Browsing Graduate Theses and Dissertations - Biology by Title
Now showing items 1-40 of 60
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Age Determination, Life History and Juvenile Behavior in Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops sp.) in Shark Bay, Australia
(Georgetown University, 2013)Although of theoretical interest, the juvenile period in mammals is a relatively neglected area of research. In large-brained and social mammals, such as bottlenose dolphins, where juvenile periods are prolonged, life ... -
Assessing the Function of SOX21 in Xenopus laevis Neurogenesis: Exploring Homeolog Sub-Functionalization
(Georgetown University, 2021)Neurogenesis is a tightly controlled developmental process through which neural progenitor cells progress to committed neurons. While the SoxB1 transcription factors are well characterized to have functions in the induction ... -
Assessing the Function of SOX21 in Xenopus laevis Neurogenesis: Exploring Homeolog Sub-Functionalization
(Georgetown University, 2021)Neurogenesis is a tightly controlled developmental process through which neural progenitor cells progress to committed neurons. While the SoxB1 transcription factors are well characterized to have functions in the induction ... -
Behavioral ecology of wasp-spider interactions : the role of webs, chemicals, and deception
(Georgetown University, 2010) -
Characterization of Sox11 in Neurogenesis
(Georgetown University, 2016)CHARACTERIZATION OF SOX11 IN NEUROGENESIS -
Characterization of the Function of Sox21 During Neurogenesis
(Georgetown University, 2014)Neurogenesis, the progression from neural progenitor to committed neuron, is a tightly regulated process that is fundamental for development of the central nervous system. Whereas the SoxB1 transcriptional activators are ... -
Computational Analysis of Difficult-to-predict Genes and Detection of Lineage-specific Genes in Honey Bee (Apis mellifera)
(Georgetown University, 2013)Honey bees are key agricultural pollinators and a research model for social behavior and the evolution of eusociality. Generation of reliable gene predictions is critical to the success of laboratory experiments and ... -
Computational and Functional Analysis of F-box Dependent Ubiquitin Ligases in Xenopus Nervous System Development
(Georgetown University, 2013)The development of the central nervous system is a dynamic process during which protein levels are regulated temporally and spatially by synthesis and degradation. While much is known about the regulation of gene expression ... -
Conserved Genetic Mechanisms for Deuterostome Gut Regionalization
(Georgetown University, 2013)The vertebrate digestive system is comprised of several discrete organs of varied function arranged in a stereotyped pattern along the anterior/posterior (A/P) axis. A tightly regulated transcriptional network regionalizes ... -
Ecological and Life History Factors Influence Habitat and Tool Use in Wild Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops sp.)
(Georgetown University, 2012)While it has long been known that individual animals behave quite distinctively from other conspecifics, only recently has this intraspecific behavioral variation itself been the subject of investigation rather than a ... -
Ecology and population differentiation of the Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus
(Georgetown University, 2009) -
Effects of Senescence on Reproduction and Behavior in Bottlenose Dolphins
(Georgetown University, 2019)Senescence is the degenerative change in function of all organ systems with age and is accompanied by precipitous declines in survival and fertility. In a few species, reproductive senescence culminates in menopause, the ... -
Exploring Variation in Learning Ability in Pieris rapae, the Cabbage White Butterfly
(Georgetown University, 2013)Learning abilities allow animals to modify their behaviors based on experience; such plasticity provides an adaptive mechanism for responding to environmental unpredictability. As with any heritable trait subject to natural ... -
FITNESS, POLLEN DISPERSAL, AND FLORAL-DISPLAY SIZE EVOLUTION IN ANIMAL-POLLINATED PLANTS
(Georgetown University, 2011)The great variation in floral-display size (the number of flowers per plant) (FDS) in the thousands of angiosperm species has intrigued biologists and others for centuries, eliciting investigations regarding the ecology, ... -
Function of Oct91 and SoxB1 proteins during neural development in Xenopus laevis
(Georgetown University, 2009) -
Giardia lamblia, the Intestinal Microbiome, and Innate Immunity: A Study of the Host-Parasite Relationship during G. lamblia Infection
(Georgetown University, 2015)Infection with the protozoan parasite G. lamblia is a major cause of diarrheal disease worldwide. Prevalence is highest in developing countries with an estimated 20-30% of the population infected at any given time. G. ... -
The GLI transcription factors as a therapeutic target in childhood cancers
(Georgetown University, 2010) -
Grf10 Transcription Factor Coordinates Nutrient Assimilation, Metabolism and Morphogenesis in Candida albicans
(Georgetown University, 2018)Candida albicans is a commensal of the human microbiome and a major human fungal pathogen. Morphogenesis and metabolism are key attributes that allow C. albicans to thrive and infect the human host. Grf10, a homeodomain-containing ... -
Host and parasite factors contributing to variation in immunity and pathology in giardiasis.
