A Transdisciplinary Laboratory Course Increases STEM Retention

STEM retention is a national challenge. Recent literature suggests that students leave STEM for many reasons including lack of context, lack of academic preparedness for entering college, and challenges with quantitative reasoning. These observations compelled us to design an introductory, transdisciplinary STEM lab course which we describe herein. This course was designed to integrate the disciplines of biology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics with activities that engage students in real-world, inquiry-based exercises and help students develop quantitative reasoning skills. Assessment showed that students in this STEM lab have higher STEM retention rates than those in equivalent disciplinary courses. The largest gains in STEM retention were seen in the 4th semester for students who took the lab as underclassmen. Additionally, student surveys indicated that students found the context of the lab compelling. In contrast, there were no significant differences in gains in quantitative literacy and reasoning or GPA among STEM lab students and students in discipline-specific labs. These results suggest that students’ engagement in applications of STEM with context might be more important for increasing retention than just focusing on academic ability alone

Temporal and spatial control of transgene expression using a heat-inducible promoter in transgenic wheat

Constitutive promoters are widely used to functionally characterise plant genes in transgenic plants, but their lack of specificity and poor control over protein expression can be a major disadvantage. On the other hand, promoters that provide precise regulation of temporal or spatial transgene expression facilitate such studies by targeting over-expression or knockdown of target genes to specific tissues and/or at particular developmental stages. Here, we used the uidA (beta-glucuronidase, GUS) reporter gene to demonstrate that the barley Hvhsp17 gene promoter can be induced by heat treatment of 38-40 degrees C for 1-2 h in transgenic wheat. The GUS enzyme was expressed only in those tissues directly exposed to heat and not in neighbouring leaf tissues. The induction of HSP:: GUS was demonstrated in all organs and tissues tested, but expression in older tissues was lower. Generally, proximal root sections showed less GUS activity than in root tips. This heat-inducible promoter provides the ability to investigate the function of candidate genes by overexpression or by down-regulation of target gene expression (for example by RNAi) in selected tissues or developmental stages of a transgenic plant, limited only by the ability to apply a heat shock to the selected tissues. It also allows the investigation of genes that would be lethal or reduce fertility if expressed constitutively

Silencing an essential gene involved in infestation and digestion in grain aphid through plant‐mediated RNA interference generates aphid‐resistant wheat plants

Letter to the edito

Alternative Covid-19 mitigation measures in school classrooms:analysis using an agent-based model of SARS-CoV-2 transmission

The SARS-CoV-2 epidemic has impacted children's education, with schools required to implement infection control measures that have led to periods of absence and classroom closures. We developed an agent-based epidemiological model of SARS-CoV-2 transmission in a school classroom that allows us to quantify projected infection patterns within primary school classrooms, and related uncertainties. Our approach is based on a contact model constructed using random networks, informed by structured expert judgement. The effectiveness of mitigation strategies in suppressing infection outbreaks and limiting pupil absence are considered. COVID-19 infections in primary schools in England in autumn 2020 were re-examined and the model was then used to estimate infection levels in autumn 2021, as the Delta variant was emerging and it was thought likely that school transmission would play a major role in an incipient new wave of the epidemic. Our results were in good agreement with available data. These findings indicate that testing-based surveillance is more effective than bubble quarantine, both for reducing transmission and avoiding pupil absence, even accounting for insensitivity of self-administered tests. Bubble quarantine entails large numbers of absences, with only modest impact on classroom infections. However, maintaining reduced contact rates within the classroom can have a major benefit for managing COVID-19 in school settings

Alternative Covid-19 mitigation measures in school classrooms:analysis using an agent-based model of SARS-CoV-2 transmission

The SARS-CoV-2 epidemic has impacted children's education, with schools required to implement infection control measures that have led to periods of absence and classroom closures. We developed an agent-based epidemiological model of SARS-CoV-2 transmission in a school classroom that allows us to quantify projected infection patterns within primary school classrooms, and related uncertainties. Our approach is based on a contact model constructed using random networks, informed by structured expert judgement. The effectiveness of mitigation strategies in suppressing infection outbreaks and limiting pupil absence are considered. COVID-19 infections in primary schools in England in autumn 2020 were re-examined and the model was then used to estimate infection levels in autumn 2021, as the Delta variant was emerging and it was thought likely that school transmission would play a major role in an incipient new wave of the epidemic. Our results were in good agreement with available data. These findings indicate that testing-based surveillance is more effective than bubble quarantine, both for reducing transmission and avoiding pupil absence, even accounting for insensitivity of self-administered tests. Bubble quarantine entails large numbers of absences, with only modest impact on classroom infections. However, maintaining reduced contact rates within the classroom can have a major benefit for managing COVID-19 in school settings

Genetic manipulation of gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) synthesis in a commercial variety of evening primrose (Oenothera sp.)

