A5029162696- Protist diversity and phylogeny
- Microbial Community Ecology and Physiology
- Parasitic Infections and Diagnostics
- Genomics and Phylogenetic Studies
- Parasites and Host Interactions
- Parasite Biology and Host Interactions
- Veterinary Oncology Research
- Environmental DNA in Biodiversity Studies
- Child Nutrition and Water Access
- Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils
- Helminth infection and control
- Identification and Quantification in Food
- Amoebic Infections and Treatments
- Parasitic Diseases Research and Treatment
- Insect symbiosis and bacterial influences
- Spectroscopy and Chemometric Analyses
- Protein Structure and Dynamics
- Enzyme Structure and Function
- Eating Disorders and Behaviors
- Viral gastroenteritis research and epidemiology
- Molecular Biology Techniques and Applications
- Sociology and Education Studies
- Marine Toxins and Detection Methods
- Education Methods and Technologies
- Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment
Smith College
2013-2023
Trinity House
2020
Southwestern University
1999
Millennium Engineering and Integration (United States)
1999
The nematode CED-4 protein and its human homolog Apaf-1 play a central role in apoptosis by functioning as direct activators of death-inducing caspases. A novel CED-4/Apaf-1 family member called CARD4 was identified that has domain structure strikingly similar to the cytoplasmic, receptor-like proteins mediate disease resistance plants. interacted with serine-threonine kinase RICK potently induced NF-κB activity through TRAF-6 NIK signaling molecules. In addition, coexpression augmented...
An accurate reconstruction of the eukaryotic tree life is essential to identify innovations underlying diversity microbial and macroscopic (e.g., plants animals) eukaryotes. Previous work has divided into a small number high-level "supergroups," many which receive strong support in phylogenomic analyses. However, abundance data analyses can lead highly supported but incorrect relationships due systematic phylogenetic error. Furthermore, paucity major lineages (19 or fewer) included these...
Abstract Background Our understanding of the eukaryotic tree life and tremendous diversity microbial eukaryotes is in flux as additional genes diverse taxa are sampled for molecular analyses. Despite instability many analyses, there an increasing trend to classify into six major supergroups: 'Amoebozoa', 'Chromalveolata', 'Excavata', 'Opisthokonta', 'Plantae', 'Rhizaria'. Previous analyses have often suffered from either a broad taxon sampling using only single-gene data or used multigene...
Background The soil transmitted helminths are a group of parasitic worms responsible for extensive morbidity in many the world’s most economically depressed locations. With growing emphasis on disease mapping and eradication, availability accurate cost-effective diagnostic measures is paramount importance to global control elimination efforts. While real-time PCR-based molecular detection assays have shown great promise, date, these utilized sub-optimal targets. By performing next-generation...
The first analyses of gene sequence data indicated that the eukaryotic tree life consisted a long stem microbial groups “topped” by crown-containing plants, animals, and fungi their relatives. Although more recent multigene concatenated have refined relationships among many branches eukaryotes, root has remained elusive. Inferring extant eukaryotes is challenging because age group (∼1.7–2.1 billion years old), tremendous heterogeneity in rates evolution lineages, lack obvious outgroups for...
Evolutionary relationships within Amoebozoa have been the subject of controversy for two reasons: 1) paucity morphological characters in traditional surveys and 2) haphazard taxonomic sampling modern molecular reconstructions. These along with other factors prevented erection a definitive system that resolves confidently both higher lower-level relationships. Additionally, recent recognition many protosteloid amoebae are fact scattered throughout suggests phylogenetic reconstructions...
Most eukaryotic lineages are microbial, and many have only recently been sampled for phylogenetic studies or remain in the "dark area" of tree life where there no molecular data. To assess relationships among lineages, we perform a taxon-rich phylogenomic analysis including 232 eukaryotes selected to maximize taxonomic diversity up 1554 genes chosen as vertically inherited based on their broad distribution eukaryotes. We also include sequences from 486 bacteria 84 archaea impact...
There is growing interest in local elimination of soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infection endemic settings. In such settings, highly sensitive diagnostics are needed to detect STH infection. We compared double-slide Kato-Katz, the most commonly used copromicroscopic detection method, multi-parallel quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) 2,799 stool samples from children aged 2–12 years a setting rural Bangladesh with predominantly low intensity. estimated sensitivity and specificity...
