Storm events can pulse nutrients and carbon from soils and provide an important subsidy to food webs in oligotrophic streams and lakes. Bacterial nutrient limitation and the potential response of stream aquatic bacteria to storm events was investigated in arctic tundra environments by manipulating both water temperature and inorganic nutrient...
Dramatic increases in research in the area of microbial biofuel production coupled with
high-throughput data generation on bioenergy-related microbes has led to a deluge of
information in the scientific literature and in databases. Consolidating this information and
making it easily accessible requires a unified vocabulary. The Gene Ontology (GO) fulfills...
Whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis) inhabits an expansive range in western North America, and it is a keystone species of subalpine environments. Whitebark is susceptible to multiple threats – climate change, white pine blister rust, mountain pine beetle, and fire exclusion – and it is suffering significant mortality range-wide, prompting the...
During traditional boat-based surveys of marine megafauna, behavioral observations are typically limited to records of animal surfacings obtained from a horizontal perspective. Achieving an aerial perspective has been restricted to brief helicopter or airplane based observations that are costly, noisy, and risky. The emergence of commercial small unmanned aerial systems...
The dataset here is used as a document file for presenting supplementary videos in the dissertation Tao, K. (2018). Investigating protein-lipid-membrane interactions in Plant Cells using Bimolecular Fluorescence Complementation (Doctoral dissertation).
Keywords: Protein, Lipid, Membrane, Plant Cells, Fluorescent Imaging
This dataset is a compilation of all published denudation rates derived from in-situ cosmogenic radionuclides as of 2016. All sites have been geo-referenced (WGS 84). Geo-referenced locations are then used to extract the yearly aridity index for each site from the CGIAR global Aridity dataset (https://cgiarcsi.community/data/global-aridity-and-pet-database/). Denudation rates are used...
The accessions used to create the Snap Bean Diversity Panel (SnAP) were 378 snap bean cultivars and germplasm lines selected from North American and European germplasm. This panel supplements the 150 member Bean CAP snap bean diversity panel (SBDP) with an additional 228 snap bean accessions. The Bean CAP SBDP...
The accessions used to create the Snap Bean Diversity Panel were 150 snap bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) cultivars and breeding lines selected from North American and European germplasm to create a population that is representative of the snap bean market class from a historical and geographical viewpoint. This panel was developed...
Grapevine leafroll disease (GLD) is one of the most important grapevine viral diseases affecting grapevines worldwide. The impact on vine health, crop yield, and quality is difficult to assess due to a high number of variables, but significant economic losses are consistently reported over the lifespan of a vineyard if...
Bud dormancy in grapevine is an adaptive strategy for the survival of drought, high and low temperatures and freeze dehydration stress that limit the range of cultivar adaptation. Therefore, development of a comprehensive understanding of the biological mechanisms involved in bud dormancy is needed to promote advances in selection and...
Mycobacterium abscessus (MAB) is an opportunistic pathogen responsible for infections in immunocompromised or immunosuppressed patients. Even with long-term treatment with multiple antibiotics, MAB pulmonary infections have high rates of treatment failure. Within the host, MAB is phagocytosed by key innate immune cells macrophages. The TLR2 and TLR4 are two critical...
In the study of any developmental process, whether in plants, animals, or other models, it is prudent to consider the developmental position of the subjects being measured. This is generally not taken into consideration in grapevine studies despite a growing body of literature documenting that fruits within clusters develop and...
Zoxamide is the sole β-tubulin inhibitor registered for the control of oomycete pathogens. The current study investigated the activity of zoxamide against Phytophthora sojae and baseline sensitivity was established with a mean EC₅₀ of 0.048 μg/ml. The data is critical for monitoring changes in zoxamide-sensitivity in the field. Three stable...
Full Text:
: 20 May 2016
doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2016.00762
Edited by:
Vijai Kumar Gupta,
National University of
Proteinaceous compounds are abundant forms of organic nitrogen in soil and aquatic ecosystems, and the rate of protein depolymerization, which is accomplished by a diverse range of microbial secreted peptidases, often limits nitrogen turnover in the environment. To determine if the distribution of secreted peptidases reflects the ecological and evolutionary...
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...
