Biogas can be used to generate energy from a wide variety of sources. Wastewater treatment sludge is an effective source of waste to be used for generation of biogas to make energy which can be used to heat homes and run businesses. This would help decrease the use of fossil...
Ubiquitous fine particulate matter (PM2.5) exposures significantly impact global public health, yet little is known about the mechanisms causing these known adverse health effects. Oxidative stress due to PM2.5 associated chemical constituents, such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), is a proposed possible mechanism for PM2.5 mediated health effects. Variations in...
Seeds are an essential component of plant life histories, and seed endophytes have the potential to influence germination, seedling establishment and development. That said, seed endophytes are a relatively new area of study, both in the factors that influence which taxa are present and how these microbes alter plant function....
Due to public and regulatory restrictions, genetic containment technology is critical for research and development of transgenic trees in forestry. A multi-year field trial demonstrated that the RNAi-LFY construct successfully induces sexual sterility in 6K10 poplar (Populus alba) without visible effects on vegetative development. However, its limited number of replicates...
There exists a growing need to establish a better in vitro model for evaluating PAH toxicity and carcinogenicity and to improve assessments of risk to human health, especially to the complex mixtures that exist in the environment. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are ubiquitous environmental contaminants due to the incomplete combustion...
There exists a growing need to establish a better in vitro model for evaluating PAH toxicity and carcinogenicity and to improve assessments of risk to human health, especially to the complex mixtures that exist in the environment. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are ubiquitous environmental contaminants due to the incomplete combustion...
Soil water repellency is one cause of rill soil erosion and overland flow that results in the loss of fertile topsoil. Previous research suggests that since microbial growth depends on temperature/moisture and follows diurnal and seasonal cycles, a biological mechanism would be able to explain the observed seasonality and climate...
As engineered nanomaterials (ENM) become more common in consumer products, it is crucial to rapidly assess toxicity of unique ENM. Previous studies rarely focused on standardizing nanotoxicity testing, leading to inconsistent and irreproducible results. This study characterized a variety of ENM of different size, shape, core type, and surface charge...
Pactamycin, produced by the soil bacterium Streptomyces pactum, is a cytotoxic antibiotic that belongs to the aminocyclitol family of natural products. This antibiotic has shown various forms of biological activity, including antibacterial, antifungal, antimalarial, and antitumor activities. Despite its outstanding biological activity, the mode of formation of its pharmacophore (the...
Anthopleura elegantissima (Cnidaria: Anthozoa) is an emerging model organism for studying the endosymbiotic relationship between dinoflagellate (genus Symbiodinium) and the cnidarian host. To be developed as a model organism, more genetic resources, like integrated genome and linkage map, are needed. An important validation for developing genomic resources is chromosome number....
This thesis project has the following specific objectives: (i) Determine pathogenicity of Globodera ellingtonae to potato utilizing two trials conducted over a 16 week period, (ii) Elucidate the host range of G. ellingtonae using a variety of different Solanum weed species and crop species, and (iii) Characterize population decline of...
Antimicrobial agents are being increasingly used in consumer soaps and detergents, despite a lack of data demonstrating their efficacy in such products. This study investigated the nature of the interaction between different crystalline structures of titanium dioxide nanoparticles and BTC, and explore which structure, if any, could be best used...
Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are RNA molecules that are at least 200 nucleotides long and do not encode proteins. lncRNAs have roles in gene regulation, chromatin epigenetics, and molecular scaffolding. In light of mounting evidence implicating species-specific noncoding RNAs and gene regulatory mechanisms in species adaptations, it is reasonable to...
Feeding cows flaxseed rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids has been shown to decrease the proportion of saturated fatty acids and increase the proportion of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in milk. Consuming products enriched in n-3 PUFAs have beneficial effects to human health; thus, feeding cows flaxseed could potentially increase...
Fungicide sensitivity of honey bee associated fungi
Abstract - Honey bees are exposed to a wide range of pesticides while pollinating agricultural crops. These pesticides residues are found in beeswax, nectar and pollen in the hive. Some of the pesticides found are fungicides which are not generally considered harmful to...
