scrotum: A Case Report, Saroona Haroon, Sheema H. Hasan
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Introduction:
Lymphangioma circumscriptum is a rare benign skin disorder involving hamartomatous lymphatic malformation of deep dermal and subcutaneous lymphatic channels. It is a therapeutic challenge for the dermatologist when it occurs at common sites such as axilla, shoulder, groin and buttocks and a diagnostic challenge for the surgeon when it occurs at rare sites such as the scrotum. Surgical treatment is the most commonly used method to treat scrotal lymphangioma circumscriptum but there are high rates of recurrence.
Case Presentation:
We report the case of a 30-year-old Pakistani man who presented with scrotal swelling which was clinically misinterpreted as an …
Editorial: Predicative Modelling Of Food Quality And Safety Special Issue, 2012 University College Dublin
Editorial: Predicative Modelling Of Food Quality And Safety Special Issue, Vasilis Valdramidis, Jesus Maria Frias
Articles
No abstract provided.
Effects Of Sugar-Amendment On Bacterial & Fungal Abundance In Native Vs. Nonnative-Dominated Soils Of A Puget Lowland Prairie, 2012 University of Puget Sound
Effects Of Sugar-Amendment On Bacterial & Fungal Abundance In Native Vs. Nonnative-Dominated Soils Of A Puget Lowland Prairie, Jessica Wong
Summer Research
Scotch broom is a nonnative plant that has invaded the plant communities of the Pacific Northwest in the United States. It associates with bacteria in the soil to fix nitrogen from the atmosphere, thereby elevating soil nitrogen levels and encouraging the invasion of the community by other nonnative plants like itself. Researchers have used sugar-amendment to decrease soil nitrogen and restore native plant growth. Our study took place in Glacial Heritage Preserve, a Puget lowland prairie that has been invaded by broom in several areas. We aimed to investigate whether sugar-amendment increased or decreased bacterial and fungal abundance in native …
Using Comparative Genomics For Inquiry-Based Learning To Dissect Virulence Of Escherichia Coli O157:H7 And Yersinia Pestis, 2012 University of Wisconsin-Madison
Using Comparative Genomics For Inquiry-Based Learning To Dissect Virulence Of Escherichia Coli O157:H7 And Yersinia Pestis, David Baumler, Lois Banta, Kai Hung, Jodi Schwarz, Eric Cabot, Jeremy Glasner, Nicole Perna
Faculty Research & Creative Activity
Genomics and bioinformatics are topics of increasing interest in undergraduate biological science curricula. Many existing exercises focus on gene annotation and analysis of a single genome. In this paper, we present two educational modules designed to enable students to learn and apply fundamental concepts in comparative genomics using examples related to bacterial pathogenesis. Students first examine alignments of genomes of Escherichia coli O157:H7 strains isolated from three food-poisoning outbreaks using the multiple-genome alignment tool Mauve. Students investigate conservation of virulence factors using the Mauve viewer and by browsing annotations available at the A Systematic Annotation Package for Community Analysis of …
Investigation Of The Membrane Interactions Of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Secreted Factors Esat-6 And Cfp-10, 2012 University of Texas at El Paso
Investigation Of The Membrane Interactions Of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Secreted Factors Esat-6 And Cfp-10, Joaquin A. De Leon
Open Access Theses & Dissertations
Mycobacterium tuberculosis is the causative agent of the infectious disease tuberculosis, infecting about one-third of human race. Infections are not vast in the United States when compared to many other countries, yet many cases seen in the United States are of those who have immigrated to the United States. The Hispanic/Latino population in the United States contributes to a large fraction of those infected with tuberculosis in the United States. During this study we purified recombinant Mycobacterium tuberculosis secreted factors ESAT-6 and CFP-10 from Escherichia coli. Here we have introduced a method in which we can refold and purify …
The Effects Of Slow Release Urea On Nitrogen Metabolism In Cattle, 2012 University of Kentucky
The Effects Of Slow Release Urea On Nitrogen Metabolism In Cattle, Vaughn B. Holder
Theses and Dissertations--Animal and Food Sciences
The objective of this research was to investigate the effects of slow release urea on N metabolism in cattle. The ruminal behavior of Optigen®II and the effect of basal diet on the in situ degradability of urea and Optigen®II were evaluated. The effect of slow release urea and its interaction with degradable intake protein (DIP) level in the diet on N retention and excretion was evaluated utilizing 8 Holstein steers in a 4 x 4 Latin square experiment. In addition, the effect of slow release urea and DIP level on ruminal and systemic urea kinetics was evaluated using stable isotope …
Eukaryotic Microbes In The Deep Sea: Abundance, Diversity, And The Effect Of Pressure, 2012 Old Dominion University
Eukaryotic Microbes In The Deep Sea: Abundance, Diversity, And The Effect Of Pressure, Danielle Morgan-Smith
OES Theses and Dissertations
The dark ocean is vast, high in pressure, cold, and scarce in resources, but has been shown to support a diverse and active microbial community wherever it is studied. Such studies, however, are scarce due to the difficulty of sampling at such depths, and are difficult to interpret due to compounding effects of pressure and temperature on physiology. Protists, functionally defined as the microbial portion of the domain Eukarya, are particularly neglected in studies of deep-sea microbiology. Here, I present three studies on microbial eukaryotes in the deep sea: first, a study of the abundance of microbial eukaryotes in the …
Cell Wall Antibiotics Provoke Accumulation Of Anchored Mcherry In The Cross Wall Of Staphylococcus Aureus, 2012 University of Tübingen
Cell Wall Antibiotics Provoke Accumulation Of Anchored Mcherry In The Cross Wall Of Staphylococcus Aureus, Wenqi Yu, Friedrich Götz
Molecular Biosciences Faculty Publications