Full Text:
microbiome: looking back and future perspectives. Frontiers in Microbiology, 5. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb
Modulation of gene expression through RNA interference is well conserved in eukaryotes and is involved in many cellular processes. In the oomycete Phytophthora, research on the small RNA machinery and function has started to reveal potential roles in the pathogen, but much is still unknown. We examined Argonaute (AGO) homologs...
Important progress in understanding replication, interactions with host plants, and evolution of closteroviruses enabled engineering of several vectors for gene expression and virus-induced gene silencing. Due to the broad host range of closteroviruses, these vectors expanded vector applicability to include important woody plants such as citrus and grapevine. Furthermore, large...
Managers of forest and plantation ecosystems are encountering growing problems involving plant pathogens and the expanding geographic ranges of these pathogens. Historically unexposed stands are exceptionally vulnerable when a non-native pathogen is introduced because these pathogens can cause devastating disease in a host population that lacks co-evolved resistance mechanisms. One...
Neisseria gonorrhoeae is an exquisitely adapted, strictly human pathogen and the causative agent of the sexually transmitted infection gonorrhea. This ancient human disease remains a serious problem, occurring at high incidence globally and having a major impact on reproductive and neonatal health. N. gonorrhoeae is rapidly evolving into a superbug...
The lagoons spanning Alaska’s Beaufort Sea coast provide a unique habitat for arctic wildlife. These lagoons and the food webs they support face extreme seasonality with nine months of ice cover followed by a spring thaw that pulses a large amount of freshwater and nutrients into the lagoons. Bacteria link...
Iron (Fe) and copper (Cu) are essential cofactors for microbial metalloenzymes, but little is known about the metalloenyzme inventory of anaerobic marine microbial communities despite their importance to the nitrogen cycle. We compared dissolved O₂ , NO₃⁻, NO₂⁻, Fe and Cu concentrations with nucleic acid sequences encoding Fe and Cu-binding...
Complex symbioses between animal or plant hosts and their associated microbiotas can involve thousands of species and millions of genes. Because of the number of interacting partners, it is often impractical to study all organisms or genes in these host-microbe symbioses individually. Yet new phylogenetic predictive methods can use the...
While there has been growing interest in the gut microbiome in recent years, it remains unclear whether closely related species and strains have similar or distinct functional roles and if organisms capable of both aerobic and anaerobic growth do so simultaneously. To investigate these questions, we implemented a high-throughput mass...
The vast marine deep biosphere consists of microbial habitats within sediment, pore waters, upper basaltic crust and the fluids that circulate throughout it. A wide range of temperature, pressure, pH, and electron donor and acceptor conditions exists—all of which can combine to affect carbon and nutrient cycling and result in...
To understand mechanisms linking ecosystem processes and microbial diversity in freshwater ecosystems, bacterial productivity and the metacommunity dynamics of species sorting and mass effects were investigated in an 18 ha headwater lake in northern Alaska. On most sampling dates, the phylogenetic composition of bacterial communities in inflowing streams (inlets) was...
Full Text:
biogeography. Frontiers in Microbiology, 5:82.
doi:10.3389/fmicb.2014.00082
10.3389/fmicb.2014.00082
Previous studies of coral viruses have employed either microscopy or metagenomics, but few have attempted to comprehensively link the presence of a virus-like particle (VLP) to a genomic sequence. We conducted transmission electron microscopy imaging and virome analysis in tandem to characterize the most conspicuous viral types found within the...
Microbial communities are responsible for the bulk of biogeochemical processing in temporary headwater streams, yet there is still relatively little known about how community structure and function respond to periodic drying. Moreover, the ability to sample temporary habitats can be a logistical challenge due to the limited capability to measure...
Full Text:
headwater streams: a
cross-system comparison. Frontiers in Microbiology, 6, 522.
doi:10.3389/fmicb
Stony corals are the ecosystem engineers of the vital, dynamic, and complex marine ecosystem known as coral reefs. Globally, coral reefs are undergoing degradation from multiple anthropogenic stressors. Coral reef organism holobionts, or the host along with its microbial components, are key to reef ecosystem success and functioning. Marine microbes...
