Numerous properties of Yucca schidigera and Quillaja saponaria have been studied with respect to the saponins in the plant. These saponins are present in the extract as well and have been utilized commercially in the food and cosmetic industry for various products. Saponins have detergent-like properties in the presence of...
Sialic acids are involved in many cellular interactions. They can serve as an adhesion ligand or act as an inhibitor to cellular adhesion by charge repulsion or by masking potential ligands. Although sialic acids are implicated in the process of blastocyst implantation, their expression and regulation in uterine epithelium of...
The hypotheses of this research were (1) to test if
the antagonistic effect of ethanol on liver copper could
be seen within a short period when ethanol ingestion,
low dietary copper and high metabolic demand represented
by either pregnancy plus lactation or rapid growth are
simultaneously present and (2) to...
The objective of this research was to indirectly determine the
existence of a possible retinal-endocrine pathway activated, or
Inhibited, by artificial fluorescent light as evidenced by it subsequent
effects on bone metabolism. Forty-eight male Long-Evans post-breeder
rats, half of which were bilaterally orbitally enucleated, were
used in this experiment. A...
The present study sought to define a possible role of phosphorus-stimulated
ammoniagenesis, previously observed in vitro and in
experimental animals, in the hypocalciuric effect of phosphorus in young
men. It was hypothesized that titrating some of the hydrogen ions
destined for excretion with ammonia would be beneficial to kidney
calcium...
This study was designed to evaluate the effect of glucose on plasma pyridoxal 5'- phosphate (PLP) concentration. The objective was to determine whether there was a negative relationship between glucose ingestion and plasma PLP concentration and to evaluate the possible mechanism of decreased PLP after acute glucose ingestion. Seven healthy...
Adipic dihydrazide-modified heparin was prepared and
subsequently immobilized on surface-activated silica wafers. X-ray
photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to quantify the elemental
composition of the silica surface at each stage of activation and results
showed that successful immobilization had taken place. Contact angle
measurements were made to verify the high...
Chlordecone belongs to the class of persistent organochlorine pesticides that are remarkably resistant to environmental degradation. Even though their use was banned in the United States in 1978, these compounds can still be detected in both humans and wildlife throughout the world. Previous work has shown that the pretreatment of...
Atherosclerosis is the underlying cause of ischemic heart disease and stroke and is the leading cause of death worldwide, especially in developed countries. As an inflammatory disease of arteries in a hyperlipidemic milieu, expression of adhesion molecules, such as endothelial-leukocyte adhesion molecule-1 (E-selectin) and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), on endothelial...
Metabolic improvements and changes in gene expression were measured in mice fed polyphenol-rich extracts derived from apples and sweet cherries, and the common phytochemicals, quercetin and ellagic acid. Polyphenol-rich extracts were produced by solid phase extraction and column chromatography. Extracts and purified compounds were mixed into a high-fat (HF, 60%...
Byproducts of bamboo processing, such as leaves and branches, may have potential as a livestock feedstuff. The objectives of this study were to evaluate seasonal changes in proximate composition of several bamboo species and reed canarygrass, and subsequently determine the digestibility of bamboo in ponies. Monthly samples of Phyllostachys bissetii,...
The vascular endothelium is a single cell layer that lines the lumen of the entire vasculature. It is the site of synthesis of nitric oxide (NO), a vasodilatory compound synthesized by endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS). NO causes intracellular calcium sequestration of the vascular smooth muscle cells, relaxing and dilating...
Heparin was modified with adipic diliydrazide and covalently linked to surface-activated silica. Contact angle measurements were made to determine changes in surface at various stages of the derivatization. Xray photoelectron spectroscopy was used to analyze the elemental composition of the surface at each step of immobilizing heparin as well and...
Heparin was modified and immobilized to surface-activated silica surfaces using two different reaction schemes. End-aminated heparin was reacted with 2-iminothiolane to produce free thiol groups at the terminal ends of the heparin chains. The end-thiolated heparin was immobilized by reaction with a pyridyl disulfide activated poly[ethylene oxide]-poly[propylene oxide]-poly[ethylene oxide] triblock...
Glutathione (GSH) is the predominant low molecular weight thiol antioxidant
in liver tissue. GSH plays an important role in maintaining the intracellular thiol redox
ratio as well as detoxification of electrophiles and xenobiotics. Aging leads to a significant decline (35%; P ≤ 0.05) in hepatocellular GSH levels. Using young (2-4...
Mercury and arsenic are known developmental toxicants and environmental exposures are ubiquitous worldwide from natural and anthropogenic sources. Prenatal exposure to both contaminants are independently associated with adverse perinatal health outcomes and latent disease risk that could be in part mediated by epigenetic reprogramming events. Fetal programming events involving DNA...
Boron has been recognized since 1923 as an essential
micronutrient for vascular plants, but its function is
still not known. Many diverse roles have been proposed,
but none of these has been definitively shown. Problems
that have made the study of the function of boron
difficult include, no useful radioisotope,...
