2014 Abstracts

William Ng, Utah Valley University Social and Behavioral Sciences This paper draws on leadership and behavioral theory in a public context to ascertain the full necessity of the sustainability officer to engender, sustain, and develop sustainability movements in higher education institutions and municipalities. As sustainability rises in awareness and demand from university and municipal stakeholders — influenced by political and educational discourse, the sustainability officer plays a vital role in conceptualizing, interpreting, and manifesting the abstract principles that stems from sustainability movements. Specifically, this study looks at the emergence of the sustainability officer, who they are, where they come from, what they do, and the outlook of future trends. Moreover, this paper looks at the structural positions of where sustainability officers fit in the organizational hierarchy and question whether they fall in line with contemporary political theory of public organizations. Furthermore, through interviews with Sustainability Managers/Coordinators/Directors, an intimate look into where they have been effective, where they could progress, and what they envision for themselves in the future has been garnished. Finally, these interviews manifest the establishment of the pragmatic connection between organizational theory and practice, allowing an exposition of the evolution of centralized sustainability leadership.

Lucas Brook, Brigham Young University Social and Behavioral Sciences Present day Peru finds itself in the midst of an interesting transition. Government decentralization is creating increased levels of political participation among the historically skeptical citizenry (Crabtree 2011). While some Peruvians participate through established institutional channels such as voting, campaigning or contacting political leaders, many others choose to engage in community improvement activities, private organization undertakings, or public protests as their avenue of political participation (Booth and Seligson 2009). What causes some Peruvians to participate in these extra-governmental activities while others use established government institutions? Although the causes of political participation are vast, this study focuses on political knowledge (both actual and perceived) as the independent variable. I hypothesize that Peruvians with less political knowledge (actual or perceived) understand (or at least perceive that they understand) less about Peru’s democratic institutions. Therefore, they will forgo participation through these established government institutions and employ extra-governmental means when participating politically. This hypothesis will be tested through the performing of regression analysis using data from Vanderbilt University’s AmericasBarometer survey project conducted in Peru in 2012. The results of this research will illustrate the effects that citizen’s political knowledge have on their participation in extra-governmental activism.

Sarah Dursteler, Weber State University Communications The culture of sex outside intimate relationships including dating scripts and sexual scripts has shifted to one of more ambiguity. Multiple changes in sexual scripts have occurred in the last 50 years with the diversification of types of relationships in which sex occurs, including, a greater acceptance of sex outside of relationships (Gagnon & Simon, 1987). This study is in response to the call for more research on how social identities influence perceptions of sexual interaction (Backstrom, Armstrong, and Puentes, 2012). The purpose of this study is to examine hook-up culture outside of traditional intimate relationships. This study explores the extent of the shift from traditional dating scripts to a culture of hooking up as perceived by males and females that identify with the predominant Latter-Day Saint (LDS) religious culture. Using the tenants of social exchange and scripting theories this study examined the attitudes of males and females. Transcripts from four same gender and religion focus groups and 100 open-ended survey responses provided data for analysis. The constant comparative method (Glaser and Strauss, 1967) provided the means by which to analyze data within emergent categories. One open-ended response question was reviewed to assess content theme analysis. The constant comparative method indicated distinct contrast of perceptions of sexual intimacy between males and females. Findings suggest that there are distinct differences between male and female and LDS and non-LDS attitudes about and perceptions of hook-up culture. These results are consistent with previous research indicating that hooking-up can be a functional strategy used to shift focus from traditional intimate relationships to more academic and professional goals.

Taylor Topham, Dixie State University Communications With the new generations comes new forms of entertainment. Rarely is there a home without a television. The Cultivation Theory presented by George Gerbner and his colleagues states that television is so common in our society that it has an affect on our perceptions of the world. The Cultivation Theory specifically looks at violence on television and its effects on the viewer. Those that are heavy viewers of television often have what is known as mean-world syndrome. Because of the violence they watch on television, they are more likely to see the world as a violent place (Littlejohn & Foss, 2011). Along with a television often comes some type of video gaming system. Studies state that over 65% of North American households now have a video gaming system (Chiawen, Aiken & Huang, 2012). The purpose of this research is to determine if video gaming effects the perception of individuals similarly to that of television as described by George Gerbner’s Cultivation Theory.

Emma Penrod, Brigham Young University Communications A newspaper is the catalog of a community’s past. I spent about three years researching the impact of industrialization on Tooele from a variety of angles, primarily by reading archived newspapers from 1905 to 1970. During this time, I also collected and scanned nearly 200 original photographs. Industrialization came to Tooele in force in 1908, with the construction on the International Smelter and the Tooele Valley Railroad. Prior to the railroad and the smelter, Tooele was a small, predominantly Mormon community with an agrarian economy. Construction of the railroad, the smelter, and several affiliated projects could have employed 72 percent of every man, woman and child living in Tooele City in the early 1900s. An influx of immigrants changed the social landscape dramatically, reshaping Tooele as one of Utah’s most diverse communities. Through the early 1900s, conflict between the original Mormon settlers and the transplants embroiled the community in something of a perpetual identity crisis. Temporarily, a sort of physical segregation solved the problem-Mormons lived west of Main Street, and the immigrants set up shop east of Main Street. But it wouldn’t be long before the Tooele newspapers came to accept the newcomers and the advertising revenue they had to offer. The Great Depression and football, of all things, finally brought the community back together, and throughout the 1940s and 1950s, the immigrant families were invited to fly their native colors at important community events that celebrated Tooele’s heritage.

Jessica Read, Brigham Young University Communications As the world of online social networking has changed to accommodate public interest, online dating sites have become increasingly popular. With this new trend in social media there has been an increased awareness as to how one might present him or herself in the most favorable way possible through computer mediated stimuli. To find out if nonverbal cues played a significant role in online impression formation, we had males and females randomly assigned to one of two variables, where they viewed stimuli of a member of the opposite gender. The stimuli that was presented was either a photograph accompanied by a written autobiography about a member of the opposite gender, or a video of the person reading their own autobiography, which allowed for the presence of nonverbal cues. Participants rated the subjects in the assigned stimuli on a number of different scales ranging from trustworthiness to sexual attractiveness based on their first impressions. Results showed no significant differences between the presence of nonverbal cues in the video stimuli or the photographic stimuli, reasoning for the indifference participants had towards the nonverbal cues is discussed. However, there were significant gender differences among the first impressions formed, other findings are presented.

