Article on an integrative analysis of transgenic alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) suggesting new metabolic control mechanisms for monolignol biosynthesis.

Article on bacterial communities of the coronal sulcus and distal urethra of adolescent males.

Article on elemental concentrations in the seed of mutants and natural variants of Arabidopsis thaliana grown under varying soil conditions.

A comparative study was made of environmental variables and the density, biomass, diversity, and species composition of macroinvertebrates in areas downstream from a dam with a hypolimnetic release (Hungry Horse Dam on the Flathead River) and a dam with a selective withdrawal system (Libby Dam on the Kootenai River). A major objective of this study was to examine the response of macroinvertebrate communities to defined environmental gradients in temperature, flow, substrate, and food-related variables (periphyton, particulate organic carbon in the seston). In addition, the effects of experimental manipulations in discharge on macroinvertebrate drift and stranding were assessed, and the effects of temperature on the growth rates and emergence of five species of insects were measured.

Twenty-two natural populations of the red shiner minnow, Notropis lutrensis were examined for morphological and genetic variation. This research was aimed at testing the hypothesis that morphological and genetic variation was primarily influenced by the degree of gene flow between populations. Ten linear measurements were taken from each of 1320 specimens. Morphological characters were adjusted for differential growth by least squares linear regression techniques. Genetic variability was estimated for each individual red shiner through the methods of starch gel electrophoresis. Twenty presumtive gene loci were resolved.

Drumming behavior is described for the first time in 16 North American species of Plecoptera, and signals of a 17th species, Isogenoides zionensis, are further detailed. The effective distance over which drumming signals may be transmitted was tested for four communication modes. Results indicate that substratum vibrations are far superior to sound in the transmission of drumming signals, and that dense substrates such as rocks are poor channels for signal transfer. Long communication periods between stonefly pairs of Taeniopteryx burksi resulted in some alterations from initial signaling characteristics.

Four species of net-spinning caddisflies, Hydropsyche simulans Ross, Cheumatopsyche lasia Ross, Cheumatopsyche campyla Ross and Chimarra obscura (Walker) are common in the regulated portions of the Brazos River. Hydropsyche simulans spun capture nets with the largest meshdimensions; the two Cheumatopsyche species' nets had the next largest meshes, and Chimarra obscura spun nets with the smallest dimensions. Cheumatopsyche lasia and C. campyla constructed nets with similar sized meshes. The number of individuals m~2 and standing crop biomass were not significantly different among low, medium, and high velocities. Early hydropsychid instars fed on detritus while later instar H. simulans and C. campyla had larger proportions of animal material. Guts of later instar C. lasia individuals had a greater percentage of algae and diatoms.

Article on nutrient-deprivation autophagy factor-1 (NAF-1) and biochemical properties of a novel cellular target for anti-diabetic drugs.

Article on nutrient-deprivation autophagy factor-1 (NAF-1) and biochemical properties of a novel cellular target for anti-diabetic drugs.

The purpose of this project is to produce a complete and thorough notebook that may be used to supplement laboratory coursework. Its intent is to be used primarily by the students to aid them in understanding background information and the proper laboratory procedures involved in various types of experiments. The laboratory notebook is a summation of all the experiments and procedures used in the six-credit hour Advanced Microbial and Molecular Biology (BIOL 5160) course offered during the summer semester at the University of North Texas. This class is a team taught effort by Professors O'Donovan and Kunz. The course is constructed as an intensive practice exercise to teach the student about gene mutations, biosynthetic pathways, preparation and analysis of plasmid DNA, and many other topics included in the notebook.

Article presenting evidence from GFP fusion experiments that the MtENOD8 protein contains at least three symbiosome targeting domains, including its N-terminal signal peptide (SP).

Article discussing the microbial communities in male first catch urine and how these are highly similar to those paired in urethral swab specimens.

Article on keel petal incision and a simple and efficient method for genetic crossing in Medicago truncatula.

This article describes the design of a GIS and remote sensing based analysis tool called the Water Quality Corridor Management model to identify and prioritize highly functioning riparian ecosystems for the preservation of steam corridor conditions.

Article studying the effect of MS222 on hemostasis in Zebrafish. The authors performed various assays and find that Hct values, the amount of blood collected, bleeding, and coagulation differ significantly between anesthetized and nonanesthetized fish. These results suggest that blood collected after MS222 anesthesia of zebrafish has altered hemostasis.

This article predicts that marine-derived bacteria should inhibit Vibrio pathogens and may be a source of unique antibiotic compounds.

This article examines the use of metal-containing polymers as a novel class of antivirals. Polymers containing platinum and to a lesser extent tin, have repeatedly demonstrated antitumor activity in vitro and in vivo against a variety of cell and tumor types. The mechanisms responsible for the antitumor activity include inducing a delay in cell proliferation and sister chromatid exchanges blocking tumor growth.

Article on evidence that mono-ADP-ribosylation of CtBP1/BARS regulates lipid storage.

Article on new markers of tumor metastasis. The authors found that expression of DP103 was significantly upregulated in the metastatic basal subtype of breast cancers in 3 independent cohorts. This elevated DP103 expression correlated with metastatic breast cancer gene signatures and was strongly associated with patient survival. This study provides the first evidence that the RNA helicase DEAD-box protein DP103 is an NF-kB target that could form part of a positive feedback loop contributing to DP103- mediated regulation of TAK1 kinase activity on the major NF-kB kinase IKK2, thus implicating DP103 in the maintenance of this oncogenic signaling arm in human cancer.

This article presents a study in which an in silico genome-scale metabolic model of steroidogenesis is used to investigate the effects of hypoxic stress on steroid hormone productions in fish. This article introduces a powerful model for pathway analysis that can lend insights on the effects of various stressor scenarios on metabolic functions.

This article posits that the frequently abrupt environmental changes accompanying much longer-term general climate change require consideration of the true nature of environmental change coupled with an expansion of focus to consider developmental phenotypic plasticity.

Article on an intimate collaboration between peroxisomes and lipid bodies.

Article examining the mechanism of Glutathione synthetase, an enzyme that belongs to the glutathione synthetase ATP-binding domain-like superfamily. A variety of structural alignment methods were applied and four highly conserved residues of human glutathione synthetase (Glu-144, Asn-146, Lys-305, and Lys-364) were identified in the binding site. The function of these was studied by experimental and computational site-directed mutagenesis.

This article assesses the relative performance of threshold selection methods in terms of resolution and reliability for disease mapping.