To determine if a storm event (i.e., high winds, large volumes of precipitation) could
alter concentrations of Vibrio vulnificus and V. parahaemolyticus in aquacultured oysters
(Crassostrea virginica) and associated surface water and sediment, this study followed a
sampling timeline before and after Hurricane Irene impacted the Chesapeake Bay estuary in...
Kombucha is a fermented sweet tea beverage of Asian origin which has become popular in the West due to its distinct flavor and possible health benefits. Kombucha is fermented by inoculating sweet tea with yeast and bacteria until a pellicle, referred to as a SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and...
Grapevine Trunk Diseases (GTDs) are caused by a group of fungal pathogens that attack the xylem tissue of mature grapevines worldwide. In the past 30 years, their incidence has increased, both in emerging grape-producing regions, as well as those with an extended history of viticulture. In the same time span,...
Marine sponges are vital components of benthic and coral reef ecosystems, providing
shelter and nutrition for many organisms. In addition, sponges act as an essential carbon
and nutrient link between the pelagic and benthic environment by filtering large quantities
of seawater. Many sponge species harbor a diverse microbial community (including...
Full Text:
Microbiology, 5, 581.
doi:10.3389/fmicb.2014.00581
10.3389/fmicb.2014.00581
Frontiers Research Foundation
Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (MAP) is the causative agent of Johne’s disease, a chronic granulomatous enteritis that plagues domestic and wild ruminants globally. During the silent stages of Johne’s disease, infected animals intermittently shed bacteria for years prior to clinical diagnosis during advanced disease stages. This strategy allows MAP to...
Ubiquitous pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa coordinates population-wide activation of virulence genes through quorum sensing (QS), where individuals transition from solo to social behaviors to benefit the population. QS is complex and mechanisms vary from species to species, but the concept is common to the bacterial world and has implications in various...
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) play an integral role in climate change and as a carbon source for organisms living in a marine environment. These compounds have many sources, but the impacts of biogenically produced VOCs is not fully known. Phaeodactylum tricornutum was studied under axenic ideal growth conditions to determine...
Grapevine red blotch virus (GRBV), the causal agent of red blotch disease (RBD) in grapevine, Vitis vinifera L., is an emerging pathogen of significance to the wine grape industry of Oregon, USA. To address knowledge gaps of GRBV epidemiology, spread of GRBV was evaluated in Oregon vineyards over four years....
Methane (CH₄) is a valuable fuel, constituting 70–95% of natural gas, and a potent
greenhouse gas. Release of CH₄ into the atmosphere contributes to climate change.
Biological CH₄ production or methanogenesis is mostly performed by methanogens, a
group of strictly anaerobic archaea. The direct substrates for methanogenesis are H₂
plus...
Full Text:
Ontology. Frontiers in Microbiology, 5, 634.
doi:10.3389/fmicb.2014.00634
10.3389/fmicb.2014.00634
Agricultural and companion animals are integral to our way of life as they provide us with nourishment, financial resources, transportation, and companionship. However, pets, managed animals in the agricultural industry, as well as wild populations of food animals are all subject to health and mortality risks. The gut microbiome is...
Seagrasses and coral reefs play important roles in nutrient cycling, coastal protection, and maintaining marine biodiversity. However, these coastal marine organisms are declining globally due to anthropogenic stressors, such as rising ocean temperatures, ocean acidification, and eutrophication. These organisms live in close association with their microbiomes, which can be beneficial...
Mycobacterium avium subsp. hominissuis (MAH) is an environmental bacteria that infects immunocompromised humans. MAH cases are increasing in incidence, making it crucial to gain knowledge of the pathogenic mechanisms associated with the bacterium. MAH infects macrophages and after several days the infection triggers the phagocyte apoptosis. Many of the intracellular...
Agricultural land management, such as fertilization, liming, and tillage affects soil properties, including pH, organic matter content, nitrification rates, and the microbial community. Three different study sites were used to identify microorganisms that correlate with agricultural land use and to determine which factors regulate the relative abundance of the microbial...
Copper and iron are essential micronutrients that are required by marine primary producers for a variety of metabolic processes. Over 99% of both copper and iron are bound within organic complexes in the marine environment, however the molecular identity of many of these complexes remains unknown. The speciation of these...