Sydney Tycksen, Utah Valley University Communications An award winning research project, this summary highlights research conducted by Communication students at Utah Valley University of a grassroots public relations campaign created to increase awareness among middle school students, parents, educators, and community leaders of the serious short and long term consequences of youth bullying. The study also demonstrates how the campaign informed audiences of the steps they should take to help prevent bullying. The goal of the research was to understand the short-and-long term effects of bullying, types of bullying, and the prominence of bullying in the surrounding community where the research was conducted. A public relations strategic communication plan was developed based on the research to change bullying behavior in the community. The campaign aimed to spread awareness of the short and long term effects of bullying and outline the steps to report and prevent bullying through the development of strategies and tactics. These steps help students, parents, educators, and community members understand bullying, recognize the signs and types, and know the appropriate authority to whom to report the behavior. This presentation will show how the research provided the students with the information needed to establish measureable objectives for the campaign, reach their key publics and provide an evaluation of the strategies and tactics used to meet campaign objectives. The document reviews the outcome and evaluation of each strategy and tactic implemented during the campaign, including media relations and social media tactics, The summary concludes with an overview of how campaign objectives of teaching key publics how to take steps to prevent bullying were achieved due to thorough research and understanding of how to effectively use messaging to generate behavior changes within the key public.

Emma Josey, Dixie State University Communications Romance novels seem to be a staple in the devoted reader’s array of books and have remained an extremely popular genre throughout the centuries. Not only are the actual stories appealing to the readers, but some readers go a step further and interact with or create a relationship with characters themselves. A phenomenon called parasocial interaction. This research study seeks to discover if the parasocial interactions female romance novel readers experience relate to a practice of a particular attachment style and jealousy in their romantic relationships. These characteristics are important to the health and sustainability of people’s romantic relationships, and this study seeks to learn whether or not the quasi relationships romance novel readers create with characters influences those relationships.

Indigo Klabanoff, Dixie State University Communications With globalization and the minority population changing, it is extremely important to learn the real statistics that are out there when it comes to single parenting. The most important thing though, is to figure out is which communication styles work in healthy communication, with single parent families.

María Velasco, Utah Valley University Agriculture Calochortus is a plant genus that includes approximately 60 species distributed in North America with great ornamental and ethnotobanical value. Sego lily, mariposa lily and other common names have been used to describe the different species of Calochortus. Native Americans and settlers have used the bulbs as food, either raw or ground into flour and cooked. C. nuttallii played an important role in the success of colonization of Utah. Between 1840 and 1851 the scarcity of food due to a plague of crickets led to the pioneers to dig for the bulbous roots of sego lily, ensuring the survival of the pioneer population. This research studies the effects of Gibberellic acid on the germination and elongation of these species in vivo and in vitro. Eight different species of Calochortus are being utilized for this experiment to evaluate the effect of this growth regulator on the germination of these species. Different types of media are being tested to evaluate the optimal in vitro conditions that these species require for germination and growth. In addition embryogenesis and organogenesis is being induced by using Benzyl Amino Purine and 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid at different concentrations. Sego Lily is the State flower of Utah; micropropagating this plant will allow us to understand and research new methods and conditions to grow these species successfully, making preservation possible since some Calochortus species have been listed as endangered. In addition, other species such as Calohortus ambiguous (Doubting Mariposa Lily), which is distributed in Utah, Arizona and New Mexico, will also benefit from the system developed in this research because they are closely related to Sego Lily (C. nuttallii). The long term goal of this research is to establish an appropriate micropropagation system for a wide variety of Calochortus species.

Sara Calicchia, Utah State University Humanities Successful writing, achieved by self-regulated writers, depends not only upon focus and content, but also the writing environment, including the physical and social setting, which varies greatly among writers. Just as musical tastes differ among individuals, there are strong preferences regarding the role of music in a writing setting. To better understand the environmental self-regulation of writers, I selected a group of twelve high-achieving writers with a range of musical interests, including nine professors and three undergraduate students across three academic fields. The results suggest that musical background impacts a writer’s preferred setting, and academic writers should strongly consider this impact when establishing a successful writing environment.

Tyson Amundsen, University of Utah Humanities The focus of my research was to create a database of the various people, institutions, and funding agencies that constituted the discursive community of malaria specialists in Brazil—the network responsible for producing and distributing medical knowledge there from 1850-2012. This database will be used to chart trends in Brazilian research and publishing activities, Brazilian participation in international conferences, the reception of Brazilian research abroad, and Brazilian engagement with the work of foreign researchers.

Bunny Christine Arlotti, Dixie State University Humanities The Rape and Incest National Network (RAINN) reports that over two-thirds of rapes in the United States are “completed” by someone the victim knows: “The rapist isn’t a masked stranger.” RAINN’s rape statistics contrast with Frank Norris’s depiction of rape in The Octopus: A Story of California (1901). Based on an historical event, The Mussel Slough Tragedy (ca. 1880), the novel’s main plot focuses on a group of San Joaquin Valley ranchers who band together to battle the Southern Pacific Railroad’s tyrannical land grab. But out of this epic clash between man and steel emerges a subplot centered on the rape and victimization of a young woman named Angèle Varian. This paper explores the Vanamee-Angèle subplot, examining how Norris stereotypes Angèle and blames her for her own victimization. By treating Angèle as an example of what Paula Hopkins and Kristina Brooks label the “fallen woman,” Norris attempts to arouse the reader’s sympathy, not for Angèle but for her boyfriend, Vanamee, who is also one of the rape suspects. I will support my findings by examining the following works: Stuart Burns in “The Rapists in Frank Norris’s The Octopus,” Maria Brandt in “For His Own Satisfaction: Eliminating the New Woman Figure in Mcteague,” Paula Hopkins and Kristina Brooks in “New Woman, Fallen Woman: The Crisis of Reputation in the Turn of the Century,” and Joseph McElrath in Frank Norris: A Life. Ultimately, from a feminist’s perspective, Norris’s underlying message about his rape victim says volumes about his endorsement of the Victorian perspective toward the “fallen woman”-they were not worth saving, helping, or hearing from ever again.

