In urban environments, ozone air pollution, poses significant risks to respiratory health. Fixed site monitoring is the primary method of measuring ozone concentrations for health advisories and pollutant reduction, but the spatial scale may not reflect the current population distribution or its future growth. Moreover, formal methods for the placement of ozone monitoring sites within populations potentially omit important spatial criteria, producing monitoring locations that could unintentionally underestimate the exposure burden. Although air pollution affects all people, the combination of underlying health, socioeconomic and demographic factors exacerbate the impact for socially vulnerable population groups. A need exists for assessing the spatial representativeness and data gaps of existing pollution sensor networks and to evaluate future placement strategies of additional sensors. This research also seeks to understand how air pollution monitor placement strategies may neglect social vulnerabilities and therefore, potentially underestimate exposure burdens in vulnerable populations.

The Dallas-Fort Worth International (DFW) Airport is located in a densely urbanized area with one of the fastest-growing populations in the U.S.A. The airport property includes a large tract of "protected" riparian forest that is unique to the urban surroundings. This dissertation explores variables that influence the benthic macroinvertebrate community structure found in urbanized prairie streams that were initially assessed by the University of North Texas (UNT) Benthic Ecology Lab during four, non-consecutive biomonitoring studies (2004, 2005, 2008, and 2014) funded by the DFW Airport. Additionally, land use analysis was performed using 5-meter resolution satellite imagery and eCognition to characterize the imperviousness of the study area watersheds at multiple scales. Overall, flow conditions and imperviousness at the watershed scale explained the most variability in the benthic stream community. Chironomidae taxa made up 20-50% of stream communities and outperformed all other taxa groups in discriminating between sites of similar flows and urban impairments. This finding highlights the need for genus level identifications of the chironomid family, especially as the dominant taxa in urban prairie streams. Over the course of these biomonitoring survey events, normal flow conditions and flows associated with supra-seasonal drought were experienced. Prevailing drought conditions of 2014 did not …

In the past couple of decades, the zebrafish has been widely used to study hemostatic disorders. In this study, we generated a CRISPR/Cas9 mediated zebrafish mutant that contains a 55-nucleotide insertion in exon 29 of the von Willebrand factor (vwf) gene. The mutants had impaired ristocetin-mediated agglutination of whole blood, prolonged PTT and more bleeding in the lateral incision compared to wild-type fish. The bleeding phenotype observed here is similar to the phenotype observed in vwf knockout mice and patients with von Willebrand disease (VWD). The mutant model developed here can thus be used for exploring the role of Vwf in angiogenesis and for developing gene therapy. The deficiency of VWF causes VWD and the etiology remains unknown in 30% of Type 1 VWD cases. Previous studies have identified that the ABO blood group and ST3GAL4 (glycosyltransferases) are involved in the regulation of VWF levels. Since VWF is heavily glycosylated, we hypothesized that other glycosyltransferases may also be involved in regulating VWF. We performed a knockdown screen of 234 glycosyltransferase genes and identified 14 genes that altered Vwf levels. The sequencing of these genes in Type 1 VWD patients could help identify novel mutations to decipher the molecular basis for …

The isoflavones in kudzu roots, especially the C-glycosylated isoflavone puerarin, have been linked to many health benefits. Puerarin contains a carbon-carbon glycosidic bond that can withstand hydrolysis. The C-glycosylation reaction in the biosynthesis of puerarin has not been thoroughly investigated, with conflicting reports suggesting that it could take place on daidzein, isoliquiritigenin, or 2,7,4ʹ-trihydroxyisoflavanone. Kudzu species were identified for use in comparative transcriptomics. A non-puerarin producing kudzu was identified as Pueraria phaseoloides and a puerarin producing kudzu was identified as Pueraria montana lobata. Through the use of the plant secondary product glycosyltransferase (PSPG) motif, glycosyltransferases (UGTs) were identified from the transcriptomes. The UGTs that had higher digital expression in P. m. lobata were examined further using additional tools to home in on the UGT that could be responsible for puerarin biosynthesis. One of the UGTs identified, UGT71T5, had previously been characterized from kudzu as a C-glycosyltransferase involved in puerarin biosynthesis through in vitro enzyme activity (with daidzein) and a gain of function approach in soybean hairy roots. Previous studies have not supported the end-product of a pathway such as daidzein as the target for C-glycosylation, and no genetic analysis of UGT function had been conducted in kudzu. The activity of …