Septoria canker remains the most important disease of poplars in intensively managed forest plantations. Genetic resistance has long been considered the best way to manage for this disease. Transgenic resistance mediated by RNA silencing against pathogens and pests (HIGS: host-induced gene silencing) has shown promise in other pathosystems but has...
Bacteria are abundant in marine environments. They play important roles in nutrient cycling and form symbiotic interactions with eukaryotes. However, the vast majority of bacterial taxa are difficult to maintain in laboratory cultures, meaning that most microbiological research of the past century has focused on a small subset of bacteria....
The wellbeing of the Willamette basin in Oregon depends on the river ecosystem’s microbial communities, which control primary production and the biological processing of nutrients, pollutants, and organic matter. Yet, only a few studies have investigated the diversity of the microbial communities of the Willamette basin. This paper examines how...
Oregon strawberries are known for their high quality, intense flavor, sweetness, and rich red color. With optimal weather conditions, including rainy and mild seasons, Oregon has one of the best strawberry farming environments. Amongst the factors for a suitable strawberry farming environment, soil significantly influences strawberry growth and quality. The...
Freshwater systems cycle carbon along a spatial and temporal biogeochemical continuum, across which ecosystem processes contribute to transformations of organic matter (OM). Various ecological constraints impact rates OM transformation and production and consumption of the energetic end of respiration, methane. Microbiological processing and complete reduction of carbon substrates to methane...
Listeria monocytogenes is the third most deadly foodborne pathogen in the United States. The young and elderly, as well as pregnant and immunocompromised people are the population most susceptible to serious illness and death from listeriosis infections.
Unlike most foodborne pathogens, L. monocytogenes does not live a solely enteric lifestyle....
The effects of fire on above-ground forest systems have been extensively studied. However, research on fire effects on belowground processes is lacking. While the soil microbiome is understood to be vital to conifer growth and regeneration, the complexity of soils means that research on the topic has largely been accomplished...
Biotic and abiotic processes at continent-ocean interfaces cycle a disproportionate mass of carbon and nutrients relative to their global surface area, and microbial activity is a principal determinant of organic and inorganic matter flux in these transition zones. Most studies using modern high-throughput ‘omics techniques to link microorganisms with costal...
Despite nutrient-depleted conditions, coral reef waters harbor abundant and diverse microbes; as major agents of microbial mortality, viruses are likely to influence microbial processes in these ecosystems. However, little is known about marine viruses in these rapidly changing ecosystems. Herewe examined spatial and short-term temporal variability in marine viral abundance...
Marine sediments are vast sources and reservoirs of methane, a potent greenhouse gas. Most of this methane is anaerobically oxidized by archaea before it can reach the overlying ocean, though the efficiency of this process often depends on methane fluxes and mechanisms of fluid transport. Anaerobic methanotrophic archaea, or ANME,...
Microbial communities in Arctic coastal lagoons drive biogeochemical cycles at the terrestrial-marine interface and help to determine the fate and form of resources like nitrogen (N) and carbon (C) as they are delivered to the Arctic Ocean. Though rising rates of primary production in the Arctic Ocean are well-characterized, the...
Streptococcus pneumoniae and Influenza A Virus both primarily infect the upper respiratory tract, with more severe disease occurring during coinfection than would be caused by either pathogen independently. Until recently, characterization of the interactions between these two pathogens has occurred exclusively in the context of a host or using host-derived...
The safety of the chemical glyphosate, the active ingredient in the herbicide RoundUpTM, has been questioned on numerous occasions. Previous studies suggest that glyphosate-containing herbicides have deleterious effects on a variety of organisms; other studies suggest that these effects may be minor, transient, or non-existent altogether. Proper maintenance of microbial...
Listeria monocytogenes is a foodborne pathogen frequently associated with food processing environments. Its presence is particularly concerning in facilities handling minimally processed and ready-to-eat foods. Recent outbreaks associated with fresh produce, such as packaged salads and mushrooms, highlight the need to better understand and control these pathogens in environments that...
The complement system is an innate immune pathway that in vertebrates, is responsible for initial recognition and ultimately phagocytosis and destruction of microbes. Several complement molecules including C3, Factor B, and mannose binding lectin associated serine proteases (MASP) have been characterized in invertebrates and while most studies have focused on...
