This article investigates age-related changes in Ginkgo biloba trees to learn more about the molecular and metabolic mechanisms underlying their longevity. The results revealed that long-lived trees have evolved compensatory mechanisms to maintain a balance between growth and aging processes.

This article describes a new methodology for monitoring sucrose labeling using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). To date, the most commonly used method to monitor sucrose labeling is by nuclear magnetic resonance, which requires substantial amounts of biological sample.

This article explores restoration, rather than protection, being the basis for developing a watershed level strategy for improving water quality in urbanizing watersheds.This study uses a geographical information system (GIS) approach that utilizes riparian characteristics extracted from 40-meter wide corridors centered on streams and rivers. The model was applied to 90 sub-watersheds in the watershed of an important drinking water reservoir in north central Texas, USA.

Paper discusses metabolomics studies that link changes in primary or specialized metabolism to the defense responses of plants against bacterial, fungal, nematode, and viral pathogens.

Describes study which assessed the upper (CTmax) and lower (CTmin) thermal limits of three freshwater macroinvertebrate taxa with restricted low elevation distribution (20 m a.s.l.) and three taxa restricted to upper elevations (480 and 700 m a.s.l.) in the Magellanic sub-Antarctic ecoregion of southern Chile, and argues that their low tolerance to temperature increase can make them useful as indicators of thermal alteration in their habitats.

This article presents the analysis of genetic mouse models of synovial sarcoma to determine the extent of ossification in the tumors and its relationship with morbidity. The authors noted higher ossification within their metastatic mouse model of synovial sarcoma. Their conclusion is that both metastasis and ossification are dependent on time, but that they are independent of one another.

This article investigates the impact of nutrient intake on hydration biomarkers in cyclists before and after a 161 km ride, including one hour after a 650 mL water bolus consumed post-ride. Most predictor groups showed significant association with at least one hydration biomarker: (1) Glycemic Load + Carbohydrates + Sodium, (2) Protein + Fat + Zinc, (3) Magnesium + Calcium, (4) Pinitol, (5) Caffeine, (6) Fiber + Betaine, and (7) Water; potassium + three polyols, and mannitol + sorbitol showed no significant associations with any hydration biomarker. The authors conclude that in a real-life scenario, some nutrients may serve as mediators of body water, and urine-specific hydration biomarkers may be more responsive to nutrient intake than measures derived from plasma or body mass.

Article presents data consistent with the positive effect that the expression of the Arabidopsis thaliana H+-PPase (AVP1) has on reduced carbon partitioning and yield increases in wheat.

Article describes study testing the hypothesis that epi-brassinolide (eBL) might enhance root gravitropism through its effects on filamentous-actin (F-actin) in plants.

Article explores the question of whether animals with switched phenotypes during early development are unable to return to a normal range of adult phenotypes, or whether they do not experience the specific environmental conditions necessary for them to switch back to the normal range of adult phenotypes.

Article highlights the importance of pectin in cell wall integrity and the value of lignin modification as a tool to interrogate the informational content of plant cell walls.

Article describes study analyzing the effects of a new purine derivative drug, PDD005, in attenuating mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases, using both in vivo and in vitro models.

Article describes the high-quality, 887-Mb genome of jojoba assembled into 26 chromosomes with 23,490 protein-coding genes.

Data management plan for the grant, "NSFDEB-NERC: Collaborative Research: Wildlife corridors: do they work and who benefits?" Research on the impact of wildlife corridors using genetics as the measure of effectiveness. The study will use 20 independent landscapes to quantify how corridor traits affect gene flow, and will use non-flying mammals as focal species because they are strongly affected by fragmentation. The research team hypothesizes (1) a strong non-linear decline in success (gene flow) with corridor length, reflecting the skewed distribution of dispersal distances within species; (2) success will drop steeply as corridor width falls below a threshold, with the threshold determined by species traits; and (3) species that are bigger, are habitat specialists, or have greater dispersal abilities (relative to brain size or reproductive rate) will benefit more from corridors. Testing these hypotheses will allow generalization to a wide range of mammal species not included in this project. It will use highly flexible Random Forest models to answer the overarching question: What landscape traits (e.g., corridor width, degree of human disturbance) and species traits (mobility, affinity to particular land cover types) are associated with effective corridors?

Data management plan for the research grant "Generating pathogen- / pest-resistant non-GMO cotton through targeted genome editing of oxylipin signaling pathways."

Presentation highlighting the use of zebrafish to identify genes relating to predisposition to thromboembolism and cardiovascular disease in people with African ancestry. It was presented at the UNT Transdisciplinary Conference on Ancestral Genomics Research which was held virtually on November 20-21, 2020.