A robust Agrobacterium-mediated transformation procedure was developed for Rigel, a commercial cultivar of evening primrose, and used to deliver a cDNA encoding a Delta(6)-desaturase from borage under the control of a cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) 35S promoter. Analysis of the transformed plants demonstrated an altered profile of polyunsaturated fatty acids, with an increase in gamma-linolenic acid and octadecatetraenoic acid in leaf tissues when compared with control lines

Silencing of ATI genes involved in adverse reactions to wheat by RNAi and CRISPR-Cas9 technologies

Although wheat is consumed worldwide as a staple food, it can give rise to different adverse reactions, some of which have not been deeply characterized. They are caused mainly by wheat proteins, both gluten and non-gluten proteins. Structural and metabolic proteins, like \u3b1amylase/trypsin inhibitors (ATI) are involved in the onset of wheat allergies (bakers\u2019 asthma) and probably non-coeliac wheat sensitivity (NCWS). The ATI are encoded by a multigene family dispersed over several. Notably, WTAI-CM3 and WTAI-CM16 subunits are involved in the onset of bakers\u2019 asthma and are likely to contribute to NCWS. In this study we report the RNAi silencing of WTAI-CM3, WTAI-CM16 and WMAI-0.28 genes in the bread wheat cultivar Bobwhite and the CRISPR/Cas9 mediated gene knockout of WTAI-CM3 and WTAI-CM16 in the durum wheat cultivar Svevo. We have obtained different RNAi transgenic lines showing an effective decrease in the expression in the targeted genes. These lines do not show differences in terms of yield, but have unintended effects on the accumulation of the high molecular weight glutenin subunits which play a crucial role in the technological performances of wheat flour. Furthermore, the editing of WTAI-CM3 and WTAI-CM16 genes was obtained through a CRISPR-Cas9 multiplexing strategy in the Italian durum wheat cultivar Svevo with a marker-free approach. The regeneration of plants without selection agents allowed T0 homozygous mutant plants to be obtained without the integration in the wheat genome of CRISPR/Cas9 vectors, demonstrating the capability of CRISPR technology to produce wheat lines in a reduced time compared to conventional breeding approaches. The possibility to develop new wheat genotypes accumulating a lower amount of proteins effectively involved in such pathologies, not only offers the possibility to use them as a basis for the creation of wheat varieties with a lower impact on adverse reactions, but also to test if these proteins are actually implicated in those pathologies for which the triggering factor has yet to be established

Increased SBPase activity improves photosynthesis and grain yield in wheat grown in greenhouse conditions

To meet the growing demand for food, substantial improvements in yields are needed. This is particularly the case for wheat, where global yield has stagnated in recent years. Increasing photosynthesis has been identified as a primary target to achieve yield improvements. To increase leaf photosynthesis in wheat, the level of the Calvin-Benson cycle enzyme sedoheptulose-1,7-biphosphatase (SBPase) has been increased through transformation and expression of a Brachypodium dystachion SBPase gene construct. Transgenic lines with increased SBPase protein levels and activity were grown under greenhouse conditions and showed enhanced leaf photosynthesis and increased total biomass and dry seed yield. This showed the potential of improving yield potential by increasing leaf photosynthesis in a crop species such as wheat. The results are discussed with regards to future strategies for further improvement of photosynthesis in wheat.publishersversionPeer reviewe

p62-mediated Selective Autophagy Endows Virus-Transformed Cells With Insusceptibility to DNA Damage Under Oxidative Stress

DNA damage response (DDR) and selective autophagy both can be activated by reactive oxygen/nitrogen species (ROS/RNS), and both are of paramount importance in cancer development. The selective autophagy receptor and ubiquitin (Ub) sensor p62 plays a key role in their crosstalk. ROS production has been well documented in latent infection of oncogenic viruses including Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV). However, p62-mediated selective autophagy and its interplay with DDR have not been investigated in these settings. In this study, we provide evidence that considerable levels of p62-mediated selective autophagy are spontaneously induced, and correlate with ROS-Keap1-NRF2 pathway activity, in virus-transformed cells. Inhibition of autophagy results in p62 accumulation in the nucleus, and promotes ROS-induced DNA damage and cell death, as well as downregulates the DNA repair proteins CHK1 and RAD51. In contrast, MG132-mediated proteasome inhibition, which induces rigorous autophagy, promotes p62 degradation but accumulation of the DNA repair proteins CHK1 and RAD51. However, pretreatment with an autophagy inhibitor offsets the effects of MG132 on CHK1 and RAD51 levels. These findings imply that p62 accumulation in the nucleus in response to autophagy inhibition promotes proteasome-mediated CHK1 and RAD51 protein instability. This claim is further supported by the findings that transient expression of a p62 mutant, which is constitutively localized in the nucleus, in B cell lines with low endogenous p62 levels recaptures the effects of autophagy inhibition on CHK1 and RAD51 protein stability. These results indicate that proteasomal degradation of RAD51 and CHK1 is dependent on p62 accumulation in the nucleus. However, small hairpin RNA (shRNA)-mediated p62 depletion in EBV-transformed lymphoblastic cell lines (LCLs) had no apparent effects on the protein levels of CHK1 and RAD51, likely due to the constitutive localization of p62 in the cytoplasm and incomplete knockdown is insufficient to manifest its nuclear effects on these proteins. Rather, shRNA-mediated p62 depletion in EBV-transformed LCLs results in significant increases of endogenous RNF168-γH2AX damage foci and chromatin ubiquitination, indicative of activation of RNF168-mediated DNA repair mechanisms. Our results have unveiled a pivotal role for p62-mediated selective autophagy that governs DDR in the setting of oncogenic virus latent infection, and provide a novel insight into virus-mediated oncogenesis

The Grizzly, February 2, 2012

Birk Launches Graphic Novel at UC • Myrin Welcomes New Library Intern • Resumania Preps Students for Job, Internship Fair • Organic Farm Names New Student Director • Ursinus Introduces Zumba Class for Students • Jablonowski Gains Experience at Academy of Natural Sciences • St. Christopher\u27s Offers Volunteer Opportunity for UC Students • Opinion: SOPA had Right Idea, but was Misguided; Major and Minor Expo Offers Great Information • Senior Spotlight: Sean Whelan, Football • Buckley\u27s Bears Battle Through Adversity • Ursinus Community Remembers Daniel Gloverhttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1850/thumbnail.jp