Phylogeny of the Freshwater Crayfish Genus Euastacus and their Coevolution with Ectosymbiotic Temnocephalans

by

Heather C. Shull and Dr. Keith A. Crandall, Integrative Biology Euastacus crayfish are endemic to the rain forests of the eastern coast of Australia. There are now 43 known species distributed throughout Queensland, New South Wales, and Victoria. Unfortunately many species inhabit areas where human growth, activity, and environmental modification threaten, limit or decrease their […]

Comparative Study of Total Antioxidant Activity between the Fruit Momordica Cochinchinensis (gac) and its’ Major Carotenoid Constituents

by

Katherine Secrest and Dr. Kim O’Neill, Microbiology and Molecular Biology Introduction The red fruit Momordica cochinchinensis (gac) grows indigenously throughout Southeast Asia and possesses naturally high levels of provitamin A carotenoids, beta-carotene and lycopene. In much of Southeast Asia, rural populations suffer from chronic vitamin A deficiency.1 Currently, government programs distribute vitamin A capsules as […]

The Role of AP-1 and Related Inhibitors in Cortisol Secretion and Inflammation

by

D. Craig Seager and Dr. Allan Judd, Physiology and Developmental Biology Interleukin-6 (IL-6) increases the secretion of cortisol from bovine adrenal zona fasciculata (ZF) and human adrenal tumor H295R cells. However, the biochemical mechanisms involved in IL- 6-stimulated cortisol secretion are not well understood. In previous studies, it has been determined that IL-6 increases the […]

Codon-Degeneracy Model: A Sliding Window Approach to Detecting Selection

by

Joshua K. Sailsbery and Dr. David A. McClellan, Integrative Biology Detecting selection on a molecular level has a wide range of applications. Knowing the selection that has occurred may lead to reconstruction of phylogeny trees, better understanding of the changes a given protein is experiencing due to evolutionary time, and pharmaceutical applications. A hotbed of […]

Anterior-Posterior Limb Position is Dependent on the Relative Timing of Key Embryonic Events

by

Tyler Prestwich and Dr. Michael Stark, Physiology and Developmental Biology To better understand embryonic events leading to the determination of limb position along the anterior-posterior (A-P) axis, we compared pre-limb bud stage developmental morphology of three vertebrate organisms: chicken, goose and swan. These organisms were selected because of the differences each exhibit with regard to […]

The Implications of Subtype Diversity of HIV-1 for Vaccine Development

by

Ryan Peterson and Dr. Keith A. Crandall – Microbiology and Molecular biology HIV’s ability to infect a host and grow without killing the host allows the virus to accumulate genetic diversity. Over time, HIV has diverged into a number of subtypes, differing up to 30% in their nucleic acids (2). For this reason, one of […]

Ecology of Two High Copy Plasmids

by

Ermira Pazolli and Dr. Alan Harker, Microbiology and Molecular Biology Plasmids are genetic entities residing in the cell. They can vary in size and genetic content. There are alternate views about plasmids, but the consensus one is that they are genetic elements that are transferred from cell to cell, thus conferring resistance or performing some […]

Analysis of HNF1-beta as a Possible Regulatory Protein for the Transcription of the Col11a2 Collagen Gene

by

Nicholas M. Orme and Dr. Laura C. Bridgewater, Microbiology and Molecular Biology Cartilage is a highly specialized form of connective tissue that functions as a template for most skeletal structures and aids in supporting the tension and pressure common to most animal joint function. Abnormal cartilage formation often results from defective collagen DNA and can […]

Antigenotoxic Effects of N-acetylcysteine on Benzo[a]pyrene induced DNA Damage in HepG2 Cells as measured by the Alkaline Comet Assay

by

O’Neil, Loni A. and O’Neil, M. Todd and Dr. Kim L. O’Neill, Microbiology A major factor involved in the risk of developing cancer with the probability of enhancing or suppressing carcinogens is dietary composition. A chemoprevention approach to cancer means preventing this disease by the administration of one or several compounds. For a number of […]

Investigation into the Mechanisms Associated with Angiogenesis and Metastasis

by

Rachelle R. Olsen and Dr. Kim L. O’Neill, Microbiology and Molecular Biology Angiogenesis, the development and differentiation of new blood vessels from pre-existing vasculature, is tightly controlled during physiological processes including wound healing, growth, and development. Angiogenesis is also associated with several human malignancies including arthritis, psoriasis, and cancer. Angiogenesis, which provides a source of […]