Influences of Cattle on Postmetamorphic Amphibians on the Cumberland Plateau

Global decline of amphibian populations has been linked to various anthropogenic stressors. Recent studies have quantified the influences of cropland agriculture and deforestation; however, few have examined the impacts of allowing cattle access in wetlands on resident amphibians. I compared four wetlands exposed to cattle grazing for \u3e10 years against four wetlands that had not been grazed for \u3e10 years, at the University of Tennessee Plateau Research and Education Center. At each wetland I measured species richness, diversity, and species-specific relative abundance of postmetamorphic amphibians captured in pitfall traps and during breeding call surveys, amphibian egg mass abundance, shoreline vegetation structure, and soil compaction from March – August 2005 and 2006. Pathogen prevalence and histopathological changes were measured from a subsample of opportunistically collected amphibians. Landscape characteristics were quantified and related to amphibian community structure. Relative abundance of green frog metamorphs was 9.8X greater in 2006 and 2.3X greater in 2005 at non-access wetlands. Relative abundance of American toads was 68X and 76X greater at cattle-access wetlands in 2005 and 2006, respectively. Breeding call abundance of American toad, Fowler’s toad, and Cope’s gray treefrog was 4 – 25X greater at cattleaccess wetlands in 2006. There were 2X more spring peepers and pickerel frogs calling at non-access wetlands in 2005 and 2006, respectively. Species richness, diversity, and egg mass abundance were not significantly different between land-use types each year. In general, body size followed a density-dependent relationship across species. Height and percent horizontal and vertical cover of shoreline vegetation were 74%, 25% and 84% greater, respectively, in non-access wetlands in 2005; trends were similar in 2006. Soil compaction was 55% greater at cattle-access wetlands. Pathogen prevalence and histopathological changes did not differ between land uses. Landscape analyses revealed species-specific associations related to wetland isolation and geometric complexity of the landscape between wetlands. My results suggest that cattle influence community composition and postmetamorphic body size of amphibians, but effects are speciesspecific. Differences in postmetamorphic abundance may be related to less vegetation structure and lower water quality at cattle-access wetlands. Fencing cattle from wetlands may be a prudent conservation strategy for some amphibian species

tackling malaria

Malaria is an infectious disease that affects over 216 million people worldwide, killing over 445,000 patients annually. Due to the constant emergence of parasitic resistance to the current antimalarial drugs, the discovery of new drug candidates is a major global health priority. Aiming to make the drug discovery processes faster and less expensive, we developed binary and continuous Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationships (QSAR) models implementing deep learning for predicting antiplasmodial activity and cytotoxicity of untested compounds. Then, we applied the best models for a virtual screening of a large database of chemical compounds. The top computational predictions were evaluated experimentally against asexual blood stages of both sensitive and multi-drug-resistant Plasmodium falciparum strains. Among them, two compounds, LabMol-149 and LabMol-152, showed potent antiplasmodial activity at low nanomolar concentrations (EC50 <500 nM) and low cytotoxicity in mammalian cells. Therefore, the computational approach employing deep learning developed here allowed us to discover two new families of potential next generation antimalarial agents, which are in compliance with the guidelines and criteria for antimalarial target candidates.publishersversionpublishe

The application of remote sensing to resource management and environmental quality programs in Kansas

The activities of the Kansas Applied Remote Sensing (KARS) Program during the period April 1, 1982 through Marsh 31, 1983 are described. The most important work revolved around the Kansas Interagency Task Force on Applied Remote Sensing and its efforts to establish an operational service oriented remote sensing program in Kansas state government. Concomitant with this work was the upgrading of KARS capabilities to process data for state agencies through the vehicle of a low cost digital data processing system. The KARS Program continued to take an active role in irrigation mapping. KARS is now integrating data acquired through analysis of LANDSAT into geographic information systems designed for evaluating groundwater resources. KARS also continues to work at the national level on the national inventory of state natural resources information systems

