2020 Abstracts

Brevin, Brevin; Taylor, Aubrie; Bowden, Anton (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Bowden, Anton (Brigham Young University, Mechanical Engineering)

The development of precise lumbar vertebral devices depends heavily on the varying dimensions of vertebrae themselves. Upon literature review it was found that while much data presents spinal measurements for curvature in kyphosis, lordosis, and scoliosis, as well as individual vertebral heights and diameters, little to no data has been published regarding the transverse curvature of the vertebrae. As this measurement is requisite for the designing of a lumbar vertebral clamp currently being developed in our laboratory, the purpose of this work was to measure a variety of lumbar vertebrae, specifically characterizing lateral length, sagittal width, vertebral height, and the transverse curvature at the minimum lateral length. Dimensions were measured manually from dissected human spine samples using dial calipers and a measuring tape. 13 lumbar vertebrae from 3 cadaveric spines were measured. The average lateral length was 1.63 in (+/- 0.20 in) and the average transverse radius of curvature was 1.01 in (+/- 0.12 in). In future work, these measurements will be incorporated into the device design process for the lumbar vertebral clamp.

Dickamore, Erik (Utah State University)
Faculty Advisor: Colver, Mitchell

Becoming integrated into the social sphere of an institution is a vital step for new and continuing students in a university setting. There is a body of studies that have examined the impact of different aspects of the student experience on persistence. Many of them center on how becoming integrated into the social sphere of an institution is impactful on persistence. While social integration is considered essential for success, few studies have rigorously considered if social integration through student involvement and leadership is associated with persistence toward graduation. This research is intended to estimate causal links between treatments and expected student outcomes. More specifically, this research will highlight the estimated causal impacts on persistence to the next term for students who participate in student involvement. Historically, there has been a roadblock of understanding the effect that leadership and student involvement programs have on students due to self-selection bias. This research uses Prediction Based Propensity Score Matching (PPSM), a quasi-experimental method, to control for baseline variability and account for self-selection bias. Results highlight an estimated causal link to persistence and being involved in leadership positions at a 4-year institution in the mountain west of the United States.

Black, Brent; Peterson, Savannah (Utah State University)
Faculty Advisor: Black, Brent (College of Agriculture and Applied Science; Plants, Soils, and Climate Department)

Utah has 1,200 acres of commercial peaches (15th largest peach producing state) making it the second most important fruit crop in the state. However, Utah soils are alkaline, and many trees grown on alkaline soils struggle with iron chlorosis. Peaches and other fruit trees are a combination of the desired variety (scion) grafted onto a rootstock. Some peach rootstocks may be better adapted to Utah's alkaline soils. An orchard comparing 12 peach rootstocks was planted in Utah County in 2007 and evaluated in the 2019 season for survival, tree size and iron chlorosis (leaf chlorophyll content, an indicator of alkaline soil tolerance).The scion for all trees was O'Henry. Most rootstocks had good survival after 13 years (>80%). Empyrean 2 and Julior had the poorest survival (< 50%). The largest trees were on Monegro, Empyrean 1 and Nickels rootstocks, and the smallest were on Lovell, Julior and Krymsk 86. Leaf chlorophyll was lowest (most chlorotic) for Lovell, Julior and Empyrean 1. Selecting the best adapted rootstock is essential for an orchard to be successful and profitable. These results will be useful for Utah growers to select trees best adapted to their conditions.

Vasquez, Cesar; Dockstader, Patrick; Havertz, Brett; Phillips, Justin (Dixie State University)
Faculty Advisor: Chellamuthu, Vinodh (Dixie State University, Mathematics)

For any business, understanding the customer’s behavior is vital to maximizing income and minimizing costs. Our work aims to create an algorithm that analyzes the historical data from the customers and determines the target customers in an optimal way. We take on a data set from a transmission shop in California and seek out which factors produce higher potential for client value. We created a mathematical model that classifies the clients as low, medium, or high potential using this historical data. Furthermore, we demonstrated the model utility using the transmission shop’s data to compute the correlation of paying customers and customer history. The correlations are then used to create a conditional probability distribution which served to predict an expected rating score. Moreover, our results are validated by comparing the predicted ratings with the actual ratings in varying train and test cases from the data set. Our results show that the proposed algorithm is fast, simple, and intuitive, which could be utilized by the transmission shop in the future.