The use of an antibiotic as a growth promoter (AGP) began in the 1940’s with the discovery of growth responses from Streptomyces aureofaciens in the monogastric diet. However, resistance and residue problems have increased the negative consumer perception of growth promoting antibiotic use in animal diets. Although no direct link...
Hydrocarbon solvents are widely used in the production of paints, adhesives, dyes, polymers, plastics, textiles, printing inks, agricultural products and pharmaceuticals. While the neuropathic potential of aliphatic solvents was shown in the 1970s, little is known about the neuropathic potential of aromatic solvents. The present study examines such solvents, 1,2-diethylbenzene...
Arachidonic acid (ARA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) are polyunsaturated fatty acids required for proper embryonic development, specifically neurodevelopment. However, little is known regarding their conversion to other metabolites during embryogenesis. The oxidation of ARA gives rise to the biologically active eicosanoids and the oxidation of DHA gives rise to the...
The primary goal of my study was to evaluate the effects of high dietary vitamin E on the rodent skeleton. The outcomes from my study assess the impact of high intakes of vitamin E and increased concentrations of its metabolite, carboxy ethyl hydroxy chromanol (CEHC), on bone turnover and skeletal...
There were two studies involved in the thesis research. In the
first study, variation in the amount of adenohypophysis gonadotropins
among 22 individual beef bulls were investigated. These bulls
represented four inbred lines, and six linecrosses. The bulls were
raised in the Oregon State University purebred herd.
The bulls were...
By salt depleting the animals or by injecting them with
aldosterone, I was able to increase the active transport of sodium
across the isolated skin. The potential difference was increased
by 37% and 43% respectively and the net sodium flux by 69% and
62%. Exposure of frogs to 50 mM...
The purpose of this thesis is to determine if dietary and
metabolic relationships exist between cobalt and selenium. Two
groups of lambs were compared. The dams of one group of lambs
received an alfalfa hay adequate in selenium and the dams of the
other group received an alfalfa hay deficient...
This study sought a better understanding of the mechanism of
the near-ultraviolet inhibition of microsclerotia and pigment formation
in the fungus Verticillium albo-atrum Reinke & Berth. by observing
changes which occur in certain major biochemical components:
lipids, chitin, RNA, DNA, protein carbohydrates, and pigment.
The most important finding was that...
The cellular dynamics of the intestinal epithelium in the coho
salmon, Oncorhynchus kisutch, has been studied to determine the effects of temperature and whole-body X-irradiation.
In vivo experiments utilizing colchicine mitotic inhibiting technique and tritiated
thymidine (³H-TdR) radioautography were employed in order to
evaluate the kinetics of the cell population....
Although considerable experimental evidence suggests that
endogenous adenosine may function as a modulator of neuronal activity
in the etiology or control of seizures, the neuroanatomical and
neurochemical basis for the anticonvulsant actions of adenosine have
not been well established. A discrete brain region of possible
fundamental importance to epileptogenisis within...
A key mechanism utilized by plants to make iron (Fe) available for
uptake is the reduction of Fe(III) to Fe(II) via an inducible, plasma
membrane-bound Fe(III) reductase. Genes encoding such enzymes have
not yet been isolated from plants; however, two Fe(III) reductases have
been cloned from yeast. FRE1 and FRE2...
Electrofishing is a sampling tool commonly used by fisheries researchers. While much is known about the effects of electroshock on fish physiology, consequences to the immune system and disease progression have not received attention. To understand the effects of electroshock on immune function we undertook a comparison of electroshock and...
During extreme exercise, athletes experience increased inflammation that is similar to the acute phase response. Endurance athletes, distance runners in particular, are also more susceptible to compromised iron stores. This study evaluated inflammation, immune function and iron status in athletes completing a 50K ultramarathon. Twenty-two well-trained distance runners, 11 males...
The goal of this dissertation is to investigate the interaction between cimetidine and dietary flavonoids using the Caco-2 cell transport model. It has been shown that flavonoids can change the bioavailability of pharmaceuticals, either by inhibiting metabolizing enzymes or inhibiting the drug efflux transporters. However, the effect of dietary flavonoids...
Although IL-4 is a well-characterized multi-functional cytokine, its role as a survival factor in T cells is not completely understood. In an attempt to uncover IL-4-mediated survival, we studied caspase activation in primary mouse T lymphocytes undergoing death by neglect, activation-induced or steroid-induced cell death. Here, we identify the executioner...
This research was designed to study the perinatal and
postweaning effects of the interaction between ethanol and low
dietary zinc during gestation and lactation in the rat.
Pregnant rats were fed liquid diets containing either 2 or 10
μg zinc/ml with or without 30% of kcal from ethanol throughout
gestation...
Pregnant and weanling rats were fed liquid diets with
or without 30 percent of total kcal from ethanol and varying
levels of copper in order to determine if ethanol ingestion would
exaggerate a marginal copper status to an obvious copper
deficiency. Pregnant albino rats were fed either 0.75 or 3.75...
In the summer of 1961, oil and gas companies began seismic explorations offshore on the Oregon coast. These explorations inspired interest in the effects of explosions on marine life. This document gives the results of two series of tests on the effects of underwater explosions on Dungeness crabs held in...