William Palomo, Westminster College Humanities While researchers have historically marginalized the literature of El Salvador, Alfonso Kijadurías (formerly Alfonso Quijada Urías) has earned an international reputation for his diverse and incisive poetic style. Contextualizing Kijadurías’ work within the Salvadoran literary tradition reveals the historical and political backdrop driving Kijadurías’ political stances and literary experimentation. Examination of the political, philosophical, and mystical obsessions in Kijadurías’ works demonstrates how his literary career has lived up to and outlasted La Generación Comprometida, a politically-charged literature and arts movement that revolutionized the Salvadoran arts scene during the 1950’s. His work challenges contemporary politicians and the philosophy of Deconstructionism in an attempt to guide the reader through a spiritual transformation that leads to the abandonment of the self and ultimately to freedom.

Garrett Norris, University of Utah Humanities In this abstract, I will summarize the major differences and similarities I have found between Chinese and Japanese concepts of loyalty represented in the the three classical texts I analyzed.

Jane Hise, Dixie State University Humanities Modern cultural perceptions of appropriate gendered behavior can pressure individuals into unhealthy, often self-destructive, behaviors in an attempt to attain an unachievable paradigm of gendered and sexual perfection. Social norms, however, are transitory and therefore, any attempts to achieve gendered perfection based on these norms are at best inauthentic performances, and the dangers inherent in the pursuit of such skewed perceptions of masculinity and femininity are inherently dangerous to the physical and emotional health of the individual. While we are not likely to eliminate the indoctrination of current or future generations into the culturally sanctioned roles of gender performance entirely, recognizing the artifice in these expectations and behaviors can expand the boundaries of socially accepted standards to allow for healthier expressions of identity.

Megan Armknecht, Brigham Young University Humanities Transcendentalist writers such as Margaret Fuller, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Amos Bronson Alcott were highly influenced by the German Romantic philosopher, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Louisa May Alcott, one of the later transcendentalists, was also an admirer of Goethe’s work and philosophy. Although considerable research has been done on the influence of Goethe on Alcott’s later works, such as A Long and Fatal Love Chase, A Modern Mephistopheles, and “The Freak of a Genius”, there has been much less research done on the Goethean influence on Little Women, and none at all on the resonances between Jo’s love interest, the German professor Dr. Bhaer, and Goethe. This research will explore the connection between Louisa May Alcott, Dr. Bhaer, and the Goethean ideal as developed in Alcott’s writing. In my presentation, I will show the importance of this connection as it adds significant depth to Little Women.

Emily Simmons, Utah Valley University Humanities In Franz Kafka’s novel The Trial, the protagonist Josef K. is accused and ultimately punished for an unspecified crime of which he proclaims himself innocent. This paper examines Kafka’s novel through a religious studies approach—specifically, offering a reading of the Judeo-Christian myth of the fall of Adam and Eve, as exemplified in The Trial. I thus posit that K. is a type of post-fall Everyman who suffers the effects of the fall, attempts to restore himself to a Edenic state, but rejects the opportunity to be the fallen world’s savior and instead resigns humankind to continued suffering. To substantiate my argument I analyze four aspects of the novel. First, I examine K.’s conversation with the priest as they discuss the nature and origin of K.’s guilt. Next, I show that K.’s compulsive sexual behavior is his attempt to attain a spiritual completeness through sexual intercourse. Then, I find that as K. is suffering the effects of Adam’s fall, so too are the women suffering from the curse of Eve. Finally, I explore instances where K. exhibits similarities to the Biblical Jesus Christ, arguing that K. has the chance to perform a “savior” role but refuses. In addition to my analysis of the primary text, this paper also draws on contemporary scholars who discuss themes both Biblical and secular with an eye toward understanding K. and his relationship with women and the world around him. As a result of this analysis, I conclude that although K. is demoralized from the corrupt judicial system, maze of pointless bureaucracy, and hollow authority of the novel’s priest, he continues to seek, until the very minute of his death, salvation from the effects of the fall.

Romy Franks, Brigham Young University Humanities Following the Second World War, the adventurous westerns of 19th-century author Karl May resurfaced in Germany as wildly popular pulp fiction and dime novels. In subsequent decades, May’s literature inspired several successful film adaptations in the West, followed by alternative “Indian films” in the East. Karl May and the contemporary phenomenon of the global Western film genre tapped into many themes central to Germany’s long, tortured quest for a national identity. Post-war Germans looked to Westerns as a means for “projecting” a new image of Germany to the world-one that could help overcome the stigma of Nazism.

Haylee Jones, Dixie State University Humanities Cesar Chavez, who experienced poverty and exploitation by way of labor practices as an adolescent, became a man who committed himself to making a positive impact on the working conditions for immigrant farm workers in America. He left a fading footprint that others have been reluctant to follow. This paper will examine various role models like Juana Estrada Chavez, Chavez’s mother, and Dolores Huerta, Chavez’s closest associate, who were big influences in Chavez’s decision to become a leader in the civil rights movements as explained by author Kathleen Krull. Authors Susan Ferriss and Ricardo Sandoval elucidated on many of Chavez’s achievements such as the organization of the United Farm Workers (UFW), a group created to unionize immigrants, and the orchestration of nonviolent strikes and marches to expose the unfair treatment of multi-ethnic farm workers. Although Chavez persuaded California to sign contracts that discriminated against biased pay and working conditions, many immigrants still work longer, more strenuous hours than the average American to receive only $2.00 an hour and live in beat down shacks they are forced to call home. Cesar Chavez had a vision that should be remembered and re harvested among Americans everywhere in order to continue improving working conditions of all citizens, no matter where they are from.

Christopher Wiltsie, Utah Valley University Humanities Low racial diversity in Utah leads to common assumptions about the lack of racial tensions. This has resulted in a general disregard for the history of civil rights struggles, specifically in education, for people of color in Utah. In the US as a whole, the 1970s featured both legal and social reform in issues of race and its role in education, but accounts from minorities in Utah tell a different story. This project will be a comparative history, analyzing oral histories regarding educational experiences of people of color that lived in Utah immediately after 1968 until 1980, within the context of the trends at the time throughout the United States. Extensive interviews will provide documentation regarding racial tensions and their effects on educational experiences and achievement. The synthesis of these accounts will help fill in the gaps that exist within Utah’s historical record. Obstacles in education for people of color during the 1970s will be discussed and compared to successes and failures throughout the United States.

