Life history and biology of Forbestra olivencia (Ithomiinae, Nymphalidae)

Forbestra is the only mechanitine genus lacking a thorough life history description and little is known of its biology. Accordingly I describe the immature stages including first instar chaetotaxy, and provide observations on the biology of Forbestra olivencia from Garza Cocha in eastern Ecuador. Morphological characters from the early stages of Forbestra olivencia are identified that are unique to Forbestra and support the close relationship of Forbestra and Mechanitis. Forbestra olivencia was a moderately common butterfly at Garza Cocha during the sample period, far outnumbering other sympatric Forbestra. Ecological observations demonstrate similarities between F. olivencia and Mechanitis, but suggest F. olivencia is more restricted to shaded microhabitat

Exploring the Use of Tabletop Role-Playing Games (TRPGs) to Highlight and Develop Creativity Competencies

This project explores how tabletop role-playing games (TRPGs) are an underutilized mechanism for developing the affective skills that constitute the foundation of creativity and reinforcing the emerging concept of the creative experience through the application of experience design principles. Outlining the core concepts of creative experience, experience design, and gamification, along with the associated role of phenomenology and embodied cognition, the project establishes a case for the intersectionality of these elements in understanding how to develop creativity. Expanding further, the project explores what existing literature shows about TRPG ability to exercise and develop cognitive, psychological, sociological, and emotional competencies through unique elements like narrative, immersion, transference of experience, and skill acquisition. This project posits that the unique manifestation of these inherent elements is what differentiates TRPGs as a creative experience tool unmatched by other training approaches. The outcomes of this project identify how existing TRPGs might be modified to maximize the effect of character creation, game mechanics, and the role of the Game Master to start exploring and testing the effectiveness for developing creativity skills and creative experience identifiers. Additionally, the outcomes include a brief description of the need to expand research in this area, with three initial suggestions for research opportunities that address gaps in existing knowledge and open doors for more research on creativity and the creative experience

Modeling USA stream temperatures for stream biodiversity and climate change assessments

Stream temperature (ST) is a primary determinant of individual stream species distributions and community composition. Moreover, thermal modifications associated with urbanization, agriculture, reservoirs, and climate change can significantly alter stream ecosystem structure and function. Despite its importance, we lack ST measurements for the vast majority of USA streams. To effectively manage these important systems, we need to understand how STs vary geographically, what the natural (reference) thermal condition of altered streams was, and how STs will respond to climate change. Empirical ST models, if calibrated with physically meaningful predictors, could provide this information. My dissertation objectives were to: (1) develop empirical models that predict reference- and nonreference-condition STs for the conterminous USA, (2) assess how well modeled STs represent measured STs for predicting stream biotic communities, and (3) predict potential climate-related alterations to STs. For objective 1, I used random forest modeling with environmental data from several thousand US Geological Survey sites to model geographic variation in nonreference mean summer, mean winter, and mean annual STs. I used these models to identify thresholds of watershed alteration below which there were negligible effects on ST. With these reference-condition sites, I then built ST models to predict summer, winter, and annual STs that should occur in the absence of human-related alteration (r2 = 0.87, 0.89, 0.95, respectively). To meet objective 2, I compared how well modeled and measured ST predicted stream benthic invertebrate composition across 92 streams. I also compared predicted and measured STs for estimating taxon-specific thermal optima. Modeled and measured STs performed equally well in both predicting invertebrate composition and estimating taxon-specific thermal optima (r2 between observation and model-derived optima = 0.97). For objective 3, I first showed that predicted and measured ST responded similarly to historical variation in air temperatures. I then used downscaled climate projections to predict that summer, winter, and annual STs will warm by 1.6 °C - 1.7 °C on average by 2099. Finally, I used additional modeling to identify initial stream and watershed conditions (i.e., low heat loss rates and small base-flow index) most strongly associated with ST vulnerability to climate change

Links Between Social Support, Thwarted Belongingness, and Suicide Ideation among Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual College Students