(Georgetown University, 2014)Infection with the flagellated protozoan Giardia duodenalis is a major cause of parasitic diarrheal disease worldwide. G. duodenalis is grouped into 8 assemblages (A through H) but only assemblage A and B parasites infect ... -
The Hydrodynamic Model of Giardia lamblia Attachment
(Georgetown University, 2017)Giardia lamblia is a flagellated, intestinal parasite that resists peristalsis by attaching to the intestinal wall. Despite investigation over the past 40 years, the mechanism of attachment remains controversial. Here we ... -
Identification of A-to-I RNA Editing Sites in the Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Brain Using RNAseq Data
(Georgetown University, 2014)RNA editing is a post-transcriptional modification process that leads to addition, substitution and deletion of certain bases in RNA molecules, and accordingly alters their biological properties. As the most widespread ... -
Inflammatory cytokines induce ubiquitination and loss of the prostate suppressor protein NKX3.1
(Georgetown University, 2008) -
Inflammatory markers and genetic predispositions to Plasmodium falciparum-associated poor pregnancy outcomes
(Georgetown University, 2009) -
Interactions Between Social Structure, Contact Networks, and Infectious Disease Spread in Wildlife Populations
(Georgetown University, 2017)Socially complex species that live in large groups are traditionally considered to have elevated risks of disease transmission. Beyond group size, it is being increasingly recognized that the dynamics of infection spread ... -
Investigating the Role of Myeloid Cells in Giardia Immunity
(Georgetown University, 2019)Human infections with Giardia duodenalis (giardiasis) is regarded as one of the most common human diarrheal disease worldwide with 280 million cases estimated to occur worldwide each year. This parasite lives a biphasic ... -
Investigation of the molecular and mechanistic basis for attachment by Giardia lamblia
(Georgetown University, 2010) -
Investigation of the role of Unc45a in aortic arch development
(Georgetown University, 2008) -
Learning, brain plasticity, and foraging behavior in hemimetabolous insects
(Georgetown University, 2011)Foraging is an essential component of an animal's fitness, and learning plays an important role in foraging for many animals. A deeper understanding of complex behaviors such as foraging and learning requires an interdisciplinary ... -
LESS IS MORE: THE IMPLICATIONS OF GENOMIC MINIMALISM ON THE REGULATION OF GENE EXPRESSION IN THE PARASITE GIARDIA LAMBLIA
(Georgetown University, 2012)<italic>Giardia lamblia<italic> is one of the most common eukaryotic intestinal parasites in the world. A theme of simplified cellular machinery characterizes much of its biology with interesting consequences: a greatly ... -
Lifetime Stability, Maternal Effects, and Fitness Outcomes of Socio-Ecological Strategies in Wild Bottlenose Dolphins
(Georgetown University, 2021)Individuals within a population differ in behavior along both social and ecological axes. These differences are proposed to be governed by niche theory at the individual level, but empirical evidence is sparse, especially ... -
Lifetime Stability, Maternal Effects, and Fitness Outcomes of Socio-Ecological Strategies in Wild Bottlenose Dolphins
(Georgetown University, 2021)Individuals within a population differ in behavior along both social and ecological axes. These differences are proposed to be governed by niche theory at the individual level, but empirical evidence is sparse, especially ... -
Male Contest Competition and Mating Success in the Parasitoid Wasp Nasonia vitripennis (Pteromalidae)
(Georgetown University, 2014)Contest competition is the direct, often aggressive struggle for mates, resources, or both. Contest winners exclude others from access to key, monopolizable resources, and are therefore expected to have the highest mating ... -
Molecular analysis of membrane transporters implicated in drug resistance
(Georgetown University, 2008) -
Molecular basis of photoperiodic diapause in the Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus
(Georgetown University, 2016)My dissertation examines the molecular basis of photoperiodic diapause in the Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, using high-throughput DNA sequencing technologies. Photoperiodic diapause is a developmental arrest in ... -
Molecular Mechanisms and Rapid Adaptation of Photoperiodic Diapause in the Asian Tiger Mosquito, Aedes albopictus
(Georgetown University, 2019)Phenotypic plasticity allows organisms to respond to environmental variation over space and time by altering their physiology, morphology, development, and/or behavior. A fundamental aim of biology is to elucidate the ... -
Molecular, physiological and life-history mechanisms of adaptation during range expansion of the mosquito Aedes albopictus
(Georgetown University, 2011) -
No Longer Forgotten: Pupation as a Critical Link in the Lepidopteran Life Cycle
(Georgetown University, 2021)Holometabolous insects, those that undergo complete metamorphosis, owe their tremendous evolutionary success in large part to an efficient division of labor between a larval phase that focuses on feeding, and an adult phase ... -
No Longer Forgotten: Pupation as a Critical Link in the Lepidopteran Life Cycle
(Georgetown University, 2021)Holometabolous insects, those that undergo complete metamorphosis, owe their tremendous evolutionary success in large part to an efficient division of labor between a larval phase that focuses on feeding, and an adult phase ... -
The nuclear factor kappa b (NFkb) plays a critical role in the development of antiestrogen resistance
(Georgetown University, 2009) -
The Population and Ecological Genetic Effects of Habitat Fragmentation
(Georgetown University, 2017)Maintaining intraspecific variation is important for populations’ long-term success and is increasingly being recognized as an important conservation goal. Populations in anthropogenically fragmented habitats may lose ...