Mahreen Bashir, University of Utah Humanities A complicated social paradox humanity faces is assessing the union between the seemingly contradictory ideologies of “sustainability” and “growth” into one viable system. Adapting a merger between concepts such as: the retention of cultural values and social systems, industry, urban sprawl, modernity, sanitation, progress and the environment. This objective of this research project centers around using understandings of post-colonial theory to find new connections in South Asian identity through South Asian literature written in English, and the literature’s relationship to ecology. Specifically, it applies the nascent subaltern lens of a historiography that examines South Asia as both a post-colonial subcontinent, and an emerging “superpower,” in the rhetoric of a global economy, to understand a relationship between Indian people and India as place. Questions asked are posed in regard to the affects of orientalism and a cultural infiltration of seeing endemic knowledge to be degenerate in relation to Western academia; Indian-American identity; and the weight of the term “subaltern” through works by South Asian writers. Furthermore, the project uses an ecocritical lens on these works to extract how identity discourse and post-colonialism have created understandings of Indian identity within English literature. The anticipated outcome of this research paper is to create a greater understanding of both emergent academic lenses, and their application in understanding Indian culture and identity as portrayed by works written by Indo-American writers. This research idea was born out of my passion for both ecology and post-colonial studies that I have honed through my studies as an environmental studies and gender studies double major. The main objective is to investigate the plurality of identity, and the ramifications that identity, has on the establishment of more sustainable behavior to counter the impending global crisis the planet is facing in terms of lack of environmental stewardship, and subsequent social justice.

Helen Makhdoumian, Westminster College Humanities Despite roughly a century of Armenian American literary production, the literary theory and criticism on this body of ethnic literature has only started to develop in the last few decades. David Kherdian is an Armenian American writer whose works range from poetry to prose, fiction to memoir, and translations to retellings of Armenian tales. My research focuses on David Kherdian’s poetry collection Homage to Adana, published in 1970. Previous critics have analyzed Kherdian’s poetry for themes such as childhood, familial relationships, self-discovery, and personal and collective memory. Some critics have read some of Kherdian’s poems as reflecting the loss of Armenian culture due to assimilation in the U.S. In contrast, this presentation analyzes the motif of the Armenian coffee house in select poems in Homage to Adana as a space where geographical, generational, and cultural identities are negotiated. Although on the surface these poems indicate a loss of Armenian culture, I argue that they actually indicate a continuation and adaptation of Armenian culture in the U.S. by the younger generation. To support my argument, my approach uses the theoretical lenses of New Historicism and Cultural Studies. I contextualize these texts with the history of the Armenian diaspora and immigration. Furthermore, I include the historical and cultural significance of Armenian coffee houses as well as the use of Armenian coffee in cultural knowledge sharing. In general, the themes I look for are references to the old country, representations of immigrant Armenian men and women, oral storytelling, and food traditions. Ultimately, this analysis reveals how the poems reflect the negotiation of passing on cultural knowledge. By both continuing traditions and adapting them for everyday lived experiences, Armenian culture will remain vibrant in diaspora.

Lee Leavitt, University of Utah Life Sciences The ventral respiratory column (VRC) is a region in the brainstem shown to control breathing patterns in mammals. Using activation and inhibition of neurons in this region, classes have been assigned based on response-combinations. Using a mouse model, cells from this region are dissociated, plated and incubated with a dye that indicates changes in cytoplasmic calcium levels. Hundreds of cells are measured while varieties of pharmacological agents are applied. Response-combinations provide a profile of the receptors found on these neurons. Previously, varieties of cell classes were shown to contain NMDA receptors (receptors linked to learning and memory). However, specific compositions of subunits within these receptors are not known. These receptors are ligand gated ion channels composed of four non-covalently bound proteins. Each subunit has a different activation profile determined by interactions of agonist and antagonists. Conantokins (peptides isolated from snail venom) and other compounds further afford understanding of the architecture the assigned cell-classes. This project has continued to classify the subunit compositions of NMDA receptors with the ultimate goal of understanding which NMDA receptor subunits are present in each class. This will provide valuable information on the VRC’s function, and will allow for pharmacological innervations to change behavior in this region.

Madison Landreth, Weber State University Life Sciences Enterococcus, a bacterial genus that normally inhabits the gastrointestinal tract of animals, can be pathogenic to humans, causing urinary tract infections, sepsis and other serious diseases. It is also one of the major causes of hospital acquired infections. One important complication of those infected with Enterococcus is the fact that these bacteria often have a high level of antibiotic resistance, making effective treatment of patients more difficult. While Enterococcus is a normal inhabitant of the gastrointestinal tract, it can survive outside its host in the environment, even in adverse conditions, such as the Great Salt Lake (GSL). In this experiment, hundreds of isolates of Enterococcus were collected from the Great Salt Lake, from various sites along the Weber River which flows into the GSL and from clinical sources. Isolates were tested for different phenotypic characteristics and for their resistant patterns against certain antibiotics. Preliminary results of the Kirby Bauer disk-diffusion assay demonstrated that 47% of enterococcal isolates from the Great Salt Lake were resistant to one or more of the five antibiotics compared to 98% of the clinical isolates. In contrast, in a previous study, as few as 15% of Enterococcus isolated from the fresh water sources were resistant to one or more of the five antibiotics. These data may have implications concerning the importance of anthropological impact on rates of antibiotic resistance in this genus.

Jeremy Rehm, Brigham Young University Life Science The recent surge of interest in personality differences between individuals of a single population or members of differing populations has generated numerous new hypotheses that may aid in elucidating patterns of ecology and evolution that were previously considered improbable. Two hypotheses relevant to fish biology relate the size of an organism from a certain predation environment to the level of boldness it exhibits. The first of these (predation hypothesis) predicts small individuals living with predators should not express boldness comparable to their larger counterparts, whereas the other (metabolic hypothesis) predicts the exact opposite. Our study investigated these hypotheses using two sister-taxa fish species in Panama (Brachyrhaphis roseni and B. terrabensis) that exhibit two size classes (large and small) and live in differing predation environments. Additionally, because males are smaller than females in both species, we could look at size-boldness relations within each species. The study, as in others, defined boldness as the amount of time for an individual to emerge from a shelter and into an unfamiliar territory. When the species are analyzed collectively, our results support previous findings that fish from high-predation environments tend to be bolder than those without predators; males tend to be bolder than females; and both mass and standard length positively correlate with boldness. However, within species analyses find that mass and standard length have no significant relation to boldness, and gender was only significant in the predation-exposed B.roseni, where males were bolder. These interesting findings contrast with previous studies, and lead us to question the value of these size-related hypotheses in the process of speciation and, ultimately, evolution.