Since the early 1980s, several investigations have focused on developing a vaccine against Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (MAP), the causative agent of Johne’s disease in cattle and sheep. These studies used whole-cell inactivated vaccines that have proven useful in limiting disease progression, but have not prevented infection. In contrast, modified...
Toxin production by cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cyanoHABs) in freshwater systems has lasting ecological and human impacts. Nutrients, light availability, hydrology, and microbial community composition impact the frequency and intensity of toxic cyanoHABs. Climate change will exacerbate toxic cyanoHABs, making real time and predictive monitoring a vital tool for managing...
Environmental DNA sequencing has revealed the expansive biodiversity of microorganisms
and clarified the relationship between host-associated microbial communities and host
phenotype. Shotgun metagenomic DNA sequencing is a relatively new and powerful
environmental sequencing approach that provides insight into community biodiversity and
function. But, the analysis of metagenomic sequences is complicated...
The freshwater copepod Salmincola californiensis is an ectoparasite of Pacific salmonids (Oncorhynchus spp.) Threatened and endangered salmonids that rear in the reservoirs have been reported to experience higher rates of infection by S. californiensis than would be experienced by their stream-reared counterparts. These high levels of infection can lead to...
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...
Linking marine epizootics to a specific aetiology is notoriously difficult. Recent diagnostic successes show that marine disease diagnosis requires both modern, cutting-edge technology (e.g. metagenomics, quantitative realtime PCR) and more classic methods (e.g. transect surveys, histopathology and cell culture). Here, we discuss how this combination of traditional and modern approaches...
Listeria monocytogenes contamination continues to pose challenges for the food industry and there is demand for effective methods of food preservation and protection that can also be considered clean label. A promising source of antilisterial compounds may be sourced from bacteria that produce novel byproducts. Ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified...
Clostridium perfringens is a spore-forming anaerobic organism that is commonly present in fresh meat and poultry. The organism's spores can survive a range of food processing methods. C. perfringens type F isolates are the causative agents of C. perfringens type F food poisoning (FP) and non-food borne (NFB) human gastrointestinal...
Endophytes, foliage inhabiting fungi, are an unexplored source of fungal biodiversity and a potential resource for the production of bioactive natural products. In this research, leaf tissues from the species Arbutus menziesii, Rhododendron macrophyllum and the genus, Ilex and Salix were collected for the isolation of endophytic fungi. Fungal extracts...
A rapidly expanding body of evidence suggests that relationships exist between the microbiome and vertebrate health and disease. The zebrafish is a frequently utilized model organism to support this claim. Specifically, its gut microbiome is an advantageous resource for the study of microbiome health and diversity. While it is an...
Igneous oceanic crust encompasses ~60% of Earth’s surface and is composed of basalt glass and mafic, ultramafic, and felsic minerals. A vast marine aquifer lies within the crust, exchanging geochemically altered fluids with seawater from the overlying ocean at ridge crests, flanks, seamounts, and outcrops where permeable crust is exposed....
The soil bacterium Pseudomonas protegens Pf-5 can colonize root and seed surfaces of many plants, protecting them from infection by plant pathogenic fungi and oomycetes. The capacity to suppress disease is attributed to Pf-5's production of a large spectrum of antibiotics, which is controlled by complex regulatory circuits operating at...
Full Text:
: 10.3389/fmicb.2016.00497
Frontiers in Microbiology | www.frontiersin.org 1 April 2016 | Volume 7
Successful host cell colonization by the Q fever pathogen, Coxiella burnetii, requires translocation of effector proteins into
the host cytosol by a Dot/Icm type 4B secretion system (T4BSS). In Legionella pneumophila, the two-component system (TCS)
PmrAB regulates the Dot/Icm T4BSS and several additional physiological processes associated with pathogenesis. Because PmrA...
Maintaining the quality and quantity of water resources in light of complex changes in climate, human land use, and ecosystem composition requires detailed understanding of ecohydrologic function within catchments, yet monitoring relevant upstream characteristics can be challenging. In this study, we investigate how variability in riverine microbial communities can be...