Modifications of histone tail amino acid residues are necessary for many reactions involving chromatin. These processes can produce transcriptionally active, euchromatic, or inactive, heterochromatic, segments of DNA. The formation and maintenance of facultative heterochromatin is critical for the proper growth and development of many eukaryotes. Euchromatin can be changed into...
Root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne spp.) are one of the most important global plant pathogens. Recent innovations in molecular techniques have allowed increased study of this important pest, including the ability to investigate associated microbiomes. This study used 16S rDNA metagenomic sequencing to characterize the microbiome of Meloidogyne hapla, the northern root-knot...
Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women worldwide. Recently it has been shown that microbiota play a role in some types of cancer. Therefore, to understand whether microbes contribute in any way to the development and progress of cervical cancer, we investigated the cervical microbiome via analysis...
Cytochrome P450 1B1 (Cyp1B1) is a xenobiotic metabolizing enzyme, responsible for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) oxidative metabolism. CYP1B1 metabolically activates several species of environmentally relevant procarcinogenic PAHs to reactive carcinogens. PAHs are aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) agonists, leading to CYP1B1 upregulation. Though CYP1B1 is highly conserved across species, wild type...
While monocytes are vital for host defense against pathogens, in cases of non-resolving inflammation, monocytes and their differentiated progeny can secrete tissue-damaging factors, present auto-antigens, and promote the inflammatory response. In this study, a systems biology approach was used to map human monocyte gene regulatory regions by integrating expression quantitative...
The Bcl-2 family of proteins regulate cell survival and are targets for cancer therapy. This protein family has also been implicated in chemotherapeutic resistance, the cause of approximately 90% of treatment failure in advanced cancer. We analyzed the expression and the role of the Bcl-2 proteins in chemotherapy resistant breast...
Current protein immobilization techniques lack defined control over protein orientation. Protein orientation is important for making biosensors and biomaterials that are sensitive and efficient and can be crucial for designing some devices such as immunosensors or direct electron transferring biocells. A new method of protein immobilization is proposed that takes...
While monocytes are vital for host defense against pathogens, in cases of non-resolving inflammation, monocytes and their differentiated progeny can secrete tissue-damaging factors, present auto-antigens, and promote the inflammatory response. In this study, a systems biology approach was used to map human monocyte gene regulatory regions by integrating expression quantitative...
Fungicide sensitivity of honey bee associated fungi
Abstract - Honey bees are exposed to a wide range of pesticides while pollinating agricultural crops. These pesticides residues are found in beeswax, nectar and pollen in the hive. Some of the pesticides found are fungicides which are not generally considered harmful to...
Budburst, the initiation of annual growth in plants, is sensitive to climate variation and is therefore used to monitor physiological responses to climate change. Budburst timing can vary between regions of an individual tree, but this phenomenon it is unaccounted for in current monitoring efforts and may contribute to the...
Anaerobic digestion of lipid-extracted algal biomass has been proposed as a method to
recover and recycle nutrients in algal biofuel systems. The purpose of this study was to quantify recoverable nitrogen and phosphorus from anaerobically digested C. vulgaris. Recoverable nutrients were deemed those present in the liquid phase of anaerobic...
Colorectal cancer (CRC), the third leading cause of cancer death in the USA, depends on early detection for patient survival. Early detection is improved with the identification of high risk individuals. Risk of CRC development is a complex interaction between an individual’s genetics and environmental exposures. Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs)...
Extraction of natural gas from shale formations using the process of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) requires the use of thousands of cubic meters of fluid. Hydraulic fracturing fluids are pumped under pressure into shale formations, fracturing the shale and releasing pockets of trapped gases. When the pressure in a natural gas...
Lignocellulosic biomass has potential as a renewable resource for global energy and bioproducts production. Biomass consists of three main polymers, cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. Cellulose is a homopolymer of glucose, while hemicellulose and lignin are heteropolymers. Lignin is primarily made of syringyl (S), guiacayl (G) and p-hydroxyphenyl (H) units. Pretreatment...
Spotted wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii, is a recently introduced, invasive pest in Oregon. It oviposits in near-mature and mature fruit, and thus is an important concern for the small fruit industry. A crop consultant observed that mature raspberry fruit with D. suzukii larvae do not show symptoms of molds as...