Symbiotic nitrogen (N) fixation (SNF) occurs in specialized organs called nodules after successful interactions between legume hosts and rhizobia. Within nodule cells, N-fixing rhizobia are surrounded by plant-derived symbiosome membranes, through which the exchange of nutrients and ammonium occurs between bacteria and the host legume. Phosphorus (P) is an essential macronutrient, and N2-fixing legumes have a higher requirement for P than legumes grown on mineral N. First, I investigated the impact of P deprivation on wild-type Medicago truncatula plants. My observations that plants had impaired SNF activity, reduced growth, and accumulated less phosphate in P-deficient tissues (leaves, roots and nodules) is consistent with those of similar previous studies. Galactolipids decreased with increase in phospholipids in all P-starved organs. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization–mass spectrometry imaging (MALDI-MSI) of phosphatidylcholine (PC) species in nodules showed that under low P environments distributions of some PC species changed, indicating that membrane lipid remodeling during P stress is not uniform across the nodule. Secondly, a metabolomics study was carried out to test the alterations in the metabolic profile of the nodules in P-stress. GC-MS based untargeted metabolomics showed increased levels of amino acids and sugars and decline in amounts of organic acids in P deprived nodules. Subsequently, …

In this work, we have performed comparative evolutionary analysis, functional genomics analysis, and machine learning analysis to identify the molecular factors that discriminate between multipartite and unipartite bacteria, with the goal to decipher taxon-specific factors and those that are prevalent across the taxa underlying the these traits. We assessed the roles of evolutionary mechanisms, namely, horizontal gene transfer and gene gain, in driving the divergence of bacteria with single and multiple chromosomes. In addition, we performed functional genomic analysis to garner support for our findings from comparative evolutionary analysis. We found genes such as those encoding conserved hypothetical protein DR_A0179 and hypothetical protein DR_A0109 in Deinococcus radiodurans R1, and Putative phage phi-C31 gp36 major capsid-like protein and hypothetical protein RSP_3729 in Rhodobacter sphaeroides 2.4.1, which are located on accessory chromosomes in both bacteria and were not found in the inferred ancestral sequences, and on the primary chromosomes, as well as were not found in their closest relatives with single chromosome within the same clade. These genes emphasize the important potential roles of the secondary chromosomes in helping multipartite bacteria to adapt to specialized environments or conditions. In addition, we applied machine learning algorithms to predict multipartite genomes based on gene …

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Pb and hypoxia co-exposure on Pb toxicity and Ca homeostasis in early life stage (ELS) zebrafish (Danio rerio). Previous evidence indicates that exposure of ELS zebrafish to hypoxia (~20% air saturation) reduces Ca uptake, likely through down-regulation of the apical epithelial Ca channel (ECaC). Considering that Pb and Ca are known antagonists and compete for uptake pathways, it was hypothesized that co-exposure of Pb with hypoxia would decrease Pb toxicity by reducing Pb uptake (likely mediated through a reduced number of ECaCs). However, it was shown that at 96 hpf, whole body accumulation of both Pb and Ca was lower at 40% air saturation compared to 100% and 20% air saturation. This result closely aligned with the 96h LC50 results which showed the highest mortality of zebrafish at 40% compared to the other air saturation levels. This suggests that toxicity is likely the result of exacerbated hypocalcemia at 40% air saturation due to both Pb competition for Ca binding to Ca uptake channels/transporters, such as ECaC, and potentially reduced expression of such channels/transporters in response to this level of hypoxia. Overall, it appears that ELS zebrafish respond differentially to …

We investigated the hypothesis that exposure to inhaled diesel exhaust PM can alter the gut microbiome and intestinal integrity, thereby promoting systemic inflammatory response and early CVD risk, which are exacerbated by HF diet. Furthermore, we investigated whether the observed exposure and diet-mediated outcomes could be mitigated through probiotic treatment. We performed an exposure study on C57Bl/6 male mice, placed on either a low fat (LF) diet or a high-fat (HF) diet, and exposed via oropharyngeal aspiration to 35 μg diesel exhaust particles (DEP) suspended in 35 μl of sterile saline or sterile saline controls (CON) twice a week for four weeks. A subset of mice on HF diet were dosed with 0.3 g/day (PRO, ~7.5x108 CFU/day) of probiotic Ecologic® Barrier 849 (Winclove Probiotics) in drinking water during the course of the study. For our first aim, we investigated the alterations in the gut microbiome, measured circulating cytokines and lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and measured CVD biomarkers in the heart. Our results revealed that exposure to inhaled DEP results in gut dysbiosis characterized by expansion of the phyla Verrucomicrobia and Proteobacteria and reduction in Actinobacteria, which was exacerbated by HF diet. Probiotics mitigated the DEP-mediated expansion of Proteobacteria and re-established Actinobacteria in …