Growing Our Place: Beecher Middle/High School Outdoor Classroom Project

Discovering PLACE, University of Michigan-Flint faculty and staff, and community organizations,fin collaboration with this SNRE Master’s project team, worked with Beecher Middle/High School, a Flint public school, to develop an implementation plan and best practices guide for a placebased outdoor classroom. The outdoor classroom project is designed to engage the school community in an ongoing dialogue about food and environmental justice that will support students’ academic and social skill development. The team assisted Beecher and Discovering PLACE in researching and planning an outdoor classroom on the school grounds, organizing and implementing a series of participatory student and teacher design charrettes, and researching and developing a place-based curriculum series for middle and high school students, as well as a best practices guide for overcoming common challenges to outdoor classrooms. Our Master’s project team worked with Discovering PLACE and Beecher Middle/High School to develop a design and implementation plan for a place-based outdoor classroom and corresponding curriculum. The overarching goal of the project was to strengthen the presence of place-based education at Beecher, and to document the process of implementing the project so that the experience can be used as a framework for other schools interested in incorporating place-based education into their own educational practices. Discovering PLACE and Beecher desired assistance in researching and planning an outdoor classroom on the school grounds, organizing and implementing a series of participatory student and teacher design charrettes, and researching and developing a place-based curriculum for middle and high school students.Master of ScienceNatural Resources and EnvironmentUniversity of Michiganhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/97439/1/Growing Our Place Master's Project Report 2013.pd

Wood ash and paper sludge: potential liming and nutrient source for crop production in podzolic soils

The Corner Brook Pulp and Paper Ltd (CBPPL) produces approximately 10,000 Mg of wood ash (WA) and 47,500 Mg of paper sludge (SL), annually, as waste byproducts. Among these wastes WA is landfilled as part of the disposal management program administered by the company whereas SL is burnt to generate steam for paper mill operations. This practice is not ideal due to high disposal costs and environmental concerns. In addition, WA and SL contains essential nutrients such as Ca, K and Mg that favors plant growth and could increase soil pH due to its calcium carbonate equivalent ability. One sustainable management practice is the land application of WA and SL to agricultural soil, increasing soil pH and enhancing crop growth and yield. Herein, we conducted greenhouse studies to evaluate the effect of WA and SL alone and in combination with biochar (BC) on growth, yield, nitrogen dynamics, and heavy metals mobility in the soil-plant system of annual ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) and kale (Brassica oleracea L.). In study 1 soil with pH 5.7 and 2.7 % organic matter was used and in study 2, soil pH and organic matter were 5.2 and 4.5 % respectively. Results of the study 1 and 2 indicated that WA was effective in achieving the target soil pH of 6.3 and produced 71% and 42% more biomass than control in annual ryegrass, respectively. Similarly, WA application showed 28% and 27% higher yield than control in kale in both studies, respectively. BC addition significantly decreased 15 – 20 % Pb and Cd uptake in annual ryegrass and kale crops in both studies. Study results suggest that WA could be used as a liming and nutrient source and could be a substitute for limestone used in improving soil pH in agriculture production system. Furthermore, BC amendment with WA or SL could be a promising strategy in decreasing heavy metals uptake in agronomic and horticultural crops

Novel approaches to plant pest risk assessment

Pest risk assessment is an essential yet problematic stage in pest risk analysis (PRA) that concerns the likelihood and consequences of pest introduction. The aim of this study was to develop methodologies for risk assessment and to explore different approaches that could lead to the development of new methods for practical PRA in line with the requirement of "scientific justification" by World Trade Organisation and Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations. Current international practices were discussed and research reviewed on qualitative and quantitative approaches to risk assessment. It was proposed that risk assessment be divided into two steps: Pest risk identification (PRI) and pest risk evaluation (PRE). Mind Mapping was a valuable tool for PRI that reduced ambiguity and increased transparency. Approaches to PRE were proposed that facilitated the scoring and weighting of risk factors, and the subsequent combining of risk scores. Several methods were developed to incorporate weighting into PRA, which included subjectively assigned weighting and Delphi technique-derived weighting. Metrics for combining risk scores into an overall risk value were also explored, compared and evaluated. Correlation and interaction between risk factors were analysed, which revealed that some risk factors were highly correlated and some were relatively independent, which meant there was some information redundancy, and therefore simplification of risk assessment was possible. Cluster analysis was applied to risk factor scores and different clusters of risk factors were identified: some more appropriate for preliminary assessment; some for determining the level of risk; and some could be eliminated. A method to apply Principal Components Analysis (PCA) to derive weighting for individual risk factors was developed. PCA could be applied to historical data of pest introductions, previous PRA cases, or expert opinion. Genetic algorithms implemented in the software BEAGLE, were applied to PRA data. The rules obtained could distinguish high-risk situations with high accuracy, which was useful in predicting the risk of an organism by using a simplified set of conditions. The results showed that weightings and rules differed for different taxonomic groups. Therefore it was implausible to develop a generic scheme in this way. However, it may be possible to develop patterns based on taxonomy. The results of applying several different techniques all suggested that by grouping risk factors for different purposes, risk assessment could be simplified without compromising rigor, because a) some factors were redundant; b) some factors are more important than others; and c) high risk situation could be predicted with a few key factors