The body of work aims to contribute to the area of Quantitative analysis in Environmental Sciences, and is focused on the microbiome. The underlying theme for the dissertation is methods and workflow. The unique bioinformatics workflow used for the analysis of genomic data was used to answer distinct and pressing...
Cnidarians and their symbiotic dinoflagellates form a productive mutualism that shapes marine environments. In this symbiosis, dinoflagellate species from the family Symbiodiniacea reside within cnidarian host gastrodermal cells and provide the host with photosynthetically fixed carbon in exchange for host metabolites. This nutritional exchange allows both partners to thrive in...
Given the many significant roles that bacteria play in modern food manufacturing, it is crucial that we have a fundamental understanding of how bacterial communities assemble and behave in the food manufacturing environment. The focus of this dissertation was to investigate both the spatial and temporal distributions of microbial communities...
Lactose intolerance is a common food intolerance that occurs because of a post-weaning deficiency of lactase, an enzyme that cleaves the glyosidic bond of lactose. About 75% of the world's population is lactose intolerant. Common symptoms of lactose intolerance are abdominal pain, bloating and diarrhea. ~25% of the world’s population...
Cheese has been produced since ancient times and continues to be an important nutrient-dense staple in many diets around the world. Cheese quality is of high importance to consumers, and it is important for cheese producers to establish process controls to prevent and control cheese spoilage. Fungal spoilage is of...
The production of Cheddar cheese is a complex process with multiple potential sources of undesirable bacteria, including those that have negative impacts on product quality (spoilage organisms) and those that are used to evaluate sanitary conditions in the production environment (indicator organisms). The dairy industry commonly uses coliform bacteria as...
Accurate representation of soil organic matter (SOM) dynamics in Earth system models is critical for future climate prediction, yet large uncertainties exist regarding how, and to what extent, the suite of proposed relevant mechanisms should be included. To investigate how various mechanisms interact to influence SOM storage and dynamics, we...
Molecular phylogenetic and chemical analyses, and morphological characterization of collections of North American Paraisaria specimens support the description of two new species and two new combinations for known species. P. cascadensis sp. nov. is a pathogen of Cyphoderris (Orthoptera) from the Pacific Northwest USA and P. pseudoheteropoda sp. nov. is...
There is a growing need to establish alternative approaches for assessing hazard from chemical exposure compared to the traditional method of animal testing. Approaches that relate chemical structure to biological activity are gaining acceptance in the field as in silico methods for characterizing and predicting chemical toxicity. In this study,...
Mold growth on cheddar-style cheese, though not a food safety issue, causes significant loss to the industry due to consumer rejection. For this reason, it is common for at-risk products, such as cheese shreds, to be coated with the mold inhibitor natamycin. While highly effective at extending shelf-life, preferences for...
Brucella canis is a zoonotic proteobacterium causing brucellosis in dogs and other wild canidae. It is primarily spread to the fetus through the placenta, to other dogs through fetal fluids and vaginal discharge after abortion, and to mating partners through vaginal and seminal fluids. Transmission to other dogs can also...
Recent advances in microbiology techniques, such as genetic sequencing, allow for rapid and cost-effective collection of large quantities of genetic information carried within water samples. Here we posit that the unique composition of aquatic DNA material within a water sample contains relevant information about hydrologic function at multiple temporal scales....
A great deal of research has been focused on the microbiomes of terrestrial angiosperms (flowering plants), but much less research has been performed on the microbiomes of aquatic angiosperms (Turner et al. 2013). Eelgrass beds are extremely productive ecosystems that provide habitat for many marine organisms, such as fish, shellfish,...
Two identical single-ascending-dose studies evaluated the safety and pharmacokinetics (PK) of AVI-6002 and AVI-6003, two experimental combinations of phosphorodiamidate morpholino oligomers with positive charges (PMOplus) that target viral mRNA encoding Ebola virus and Marburg virus proteins, respectively. Both AVI-6002 and AVI-6003 were found to suppress disease in virus-infected nonhuman primates...
Anthropogenic induced climate change is predicted to alter distribution of existing plant populations. As plants migrate over space and time, populations often fragment and contract, affecting basic elements of population dynamics (e.g., population size, gene flow, genetic diversity, etc.). Little is known, however, how these impacts on plant species will...