Charlee Byers, Brigham Young University Life Sciences Agave utahensis (Utah agave) plays a critical role as a keystone species in its native habitat. A rise in frequent, intense fires across the range of these habitats threatens to eliminate Utah agave populations, and consequently limit its genetic diversity. Characterizing the genetic diversity of Utah agave and its subspecies will help in restoration efforts to protect the species. We constructed primers to amplify microsatellite markers of two subspecies of Utah agave, ssp. kaibabensis and ssp. utahensis. Using these markers, we determined the level of polymorphism within four populations of each of the two subspecies.

Sean Studstill, Weber State University Life Sciences Imidacloprid is a popular systemic insecticide that has been applied to our staple crops for two decades. According to the EPA, it is persistent in the environment and at risk of effecting non-targeted organisms. Imidacloprid is an insect neurotoxin; however it is also known to be toxic to various aquatic species in concentrations as low as 37 ppb. Ingestion of imidacloprid causes paralysis in organisms through the blockage of postsynaptic nicotinic cholinergic receptors. We sought to find out how toxic imidacloprid is to brine shrimp and what kinds of physiological reactions occur upon exposure.

Jake Gamboa, Brigham Young University Life Sciences It is estimated that approximately 350,000 people in the United Stated die annually from post-myocardial infarction arrhythmias. A majority of these people will undergo a surgery that results in partial or complete removal of the stellate ganglion and other nerve fibers of the pharyngeal space in an attempt to prevent over stimulation from the neurons to the area of dead heart tissue and, therefore, future arrhythmias. However, without a somatomototopy, it is unclear what physiological effects partial or full sympathectomies may have. We will create a three-dimensional map of the pharyngeal space nerve plexus which will, in turn, allow for a more accurate and precise surgery.

Josh Hall, Weber State University Life Sciences Reproduction in birds is extremely conservative with the vast majority of the birds adopting bird-egg contact incubation to maintain an appropriate microclimate for embryonic development (Deeming, 2004). The Great Salt Lake is a vital nesting site for American Avocets (Recurvirostra Americana) that shows extreme temperatures and hostile environments where nest success can be as low as 1 -14% (Cavitt, 2008). Constancy of incubation, i.e. the time that the eggs are in contact with an adult, is a major indicator of nest success and environmental conditions. Our goals were to examine some of the costs natural selection places on embryos and parents to maintain a constant embryo temperature. We hypothesized that incubation attentiveness would increase across the nesting cycle. Over 200 AMAV nests were surveyed. Thermal probes were used to record various nest microclimates at every minute. A pseudonest with painted chicken eggs was also created and a thermal probe was placed to measure the ambient temperature without any adult incubation. A motion sensitive camera was placed over nests to examine differences in parental care. Nests will be divided into three phases: early, mid, and late incubation. Thermal data will be analyzed using descriptive statistics and mean variance values to calculate how incubation constancy varied throughout these phases. We expect this data to tell us more on how natural selection is working on these populations and some possible theories of how this developed.

Goyeun Tun, University of Utah Life Sciences Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) and Fibromyalgia Syndrome (FMS) are disorders which their symptoms and treatments are not clearly known. CFS and FMS are not life threatening diseases; however, they can affect patients’ quality of life because they experience symptoms including exercise intolerance, need for bedrest, and debilitating chronic pain and fatigue with these disorders. The research from Dr. Light’s lab has shown that moderate exercise for 25 minutes causes changes in mRNA levels in CFS and FMS patients but not healthy controls. The objective of our study was to examine changes in white blood cell gene expression of CFS and FMS patients both on Lyrica and on placebo in a double-blinded, cross-over design (where each study subject was his or her own control) by using quantitative PCR gene expression analysis. The lab routinely analyzes blood samples for 48 different genes from study subjects and healthy controls collected before (baseline) and then 8, 24, 48 hours after exercise moderate exercise. My focus was on changes in expression of two ATP-responsive purinergic receptors, P2X7 and P2Y1, which have not been studied after exercise in CFS and FMS but have been associated with chronic inflammation and pain in animal models. White blood cell layers (buffy coat) were collected from samples, RNA was extracted and converted to cDNA. 384 well PCR plates were robotically loaded from 96 well source plates, then the PCR reaction was run in an ABI 7900 thermal cycler that tracks fluorescence in “real time” (real time qPCR). Analysis of results is in progress and will be reported on the poster.

Xin Wan, University of Utah Life Sciences Endothelial dysfunction exists in individuals with diet-induced obesity (DIO) and type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Markers of endothelial dysfunction include reduced phosphorylation (p) of endothelial nitric oxide (NO) synthase (eNOS) to total eNOS (p-eNOS:eNOS), and attenuated endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation. Free fatty acids (FFAs) are elevated in individuals with DIO and T2DM. Our laboratory has shown that when: (i) endothelial cells are incubated with saturated FFA palmitate; (ii) mice are infused with lard-oil; and/or (iii) when mice are fed with high-fat diet, protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) binds directly with eNOS. When this occurs, the association among Akt-Hsp90-eNOS is disrupted, p-eNOS:eNOS is impaired, and endothelium-dependent dysfunction occurs. This is prevented using pharmacological and genetic approaches that limit production of FFA metabolite ceramide. It is unknown whether PP2A inhibition per se is protective. We hypothesized that arterial dysfunction in obese vs. lean mice is prevented by PP2A inhibition. Seven-week-old, male, C57B16 mice consumed standard (CON, n=20) or high-fat (HF, n=20) chow for 12-weeks. Subgroups (n=10) of CON and HF mice received IP injections of saline (vehicle; V) or Lixte Biotechnology 100 (LB1, 1 mg/kg/day) for the last 14-days. Preliminary experiments verified that LB1-treatment for 3 and 21 days decreases (p<0.05) arterial PP2A activity. HF mice gained weight and developed peripheral glucose intolerance vs. CON mice regardless of LB1 treatment. Endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation was impaired (p<0.05) in HF-V vs. CON-V mice, but dysfunction was less severe (p<0.05) in HF-LB1 mice. p-eNOS:eNOS was reduced (p<0.05) in arteries from HF-V vs. CON-V mice, but p-eNOS:eNOS was similar in arteries from HF-LB1 and CON-LB1 mice. Akt and Hsp90 co-immunoprecipitation with eNOS was impaired (p<0.05) in HF-V vs. HF-CON mice, but this was not observed in arteries from HF-LB1 and CON-LB1 mice. These findings suggest that PP2A activity suppression in vivo is sufficient to preserve endothelial function in obese mice.

