Browsing Department of Biology Graduate Theses by Title
Now showing items 261-280 of 345
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Optimisation of Cadmium Selenide Quantum Dot Biosynthesis in Saccharomyces Cerevisiae and the Role of Glutathione
(2015-10-06)The biosynthesis of quantum dots has been explored as an alternative to traditional physicochemical methods; however, relatively few studies have determined optimal synthesis parameters. Saccharomyces cerevisiae sequentially ... -
Optimization and Purification of Cadmium Sulfide Quantum Dots Biosynthesized by the Fungus Fusarium Oxysporum
(2016-04-28)Cadmium sulfide (CdS) quantum dots have been synthesized extracellularly by the fungus Fusarium oxysporum when treated with CdSO4 in aqueous conditions. The quantum dots produce an emission range primarily between 450 and ... -
Origins of Genetic Variation and Population Structure of Foxsnakes Across Spatial and Temporal Scales
(2011-01-11)Understanding the events and processes responsible for patterns of within species diversity, provides insight into major evolutionary themes like adaptation, species distributions, and ultimately speciation itself. Here, ... -
Paleolimnological Assessment of Algal Production During the Holocene Thermal Maximum from the Sediment Record of a Boreal Lake in Northeastern Ontario
The Holocene Thermal Maximum (HTM) was a period of enhanced warmth during the early-to- mid Holocene period largely caused by enhanced solar insolation. In northwestern Ontario, the HTM was characterized by a lower abundance ... -
Paleolimnological assessment of environmental changes occurring on Pim Island, Nunavut, High Arctic Canada
(2010-12-23)Despite the documented sensitivity of polar environments, long-term monitoring data are especially sparse in these regions. Diatom-based paleolimnology has contributed significantly to understanding the response of Arctic ... -
Paleolimnological assessment of Holocene climatic and environmental change in two lakes located in different regions of the Canadian Arctic tundra
(2008-11-12)Paleoclimatic research in the Canadian Arctic has increased in recent decades; however, there is still much to learn about the nature and extent of past climate change in this vast, environmentally sensitive region. This ... -
A paleolimnological assessment of recent environmental changes in lakes of the western Canadian Arctic
(2013-04-17)The freshwater ecosystems in the western Canadian Arctic are threatened by multiple and interacting stressors, as high-latitude regions are undergoing rapid change resulting from climate warming and other human-related ... -
A Paleolimnological Examination of Cladoceran (Branchiopoda, Crustacea) Assemblages in Softwater Nova Scotia (Canada) Lakes and Their Responses to Multiple Stressors
(2012-08-22)The Canadian province of Nova Scotia has an abundance of lakes impacted by multiple stressors, including acidification, lakewater calcium (Ca) decline, climate change, and fish introductions. In spite of this, little is ... -
Parallel Divergence by Allochrony and Cryptic Speciation in two Highly Pelagic Seabird Species Complexes (Hydrobates spp.)
Sympatric speciation, the evolution of reproductive isolation between populations without physical barriers to dispersal, is less likely than allopatric speciation due to the need to overcome potentially homogenizing gene ... -
Partitioning resources through the seasons: a test of the competitive ability – cold tolerance trade-off hypothesis in seasonally breeding beetles
Understanding the factors that maintain and constrain biodiversity and species coexistence is a major goal in ecology. Closely related species that use similar resources often differ in their seasonal patterns of activity, ... -
Phenotypic Plasticity Drives Phenological Change in Mandt's Black Guillemot (Cepphus Grylle MandtII)
The ability of individuals to change breeding time is predicted to be an important aspect of adapting to climate change. Changes in breeding time could occur through either behavioural adjustment of breeding time or ... -
Phylogeography of Brown and Red-Footed Boobies: a Complex History of Isolation and Gene Flow
(2012-04-30)Speciation is an important process that is responsible for the generation of biodiversity on Earth. The importance of gene flow during speciation is hotly debated; however, it can be investigated by studying the process ... -
Physiological and Behavioural Responses of Largemouth Bass Yearlings (Micropterus salmoides) to Hypoxia at Summer and Winter Temperatures
(2008-10-21)The main objective of this thesis was to determine the metabolic and behavioural outcomes from hypoxia exposure to largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) yearlings when acclimated to either winter (5°C) or summer (20°C) ... -
Phytoextraction of lead from contaminated soil by Panicum virgatum L. (switchgrass) and associated growth responses
(2007-08-02)Growing interest in biomass crops for energy production has focused attention on Panicum virgatum L. (switchgrass) as a promising perennial feedstock native to much of North America. Switchgrass may be processed into ... -
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 ... -
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 ...