The Pacific Treefrog (Pseudacris regilla) is commonly encountered throughout the Pacific Northwest and can be an indicator for ecosystem health. At each life stage P. regilla utilizes a different habitat and therefore it is important to understand habitat use at all life stages to properly manage the ecosystem, however, few...
Mycobacterium avium subspecies hominissuis (MAH) causes potentially lethal opportunistic infections in immunocompromised individuals. Lack of a good animal model system currently hinders in vivo study of MAH virulence. Here we applied the tractable organism Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans), as a surrogate host to study the virulence of MAH. Worms were...
Knowledge of Drosophila suzukii's preference for an attractive trap design and bait can be used to improve detection and management of this new invasive fruit pest. Desired trap and bait attributes include: high D. suzukii capture and species specificity; early-season detection prior to significant crop damage; higher capture of females...
Hypoxia is a naturally occurring phenomenon that happens seasonally off the Oregon coast. As a consequence, there has been a great deal of research focused around analyzing the strength and duration of the hypoxic event during the summer season. This paper, however, takes an innovative approach by looking at the...
Presentation entitled : The Challenge of Finding Where SOD Gets Zinc: Identifying Novel Techniques to Recombinantly Express Metallothionein / by Nick B. West, Joseph Beckman and Daniel Sudakin
Humans and rodents experience declines in reference (long-term) and working (short-term)
memory and cognitive flexibility during the aging process. Aging changes in GluN1 and
GluN2B subunits of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors show a relationship to both
reference and working memory deficits. Sulindac, an anti-inflammatory drug, enhances working memory and NMDA receptor...
Pactamycin, a complex aminocyclitol compound produced by Streptomyces pactum, has significant antibiotic, antitumor, and antiplasmodial activity. However, this natural product has not been developed for clinical use due to its high cytotoxicity. Modulation of its biological properties by chemical synthesis has been difficult due to its complex chemical structure. Therefore,...
Zinc is an essential micronutrient required for many cellular functions, including
the development and function of the immune system. The biological consequences of
zinc deficiency illustrate the significance of zinc in human health. Zinc deficiency has
been shown to cause the dysregulation of both innate and adaptive immune responses, as...
Abstract Understanding small-scale bio-atmospheric interactions is becoming increasingly important as the global climate continues to change at breakneck speed.
A theoretical model of the sensible heat budget of a forest is developed combining
conservation equations and concepts from fluid dynamics. Budget components are
computationally evaluated using micrometeorological data taken during...
Four root mutants, diageotropica (dgt), and altered root architecture (ara) 1, 2, and 3, were used to study root architecture and better understand the process by which root architecture is determined. Adventitious root formation, tissue response to auxin, nutritional response, and starch accumulation in the leaves were tested in ara...
Firemaster 550 (FM550) is an additive flame retardant mixture used within polyurethane foam and is increasingly found in house dust and the environment due to leaching. In this study, we sought to investigate mono-substituted isopropylated triaryl phosphate (mITP), a major component of FM550, which has been shown to cause cardiotoxicity...
Flavonoids are a large family of compounds synthesized by plants that have a common chemical structure. It is believed that the health effects of fruits and vegetables are primarily due to dietary flavonoids content. Current research indicates that dietary flavonoids show promise for mitigating and/or preventing chronic conditions associated with...
To initiate the defense response to an invading pathogen, plants utilize an array of immune receptors to recognize virulence effectors. Virulence effectors are released by pathogens to suppress immune responses in target hosts. These effectors are recognized by a family of resistance proteins known as nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeat (NB-LRR) proteins....
Stringhalt is a disorder in horses characterized by high stepping with hyperflexion of the hind limbs. This disorder has been reported from the US, Australia, Chile, and Brazil. In most instances, the disease manifests itself in horses exposed to summer dandelion (Hypochaeris radicata). Stringhalt has been induced by feeding summer...
Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) is a major concern in infants, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals. There is currently no vaccine available. While it causes a significant number of hospitalizations and complications, RSV is a thermo labile virus and not very stable in the environment. This matter complicates the creation of...