J David Symons, University of Utah Life Sciences Autophagy plays a central role in cellular quality control by destroying damaged or excess proteins, lipids, membranes, and organelles that accumulate in response to deviations from homeostasis. The existence and role of autophagy in endothelial cells (ECs) and blood vessels has not been established. Autophagy can be quantified by assessing the ratio of the membrane bound conjugate of microtubule-associated protein light chain 3 (LC3-II) to the cytosolic non-lipidated conjugate LC3-1 (LC3-II:LC3-I) or GAPDH (LC3-II:GAPDH) via immunoblotting. We sought to determine the extent to which a variety of cellular stressors induces autophagy in ECs and intact blood vessels. LC3-II:LC3-I or LC3-II:GAPDH was elevated (p<0.05) (i) 450±6% (n=4) in ECs incubated for 2 h in amino acid (AA)-deplete vs. AA-replete media; (ii) 47±3% (n=3) in arteries from fasted (14 h) vs. fasted / refed (1 h) mice; (iii) 40±2% (n=3) in arteries from mice that completed acute exercise vs. sedentary controls; (iv) 38±1% in arteries from exercise-trained vs. sedentary mice under basal conditions (n=2 per group); and was decreased (p<0.05) (v) 57±8% (n=4) in arteries from ~30 month-old (i.e., old) vs. ~6 month-old (i.e., young) mice. Further, indices of autophagy were elevated (p<0.05) 101±6% in ECs exposed to 3 h x 500 uM palmitate vs. vehicle (n=4), and 50±6% in arteries from obese vs. lean mice (n=4 per group). Thus, autophagy is altered in ECs and blood vessels in response to physiological (e.g., fasting, acute exercise, exercise training, aging) and pathophysiological (acute lipotoxicity, diet-induced obesity) stimuli. Ongoing research will determine the functional role of vascular autophagy in health and disease.

Janweb Lagazo, Brigham Young University Life Sciences The scientific community and the general public have long been interested in the effects of water pollution. Most studies on water pollution have focused solely on industrial pollution, but have failed to consider the potential impact of pharmaceuticals that unintentionally accumulate in aquatic ecosystems via wastewater treatment effluents. The purpose of this study is to advance our understanding on how these wastewater effluents affect aquatic ecosystems in Utah. We quantified the concentration of select pharmaceuticals in Hobble Creek using mass spectrometry. Then we sampled above the treatment plant, at the effluent outlet, and downstream of the effluent to determine pre-effluent and post-effluent drug concentrations. We are currently using this preliminary data to investigate how common endocrine disrupting, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and anti-anxiety drugs may potentially affect the aquatic ecosystem of the endangered Chasmistes liorus, commonly known as June sucker.

Dani Peterson, Brigham Young University Life Sciences Due to its long and complicated trajectory through the cranium, facial nerve VII (CN VII) can be damaged in surgeries, sometimes resulting in facial muscle paralysis. Surgical removal of acoustic neuromas and parotid tumors, in addition to surgical repair of the temporomandibular joint disorder are associated with a risk of damage to CN VII. In addition, insertion of auditory implants can damage the nerve, as can improper stimulation to the nerve after the implantation has occurred. We will create a three-dimensional (3D) model based off of data from dissection of the nerve in a human cadaver in order to give physicians a greater in vivo knowledge of the pathway of CN VII. We have dissected the lateral side of the right half of the head to the level of the parotid gland, identified the parotid plexus of CN VII, and followed its five branches. In addition, we are currently following the nerve through the internal auditory meatus on its pathway through the temporal bone. In preparation for the modeling MicroScribe technique described below, we have imaged the head using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) at BYU. These images will be used as a template for the nerve reconstruction model. After completing the dissection, we will track the nerve trajectory using a MicroScribe 3D Digitizer. The MicroScribe technique is used to create 3D computer models of any physical object. The user sets reference points and uses the stylus to trace data points of the object’s contours. Our final product will be a 3D spatial computer mapping of CNVII, as well as a mapping of the skull, parotid gland, and other landmarks to put the nerve model into context. We hypothesize that with our approach and MicroScribe technique, we will be successful in creating an accurate model of CN VII in the head.

Lauren Archibald, Brigham Young University Life Sciences Increased intake of selenium (Se) and soy have both been shown to reduce risk for prostate cancer, especially if these dietary treatments are combined. The purpose of this project is to determine how the timing of Se supplementation of either a low- or high-soy diet affects prostate cancer risk. [C57BL/6 X FVB] F1 TRAMP (TRansgenic Adenocarcinoma of Mouse Prostate) male mice were fed stock diets low or high in soy. Half of the mice received Se supplementation (4.0 mg Se/kg BW as Se-methylselenocysteine) by gavage 5 d/wk in a 2 X 2 factorial design. Se supplementation began at conception, 6 weeks, 12 weeks, or 18 weeks of age. The mice were then sacrificed at different stages of maturation (4, 12, 18, and 24 weeks). Our results showed that, at 12 weeks of age, urogenital tract weights, a measure of prostate proliferation and tumor volume, were significantly reduced by Se supplementation (p<0.001) and by soy (p=0.044), independent of time of dietary intervention. Histological scores of prostate cancer progression also showed a protective effect of Se supplementation (p=0.030). At this writing, statistical analysis of data from mice sacrificed at 18 weeks is in process. Data derived from 18-week mice, combined with our previous findings from 12-week animals, will allow us to chart the progress of prostate cancer in this model. In addition, results will show how dietary Se and soy may alter disease progression and how the timing of dietary intervention may determine its effects.

Claudia Gonzalez, Brigham Young University Life Sciences Cortisol has been shown to be a potential bio-marker as it discriminates between individuals with and without depression (Rush et al., 1996 and Ising et al., 2007). However, cortisol has not been used to predict variation in temperament extremes that lead to pathological behaviors in adulthood. In order to examine the relationship between cortisol and temperament extremes, data from the bio-behavioral assessment (BBA) was used. The BBA data base includes data collected from over 2,700 infant rhesus macaques located in California National Primate Research Center (CNPRC). During the BBA four blood samples per subject are obtained and later assayed for plasma cortisol levels. In this study, the plasma cortisol response levels were looked at in a holistic form encompassing all individual cortisol samples. The four points of plasma cortisol concentrations were used to extract patterns of response per subject which provided classifications for each of the monkeys. The pathological patterns of cortisol response were characterized by abnormal plasma cortisol levels in response to Dexamethasone suppression testing and adrenocorticotropin ACTH injections. The variability in plasma cortisol patterns was then compared to BBA temperament ratings of vigilance, gentle, nervousness and confidence. These results showed that 12 of the 26 possible patterns of response were significantly (p<.05) related to each of the temperament ratings of vigilance, gentleness and confidence. Thus cortisol response patterns can be used both as biomarkers for vigilance, gentleness and confidence, and as potential predictors for pathological behaviors in adulthood.

