Browsing Department of Biology Graduate Theses by Title
Now showing items 150-169 of 331
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Factors mediating the distribution and impact of the non-native invertebrate predator Bythotrephes longimanus
(2013-06-17)Predicting the impacts of non-native species remains one of the greatest challenges to invasion ecologists. Because of their insularity, freshwater systems are particularly vulnerable to invasions, especially from non-native ... -
Feeding Hungry Plants: The Secreted Purple Acid Phosphatase Isozymes AtPAP12 and AtPAP26 Play a Pivotal Role in Extracellular Phosphate Scavenging in Arabidopsis Thaliana
(2012-08-28)Orthophosphate (Pi) is a limiting macronutrient in most soils and is essential for plant metabolism. Massive amounts of Pi-fertilizers are applied to agricultural fields to compensate for this limitation. However, ... -
The Feeding Mechanism of the Freshwater Gastropod (Bellamya Aeruginosa) – Realizing its Potential in Controlling Cyanobacterial Harmful Algal Blooms
Cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (CHABs) caused by eutrophication seriously impact aquatic ecosystems and human health. Biomanipulation using foraging organisms to regulate and eradicate harmful algal growth has been ... -
Female Ornamentation in the American Robin
(2014-01-30)Ornamental traits in male birds have been the subject of much research effort, and sexual selection is recognized as the leading explanation for their evolution. The expression of ornamental traits in females has received ... -
Female Perspectives on Breeding Phenology in Eastern Ontario Gray Treefrogs
(2015-09-21)Studies of the forces that shape local adaptation contribute to our understanding of origins of range-wide variation, speciation, and potential responses to changing environments. Phenology is an important component of ... -
Fish Distributions in Lake Ontario's Eastern Basin and the Upper St. Lawrence River: An Analysis Using GIS and Occupancy Modelling Techniques
Predictive models of species distributions are important tools for fisheries management. Unfortunately, these predictive models can be difficult to perform on large waterbodies where fish are difficult to detect and ... -
Fleeing Predation: the Effect of Copper Exposure on Inducible Antipredator Defenses in Daphnia Pulicaria Clones From a Historically Metal Contaminated Lake
(2012-04-05)Antipredator defenses are ubiquitous in aquatic ecosystems. In the widely studied Chaoborus-Daphnia predator-prey system, Daphnia elicit a variety of phenotypically plastic responses to Chaoborus including: morphological, ... -
Food Quality Effects On Life History Trait Correlations In Daphnia
(2014-03-31)Life history theory assumes that correlations among fitness-related life history traits should be negative among individuals, reflecting resource allocation constraints among traits such as growth and reproduction. These ... -
From Genes to Genomes: Local Adaptation and Adaptive Potential in Two Arctic Seabirds
By investigating the mechanisms underlying the evolution and the maintenance of local adaptations we can help predict how species will adapt to future environmental change. In this thesis I investigate local adaptation and ... -
The function, characterization of expression, localization and activity of a divergent ice nucleating protein from Pseudomonas borealis
(2012-05-15)An ice nucleating protein (INP) with 66% amino acid sequence identity to the better-known INP of Pseudomonas syringae has been described in an environmental isolate of P. borealis and designated InaPb. Despite the fact ... -
Functional Genomics Indicates a Minor Role for the Purple Acid Phosphatase Isozyme AtPAP17 in Arabidopsis Thaliana Phosphorus Metabolism
Phosphorus (P) is a crucial plant macronutrient, as it is a constituent of essential biomolecules involved in nearly all major metabolic processes. However, soluble orthophosphate (Pi), the only form of P that roots directly ... -
Functional Analysis of Human Eph Receptor Homologs Using C. elegans as a Model
(2011-07-05)The Eph receptor tyrosine kinases are a highly conserved family of proteins involved in a variety of developmental processes. As well, the Eph receptors appear to play a pivotal role in the development and progression of ... -
A functional analysis of mitotic tyrosine phosphatases by site-directed mutagenesis
(2013-09-12)In Schizosaccharomyces pombe mitosis is initiated when Cdc25 tyrosine phosphatase dephosphorylates Cdc2 (Cdk1) and in turn Cdc2 kinase phosphorylates mitotic targets. Cdc2 is thought to phosphorylate and further activate ... -
Functional Characterization of Teleost Intrinsic Photosensitive Dermal Chromatophores
(2013-08-27)Mammalians process their photoreceptions through lateral eyes; however, non-mammalian vertebrates and invertebrates possess additional extraretinal photoreceptors over their bodies to detect light stimuli. Chromatophores, ... -
Functional Diversity in Colour Vision of Fish
(2012-05-14)The overall objective of this thesis was to understand better the mechanisms that shape the diversity in colour vision of fish, and to explore the adaptive significance of this divergence. Among the vertebrates, teleost ... -
Functional size traits in crowded vegetation: when bigger isn’t better
Why do some species within crowded vegetation have greater numerical abundance than others? Functional traits are often explored as predictors of success under certain habitat conditions, and in the context of competition, ... -
A G-protein coupled receptor is involved in the regulation of sleep and metabolism
(2014-03-03)Sleep is an evolutionary conserved behaviour which in most species is essential for survival. However, the mechanisms involved in the genetic regulation of sleep remain poorly understood. C. elegans exhibit a number of ... -
Genetic architecture and sexual conflict in the life history of Drosophila
Because males and females of a species express many homologous traits, sex-specific selection on these traits can shift the opposite sex away from its phenotypic optimum. This mode of sexually antagonistic selection, known ... -
The Genetic Architecture of Life History in Drosophila
(2014-05-07)An organism’s entire life history - the timing of development, reproduction, senescence and death - can depend on the nature of selection for reproductive age. The outcome of selection will depend both on the particular ... -
Genetic Evidence for Differential Activities of Goa Isoforms in Drosophila Melanogaster
(2014-12-12)Mental illness is prevalent in our population and has been studied for decades but is still poorly understood. Understanding the genetic and biological mechanisms underlying these disorders can lead to significant improvements ...