Biological Sciences presentations (MU)
Permanent URI for this collection
Items in this collection represent public presentations made by the Department of Biological Sciences faculty, staff, and students, either alone or as co-authors, and which may or may not have been published in an alternate format. Items may contain more than one file type.
Browse
Recent Submissions
Item Using simple nervous systems to investigate the neural basis of behavior(2010) McClellan, Andrew; Schul, Johannes; Schulz, David; Zars, Troy Daniel; University of Missouri (System); Missouri Life Sciences Summit (2010: University of Missouri--Kansas City)The human brain is remarkable, both in the sense that it helps us with a lifetime of decisions and memories, but also that it allows us to contemplate how the brain itself works. One concludes, however, pretty quickly that the human brain is quite complicated. The brain has an estimated 1011 neurons, and more than a thousand times more connections. How these neurons and connections work together in systems is a grand challenge in the neurosciences. Fortunately, we can use organisms with simpler nervous systems to understand basic principles of nervous system function. For example, the first insights into the generation of nerve cell action potentials were determined in a squid giant neuron. Principles derived from these neurons are incorporated into most or all computational models used today. Thus, one expects lessons learned in simpler nervous systems to have application in more complex organisms, including humans. A successful approach in understanding nervous system function is to examine the role that different neural systems play in regulating behavior. Broadly speaking these include processes that support sensory encoding, motor activity, and multisensory and sensory-motor integration. Animals have developed sensory systems to sense the world around them. Audition and temperature perception are two of a few of the sensory modalities that are critical for communication and detecting ideal environments. Katydid hearing systems solve perceptual problems that are common to all hearing systems, such as the recognition of complex temporal patterns, or the detection of important signals in noisy backgrounds. Remarkably, katydids solve these problems with a sensory system encompassing only few neurons. In other studies, the ability to sense temperatures has been addressed in the fruit fly Drosophila. One can differentiate between neural systems important for sensing relatively cool and warm temperatures. Motor systems are critical for several animal behaviors, from regulating gut activity to locomotion. Studies of nervous system ganglia in the crab and lobster have identified principles of nerve cell interactions and modulation. Furthermore, mechanisms regulating brain circuits that initiate swimming behavior in the lamprey tell us that they are similar in a wide variety of vertebrates. Finally, one can begin to understand cellular mechanisms of nervous system regeneration after spinal cord injury in simpler vertebrates that are able to behaviorally recover following such injuries. Multisensory and sensory-motor integration provide essential elements for plasticity in the nervous system. The trigeminal system in the lamprey provide a starting point to determine how sensory inputs feed into brain locomotor command systems to initiate behavior. Also, plasticity underlying longer-lived changes in behavior with learning can be addressed in studies of memory formation. In Drosophila, several molecular and neural systems underlying multiple forms of memory have been identified, including implications of cAMP / PKA activity and serotonin reinforcement. Thus, one can use relatively simple organisms, from insects and crustaceans to lamprey, in determining principles of nervous system function. Results at the sensory, motor, and integrative levels are expected to influence our understanding of more complex systems.Item Enhancement of plant vision to increase drought tolerance and bioproduction [abstract](2009) Holland, Jennifer J.; Celaya, R. Brandon, 1979-; Leuchtman, Daniel; Juenger, Thomas; Galen, Candace Elizabeth; Liscum, Emmanuel; University of Missouri (System); Missouri Energy Summit (2009 : University of Missouri--Columbia)Energy needs of the worlds growing population have become central issues to policy and science discussion over the past few years. Not only are our non-renewable sources of energy being depleted at alarming rates, their consumption is also a major contributor to the accumulation of atmospheric greenhouse gases. It is clear that new solutions to old problems must be found, and in this context the production and harnessing of biofuel products holds great promise. Plant-based bioproduction has the great advantage that biofuel production can be creatively couple with food production, another pressing 21st Century issue. Water availability represents the major limitation to increased plant-based production, both in the U.S. and around the world. Therefore development of plants that