April McMurray, Brigham Young University Life Sciences Diabetes Mellitus Type 2 (DMT2) is a lifestyle-related disease where the body does not produce enough insulin or the cells are unreceptive to it, and it is now the most common form of diabetes. Individuals who do not control the disease can suffer serious complications such as limb amputation, damage to the eyes, kidneys, nerves, heart, and it can be very costly. This problem is particularly serious in Tonga; the prevalence is almost twice as high as that in the United States. The purpose of this research project was to determine to what extent the cultural, economic, and educational factors contribute to such high prevalence. In May I traveled to Tonga with the nursing students from Brigham Young University to conduct my research. I distributed surveys to patients and medical staff in the diabetes clinic in the Vaiola hospital in Nuku’alofa, Tonga. The surveys had questions related to their socioeconomic status, understanding and attitudes of diabetes, as well as patient management practices. While I was there, I also kept extensive field notes on observations related to my research, which provided supplemental information regarding the Tongan lifestyle that was difficult to gather from the surveys. Preliminary analysis indicates that there has been a very small, positive shift in understanding and attitudes towards DMT2, but economic- and culture-based habits still impede Tongans from managing the disease effectively. There were several limitations to this study: small sample numbers, lack of resources, some resistance from Tongan medical personnel, and particularly cultural barriers made it difficult to gather enough information to come to significant conclusions. However, the research does give insight concerning potential future studies and interventions to help the people of Tonga treat this disease.

Benjamin Gann, Utah Valley University Life Sciences (E)-2,4-bis(p-hydroxyphenyl)-2-butenal (2-Butenal) was shown to inhibit various inflammatory responses by inhibiting NF-kB pathway. A pull-down assay proved 2-butenal to bind to IKKb and was proposed as an active site kinase inhibitor through molecular docking experiment. However, 2-butanal has a highly conjugated aldehyde group that makes it very unstable. Therefore, we have designed more stable 2-butenal analogues and prepared them using Heck reaction. Molecular docking experiment shows that many of them have a greater affinity to IKKb.

Sara Fauver, University of Utah Life Sciences We know that novel genetic variants have driven evolution for millions of years and that natural selection favors phenotypes most suited for survival, leading to the enormous diversity of life we see today. However, what remains unclear, are the patterns of mutations that lead to large phenotypic changes. For example, do mutations in a single gene of large effect lead to morphological changes more often than numerous mutations in genes of smaller effect? Also, do these mutations occur more often in protein coding regions or regulatory regions of DNA? Finally, are the same genes or gene pathways used repeatedly across lineages when parallel phenotypes evolve?

Jeffrey Leavitt, Utah Valley University Life Sciences Central Research Question: Heptageniidae is a large family within the order Ephemeroptera (mayflies). This family consists of over 500 described species. Recently a study was done across 200 of the species to break them up into subfamilies, and genera. The studied concluded that there are 29 genera and three subfamilies Ecdyonurinae, Heptageniinae, and Rhithrogeninae (Wang, 2004). Furthermore, Ogden et al. (2009) proposed that the families Arthropleidae and Pseudironidae were derived heptageniid lineages. The phylogenetic relationships of Heptageniidae, Arthropleidae, Pseudironidae, to other closely related families are inconclusive. We propose to study these three families and the three subfamilies of Heptageniidae in detail via molecular systematics.

Daniel Hall, Brigham Young University Life Sciences OBJECTIVE(S): Predictive analytics (PA) is increasingly being used in the delivery of healthcare. Whether PA can improve patient handoffs on a busy surgical service is unknown. This study aims to determine if predictive models for acute cellular rejection (ACR) episodes and biliary complications after orthotropic liver transplantation (OLT) can be built in order to improve patient care.

Spencer Alexander, Dixie State University Life Sciences Antibiotic resistance has increased with each new developed medication, creating new problems as bacteria become more difficult to defeat. Some of these bacteria are resistant because they can excrete an extracellular polymeric substance known as a biofilm. The polysaccharide-based biofilm matrix allows the colony to communicate, absorb nutrients, and exchange genetic material giving it an advantage in possible resistance through plasmid exchange. At present, there are no effective antimicrobial agents that can safely treat and prevent resistant bacteria like ORSA. Biofilms have a negative impact ranging from human pathogenesis down to economic expenses. In order to break down established biofilms, we utilized newly developed organic salts known as ionic liquids. These novel liquids have been observed to prevent bacterial colonies and biofilm formation, possibly by introducing intermolecular interactions that disrupt the chemical bonding in biofilms. The morphology of the microbes was characterized and observed to determine the effect of the ionic liquids on biofilms. Inhibition studies were also performed to determine antimicrobial efficiency of the ionic liquids as a function of organic structures. These novel ionic liquids provide an unprecedented, effective and efficient method to combat resistant bacteria, which could have tremendous impacts in achieving sterile environments in medical and remote settings.

Dasom Kim, Brigham Young University Life Sciences The main purpose of the project is to compare the phylogeography of a species of stonefly (Klapopteryx kuschelli) and a species of dragonfly (Rhionaeshna variegata) in Patagonia. Specifically, the project will study how geography and behavior (i.e., their dispersal abilities) have affected their evolutionary histories. Of all the varied climates and geography in South America, comparatively few phylogeographic studies have been conducted with insects, especially in Patagonia. This study will provide an important foundation for a comparative phlyogeographic study of two insect groups inhabiting the same regions of Patagonia. Also, if funded, this project will give me an exclusive opportunity to interact with international research institutions in South America as well as their scientists.