A fluorescence microscopy method to directly follow the localization of defined proteins in Staphylococcus was hampered by the unstable fluorescence of fluorescent proteins. Here, we constructed plasmid (pCX) encoded red fluorescence (RF) mCherry (mCh) hybrids, namely mCh-cyto (no signal peptide and no sorting sequence), mCh-sec (with signal peptide), and mCh-cw (with signal peptide and cell wall sorting sequence). The S. aureus clones targeted mCh-fusion proteins into the cytosol, the supernatant and the cell envelope respectively; in all cases mCherry exhibited bright fluorescence. In staphylococci two types of signal peptides (SP) can be distinguished: the +YSIRK motif SPlip and the −YSIRK …
Soil Microbial Community Response To Climate Change: Results From A Temperate Kentucky Pasture, 2012 University of Kentucky
Soil Microbial Community Response To Climate Change: Results From A Temperate Kentucky Pasture, Lindsey C. Slaughter
Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences
Climate change is likely to alter plant species composition and interactions between plants and soil microbes that together dictate the quantity and quality of forage produced in pastures, the base of animal production in central Kentucky. This study assessed the seasonal dynamics of soil microbes and their response to increased temperature (+3oC) and growing season precipitation (+30% of the mean annual). Total soil microbial biomass, community composition, enzyme activities, potential carbon mineralization, and catabolic responses to selected substrates were measured seasonally in the different climate treatments. In this system, seasonal variability was a dominant driving factor for all …
Therapeutic Peptide-Based Vaccination Strategies Against Hpv-Induced Cancers, 2012 University of South Florida
Therapeutic Peptide-Based Vaccination Strategies Against Hpv-Induced Cancers, Kelly Barrios Marrugo
USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations
There is an urgent need for the development of an effective therapeutic vaccine against cancer caused by human papilloma virus (HPV). We focused on HPV-induced malignancies because of their high worldwide prevalence (e.g., cervical carcinoma and head & neck cancer). A successful therapeutic vaccine could prevent the 250 000 deaths/year worldwide and the 2.25 billion dollars that
are expended in related care in the US.
We used an HPV-induced mouse cancer model to test vaccines
composed of a CD8 T cell peptide epitope administered with potent adjuvants designed to generate vast numbers of high avidity cytotoxic T lymphocytes specific for …
Identification Of Factors That Promote The Growth Of Dormant Mycobacterium Avium Subsp. Paratuberculosis, 2012 Minnesota State University, Mankato
Identification Of Factors That Promote The Growth Of Dormant Mycobacterium Avium Subsp. Paratuberculosis, Thu Minh Cao
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
Johne's disease, which is caused by the acid-fast bacterium Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (Mpt), is a chronic, inflammatory intestinal disease that primarily affects ruminants. This disease has a significant effect on the economics of dairy farming. Mpt has a remarkable ability to survive in host tissues for 2-6 years without producing any signs of infection. However, the reliability of diagnostic techniques is limited only to those animals with clinical disease. This may be due to the entry of the organism into a dormant state, which has been reported for other mycobacteria. Reversion to the actively growing state (resuscitation) would improve …
Characterization Of The Lone Extracytoplasmic Function Sigma Factor, Ós, And Its Role In The Staphylococcus Aureus Virulence And Stress Responses, 2012 University of South Florida
Characterization Of The Lone Extracytoplasmic Function Sigma Factor, Ós, And Its Role In The Staphylococcus Aureus Virulence And Stress Responses, Halie Kay Miller
USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations
Previously our laboratory had identified a novel component of the Staphylococcus aureus regulatory network, an extracytoplasmic function ó factor, óS, involved in stress response and disease causation. Here we present additional characterization of óS, demonstrating a role for it in protection against DNA damage, cell wall disruption and interaction with components of the innate immune system. Promoter mapping reveals the existence of four unique sigS start sites, one of which appears to be subject to auto-regulation. Transcriptional profiling revealed that sigS expression remains low in a number of S. aureus wild-types, but is upregulated in the highly mutated strain RN4220. …
Stable Carbon Isotope Discrimination By Rubisco Enzymes Relevant To The Global Carbon Cycle, 2012 University of South Florida
Stable Carbon Isotope Discrimination By Rubisco Enzymes Relevant To The Global Carbon Cycle, Amanda J. Boller
USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations
Five different forms of ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RubisCO; IA, IB, IC, ID, II), the carboxylase of the Calvin-Benson-Bassham cycle (CBB), are utilized by plants, algae and autotrophic bacteria for carbon fixation. Discrimination against 13C by RubisCO is a major factor dictating the stable carbon isotopic composition (δ13C = {[13C/12C sample/13C/12C standard] - 1} X 1000) of biomass. To date, isotope discrimination, expressed as ε values (={[12k/13k] - 1} X 1000; 12k and 13k …
Toward The History Of Study Of Symbiogenesis: On The English Translation Of B. M. Kozo-Polyansky’S A New Principle Of Biology (1924), 2012 Marshall University
Toward The History Of Study Of Symbiogenesis: On The English Translation Of B. M. Kozo-Polyansky’S A New Principle Of Biology (1924), Victor Fet
Biological Sciences Faculty Research
We reproduce the text by Victor Fet, which was read on 6 October 2011 at the Moscow Society of Naturalists during the presentation of new book translation (B.M. Kozo- Polyansky. Symbiogenesis: A New Principle of Evolution / transl. by Victor Fet; ed. by Victor Fet & Lynn Margulis. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 2010. 138 p.) This half- forgotten book by Boris M. Kozo-Polyansky was known only by name to Western biologists. Victor Fet gives a brief history of this new translation, enthusiastically initiated and supported by Lynn Margulis (1938–2011), a famous naturalist who was always eager to gave credit …