PCBs are synthetic organic compounds known for their toxicity to many organisms and are notorious for having large discrepancies between measured and nominal concentrations. Historically thought to be less toxic, non-dioxin-like (NDL) PCBs represent the majority of congeners and are capable of eliciting neurotoxic effects. NDL-PCBs remain understudied, including their effects on aquatic organisms. In the first study, I collected extensive chemistry data and data on neurobehavioral and cardiac endpoints to test the acute effects of exposure to an NDL-PCB mixture on early life stage zebrafish. Neurobehavioral effects observed in the first study indicated a potential for longer term behavioral effects in these fish. In the second study, I collected data on feeding, social, and memory behavior of zebrafish at time points beyond the acute exposure from the first study. Acute and longer-term behavioral endpoints in the first and second studies demonstrated effects from PCB exposure but did not indicate mechanisms. In the third study, I collected untargeted and targeted metabolomic data on amino acid, sugar, anionic compound, and neurotransmitter profiles to determine the specific pathways affected by exposure to an NDL-PCB mixture. These combined data from these studies provide a unique insight into the chemical profile of an NDL-PCB …

In this dissertation, I explored the effects of developmental hypoxia on heart contractility in three separate species of ectotherms: the common snapping turtle (Chelydra serpentina), the American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis), and the zebrafish (Danio rerio). I began with the common snapping turtle and tested whether the utilization of the sarcoplasmic reticulum was altered in response to developmental hypoxia. In the next two chapters, developmental hypoxia of the American alligator was explored studying how the cardiac tissue was affected, specifically in physiological stressors, sarcoplasmic reticulum utilization and sensitivity to pharmacological increases in contractility. The last chapter explored how zebrafish heart contractility was altered in response to chronic hypoxia from egg to adult. Findings from these chapters suggest that while developmental hypoxia did alter cardiac contractility, it did not alter the response of the heart to physiological stressors such as increased heart rate or under hypoxia. Overall, these findings contribute to increasing the current understanding of how developmental hypoxia alters the cardiovascular system but with an emphasis on the cardiac tissue level.

In our studies, we used the environmentally important crustacean Hyalella azteca (H. azteca) as an invertebrate model and 17β-estradiol (E2) as a representative of environmental estrogenic endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) for proteomics-based investigations of endocrine disruptions in an aquatic ecosystem. Using liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry, our investigation focused for the first time on the recognition of biological and molecular events affected by E2 exposure with the long-term goal of identifying panels of potential biomarkers for environmental estrogenic endocrine disruption. We analyzed E2-induced changes in protein expressions in female and male H. azteca using label-free quantitative proteomics. With discovery-driven shotgun approach, we identified over 50 proteins that were affected by E2 in a sex-specific manner in our model organism. We selected four E2-regulated proteins (vitellogenin, cuticle protein CPR RR, titin and clumping factor A-like protein) for validation by parallel reaction monitoring-based targeted proteomics. Altogether, our proteomics studies have characterized for the first time E2-triggered endocrine disruption in H. azteca and recognized sex-specific changes in the male and female H. azteca's proteome after aquatic exposure to this estrogen. Through targeted proteomics, we were also able to quantitatively characterize a panel of selected proteins that showed distinctive sex-specific responses to …