Vibrio bacteria are commonly found in freshwater, marine, and estuarine environments. Members of this genus can exist in commensal relationships with marine animals or as planktonic bacteria, however, they are well known for their roles as pathogens towards humans and animals. In this dissertation, I investigated aspects of host-bacteria relationships...
Deep mixing events in the ocean’s surface layer act as physical drivers of carbon export by detraining dissolved and particulate organic matter, including surface phytoplankton communities, to depth. Once removed from the sunlit surface ocean environment, phytoplankton accumulation rates are dependent on the relative contributions of loss processes, such as...
Coral reef ecosystems continue to be significantly altered by disease epizootics, but why some host populations remain resistant while others succumb to outbreaks remains unknown. Research across diverse animal and plant host systems has revealed that disease severity is strongly influenced by host genetics and by environmental influences on both...
Soil nitrogen exists largely as organic matter, including plant liter, dead animal matter, and microbial necromass. About 90% of soil organic nitrogen is proteinaceous material that is too large for plants and microorganisms to assimilate directly. Protein depolymerization therefore plays a critical role in mobilizing this organic source of nitrogen,...
Fusarium proliferatum is a fungus found in soils which produces the mycotoxin group known as fumonisins. Of human concern due to hepato-, nephro- and neurotoxicity, the threat of fumonisins lies within several food items, including corn, wheat sorghum, asparagus and, more recently, garlic. Manifesting as ““garlic rot”,” F. proliferatum infection...
Diatoms play a major role in ocean biogeochemical cycles and are important tools in bioengineering for natural products and nanotechnology. Diatoms and other algae growing at varying resource-limited growth rates allocate carbon to different metabolic pathways to optimize growth; however, the molecular mechanisms controlling these pathway gating strategies are not...
The total kinetic energy release and fission mass distributions for the fast neutron (En = 3–100 MeV) induced fission of 232Th, 233U, 235U, 237Np, 239Pu, 240Pu, and 242Pu have been measured using the LANSCE facility. The neutron energies were deduced from time-of- flight measurements. The fission fragments were detected using...
Phycocyanin, a photosynthetic pigment-protein complex produced by cyanobacteria, has critical value in the medical field at high purity. Costs associated with the extraction of this pigment are high, emphasizing the importance of optimal growth conditions. The aim of this study was to investigate potential commercial producers of phycocyanin by evaluating...
Introduction: In the US, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) affects 1 in 10 people. IBS is a chronic functional gastrointestinal disorder that consists of many gastrointestinal symptoms such as abdominal pain, changes in bowel movement, differences in the appearance of stool, diarrhea, constipation, increased gas, and mucus in stool. IBS causes...
Temperate coniferous forests, such as those that cover vast areas of the western US and Canada, have evolved to depend on cycles of disturbance for succession of species and overall ecosystem maintenance. Many of these forest systems are managed, often for timber production, where disturbances are of anthropogenic origin and...
Fungi and Actinobacteria are essential actors in global biogeochemical cycles of carbon and nutrients, and have both been recently appreciated for their roles in marine ecosystems. However, the diversity and distribution of these ubiquitous, but low-abundance microbes in deep-sea habitats remains poorly understood, particularly in chemosynthetic habitats such as methane...
To examine the macrophage response to M. avium, I compared inflammasome and cytosolic sensor expression and activation. My result demonstrated that virulent strains of M. avium (A5 and 104) suppress IL-1β production and induce IFN-β production in macrophages. M. avium mutants deficient at DNA export in the biofilm exhibited reduced...
Neisseria gonorrhoeae is the sexually transmitted pathogen responsible for millions of cases of gonorrhea worldwide each year. Rapidly-spreading antibiotic resistance is diminishing the ability to effectively treat a disease with significant consequences to female and male reproductive health, as well as to neonatal well-being. A protective vaccine has the potential...
Production of fresh produce takes place outdoors, and therefore, is exposed to many routes of contamination (e.g., soil, contaminated water, manure, etc.) by human pathogens. Although precautions are taken to reduce this risk, pathogens can be regularly introduced to produce handling facilities. To manage the risk of cross-contamination from potentially...