Other Life Sciences Commons^™

Effects Of Shoreline Dynamics On Saltmarsh Vegetation, Shailesh Sharma, Joshua Goff, Ryan M. Moody, Ashley Mcdonald, Dorothy Byron, Kenneth L. Heck Jr., Sean Powers, Carl Ferraro, Just Cebrian

University Faculty and Staff Publications

We evaluated the impact of shoreline dynamics on fringing vegetation density at mid- and low-marsh elevations at a high-energy site in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Particularly, we selected eight unprotected shoreline stretches (75 m each) at a historically eroding site and measured their inter-annual lateral movement rate using the DSAS method for three consecutive years. We observed high inter-annual variability of shoreline movement within the selected stretches. Specifically, shorelines retrograded (eroded) in year 1 and year 3, whereas, in year 2, shorelines advanced seaward. Despite shoreline advancement in year 2, an overall net erosion was recorded during the survey …

Comparative Genomics, Transcriptomics, And Physiology Distinguish Symbiotic From Free-Living Chlorella Strains, Cristian F. Quispe, Olivia Sonderman, Maya Khasin, Wayne R. Riekhof, James L. Van Etten, Kenneth Nickerson

Kenneth Nickerson Papers

Most animal–microbe symbiotic interactions must be advantageous to the host and provide nutritional benefits to the endosymbiont. When the host provides nutrients, it can gain the capacity to control the interaction, promote self-growth, and increase its fitness. Chlorella-like green algae engage in symbiotic relationships with certain protozoans, a partnership that significantly impacts the physiology of both organisms. Consequently, it is often challenging to grow axenic Chlorella cultures after isolation from the host because they are nutrient fastidious and often susceptible to virus infection. We hypothesize that the establishment of a symbiotic relationship resulted in natural selection for nutritional and metabolic …

Investigation Of Succinated Protein Turnover By Autophagy, Lydia Proctor

Theses and Dissertations

Background. Diabetes is a widespread public health concern that alters the metabolism of adipocytes through high glucose stress and hormonal dysregulation. Under diabetic conditions there are excess nutrients available and subsequently an accumulation of tricarboxylic acid cycle intermediates such as fumarate. Fumarate can irreversibly react with protein cysteine residues to form S-2-succinocysteine (2SC, protein succination). Succinated proteins can be turned over by autophagy, a mechanism of removing damaged proteins and organelles that have accumulated due to metabolic stress.

Purpose. The basal flux through autophagy in adipocytes matured in non-diabetic and diabetic conditions was examined to determine the turnover of succinated …

Tumor Suppressor P53 Response To Uv Light In Normal Human Keratinocyte Strains From Different Individuals, Fadi Farooq Abboodi

Theses and Dissertations

Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is a causative factor in variety of diseases ranging from simple pathologic conditions to malignant ones like cervical cancer in which HPV is the primary cause in more than 90% of cases. HPV is also associated with other tumors like head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and the percentage of association varies according to the anatomical site, reaching its highest level (65%) in the oropharyngeal region. HPV proteins E6 and E7 are responsible for the transforming potential of the virus. The principal action of E6 is targeting the tumor suppressor protein p53 for degradation, while E7 …

An Investigation Of The Succination Of The Selenoproteins Thioredoxin Reductase And Glutathione Peroxidase, Scott Lanci

Theses and Dissertations

We have identified the irreversible protein modification S-(2-succino)cysteine, a product of the Kreb’s cycle intermediate fumarate reacting with the thiol group of cysteine (Cys) residues, also termed succination. Succination is increased in adipose tissue of diabetic mice in vivo and in adipocytes matured in high glucose medium (25 mM) in vitro. Selenocysteine (Sec) is a less common but highly conserved amino acid that has major functions in redox chemistry. Sec possesses a lower pKa (~5.4) and is much more reactive in comparison to Cys. This project aimed to determine if succination occurred on Sec residues in two selenoproteins that play …

Botanical Therapeutics In The Modern World, Vyacheslav Dushenkov, Brittany L. Graf, Mary Ann Lila

Publications and Research

Plants are the source of a broad spectrum of biologically active phytochemicals. For effective defense against pathogens and abiotic stress, plants have developed complicated chemical strategies with different mechanisms of action. By harnessing these phytochemicals, humans have used plants for medicinal purposes for over 30,000 years, and they remain a valuable source for the development of modern therapeutics. Plant-derived materials are utilized as pharmaceuticals, botanical drugs, dietary supplements (nutraceuticals), functional food ingredients, and cosmeceuticals. The Global Institute for Bioexploration (GIBEX), an international conglomerate of researchers, is involved in multiple botanical therapeutics discovery and development programs.