We investigated the modifying effects of ultraviolet (UV) light and chemical dispersant (Corexit 9500A) on crude oil toxicity in juvenile mysids (≤ 24 h) (Americamysis bahia) and larval red drum (24-72 hpf) (Sciaenops ocellatus). These results demonstrate that crude oil toxicity significantly increases with co-exposure to environmentally relevant UV levels in both species, indicating photo-induced toxicity. This toxicity was further exacerbated by the application of chemical dispersants which increased the dissolution and concentration of oil-derived polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in test solutions. To better understand the mechanisms and initiating events of this observed photo-induced toxicity, the incidence of apoptotic cell death and global transcriptomic changes were assessed in larval red drum (24-72 hpf) following co-exposure to crude oil and UV. These results showed that co-exposure to UV and low concentrations of crude oil (<1 µg/L ∑PAH50) induced apoptotic cell death in skin and eye tissue and altered transcriptomic pathways related to visual processing and dermatological disease. To link these cellular and molecular impacts of photo-induced toxicity to apical endpoints of ecological performance, sublethal impacts to growth, metabolic rate, and visually mediated behaviors were explored in larval red drum at 2 developmental stages. These results suggested that earlier life stages may …

Anthropogenic activities have caused many wildlife spices to decline in populations worldwide. The grassland bird communities are especially being impacted by these land use changes. Breeding success is closely tied to functional habitats for most grassland bird species in North Texas. Restoring these degraded habitats is an important component to aid in conserving wildlife biodiversity. We surveyed the bird population at Riverby Ranch Mitigation site by conducting point count sampling. This site consists of recently restored grassland, wetland, and forested habitat. This research was focused on conducting post restoration monitoring of the bird community in the early succession of the restored habitats. We set out to use the bird community as biomonitors to help assess if the restoration practices could be considered successful. We found that density estimates were more than double at the restored site when comparing to three different references sites under different management practices. This included an unrestored working ranch, a wildlife management area, and a conservation managed prairie site. We found that biodiversity metrics were as high or higher than the reference sites. In addition, we also found that there were more observations of species of high conservation concern present at the restored stie. This research …

In my thesis, I examined impacts of nesting and floral resources on ground-nesting bee assemblages at nine ranch sites with differing grazing histories. Because ecological disturbances can strongly affect the availability of foraging and nesting resources over time, I also examined the impacts of grazing history on nesting and floral resources for ground-nesting bees. I sampled bee assemblages, a comprehensive array of vegetation and soil measures, and floral abundance and richness. I used these data to determine (1) the importance of different nesting habitat resources and livestock grazing history for ground-nesting bees and (2) how livestock grazing history influenced the availability of nesting and floral resources. I found that sites with sandier soils had greater abundance and richness of ground-nesting bees, and sites with less compacted soils had greater bee abundance. Contrary to many other studies, the availability of bare ground was not important for ground-nesting bee abundance or richness. Grazing history did not affect any measures of nesting or floral habitat, and had negligible effects on ground-nesting bee abundance, richness, and community composition. My results suggest that the availability of sandier or less compacted soils may be limiting for ground-nesting bee abundance or richness, especially in areas with predominately …

Increasingly higher numbers of people are moving into urbanizing environments, yet our understanding of ecosystem consequences of rapid urbanization is still in its infancy. In this dissertation, I assessed dynamics of residential landscapes during suburban succession and consequences for ecosystem functioning. First, I used a space-for-time approach to quantify more than a century of suburban succession in the Dallas – Fort Worth metroplex (DFW). Attributes of residential landscape plant diversity and habitat complexity were quantified for 232 individual properties nested within 14 neighborhoods constructed between 1906 and 2020. Suburban succession progressed from simple turf lawns with limited habitat complexity to landscapes dominated by deciduous trees and high habitat complexity, but homeowner decisions related to landscape management affect the rate of that transition and the number of plants and taxa present. Next, I used the novel spatial construct of "neighborhoodsheds" to test for effects of suburban succession on carbon export, and found that the proportion of carbon derived from C3 vs. C4 plants was affected by neighborhood plant community structure (i.e. greater proportion of trees and shrubs primarily in later stages of suburban succession). Finally, I conducted a mesocosm experiment to test effects of changes in allochthonous inputs during suburban succession …

In this study, we have used genetic, cell biological and transcriptomic methods in the nematode C. elegans as a model to examine the impact of glucose supplementation during development. We show that a glucose-supplemented diet slows the rate of developmental progression (termed "glucose-induced developmental delay" or GIDD) and induces the mitochondrial unfolded protein response (UPRmt) in wild-type animals. Mutation in the insulin receptor daf-2 confers resistance to GIDD and UPRmt in a daf-16-dependent manner. We hypothesized that daf-2(e1370) animals alter their metabolism to manage excess glucose. To test this, we used RNA-sequencing which revealed that the transcriptomic profiles of glucose-supplemented wildtype and daf-2(e1370) animals are distinct. From this, we identified a set of 27 genes which are both exclusively upregulated in daf-2(e1370) animals fed a glucose-supplemented diet and regulated by daf-16, including a fatty acid desaturase (fat-5), and two insulin-like peptides (ins-16 and ins-35). Mutation of any of these genes suppresses the resistance of daf-2(e1370) to GIDD. Additionally, double mutation of ins-16 and ins-35 in a daf-2(e1370) background results in an increase in constitutive dauer formation which is suppressed by glucose supplementation. Further investigation of the insulin-like peptides revealed that ins-16 mutation in a wild-type background results in upregulation of …