Data management plan for the grant "G-RISE at the University of North Texas." The University of North Texas (UNT) serves over 32,000 undergraduate and 7,000 graduate students of which 50% of the undergraduate population and 20% of the graduate population are underrepresented minority (URM). UNT is ranked by the Carnegie Classification as a Tier 1 institute, is a Hispanic Serving Institute, and is dedicated to providing quality mentoring to a diverse group of Ph.D. students. The UNT G-­RISE mission is to provide a biomedical Ph.D. training program that is inclusive, culturally responsive, increases diversity, enhances scientific skill sets, develops trainee career and professional skill sets, provides opportunities to participants, and increases faculty development as a mentor.

Data management plan for the grant, "Non-Genetic Inheritance of Hypoxia Tolerance in Fishes: Dynamics and Mechanisms." Research quantifying the inheritance of tolerance to low oxygen in a model fish and then determine the tolerance mechanisms, at organismal to molecular levels, that are passed on from parents to their offspring. The investigators will not only focus on conventional, well-studied genetic mechanisms for inheritance, but will explore so-called “epigenetic” forms of inheritance that may transfer parental characteristics for only a generation or two. Such “temporary inheritance” might actually require less energy and be more beneficial to a species than the more permanent form of genetic inheritance. This project will quantify non-genetic inheritance of hypoxia tolerance in zebrafish as a model organism and then identify underlying mechanisms, at organismal to molecular levels, in parents and in their progeny. Specifically, this project will quantify non-genetically inherited traits that allow hypoxia tolerance, determine “wash-in” and “wash-out” (i.e., the dynamics) of hypoxia-tolerant phenotypes across multiple generations, and establish epigenetic mechanism(s) of non-genetic inheritance in subsequent generations. The information provided by this project will allow biologists to better predict, and perhaps even mitigate, the negative consequences of future episodes of low oxygen in rivers and lakes.

Data management plan for the grant, "Chemical-Guided Identification of Primary Metabolic Targets for Improvement of Hydroxy Fatty Acid Synthesis in Physaria fendleri." Research on the identification of primary metabolic targets using chemical-guided identification. The first objective of this research is to conduct metabolomics analysis on P. fendleri embryos cultured with two identified chemical regulators of fatty acid metabolism. The second objective of this research is to generate a metabolic flux map of embryos treated with these regulatory compounds in order to determine how metabolic rates and carbon flow can be manipulated to improve HFA production in this species and increase its commercial viability. With properties that could replace imported castor oil, research on the crop in discussion is situated directly in the scope of the USDA-AFRI Education and Workforce Development goals.

Data management plan for the grant, "Fatty Acid Amide Hydrolases and Chemical Communication in Plants." Research seeking to understand how an evolutionarily-conserved group of plant enzymes utilizes chemical signals to regulate growth and to influence their microbial environment. Specific research aims include the discovery of new enzymes and their substrate molecules that act as communication signals. Broader applications of this research may offer new strategies to enhance agricultural outputs by manipulating plant-microbe interactions in crop and soil systems.

Data management plan for the grant "IRES Track II - Cape Horn ASIs: Climate change and disease ecology at the southern end of the Americas." Research giving students the opportunity to be trained in quantitative experimental design and work as part of a multinational research collaboration to study infectious disease emergence in one of the few remaining pristine places on Earth. The Cape Horn Biosphere Reserve (CHBR) off the southern tip of South America protects pristine ecosystem is perfect for this type of graduate student training. The CHBR is part of the sub-Antarctic Magellanic ecoregion, which is globally significant because it houses the worlds southernmost forest biome, contains numerous endemic species, is remote, and is relatively free of anthropogenic impacts. The research questions themselves will be flexible, but organized thematically. Specifically, this IRES Track-II will focus on the merging molecular genetic analysis using a mobile next generation sequencing lab with mist netting and arthropod trapping to investigate the impacts of wildlife disease on local biodiversity and community structure. Secondarily, eDNA and traditional wildlife disease monitoring approaches will be applied to understand the potential for zoonosis and understanding ecological factors that contribute to, or inhibit, zoonosis. Resultantly, participation in this program …

Data management plan for the grant "Regulators of von Willebrand Factor Levels." Von Willebrand Disease is the most prevalent bleeding disease. In one of the types called type 1 von Willebrand Disease, the disease-causing genes are not known. Using zebrafish as a model, this project proposes to identify genes that cause the disease by crippling the genes by knockdown methods, and such identification may lead to not only the identification of mutations in the corresponding human genes but also to a better diagnosis.

Data management plan for the research project "Molecular Technologies for Mitigating Fusarium Head Blight - Spherical Nucleic Acid Nanomaterials as Fungicide and FHB Resistance-promoting Agents."

Article exploring the association between second-hand smoke exposure, asthma, and asthma severity in children ages 6-17 as well as the effect of birth weight and prematurity (BWP) on parental smoking and asthma. Results indicate that focused asthma interventions in children should inquire about BWP status as well as parental smoking and household smoke exposure to reduce asthma morbidity and mortality.