Chapman University 2016 Environmental Audit: Residence Life Dining Services Equipment, Alexandra Fw Sidun, Devon T. Bloss

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Chapman University accommodates over 1700 student meal plans per day through the on-campus dining services provided by Sodexo Restaurant Services. The commercial-grade kitchens found in the Randall Dining Commons (RDC) of Sandhu Conference Center are frequently used to prepare food for students for every meal, seven days a week. The RDC kitchen facility has staff working around the clock and high consumption electrical, water, and gas appliances constantly running to parallel the high demand. The frequent use of commercial kitchen appliances results in an enormous consumption of energy and water resources leading to comparably high utility bills. Measuring the energy …

Ocean Acidification And Predator-Prey Relations: Correlating Disruption Of Predator Avoidance With Chemosensory Deficits, Alexandra Fw Sidun, William G. Wright

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

One of the most destructive effects of global climate change is the increased carbon sequestering and consequential acidification of our world’s oceans. The impacts of ocean acidification on marine organisms are still relatively unknown, especially effects on behavioral ecology. Avoiding predation has emerged from recent behavioral ecology literature as a critical feature in the life history of a wide array of animal species; experiments on marine fishes suggest acidic water compromises their predator-avoidance abilities. Recent assays in our lab suggest predator-induced behavior is reduced by weakly acidic water. These experiments do not address the potential factor of generalized malaise caused …

Changes In Floristic Composition In The State Forests In Worcester County (Massachusetts) Over 34 Years, Flor A. Monroe

Sustainability and Social Justice

ABSTRACT

CHANGES IN FOREST DIVERSITY OF STATE FOREST IN WORCESTER COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS, OVER 34 YEARS PERIOD

The forest in Massachusetts has changed since the earliest colonial settlement and today the floristic composition is more homogeneous. This study investigates the potential change in the floristic composition over thirty years in Worcester County State Forests. Shannon, richness and evenness indices for two periods were compared, and Jaccard index was used to analyze similarity in composition between the periods. The possible influence of severe weather events was also analyzed.

It was found Changes in the floristic composition, but the magnitude of the changes …

Development Of A Decision Support System For Post Mining Land Use On Abandoned Surface Coal Mines In Appalachia, Matthew Zimmerman

Sustainability and Social Justice

Decision support systems are diverse and have been used to solve multiple problems ranging from the complex to the simple. With the complexity of environmental decisions today, these systems provide a logic based approach to evaluating and choosing environmental solutions. Abandoned mining lands (AML) are an issue for the environment in the Appalachian region. Given this a decision support system was designed using previously created frameworks and indices from other systems created. The system is comprised of two main sections, selecting the ideal post-mining land-use (PMLU), and maximizing the potential of land to be reclaimed under budgetary constraints. This system …

Characterization Of Induced Rnai Silencing Of Vaccinia Virus Essential Genes, Kewa Jiang

Honors Scholar Theses

Vaccinia virus (VACV) is a large double-stranded DNA virus and the prototypical member of the family Poxviridae and is most notable for its use as the vaccine that eradicated smallpox (variola virus). More recently, VACV has been used to develop recombinant vaccines and immunotherapies. However, many of these processes require VACV replication to be tightly controlled. RNA interference (RNAi) is a powerful tool for in vitro silencing of mRNAs that are complementary to 19-21 base pairs (bp) of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA). This project outlines the design and preliminary analysis of two inducible RNAi silencing constructs targeting multiple VACV essential genes …

Effects Of Environmental Water Rights Purchases On Dissolved Oxygen, Stream Temperature, And Fish Habitat, Nathaniel R. Mouzon

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Degraded water quality has reduced aquatic species abundance and survivability in Nevada’s Walker River. Low instream flows and increased nutrients affect native fish populations through high daily stream temperatures and low nightly dissolved oxygen concentrations. Increasing streamflow, through environmental water purchases, may improve water quality and enhance habitat for native fish species, such as Lahontan cutthroat trout. This study uses River Modeling System, a computer model, to estimate streamflows, stream temperatures, and dissolved oxygen concentrations in the Walker River. Streamflow increases are simulated to determine potential improvements to high water temperatures and low dissolved oxygen concentrations, enabling the prioritization of …

Discharge-Suspended Sediment Relations: Near-Channel Environment Controls Shape And Steepness, Land Use Controls Median And Low Flow Conditions, Angus A. Vaughan

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Erosion, transport and deposition of fine sediment (clay, silt and fine sand) influence the form and function of river systems. Excess suspended sediment degrades stream ecosystems and is implicated as a leading cause of water quality and aquatic life impairment. Therefore, understanding the factors that control fine sediment transport patterns is an interesting topic for basic science and one that has important management and policy implications.

