Browsing PhD Dissertations - DO NOT EDIT by Title
Now showing items 112-131 of 132
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TAXONOMY, SYSTEMATICS, BIOGEOGRAPHY, AND CONSERVATION OF TOADS (ANURA: BUFONIDAE) IN THE SUNDA SHELF OF INDONESIA
(2020-09-04)After Van Kampen’s 1905–1911 visit to Indonesia culminating in his Amphibians of the Indo-Australian Archipelago (1923), there has been no extensive herpetological exploration and compendium for Indonesia, particularly for ... -
The Cellular and Genetic Mechanisms of Stress Response Pathways in Caribbean Coral
(2021-12-08)Reef-building corals are in decline around the globe due to both the effects of increased ocean temperatures and the emergence of marine diseases which affect corals. These emerging issues threaten the continued persistence ... -
The evolution of complexity: tests of the ecological drivers of eye size evolution in nature
(2019-04-29)Organisms exhibit extensive variation in eye size and structure across the animal kingdom. The long standing hypothesis is that divergent ecological selective pressures drive and maintain this variation. While multiple ... -
THE EVOLUTION OF LIFE HISTORIES AND PHENOTYPIC PLASTICITY ACROSS ENVIRONMENTAL GRADIENTS IN DAPHNIA SP.
(2020-08-11)Understanding how environmentally-induced variation ultimately leads to speciation is a main component of evolutionary ecology. This dissertation uses Daphnia in experimental and comparative studies to address several ... -
THE EVOLUTION OF NEUROSENSORY STRUCTURES: EVALUATING ECOLOGICAL DRIVERS OF BRAIN AND EYE SIZE VARIATION
(2022-05-18)Neurosensory structures (i.e., brain and eye size) vary extensively across taxa. The evolution of large neurosensory structures has long been an area of interest for scientists, but focus has largely been placed on ... -
The Genetic Architecture Of Variation In Humans And Dogs
Genetic architecture is broadly defined as the structure of how genes come together to produce phenotypes. Primary aspects of genetic architecture include how many and which genes contribute to phenotypic variation. The ... -
The Genetics Of Hybrid Incompatibility Early In The 'speciation Continuum'
Species are discrete groups of organisms that are reproductively isolated from other related groups of organisms. Variation in the strength of reproductive isolation between closely related taxa falls along a `speciation ... -
THE MECHANISM OF ENZYME STABILITY AND SPECIFICITY IN CASPASE-3
(2021-04-20)The caspase family has been found as regulated proteins that play an important role in apoptosis and inflammation. Incorrect caspase regulation may cause serious diseases such as cancer. Knowing the mechanisms and evolution ... -
The Role of the Serine/Threonine Phosphatase PstP in the Mycobacterial Cell Wall Regulation
(2021-12-21)Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) is the causative agent of the deadly infection Tuberculosis (TB). The current standard antibiotic regimen for TB treatment combines fours drugs to be taken for at least six months. Mtb shows ... -
Theoretical And Practical Utility Of Gene Sequences in Phylogenetic and Phylogeographic Analysis
(Biology, 2010-03-03)Phylogenetics, or the study of evolutionary relationships among organisms, is a rapidly changing field due primarily to the dramatic increase in available molecular characters and increasingly sophisticated theoretical and ... -
Thermal Tolerance, Physiologic Condition, And Population Genetics Of Dreissenid Mussels (Dreissena polymorpha and D. rostriformis bugensis) Relative To Their Invasion Of Waters In The Western United States
(Biology, 2010-03-03)Zebra mussels, Dreissena polymorpha, and quagga mussels, D. rostriformis bugensis, Eurasian freshwater bivalves, invaded the North American (NA) Great Lakes in the mid 1980's. Subsequently, they invaded water bodies east ... -
Toughing it out: understanding the interplay of phenotypic plasticity and evolution in stressful environments
(2019-08-05)Preserving the health of ecosystems on Earth rewards local communities with economic benefits and improved quality of life. Yet, humans often perform activities that disrupt natural systems and lead to declines in biodiversity ... -
TRACING THE DAWN OF THE ELAPIDAE THROUGH THE MOLECULAR SYSTEMATICS AND HISTORICAL BIOGEOGRAPHY OF OLD WORLD CORALSNAKES
(2016-12-20)Much debated since the early 20th century, the evolutionary history and origin of the clinically important family Elapidae is of enormous interest. A persistent lack of higher-level phylogenetic resolution however, has ... -
TRANSCRIPTOMIC SIGNAL OF REPRODUCTIVE MODES AND EARLY SPECIATION IN DAPHNIA PULEX-PULICARIA SYSTEM
(2022-12-16)Daphnia have been gaining recognition as a key model system for studies of evolution, ecology, toxicology, and more recently genomics. The defining characteristic of this particular model system is its phenotypic plasticity ... -
UNCOVERING GENOMIC INSIGHTS TO THE DYNAMICS AND MECHANISMS OF SPECIATION USING LIALIS BURTONIS AND HETERONOTIA BINOEI
(2019-05-08)Species are fundamental entities in biology because their existence represents the cohesion that binds populations into a single unit. One facet of evolutionary biology is to identify the processes that cause the origin ... -
Understanding the role direct contact, toxicity, and mixotrophy play in the population dynamics of Prymnesium parvum
(2019-08-07)Harmful algae disrupt other organisms and ecosystems by multiple mechanisms. Many taxa of harmful algae produce toxic compounds that likely contribute to such problems. Though there is little evidence that the harmful ... -
Urban Ecology in North Texas: Native Plants and Nitrogen Deposition
Globally, the human population continues to grow and move into urban areas causing a range of effects on local ecosystems. Elevated temperatures, altered hydrology, and higher concentrations of atmospheric pollutants in ... -
USING INTEGRATED APPROACHES TO STUDY THE SYSTEMATICS OF SCINCID LIZARDS IN THE LOWER SUNDA SHELF
Scincid lizards are one of the most diverse group of squamate reptiles, found from tropical to temperate habitats worldwide. In the tropical rain forests of Java, Sumatra, and other parts of the Sunda Shelf biological ... -
Using snake genomes to illuminate the patterns and mechanisms of rapid adaptation
(2018-08-01)One of the most important and interesting goals in evolutionary biology is to understand the mechanisms generating biodiversity and adaptive novelty. Ever-evolving genomic techniques have served as a catalyst for this work, ... -
The Venomous Rattlesnakes And New World Coral Snakes: Molecular Systematics, Biogeography And The Evolution Of Venom Systems
Middle America is one of the most biologically diverse regions in the world, however it is also one with some of the highest rates of biodiversity loss. Reptiles are especially diverse in this region, and are a very important ...