Waldron, Connor; Moley, Laura; Isom, S. Clay (Utah State University)
Faculty Advisor: Isom, S. Clay (College of Agriculture and Applied Sciences; Animal, Dairy, and Veterinary Sciences Department)

In vitro maturation (IVM) is a process that immature oocytes undergo before in vitro fertilization is performed. During IVM, immature oocytes are extracted through aspiration from follicles and receive the necessary hormones to resume meiosis in culture. Success rate of IVM is significantly lower compared to in vivo maturation of oocytes. Oocytes selected for IVM are extracted from small ovarian follicles (1-3mm), which are 4-6 weeks away from complete maturation and subsequent ovulation. During that period, the DNA of the oocyte is undergoing the process of DNA methylation, the addition of a methyl group to cytosines within a CpG context. DNA methylation is an epigenetic change that causes modification to gene expression where methylated gene promoters turn off gene expression. Proper oocyte gene expression is very important in the development of a healthy embryo. Incomplete methylation of aspirated oocytes may be another factor contributing to the low success rates of IVM. We hypothesize that there is a difference in the amount of methylation between oocytes from small ovarian follicles that are further from natural ovulation and oocytes from large ovarian follicles which are developmentally closer to ovulation, with higher levels of methylation in oocytes from large ovarian follicles. To test our hypothesis, large porcine ovarian follicles (7mm and larger) and small porcine ovarian follicles (1-3mm) will be aspirated for ovaries. The oocytes will be stained the two stains, one to visualize the nucleus of the oocyte indicating the presence of DNA and the other to visualize DNA methylation. Fluorescent images will be taken of the oocytes, and the small and large follicle oocyte groups will be compared for genome wide methylation levels.

Mortensen, Chase (Utah State University)
Faculty Advisor: Truscott, Tadd (College of Engineering, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department)

The aim of this project is to analyze water entry based cavity formation of two projectiles and how it affects their motion. The study will be conducted by dropping two horizontally spaced similar-sized hydrophobic spheres from different heights into a quiescent water pool. The results will look at the position, acceleration and forces of the two sphere system and how they differ from a single sphere water entry. In addition, the horizontally spaced spheres show a change in the accompanying cavity formation and evolution when compared to past studies of a single sphere entry. Preliminary data suggests that the closer you drop projectiles to one another in water, the resulting of cavity-seal time, cavity shape, drag experienced by the bodies while in water could differ from single projectiles entering the water.

Park, Yeram; Lin, Jade; Ross, Micah; Stark, Michael; (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Stark, Michael (Life Sciences, Physiological and Developmental Biology); Hansen, Marc (Life Sciences, Physiological and Developmental Biology)

Neural tube defects (NTDs), which result from failure to close the neural tube during embryonic development, are one of the most widespread and common congenital malformations. Variance in these malformations can range from anencephaly (failure of the neural tube to close on the cranial end) to spina bifida (failure of closure on the posterior/dorsal end). Over the years, scientists have explored this field and have found different environmental factors that may attribute to the likelihood of NTDs. Some of these include fumonisin, valproic acid and more recently discovered, ceramide. To help counter NTDs, studies have shown that folic acid supplementation given to pregnant women has reduced the risk of NTDs and this has become a recommended suggestion by doctors. With its known preventative effects, this study aims to determine whether the preventative effects of folic acid can counter the harmful effects of fumonisin, valproic acid, or ceramide.