Global atmospheric carbon levels are continuing to rise from pre-industrial revolution levels. One of the main regulators of global atmospheric carbon levels, and thus climate, is the world's oceans. Unicellular marine cyanobacteria account for a large percent of total marine carbon fixation. We measured chlorophyll-specific ¹⁴C uptake rates (P[superscript b])...
One of the first cognitive dysfunctions to arise with aging is memory loss, affecting an estimated 85% of elderly in the U.S. over the age of 80 with Age Associated Memory Impairment. A common feature in humans and animals experiencing memory loss with aging is the decline in N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)...
Natural products (secondary metabolites) are small organic molecules derived from plants, microbes, and marine organisms that have served as a diverse source of useful compounds pharmaceuticals. New biologically active natural products are critical as anti-infective and cancer drug leads. Cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae, produce diverse cytotoxic metabolites that represent potential...
The Willamette Valley, west of the Cascade mountain range in the state of Oregon, is home to a growing number of vineyards. This rather recent, booming industry of the region has become an important component of the economy of the state’s agriculture since the late 1960’s, contributing more than $1.56...
The Willamette Valley, west of the Cascade mountain range in the state of Oregon, is home to a growing number of vineyards. This rather recent, booming industry of the region has become an important component of the economy of the state’s agriculture since the late 1960’s, contributing more than $1.56...
Toxicological studies show that oral doses of nickel can cause allergic contact dermatitis, and routes of exposure, such as nickel leached from stainless steel cookware are not well characterized. In this study, four variables: grade of stainless steel, cook time, stainless steel seasoning or cooking cycles, and commercial tomato sauces,...
Genetic and environmental factors influence individual cancer risk. Mutations in DNA mismatch repair (MMR) genes increase colon cancer risk. Exposure to carcinogens, including the ubiquitous polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), also is associated with increased cancer risk. To understand the combined effects of both environmental exposures and genetic risk, we investigated...
Birds of prey and carnivorous mammals feed on small birds, rodents and other small mammals. Humans perceive many of the prey animals of these predators as well as the predators themselves, as “pests”, and seek to control them. Control methods for these unwanted pests, particularly rodents, have the potential to...
DNA mismatch repair (MMR) plays an important role in preserving genomic stability and reducing cancer risk. Environmental exposures to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are believed to contribute significantly to carcinogenesis. PAHs are found in food, air, water and soil and upon bioactivation can form diol epoxides which are electrophilic in...
Respiratory illnesses caused by both viral and bacterial infection are serious issues for global healthcare providers. With the emergence of new, drug-resistant forms of these diseases, innovative drugs and treatment therapies are needed. M tuberculosis is an infection that affects a large portion of the world’s population each year. Aerosol...
Endogenous circadian clock regulation is essential to normal rhythmicity, particularly the timing of hormone release in the brain. In the context of mammalian reproduction, a surge of a specific hormone, gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH), initiates a surge of luteinizing hormone (LH) from the pituitary gland, which is required for ovulation in...
Abstract
Understanding the effects of climate change on forest ecosystems requires exploration of the relationships of different components of the system, such as the response of biota to local hydrology, temperature, precipitation, and elevation. The Long-term Ecological Research Program at the H. J. Andrews Experimental Forest, located in the Western...
Many studies in recent literature have shown a significant link between the abnormalities of a newly born individual and the type of environment that their mothers encountered during pregnancy. More specifically, over the last two decades, a discipline of research commonly known as “fetal programming” has linked abnormalities at birth...
Abstract
Current methods employed in the textile industry are unsustainable because they use an abundance of water in the dying process, and discharge the waste into the environment, causing adverse health effect on aquatic life and local communities. The technology that is in place to remove dye from textile effluents...
DNA mismatch repair (MMR) plays an important role in preserving genomic stability and reducing cancer risk. Environmental exposures to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are believed to contribute significantly to carcinogenesis. PAHs are found in food, air, water and soil and upon bioactivation can form diol epoxides which are electrophilic in...