Derrick Crawford, Brigham Young University Life Sciences Members of the FGF family of signaling factors are key components in distal outgrowth and patterning of the vertebrate limb. These factors are expressed and secreted by the apical ectodermal ridge (AER) on the distal margin of the limb. Blocking their function is known to truncate the limb skeleton. Conversely, replacing the AER with beads soaked in Fgf protein can rescue limb outgrowth and patterning. Our lab has demonstrated that one of the mechanisms whereby the Fgf/AER functions is to mediate directed outgrowth of the adjacent mesenchyme. As the AER regulates growth of mesenchyme toward itself, it would be predicted that the AER’s dimensions would be important for shaping the mesenchyme that it recruits. We have found that the shape of the AER changes over time in a manner that corresponds to the shape of limb elements as they form along the proximal distal axis. Further, mutants that exhibit defects in the dimensions of the AER show corresponding anomalies in the limb skeleton. Given these observations it would be predicted that an Fgf soaked bead being of fixed spherical dimensions would only be capable of forming a cylindrical, rod-shaped limb. A bead placed posteriorly fulfills this expectation whereas a bead placed apically does not. We provide a molecular explanation for this discrepancy. We have also manipulated the shape of the AER surgically and find that similar to beads the shape and the AP position of the AER dictates the shape of the forming limb skeleton.

Mark Soffe, Utah State University Life Sciences SSBs are DNA binding proteins that are essential components of cells and play key roles in DNA replication, repair, and recombination. Here we utilize two biochemical properties associated with the E. coli SSB protein to develop a novel procedure to purify proteins using a resin-free strategy. 1. E. coli SSB binds to single stranded DNA (ssDNA) with extremely high affinity (K = 1013 M-1), indicating very tight binding. 2. It is also a unique protein with respect to its purification – it is possible to obtain greater than 95% pure SSB from the total cell lysate without using any sort of column or resin, utilizing polyethyleneimine (PEI) and ammonium sulfate precipitation. Our design uses SSB as an affinity/solubility tag to enhance the solubility and expression of difficult-to-purify proteins, and allows for the simple, resin-free purification using PEI and ammonium sulfate precipitation. There also may be a possibility to co-express protein dimers and possibly tetramers using this method. Constructs have been made that include the SSB gene, along with the ability to fuse any gene of interest, as well as a TEV Protease cleavage sequence allowing for proteolytic cleavage after gene expression. Two genes of interest have been cloned in thus far—TEV protease and Rad51. In this proposal I outline experiments to develop this strategy further and test our proof of principle concept and its application to a broader set of target proteins.

Teressa Paulsen, University of Utah Life Sciences Breast cancer is still the most common cancer among women regardless of race or ethnicity. The focus of our research is to uncover the mechanism breast cancer cells use to escape the inherent limitations of the telomere and obtain immortality. The protective end of a chromosome, the telomere, degrades with each cellular division. The cellular response to telomere dysfunction is to activate programmed cell death. Therefore, this type of damage normally limits the proliferative potential of the cell and subsequently carcinogenesis.

Marilize Van der Walt, Utah State University Life Sciences Urbanization is accompanied by a lot of changes to the landscape that have the potential to affect the native species inhabiting the area. If animals are chronically exposed to these anthropogenic disturbances and are unable to acclimatize, changes in circulating glucocorticoid hormones may cause adverse effects to the animal’s health, such as an impairment in innate immune activity. One such disturbance is human-induced noise. Using the side-blotched lizard, Uta stansburiana, because of their localized habitat and inability to escape such disturbances within the urban environment, we looked at the field and lab components of noise as a stressor. We first measured decibel levels in urban and rural field sites in their natural habitats in St. George, Utah, and conducted a lab study exposing U. stansburiana to either a synthesized urban sound recording or no sound recording (control) for nine days. We collected blood samples and measured circulating corticosterone and testosterone concentrations and bactericidal ability to determine if there are endocrine and immune alterations in response to increased noise decibels. Our results show that lizards exposed to urban noise experienced increased corticosterone levels indicative of stress. Furthermore, bactericidal ability was indirectly affected by noise through significant correlations between body condition and corticosterone and testosterone concentrations. These results indicate that an increase in ambient decibel levels acts as a stressor to animals in urban areas. By dissecting out an individual component of a complex stressor we can better understand the effects of urbanization as a whole.

Molly Van Engelenhoven, Utah State University Life Sciences For thousands of years farmers have known that soil organisms can destroy crops but only in the past ten years have researchers begun to understand that complex interactions among soil organisms and plants can determine plant diversity and productivity. Much of the research in this young field of study has come from qualitative greenhouse experiments and separately from simple mathematical models. Here, we report findings from a six-year plant-soil feedback (PSF) field experiment that assessed the effects of soil organisms on the growth of twelve plant species common to the intermountain west. Initially, twelve native and exotic species were randomly assigned to 1550 experimental plots in a field. After four years of growth, the plants were killed. Next, the same plant species were randomly assigned to the 1550 plots again to test how each plant species responded to the soil microbial communities ‘cultivated’ by each other plant species. Two years later plant growth responses to different soil types were measured. Most plants showed large growth differences on different soil types. For example, Bromus tectorum grew twice as much on Pseudoroegneria spicata-cultivated soils than on self-cultivated soils. When the plant growth responses observed in this experiment were used in a mathematical model, PSFs were found to play a critical role in determining which plants were likely to be dominant in a community and how productive these different plant communities would be. In summary, this large-scale experiment provides strong evidence for the role of PSFs in plant productivity and diversity. Results have implications for natural methods of effective native plant restoration, biofuel production and weed control.

Jacob Anderson, Utah Sate University Life Sciences Leafy spurge (LS) is an aggressive Eurasian forb that has been successfully reduced in many areas in western North America through the biological control releases of flea beetles. Long term studies of this phenomenon are sparse. Three flea beetle species were released in the mid-1990s at a site dominated by LS in Richmond, Utah. This study assessed the long term effects of LS biocontrol on an ecological community at this site by addressing five questions: (1) Is LS abundance significantly lower now than in the 1990s? (2) What plant species are replacing LS and are they native or non-native? (3) Have the flea beetle populations persisted since their initial release? (4) What part does soil type play in which flea beetle species now dominate at the site? (5) In response to their unexpected presence, what role may long-horned beetles contribute to the long-term reduction of LS? It was found that LS abundance has significantly decreased from the 1990s; the dominant plant species are those of non-native grasses; flea beetles have persisted in significantly smaller numbers, with Aphthona lacertosa being the most abundant; and long-horned beetles appear to play a significant role in the reduction of sexual success of LS. The results of this project have implications for land managers when considering the vegetative response to LS biological control and the importance of long-horned beetles for long-term in managed, LS-reduced habitats.