Browsing Department of Biology Graduate Theses by Title
Now showing items 296-315 of 370
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Platelet-Derived Growth Factor-BB is the Dominant Mitogen for Intestinal Smooth Muscle Cells in the Trinitrobenzenesulfonic Acid Model of Rat Colitis
(2012-09-28)In normal adult physiology, intestinal smooth muscle cells (ISMC) are characterized as contractile and non-proliferative. Inflammation induces permanent changes to the intestine including hypertrophy of the smooth muscle ... -
Population decline in an avian aerial insectivore (Tachycineta bicolor) linked to climate change
Avian aerial insectivores, a taxonomically diverse guild of birds, are facing dire population declines. The primary commonality among these birds is that they forage on flying insects, suggesting that diet has exposed these ... -
Population genetic differentiation and hybridization in the Glaucous Gull (Larus hyperboreus)
Climate change poses a significant threat to the future of Arctic ecosystems. To effectively conserve Arctic species, genetically differentiated populations must be defined for adaptive and neutral genetic variation to be ... -
Probing Immune Function During Aging in Adult Drosophila
(2007-10-10)Virtually all multicellular organisms rely on a highly conserved innate immune system for defense against foreign microorganisms. Innate immunity consists primarily of a humeral response that culminates in the expression ... -
Proteomic Analysis of the Heat Shock Response in the Nervous System of Locusta migratoria
(2009-03-25)There is a thermal range for the operation of neural circuits beyond which nervous system function is compromised. Poikilotherms are particularly vulnerable to thermal stress, since their body temperature can fluctuate ... -
Pyp3 Involvement in Mitotic Control and Cell Growth in Fission Yeast
(2016-04-07)In fission yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, tyrosine dephosphorylation of p34cdc2 is required for mitotic initiation and this reversible tyrosine phosphorylation plays a crucial role in the regulation of the cell cycle. ... -
Regulation of the Cdc25 mitotic inducer following replication arrest and DNA damage
(2011-06-20)Dephosphorylation of the Cdc2 kinase by the Cdc25 tyrosine phosphatase is the universally conserved trigger for mitotic entry. Cdc25 is also the point of convergence for checkpoint signaling pathways which monitor the ... -
Relationships between body size, reproduction, and abundance in natural vegetation
(2012-07-31)According to traditional theory, superior competitive ability in plants generally requires a relatively large plant body size. Yet, within natural, crowded vegetation, most resident species are small, and species size ... -
Relationships Between Winter Energetic Condition and Reproductive Investment in a Wild Bird
Reproduction is an energetically demanding life history stage that comprises costly physiological and behavioural changes. Despite these costs, some individuals invest more in reproduction, and breed more successfully than ... -
The Relative Importance of Population Size, Colonist Quality, and Colonist Arrival Frequency for Population Success
Successful population establishment, subsequent population dynamics, and extinction have all repeatedly been shown to be affected by the quantity of initial colonists. However, there are other, less studied factors that ... -
Reliability, Accuracy, and Tracking Techniques of Inuit Hunters in Estimating Polar Bear Characteristics From Tracks
(2010-08-17)Inuit estimates of polar bear characteristics from tracks could complement ongoing capture-mark-recapture methods to frequently monitor polar bear populations in response to climate-induced habitat changes. Before the ... -
The response of Cladocera assemblages and size structure to multiple stressors in three Kawartha lakes (Ontario) over the last 200 years)
The Kawartha lakes region has experienced many impacts from human activities since the European settlement in early 1800s including damming, logging, agricultural activities, fisheries, urbanization, and the introduction ... -
Response of cladocerans to native and invasive invertebrate predators in Lake Simcoe, Canada
How populations respond to changing environmental conditions is critical to their survival. Organisms can respond adaptively to new environmental conditions, for example an invasive predator, by the expression of phenotypic ... -
The Response of Discostella Species to Climate Change at the Experimental Lakes Area, Canada
(2014-07-02)Global climate change is threatening both our water quality and quantity. Specifically, the influence of climate change on freshwater lakes includes decreased water availability, increased evapotranspiration, changes in ... -
Responses of zooplankton community structure and ecosystem function to the invasion of an invertebrate predator, Bythotrephes longimanus
(2007-07-20)Freshwater ecosystems face unprecedented levels of human-induced stresses and it is expected that the invasion of non-indigenous species will cause the greatest loss of biodiversity in lakes and rivers worldwide. Bythotrephes ... -
A Role for Insulin Signaling in Regulating the PTEN Tumour Suppressor in Caenorhabditis Elegans
(2013-02-05)Many obese individuals and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients have elevated levels of insulin. Hyperinsulinemia is a major cancer risk factor in T2DM individuals and activated insulin receptor (IR) has been linked ... -
The Role of Breeding Habitat Loss in the Decline of Eastern Whip-Poor-Will (Antrostomus Vociferus) Populations in Canada
(2015-09-21)Populations of birds that feed on flying insects (i.e., aerial insectivores) have been declining for several decades in North America, yet the cause of these declines is poorly understood. Among aerial insectivores, Eastern ... -
Role of bubbling from aquatic sediments in mercury transfer to a benthic invertebrate in the St. Lawrence River, Cornwall, Ontario
(2009-01-05)Benthic uptake of mercury (Hg) governs bioavailability to fish yet there are still large gaps in our knowledge of what mediates this process. Without this information it is difficult to ascertain where Hg accumulation in ... -
The Role of Chironomids as Paleoecological Indicators of Eutrophication in Shallow Lakes Across a Broad Latitudinal Gradient
The aquatic larvae of chironomids (Diptera, Chironomidae) were historically classified according to lake trophic status, and taxa classified as “eutrophic” were labeled as such because of adaptations for surviving hypoxic ... -
The Role of Dispersal During the Recovery of Acid-Damaged Zooplankton Communities
(2011-12-21)Ecologists studying acid-damaged zooplankton communities have often documented a time lag in recovery following pH increases. While previous work has provided a solid understanding of the local factors that may delay ...