Survey of HIV Awareness

Undergraduate Applie

Lillian Smith\u27s Killers of the Dream and Michel Foucault: Structural Racism, Critical Theory, and the U.S. South

While scholarship on Lillian Smith and her works has increased in recent years, there is a lack in variety when it comes to how scholars discuss her work. In the same vein, no one has discussed Smith as a critical theorist in her own right despite her analysis of the U.S. South in Killers of the Dream. This thesis argues for re-examining Smith as an unrecognized critical theorist of the twentieth century by analyzing Killers of the Dream. It also explores Smith’s theories in relation to that of Michel Foucault’s and what her theories regarding structural racism add to Foucault’s discussion of biopolitics, state racism, and governmentality in his lectures

Changes in the genetic requirements for microbial interactions with increasing community complexity.

Microbial community structure and function rely on complex interactions whose underlying molecular mechanisms are poorly understood. To investigate these interactions in a simple microbiome, we introduced E. coli into an experimental community based on a cheese rind and identified the differences in E. coli's genetic requirements for growth in interactive and non-interactive contexts using Random Barcode Transposon Sequencing (RB-TnSeq) and RNASeq. Genetic requirements varied among pairwise growth conditions and between pairwise and community conditions. Our analysis points to mechanisms by which growth conditions change as a result of increasing community complexity and suggests that growth within a community relies on a combination of pairwise and higher-order interactions. Our work provides a framework for using the model organism E. coli as a readout to investigate microbial interactions regardless of the genetic tractability of members of the studied ecosystem

Quantifying the Emanation and Decay of Environmental DNA from Three Marine Molluscs

Environmental DNA (eDNA) is nucleic acids outside of living organisms found in air, soil, water, and ice. It is shed by organisms through waste and other bodily fluids, as well as cells sloughed off the outside of an organism. eDNA breaks down over time, especially when exposed to UV, heat, and bacteria. Scientists can analyze eDNA to identify organisms in an area, though the rates at which it is emanated and decayed seem to vary from organism to organism, complicating interpretation of results. The present study sought to quantify the rates of emanation and decay through a series of in vitro experiments for three species, Mytilus californianus (the California blue mussel), Haliotis rufescens (the red abalone), and Lottia scabra (the rough limpet). Using quantitative PCR (qPCR) to measure eDNA, I found that eDNA emanation rates varied based on species, size, and activity level, and that rates of decay can be influenced by bacterial activity and time under treatment. Small abalone released less eDNA than medium and large abalone over 24 hours, but limpets and mussels released the same amount of eDNA per species despite different wet weights. Similarly, inverted abalone with soft tissue exposed released more eDNA than in their normal posture, but this was not true for limpets or gaping vs non-gaping mussels. Lastly, eDNA degraded over time for all species, mostly in the first 24 hours, and bacteria affected abalone eDNA degradation. In eDNA degradation experiments, nonspecific PCR products decreased reliability of measurements over longer time periods. These data can be used by scientists and managers to interpret eDNA signals of these commercially or ecologically important molluscs to help protect these species and the communities in which they belong

LANGUAGE IMPAIRMENT AND CHILD ADJUSTMENT IN HIGH-RISK, LOW-INCOME TODDLERS: MODERATING INFLUENCES OF PARENTING AND EMOTION REGULATION

Research has consistently documented the association between language deficits in childhood and later social-emotional adjustment, particularly behaviors associated with ADHD and impaired social competencies (Gallagher, 1999; Hummel & Prizant, 1993; Toppelberg & Shapiro, 2000). Despite extensive body of research demonstrating the co-occurrence of these two phenomena, far less research has explored the factors contributing to their association. Furthermore, there have been few prospective investigations of the development of these problems in young children. Based on the potential salience and relative dearth of longitudinal research on the linkage between language deficits and child adjustment, three primary goals were proposed. First, this study examined the development and stability of early language impairments in children ranging in age from two to four years. Second, it examined the covariation between the development of language impairments and two domains of child adjustment: social withdrawal and attention problems from ages 2 to 5 years. Third, based on research indicating the association of maternal nurturance and children's emotion regulation strategies with language deficits and behavioral outcomes, the potential moderating role of parenting and emotion regulation on their co-occurrence was examined. Participants included a randomly selected subsample of 150 children in the control group of a multi-site intervention study (N = 731) aimed at preventing early-starting conduct problems. Results were mixed. Semi-parametric trajectory analyses identified patterns of language development that were suggestive of children with transient language delays, lasting language deficits and typical language development that the literature has previously described. Follow-up analyses also identified that the trajectory group characterized by more persistent language difficulties had lower scores on academic measures at age 5 compared to children in the typical language group. While modest associations between language measures and child adjustment were found, autoregressive structural equation modeling indicated few bidirectional pathways between language and child outcome. Finally, the moderating variables of emotion regulation and maternal nurturance were found to have direct associations with language and child outcome; however, there was very little evidence of these variables as moderators in the association of language and child outcome. Implications for future lines of research and clinical relevance are discussed

Potential diseases and parasites of white-tailed deer in Missouri (2013)

White-tailed deer are susceptible to a variety of diseases, parasites and injuries. Although these conditions do not account for a large percentage of annual statewide deer mortality (typically less than 5 percent), in some situations disease or parasite outbreaks can impact a deer herd locally or regionally. Infectious diseases of deer can be caused by pathogens that include some viruses, bacteria, parasites and abnormal proteins known as prions. In rare instances, these pathogens are the cause of disease epidemics that result in significant mortality in a local population. These outbreaks are most common in herds with high deer density, which can increase the spread of the disease. Fortunately, disease and parasite outbreaks seldom impact the quality of venison or make it unsuitable for consumption. This guide provides an overview of the diseases, parasites and injuries that can affect free-ranging white-tailed deer in Missouri.New 3/12; Revised 10/13/Web

Potential diseases and parasites of white-tailed deer in Missouri (2016)

White-tailed deer are susceptible to a variety of diseases, parasites and injuries. Although these conditions do not account for a large percentage of annual statewide deer mortality (typically less than 5 percent), in some situations disease or parasite outbreaks can impact a deer herd locally or regionally. This guide provides an overview of the diseases, parasites and injuries that can affect free-ranging white-tailed deer in Missouri