Emerging adults with a lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB) identity are at greater risk for engaging in suicide-related behaviors. This disparity highlights a need to elucidate specific risk and protective factors associated with suicide-related behaviors among LGB youth, which could be utilized as targets for suicide prevention efforts in this population. Informed by the interpersonal-psychological theory of suicide, the present study hypothesized that social support would be indirectly associated with decreased suicide ideation via lower thwarted belongingness. A sample of 50 emerging adults (62.0% male, 70.0% Hispanic) who identified as gay, lesbian, bisexual, questioning, or “other” orientation, with a mean age of 20.84 years (SD = 3.30 years), completed self-report assessments. Results indicated that support from both family and the LGB community were associated with lower thwarted belongingness over and above the effects of age, sex, and depressive symptoms. Indirect effects models also indicated that both family and LGB community support were associated with suicide ideation via thwarted belongingness. The results of the present study suggest that family and LGB community support may represent specific targets for reducing thwarted belongingness that could be leveraged in suicide prevention efforts for LGB emerging adults

The Importance of Sexual Education on Adolescent Sexual Behaviors

Objective: The objective of this report is to examine how sex education for adolescents living in rural and urban settings in the states of Alabama and Ohio impacts their sexual health and behaviors. Methods: To explore this topic, several different statistical tests were done: an independent t-test, an ANOVA test, a Pearman/Spearman correlation, a regression, and a standard correlation. The reason for these different tests was to compare the difference in the number of sexually transmitted diseases, how insurance status correlates with teenage pregnancy rates and sexually transmitted diseases, and the relationship between socioeconomic status and the rate of sexually transmitted diseases. Results: We found that there are a multitude of factors that influence sexual behaviors and health of teenagers: the type of county they live in (rural or urban), their socioeconomic status, insurance status, and type of household. Therefore, it is imperative that these healthcare disparities are combated so that underserved teenage patient populations can have improved rates of sexual health and have access to sexual health resources that can enhance their health status and overall patient care outcomes

Transciptome Analysis Illuminates the Nature of the Intracellular Interaction in a Vertebrate-Algal Symbiosis

During embryonic development, cells of the green alga Oophila amblystomatis enter cells of the salamander Ambystoma maculatum forming an endosymbiosis. Here, using de novo dual-RNA seq, we compared the host salamander cells that harbored intracellular algae to those without algae and the algae inside the animal cells to those in the egg capsule. This two-by-two-way analysis revealed that intracellular algae exhibit hallmarks of cellular stress and undergo a striking metabolic shift from oxidative metabolism to fermentation. Culturing experiments with the alga showed that host glutamine may be utilized by the algal endosymbiont as a primary nitrogen source. Transcriptional changes in salamander cells suggest an innate immune response to the alga, with potential attenuation of NF-κB, and metabolic alterations indicative of modulation of insulin sensitivity. In stark contrast to its algal endosymbiont, the salamander cells did not exhibit major stress responses, suggesting that the host cell experience is neutral or beneficial

Lack of evidence for decreased protein stability in the 2397 (Met) haplotype of the leucine rich repeat kinase 2 protein implicated in Parkinson’s disease

Missense mutations in the leucine rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2) gene are the leading genetic cause of autosomal dominant familial Parkinson’s disease. We previously reported that two mutations within the ROC domain, namely R1441C and A1442P, exhibit increased protein degradation leading to lowered steady state LRRK2 protein levels in HEK293 cells. More recently, the common WD40 domain LRRK2 haplotype, Met2397, which is a risk factor for Crohn’s disease, has been shown to lower steady state protein levels in HEK293 cells. In view of recent evidence implicating LRRK2 and inflame-mation in PD, we investigated the effects of Met2397 on LRRK2 expression, and compared them to the Thr2397 variant and other LRRK2 mutants. In this study, we transfected HEK293 cells with plasmid constructs encoding the different LRRK2 variants, and analyzed the resulting protein levels by Western blot and flow cytometry. Here we found that both the Met2397 and Thr2397 haplotypes yield similar levels of LRRK2 protein expression and do not appear to impact cell viability in HEK293 cells, compared to other LRRK mutants. Thus, we have concluded that the Met2397 haplotype is unlikely to play a role in LRRK2 mediated or idiopathic PD