Browsing by Department "Biology"
Now showing items 1-20 of 239
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A Comparative Study of Habitat Complexity, Neuroanatomy, and Cognitive Behavior in Anolis Lizards
(2012)Changing environmental conditions may present substantial challenges to organisms experiencing them. In animals, the fastest way to respond to these changes is often by altering behavior. This ability, called behavioral ... -
A Molecular Phylogenetic Study of Historical Biogeography and the Evolution of Self-Incompatibility RNases in Indian Ocean Coffea (Rubiaceae)
(2010)A fundamental goal in the diverse field of evolutionary biology is reconstructing the historical processes that facilitated lineage diversification and the current geographic distribution of species diversity. Oceanic islands ... -
A Next-Generation Approach to Systematics in the Classic Reticulate <italic>Polypodium vulgare<italic> Species Complex (Polypodiaceae)
(2014)The <italic>Polypodium vulgare<italic> complex (Polypodiaceae) comprises a well-studied group of fern taxa whose members are cryptically differentiated morphologically and have generated a confusing and highly reticulate ... -
A Phylogenetic, Ecological, and Functional Characterization of Non-Photoautotrophic Bacteria in the Lichen Microbiome
(2011)Although common knowledge dictates that the lichen thallus is formed solely by a fungus (mycobiont) that develops a symbiotic relationship with an alga and/or cyanobacterium (photobiont), the non-photoautotrophic bacteria ... -
A Preliminary Study of Threonine Deaminase Duplication in Solanaceae
(2013)One of the most important questions in evolutionary biology is how new genes and new functions arise and evolve. Among the theories addressing this question, gene duplication is one of the most popular. Previous study has ... -
A Survey of Fungal Community Composition along a Gradient of Recovery on the Mine Sites in the Carolinas
(2019-05-06)In the era of Anthropocene, an increasing part of the terrestrial environments is losing their ecosystem services and function, negatively affecting both human economics and the ecological system. Phytoremediation, the use ... -
A Systems Level Analysis of the Transcription Factor FoxN2/3 and FGF Signal Transduction in Sea Urchin Larval Skeleton Development and Body Axis Formation
(2011)Specification and differentiation of a cell is accomplished by changing its gene expression profiles. These processes require temporally and spatially regulated transcription factors (TFs), to induce the genes that are necessary ... -
A Systems-Level Analysis of an Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition
(2012)Embryonic development occurs with precisely timed morphogenetic cell movements directed by complex gene regulation. In this orchestrated series of events, some epithelial cells undergo extensive changes to become free moving ... -
An Analysis of the Correlation between Cortisol Levels and Anxious Behavior of Captive Aye-Ayes (Daubentonia madagscariensis) at the Duke Lemur Center
(2016-05-06)I sought to determine if there existed a correlation between anxious behavior and cortisol levels for captive Aye-Ayes. I measured stress-related behavior by using an ethnographic methodology and focused on five specific ... -
An Avian Basal-Ganglia Forebrain Circuit Modulates the Reversal of Externally Reinforced Changes to Adult Zebra Finch Song
(2017-05-20)Songbirds learn their songs through a trial and error process that shows remarkable similarities to human language learning, making them an ideal model for studying the neural substrates of vocal learning. Although adult ... -
An Experimental and Quantitative Analysis of E. coli Stress Response: Metabolic and Antibiotic Stressors
(2014)A series of experiments and mathematical models explore the response of the bacteria <italic>E. coli</italic> to stressors. Experimentally, the effect of L-homocysteine, a non-protein amino acid, is explored, and via math ... -
Analysis of <italic>crinkled</italic> Function in <italic>Drosophila melanogaster</italic> Hair and Bristle Morphogenesis
(2012)Mutations in myosin VIIa (MyoVIIa), an unconventional myosin, have been shown to cause Usher Syndrome Type 1B in humans. Usher Syndrome Type 1B is characterized by congenital sensorineural deafness, vestibular dysfunction ... -
Application of Phylogenetic Analysis in Cancer Evolution
(2018)Cancer is a major threat to human health and results in 1 in 6 deaths globally. Despite an extraordinary amount of effort and money spent, eradication or control of advanced disease has not yet been achieved. Understanding ... -
Applications of Mathematical Modelling to Infectious Disease Dynamics in Developing Countries.
(2013)Mathematical modeling has proven to be an essential tool for the development ofcontrol strategies and in distinguishing driving factors in disease dynamics. A keydeterminant of a given model's potential to aid in such measures ... -
Assessing Anti-B7-H3 Antibody and gp70 Cancer Vaccine Therapy for TNBC
(2022-04-18)Immunotherapy has emerged as a promising approach for addressing TNBC, an aggressive breast cancer subtype for which few targeted therapies exist. TNBC immunotherapy, however, is dominated by PD-1 immune checkpoint blockade ... -
B-cyclin/CDK Regulation of Mitotic Spindle Assembly through Phosphorylation of Kinesin-5 Motors in the Budding Yeast, <italic>Saccharomyces cerevisiae</italic>
(2012)Although it has been known for many years that B-cyclin/CDK complexes regulate the assembly of the mitotic spindle and entry into mitosis, the full complement of relevant CDK targets has not been identified. It has previously ... -
Balance Between Plant Growth and Defense: Transcriptional and Translational Control of Plant Immune System
(2012)The activation and maintenance of plant immune responses require a significant amount of energy because they are accompanied by massive transcriptional reprogramming. Spurious activation of plant defense machinery can lead ... -
Balancing the good and the bad: Assessing the positive and negative effects of alien species on native plant demography
(2022)Alien species are considered one of the primary threats to native plant populations and their control is often prominent among proposed management actions. While negative alien effects are well documented, there are also ... -
Behavioral and Geophysical Factors Influencing Success in Long Distance Navigation
(2023)Many animals can sense the earth’s magnetic field and use it to perform incredible feats of navigation; however, studying this phenomenon in the lab is difficult because behavioral responses to magnetic cues can be highly ... -
Behavioral Measures and Ecological Correlates of Vision in Poeciliid Fishes
(2022)Understanding how animals see the world and how visual systems have evolved to meet the needs of particular animals are major goals of visual ecology research. The Poeciliidae are a diverse family of Neotropical freshwater ...
