Central pattern generators (CPGs) are neuronal circuits that underlie rhythmic movements including breathing and chewing. CPGs are capable of producing complex, rhythmic outputs in the absence of input signals, but are also capable of modifying the pattern in response to sensory feedback. Therefore, investigating the interplay between sensory-regulated and intrinsically controlled output is crucial in […]
C29: MBI575: Attachment of Bacteria to Algae as an Adaptation to Salt Stress in Antarctic Lakes
Antarctic lakes are extreme environments. Contrary to temperate lakes, they never mix and hence present a permanent stratification, following gradients of different abiotic factors such as salt that increases with depth. As the nutrients are very limiting in such environments, the biological communities are dominated by autotrophic organisms that fix the inorganic carbon and make […]
A45: Applications of Dimethyl Carbonate for the HILIC Separation of Sugars with Charged Aerosol Detection: Greening Industrial Solvents
We have researched the use of the green solvent dimethyl carbonate (DMC) as a mobile phase modifier for different forms of chromatography, such as hydrophilic liquid interaction chromatography (HILIC), normal phase liquid chromatography, and reversed phase liquid chromatography. Our lab’s recent publication demonstrates the utility of non-toxic and biodegradable DMC as a replacement for the […]
A41: Unusual Cell Division in Cell Wall-less Bacteria
Cell division in most bacteria is a highly organized, regular process in which a single cell gives rise to two essentially equivalent daughter cells. Division is coordinated with parent cell growth and DNA replication and dependent upon cell wall synthesis. Mycoplasma is a genus of very small bacteria resulting from reductive evolution of the genome, […]
A39: Using Student Outreach to Create Stewards of the Environment
Teaching STEM concepts to secondary-education students is a challenge, especially with large-scale, abstract concepts such as the degradation of our ecosystems and the impacts this has on communities. One way to address this is to use small-scale examples that exist in “their own backyards”. Thus, the purpose of this project is to develop hands-on experiences […]
A27: A Community Under Siege — Salinity Impact on Phycosphere Communities
The lakes of the McMurdo Dry Valley in Antarctica represent a stable environment with minimal external inputs and highly stratified aquatic ecosystems as a result of perennial ice-covers that prevent wind-mixing and atmospheric gas exchange. This environment imposes various stressors on its microbial communities such as low light, low temperature, and osmotic stress. Microorganisms within […]
C39: Thermophobic Adjuvants for Varying Immune Response with Temperature
Modern vaccines, including some SARS-CoV-2, make use of immune-response eliciting agents called adjuvants. While these compounds are effective at stimulating immune responses, they can have varying effects on individuals who receive the vaccine. One instance of these reactions is a high fever or pyrexia leading to safety concerns and in some cases hospitalization. Here we […]
A26: Phage of Enlightenment: What Has Been Learned from the Isolation and Characterization of Bacteriophages of Microbacterium foliorum and Streptomyces lividans
First-year students in Miami University’s Microbiology 223 and 224 class are among participants at over 100 colleges and universities in the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s SEA-PHAGES program. This program is aimed at providing young scientists with an opportunity to carry out discovery-based science. In MBI 223 in the fall 2022 semester, students collected soil and […]
A25: Aligning statistics teaching and statistics usage in undergraduate neuroscience education
Statistics in the field of neuroscience is crucial for comparing brains from distinct populations, studying variability in the structure of the brain, and wrangling data on the large scale that it is gathered today. Requirements for statistics differ when submitting work to various journals, however the common denominator is that you must be prepared to […]
C42: Metabolism of Condensed Tannins by Manganese Peroxidase
Tannin is a chemically stable phenolic compound found in plant leaves, fruits, and roots. It enters the soil from plant detritus, but what happens after it enters the soil is unknown. It has biological importance due to its action as an antioxidant and its ability to precipitate proteins. This unique ability to interact with proteins, […]