The oilseed crop Limnanthes alba (white meadowfoam) is grown in Oregon. Methods were developed for the production of a liquid-based bioherbicide from meadowfoam seed meal (MSM). It was determined that glucosinolate-containing extracts of MSM can be combined with active-enzyme-containing liquid extracts of meadowfoam seed to form a fermented product rich...
Abstract
Haptoglobin is an acute phase protein that is elevated in response to tissue damage and infections in dairy cows. The objectives of this study were to evaluate whether serum haptoglobin concentrations in the first week after calving can indicate disease status and severity, and whether haptoglobin concentrations are elevated...
Recalcitrance to transformation makes genetic engineering of many valuable plants infeasible for practical use. Transitory host modification during transformation using transgenes offers a possible means of overcoming this obstacle. In prior work in our laboratory, the genes GA20ox7 and EBB1 were found to increase regeneration in vitro. In this project,...
Respiratory illnesses caused by both viral and bacterial infection are serious issues for global healthcare providers. With the emergence of new, drug-resistant forms of these diseases, innovative drugs and treatment therapies are needed. M tuberculosis is an infection that affects a large portion of the world’s population each year. Aerosol...
2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) is a potent immunosuppressant and a prototypic ligand for the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR). In a graft versus host (GvH) response, treatment with TCDD suppresses a cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) response by Day 10, concurrent with a T-regulatory (Treg) like phenotype in the donor CD4+ T-cells, observed on Day...
Understanding the mechanisms through which stem cells self-renew is important for the development of new therapies to repair and restore damaged tissue. This research explores possible mechanisms of telomere mimic action and seeks to validate a new assay for evaluating telomere binding antagonists and studying the effects of telomere binding...
Natural disturbances and human activities can alter the benthic composition of coral reefs and other marine ecosystems. Reef fishes that associate with particular structures on the sea floor, such as coral heads, may be vulnerable to perturbations of those habitats. The spread of a newly discovered crustose alga (Ramicrusta sp.)...
BACKGROUND: Oregon produces 99% of the hazelnuts grown in the United States. The key pest threatening commercial hazelnut orchards in Oregon is Cydia latiferreana (Tortricidae), filbertworm moth (FBW). Currently, most growers control FBW with one to two applications of esfenvalerate (Asana XL), a broad spectrum pyrethroid. Pheromone mating disruption is...
Various flavonoid-rich plant extracts have shown efficacy in the treatment of diabetes. Although it is often assumed that dietary flavonoids exert biological antioxidant effects, it is possible that the observed effects work in carbohydrate metabolism. In this study we evaluated the effect of catechins and catechin containing extracts on α-amylase...
The rate of melanoma among Asian American has been steadily increasing in the past
five years, while in other Asian countries, such as Japan, the incident rate remains relatively the
same. Does the culture and societal attitudes toward skin cancer make a difference in the incident
rate of melanoma? This...
Farmers rely almost exclusively on the imported European honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) for fruit and vegetable crop pollination services. The recent decline in honeybee health has underscored he danger of relying on a single species to provide vital services. Increasing pollinator biodiversity with native bees may provide biological insurance against...
Mycoplasma haemolamae is associated with mild to marked anemia in stressed, immune-suppressed, and debilitated animals, and may be found in low numbers in healthy animals. The continued presence of the organism, detectable by polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based assay, may be associated with an underlying problem, such as stress or immune-suppression...
The western spotted cucumber beetle (Diabrotica undecimpunctata
undecimpunctata) and the western striped cucumber beetle (Acalymma trivittatum) are
pests of many crops, including vegetable, fruit, and nursery crops. Pesticides are
commonly used to control this pest. Trap and kill technologies are under development as
use in an alternative control for cucumber...
Farmers rely almost exclusively on the imported European honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) for fruit and vegetable crop pollination services. The recent decline in honeybee health has underscored the danger of relying on a single species to provide vital services. Increasing pollinator biodiversity with native bees may provide biological insurance against...
The entomopathogenic fungi Metarhizium anisopliae and Beauveria bassiana are commercially available as microbial control agents for the black vine weevil, Otiorhynchus sulcatus (F.) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), the key root-feeding insect pest in Pacific Northwest small fruits and ornamentals. Understanding habitat selection is critical to improve the efficacy, persistence and cost of...