The current study focuses on the vascular cambium and the reiterative formation of phloem fiber bundles in cotton stems. The role of the TDIF-PXY-WOX pathway was examined in regulating cambial activity and the differentiation of phloem fibers. A study was conducted to identify and characterize the cotton WOX family genes, focusing on WOX4 and WOX14, aiming to identify and analyze their phylogenetic relationships, tissue-specific expression profiles, functional roles, and metabolic consequences. Through a sequence analysis of the Gossypium hirsutum genome, 42 cotton loci were identified as WOX family members. GhWOX4 exhibited a close homology to 7 loci, while GhWOX14 displayed homology with 8 loci. Tissue-specific expression analysis revealed prominent expression patterns of GhWOX4 and GhWOX14 in cotton internodes and roots, suggesting their involvement in vascular tissue development. Functional studies utilizing VIGS (virus-induced gene silencing) demonstrated that the knockdown of GhWOX4 and GhWOX14 resulted in a significant reduction in stem diameter and bast fiber production. This result suggests that secondary phloem fiber development is regulated by GhWOX4 and GhWOX14 genes in cotton. Additionally, the metabolic profiling of VIGS plants revealed significant alterations in amino acids, organic acids, and sugars, with implications for primary metabolic pathways. These findings suggest that GhWOX4 and …

The present study focused on methylmercury (MeHg) in emergent aquatic insects and spiders from human-made ponds. This dissertation addresses two main topics: (1) factors affecting variation in spider MeHg concentrations around human-made ponds and (2) the magnitude of MeHg transported out of human-made ponds by emergent aquatic insects (insect-mediated MeHg flux). Spiders were specifically targeted in this study because they have been proposed as sentinels of MeHg contamination (organism whose tissue concentrations reflect the level of MeHg in the environment). Spider MeHg concentrations were related to spider diet, size, and proximity to waterbody, but affected individual spider taxa differently. In a second study, I found that only "large" spiders within a taxa had tissue concentrations positively related to prey MeHg concentrations. These results indicate that the relationship between spider and prey MeHg could be size-dependent and that "large" spiders within a taxa may better reflect ambient MeHg contamination. Finally, I tested a conceptual model hypothesizing insect-mediated MeHg flux from human-made ponds is controlled by pond permanence and fish presence. In agreement with the conceptual model, insect-mediated MeHg flux from ponds was suppressed by the presence of fish, likely due to fish predation on emergent insect larvae. I found the mean …

As antibiotic resistance has become a major global threat, the World Health Organization has urgently called scientists for alternative strategies for control of bacterial infections. Endolysin, a protein encoded by a phage gene, can degrade bacterial peptidoglycan (PG). Currently, there are three endolysin products in the clinical phase. We, thus, are interested in exploring novel endolysins from Streptomyces phages as only a few of them have been experimentally characterized. Using bioinformatics tools, we identified nine functional domain groups from 250 Streptomyces phages putative endolysins. NootNoot gp34 (transglycosylase; Nt34lys), Nabi gp26 (amidase; Nb26lys), Tribute gp42 (PGRP; Tb42lys), and LazerLemon gp35 (CHAP; LL35lys) were selected for experimental studies. We hypothesized that (1) the proteins of interest will have the ability to degrade PG, and (2) the proteins will be potential antimicrobial agents against ESKAPE safe relatives. The results showed that LL35lys, Nb26lys and Tb42lys exhibit PG-degrading activity on zymography and hydrolysis assay. The enzymes (400 µg/mL) can reduce PG turbidity to 32-40%. The killing assay suggested that Tb42lys possess a boarder range (Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas putida, Acinetobacter baylyi and Klebsiella aerogenes). While Nb26lys can attack Gram-negative bacteria, LL35lys can only reduce the growth of the Gram-positive strains with an MIC90 of 2 …