In this study, we sought to understand how attributes of the landscape and channel network might control the shape, steepness and vertical offset of the relationship between river discharge and suspended sediment. Watershed and …

Bacteriophages That Can Lyse Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria, Michael Monaco

Honors Theses

A Klebsiella pneumoniae bacteriophage was isolated from waste water and purified over multiple rounds of plaque removals and serial titrations. This bacteriophage was imaged in a transmission electron microscope and then tested with selected antibiotics for effectiveness in reducing optical density of K. pneumoniae colonies. The phage was shown to have an increased effectiveness in reducing the optical density when used together with an antibiotic that the bacteria was susceptible to.

"Patterns In The Abundance Of Benthic Algae In Streams", Courtney Wright

Honors Theses

Benthic, microscopic algae are the main drivers of primary productivity in streams. The relationship between the abundance and productivity of benthic algae in streams and lakes and the availability of limiting nutrients, especially soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP), has been extensively studied (reviewed in Allan and Castillo 2007, Larned 2010). However, nearly all of this research has been conducted on the periphyton assemblage found on hard substrates (e.g., stones, wood), while very little work has addressed the factors affecting the abundance of epipelic algae (i.e., the algae associated with depositional (soft) sediments such as sands and silts). One of the few …

Simulating Mars: Student Projects At Mars Desert Research Station (Mdrs), Ashley Hollis-Bussey, Lycourgos Manolopoulos, Marc Carofano, Hiroki Sugimoto, Cassandra Vella, John Herman

Human Factors and Applied Psychology Student Conference

No abstract provided.

The Women Of Helamb: Life After The 2015 Earthquake, Emma Squier

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Disasters exacerbate inequalities that are already present in the society, put particular groups of individuals at risk, specifically women. The vulnerabilities of women shape the way they experience disasters as well as their ability to recover from them. Although it has now been over a year since the earthquake that occurred in Nepal on April 25, 2015, the recovery has been slow, and the destruction that it has caused is still greatly visible. For this project, women in the Helambu region of Nepla were interviewed to learn about how their lives were affected by the earthquake and the challenges that …

The Pribram – Bohm Hypothesis, Shelli R. Joye

CONSCIOUSNESS: Ideas and Research for the Twenty-First Century

A holoflux theory of consciousness as modulated energy is hypothesized and shown to support both local and non-local properties. This thesis emerges from an integral evaluation of evidence drawn from: (1) the holonomic mind/brain theories of Karl Pribram, (2) the ontological interpretation of quantum theory by David Bohm. Applying an integral methodology to superimpose and correlate seemingly disparate concepts from among these sources and others, a composite-theory emerges, a “holoflux” theory of consciousness, after the term favored by Karl Pribram to describe David Bohm’s “holomovement” between an explicate order andan implicate order. This Pribram–Bohm composite holoflux theory is shown to …

Presence And The Paradox Of Love, Joanne Burtch

CONSCIOUSNESS: Ideas and Research for the Twenty-First Century

Spiritual experiences often seem unrelated to the intellectual orientation of science. However, some discussion of the laboratory study of spiritual practice does attempt to include the mystery and the human experience in its dialogue. An exploration of the paradox of love demonstrates how it might be possible to find a relationship between the scientific understanding of spirituality and the profundity of spiritual experience.

Eugene Taylor: An Appreciation, Simon Senzon

CONSCIOUSNESS: Ideas and Research for the Twenty-First Century

By sharing Professor Taylor’s impact on me with you in this way, I hope to offer a glimpse of the depth he pointed us to. Rather than just tell you his stories and his theories, I am sharing layers of my own experience both in similar synchronicities from my own personal mythology and also the meaning I make for myself as I go deeper in understanding what he was really teaching. If you can see that I am sharing something beyond the words themselves, then you know what he meant by soteriological writing. The words are used to help you …