Molecular-based surveys have indicated that Ancylostoma ceylanicum, a zoonotic hookworm, is likely the second most prevalent hookworm species infecting humans in Asia. Most current PCR-based diagnostic options for detection of target Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) regions ribosomal gene cluster. These possess considerable degree conservation among this genus and can lead to misidentification or require additional labor accurate species-level determination. We developed novel, real-time...
Background Proper collection and storage of fecal samples is necessary to guarantee the subsequent reliability DNA-based soil-transmitted helminth diagnostic procedures. Previous research has examined various methods preserve for microscopic analysis or determination overall DNA yields obtained following extraction. However, only limited focused on preservation in stool stored at ambient temperature maintained a cold chain extended periods time. Methodology Quantitative real-time PCR was...
Abstract Background Anxiety due to a phobia of normal body weight is core feature and maintenance factor anorexia nervosa (AN). This the first study explore efficacy acceptability using novel imaginal exposure response prevention group target fears associated with being reduce anxiety in adolescents AN. Methods The lead author adapted an I-ERP manual used treat AN adults 1–1 therapy. Content was for adolescent population, sessions reduced from 10 4 delivered format audio recordings be more...
Background Understanding the evolutionary relationships of all eukaryotes on Earth remains a paramount goal modern biology, yet analyzing homologous sequences across 1.8 billion years eukaryotic evolution is challenging. Many existing tools for identifying gene orthologs are inadequate when working with heterogeneous rates and endosymbiotic/lateral transfer. Moreover, genomic-scale sequencing, which was once domain large sequencing centers, has advanced to point where small laboratories can...
Lateral gene transfer (LGT) has impacted the evolutionary history of eukaryotes, though to a lesser extent than in bacteria and archaea. Detecting LGT distinguishing it from single tree artifacts is difficult, particularly when considering very ancient events (i.e., over hundreds millions years). Here, we use two independent lines evidence—a taxon-rich phylogenetic approach an assessment patterns presence/absence—to evaluate parasitic amoebozoan genus Entamoeba. Previous work suggested that...
Background: Characterizing genome-scale data from diverse eukaryotes is essential for gene discovery and inferring major transitions across the eukaryotic tree of life. Yet, bulk diversity remains undersampled, particularly free-living microbial lineages. Analysis transcriptome generated high throughput (e.g. 454) sequencing mRNAs provides an efficient way to characterize genes eukaryotes. Results: Here we report analyses RNA-Seq rhizarian net-like amoeba Corallomyxa tenera, ciliate...
We initiate in silico rigidity-theoretical studies of biological assemblies and small crystals for protein structures. The goal is to determine if, how, the interactions among neighboring cells subchains affect flexibility a molecule its crystallized state. use experimental X-ray crystallography data from Protein Data Bank (PDB). analysis relies on an effcient graph-based algorithm. Computational experiments were performed using new rigidity tools available release our KINARI-Web server...
Our knowledge of the diversity amoeboid protists is rapidly expanding as new and old habitats are more fully explored. In 2003, while investigating cause an disease afflicting lobsters on East Coast, samples were examined for presence amoebae from carapace washings American lobster, Homarus americanus. During this survey a unique community gymnamoebae was discovered. Among taxa discovered small Thecamoeba-like organism with single posteriorly directed pseudopodium. Although resembling...
Background Optimization of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based diagnostics requires the careful selection molecular targets that are both highly repetitive and pathogen-specific. Advances in next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies bioinformatics-based analysis tools facilitating this process, informing target choices reducing labor. Once developed, such assays provide disease control elimination programs with an additional set capable evaluating monitoring intervention successes. The...
The isolate American Type Culture Collection (ATCC)® 50979™ is a small amoebozoan whose actin gene was previously characterized, but did not allow stable phylogenetic placement. This originally mis-identified upon deposition, and subsequently mis-illustrated in recent publication. Here, we provide both detailed morphological description as well additional molecular analyses order to clarify the isolate's relationships. amoeba minute (less than 5 μm), presents behavior of staying fixed...