The change of land use to include more urban areas is considered one of the main threats to biodiversity worldwide. Urban stormwater retention ponds have been built to collect storm runoff intensified by the increase in impervious surfaces. Although subject to environmental pressures like habitat degradation and pollution, these stormwater retention ponds are diversity hotspots by providing habitat for several aquatic and semi-aquatic species, including dragonflies. Previous research in Denton, Texas, has demonstrated that urban stormwater retention ponds support high taxa richness of adult dragonflies, but not for the aquatic nymphs. The current study builds on what we have seen by focusing on the immature aquatic stage as nymphs using secondary production of dominant dragonfly taxa and community structure to compare ecosystem function in three ponds with differing intensities of land use. Comparing communities and secondary production resulted in specific conductivity, dissolved oxygen, complex vegetation, and abundance explaining the differences between dragonfly communities. Secondary production was dependent on abundance which followed the intensity of urban land use surrounding the pond. This study supports that urban land use does have an effect on the functioning of the ponds and shows the importance of studying the communities over a year to get …

Fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) is a widely conserved amidase in eukaryotes, best known for inactivating the signal of N-acylethanolamine (NAE) lipid mediators. In the plant Arabidopsis thaliana, FAAH-mediated hydrolysis of NAEs has been associated with numerous biological processes. Recently, the phylogenetic distribution of FAAH into two major branches (group I and II FAAHs) across angiosperms outside of Arabidopsis (and in other Brassicaceae), suggests a previously unrecognized complexity of this enzyme. Although A. thaliana has long been used to assess biological questions for plants, in this case it will fall short in understanding the significance of multiple FAAHs in other plant systems. Thus, in this study, I examined the role (s) of six FAAH isoforms in upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) and two FAAHs in the legume Medicago truncatula.

In this dissertation I am using M. truncatula as a model legume that forms indeterminate nodules with rhizobia under limited nitrogen conditions. I take advantage of an M. truncatula Tnt1 mutant population that provides a useful resource to uncover and characterize novel genes. Here, I focused on several objectives. First, I carried out forward and reverse genetic screening of M. truncatula Tnt1 mutant populations to uncover novel genes involved in symbiotic nitrogen fixation. Second, I focused on reverse genetic screening of two genes, identified as encoding blue copper proteins, and characterization of their mutants' potential phenotypes. Third, I further characterized a nodule essential gene, M. truncatula vacuolar iron transporter like 8 (MtVTL8), which encodes a nodule specific iron transporter. I characterized the expression pattern, expression localization and function of MtVTL8. Additionally, I characterized several residues predicted to be essential to function using a model based on the known crystal structure of Eucalyptus grandis vacuolar iron transporter 1 (EgVIT1), a homologous protein to MtVTL8. I identified several potential essential residues of the MtVTL8 protein, mutagenized them, and through complementation experiments in planta and in yeast assessed functionality of the resulting protein. This helped us to better understand the potential mechanism by …

Probiotics/prebiotic supplementation represents a viable option for addressing systemic inflammation and chronic disease risk resulting from excessive body weight. The purpose of this feasibility study was to determine if 90-d of supplementation with prebiotic and probiotic could alter mRNA responsible for inflammation and subsequently metabolic health in weight stable overweight adults. Participants were advised to not change their diet or exercise habits during the study. All protocols were approved by the University IRB and participants gave written informed consent. Participants were randomly assigned to either placebo (N=7; rice flour) or combined (N=8) prebiotic (PreticX® Xylooligosaccharide; 0.8 g/d; ADIP) and probiotic (MegaDuo® Bacillus subtilis HU58 and Bacillus coagulans SC-208; 3 Billion CFU/d) and measurements were made at baseline, 30, 60, and 90-d. Whole body DXA scans (GE iDXA®) and blood 574-plex mRNA analysis (Nanostring®) were used to generate primary outcomes. Compared to placebo, supplementation was associated with a 36% reduction in visceral adipose tissue (p = 0.001). Supplement resulted in significant, differential expression of 15 mRNA associated with adipose tissue inflammation, systemic inflammation, and/or chronic disease risk. The key findings support that 90-d prebiotic/probiotic supplementation may be associated with an improved metabolic health, reduced adipose tissue inflammation, reduced systemic inflammation, and …