are better able to access and utilize this limiting resource is paramount. Our studies in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana have shown that mutants lacking the key photoreceptor protein, phototropin 1 (phot1), that mediates a plants response to directional blue light fail to orient their root growth properly and thus exhibit increased drought susceptibility (Galen et al. 2004, 2007). Conversely, mutations in phot1 that confer increased responsiveness to blue light appear to increase drought tolerance. We are now exploring ways to recapitulate this exciting phenotype through the generation of GMOs, both in this model species and in crop plants. This approach holds great potential as even minor increases in drought tolerance in plants can result in dramatic increases in bioproduction, the ultimate goal of a plant-based biofuels industry.Item Plant Adaptation to Drought --- Interdisciplinary Research at the University of Missouri [abstract](2009) Sharp, Bob (Robert E.); Fritschi, Felix B., 1969-; Galen, Candace Elizabeth; Kallenbach, Robert L.; Liscum, Emmanuel; Nguyen, Henry T.; Oliver, Melvin J.; Pallardy, Stephen G.; Shannon, J. Grover; Sleper, D. A.; Xiong, Xi; University of Missouri (System); Missouri Energy Summit (2009 : University of Missouri--Columbia)Drought is the most important cause of crop failure in Missouri and limits plant productivity in large parts of the US and the world. Drought induces severe reductions in average annual crop yields on a regional scale and can have devastating effects at the farm level. Regional droughts can also strikingly reduce net primary productivity of natural ecosystems. Research on plant adaptation to drought is a long-standing, important component of MU faculty members, who comprise a strong, collaborative team of university and USDA-ARS scientists and are among the international leaders in drought research. Group members represent expertise from a broad range of disciplines, including plant physiology, agronomy, forestry, plant breeding, molecular biology, biotechnology, entomology, plant pathology, and soil science. Areas of research span from basic to applied aspects of plant adaptation to drought, fostering the translation of basic discoveries of underlying mechanisms to the delivery of more drought-tolerant crops at the doorsteps of American farmers. In addition to local collaborations, the team interacts with other scientists in the state of Missouri (e.g. Danforth Plant Sciences Center and Washington University in St. Louis) and at the national and international levels (including Australia, England, India, Mexico [CIMMYT], and The Philippines [International Rice Research Institute]). Active research projects conducted by the drought community at MU include research funded by state, federal, commodity group (e.g. Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council, United Soybean Board, Cotton Inc.) and private (Monsanto, Syngenta) sources. Of particular note, members of the group were recently awarded over $1.5 million from the Missouri Life Sciences Research Board to establish “rainout shelters” that will allow control of precipitation under field conditions. The ability to manage the timing, duration, and intensity of water deficit stress under field conditions is essential to examine plant responses to drought and interactions of drought and biotic stresses in mid-western environments. The track record of excellence in drought research and the broad range of expertise of the interdisciplinary group provide fertile grounds for creative and productive research endeavors that are directed to optimize crop and woody plant biomass production.Item From plant to the pump : how plant genome research at MU is helping to achieve bioenergy goals(2009) Walker, John C.; University of Missouri (System); Missouri Energy Summit (2009 : University of Missouri--Columbia)Part of America's answer to the current energy crisis could be fuels made from plants. Fuel made from plant materials, such as cellulose or corn kernels, not only holds promise of reducing our nation's dependence on foreign sources of energy, but also offers a 'green' alternative to traditional petroleum-based fuels. Researchers are investigating a number of different plants as possible sources of biofuels, with corn, soybean, switchgrass, algae, and sugar cane, being the most popular. No matter the source, the process of converting plant material into fuel will require fundamental knowledge of plant development and growth in response to changing environments. For example, production of cellulosic ethanol requires a genetic understanding of how plants control the composition and structure of their cell walls. A number of faculty in the Interdisciplinary Plant Group at the University of Missouri are working on projects that could help scientists and engineers develop new energy crops. Plant sciences at MU could also lead to other improvements in energy crops, including maximizing their productivity, increasing their resistance to pests and drought, and reducing the need for fertilizers.