Bird, Devin; Nufer, Teresa; Wu, Bridget; Edwards, Jeffrey (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Edwards, Jeffrey (Brigham Young University, Physiology and Developmental Biology)

Drug addiction is a consequence of neural plasticity in the ventral tegmental area (VTA), an area of the brain's reward system, in which higher levels of dopamine are expressed. Research suggests that decreased activity of inhibitory _-aminobutyric acid (GABA) neurons in the VTA could be the cause of increased activity of dopaminergic cells in the VTA, and thus mediate opiate addiction (Tan). However, not much additional research has been performed to evaluate the plasticity of VTA GABA neurons and the role they play in addiction. Why are VTA GABAergic cells being inhibited and how? We hypothesize that inhibitory inputs onto GABA neurons in the VTA directly affect the degree of inhibition of VTA dopaminergic cells. Additionally, we hypothesize that GABAergic neurons of the lateral hypothalamus (LH) is a source input that extends into the VTA and inhibits VTA GABAergic neurons. We believe that inhibition from these LH neurons induces plasticity of VTA GABAergic neurons.

Through the use of optogenetics we have been able to isolate precise GABAergic pathways that lead into the VTA. Specifically, we have isolated input sources from the LH. These optogenetic experiments, in combination with electrophysiology, have allowed us to measure the specific effects that LH GABA neurons have on VTA GABA neurons. Currently, our data suggests that LH GABAergic cells do induce long-term depression (LTD) in VTA GABAergic cells, however, it is too soon to make any conclusions. Although experiments are still underway, we believe that LH GABAergic neurons play an important role in the drug addiction pathway by inhibiting VTA GABAergic neurons and inducing plasticity.

Pugh, Sam; Valentine, Julie; Miles, Leslie (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Valentine, Julie (Brigham Young University, College Of Nursing); Miles, Leslie (Brigham Young University, College of Nursing)

Rape is generally recognized as a sexual assault by a male perpetrator to a female victim. However, sexual assault is a crime that affects all genders. Although the majority of rapes are male to female, current findings indicate that one in seventy-one men will be raped in their lifetime. Over time, research has recognized the psychological effects and underreporting that ail male rape victims. However, very little has been reported regarding short tandem repeat (STR) DNA findings from sexual assault kits of male victim rapes. These STR DNA profiles prove to be highly influential in the detainment and prosecution of perpetrators. After an extensive search for earlier publications concerning the topic, only three articles were found to have relative correlation to this topic. Current best practice is to obtain STR DNA profiles from sexual assault kit samples to enter into the FBI Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). The purpose of this study was to evaluate DNA analysis findings from 266 sexual assault kits collected from male sexual assault victims and compare predictors for the development of CODIS-eligible STR DNA profiles of male victims to female victims. Our study methodology is an exploratory, retrospective design to identify male rape victims from a sample size of 5,758 victims who received sexual assault forensic examinations with sexual assault kit evidence collection. Approximately 5% of the victims in our study were male (N=266). Male victims were found to have more physical or mental impairments. Male victim cases revealed significantly less development of STR DNA profiles and CODIS-eligible DNA profiles of the perpetrator (p=.007). Due to low STR DNA profile yields and increased targeting of mentally impaired or otherwise vulnerable male victims, we must improve our response to male victims to ensure justice to all victims of sexual assault.

McRae, Elisa; Solis Leal, Antonio; Giler, Noemi; Karlinsey, Dalton; Quaye, Abraham; Berges, Bradford (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Berges, Bradford (Brigham Young University, Microbiology and Molecular Biology)

HIV-1 infects CD4 T-cells by inserting its genome into a cell's genetic sequence. CRISPR technology allows for gene editing within the cell, causing a break in DNA sequences targeted by specific guide RNAs. Plasmids encoding CRISPR and guide RNA (gRNA) genes, in the context of lentiviral delivery vectors, will be transfected to produce two lentiviral vectors. In vitro experiments include human T cells that will be transduced with the lentiviral vectors and analyzed with flow cytometry to determine cells that express CRISPR and gRNAs. These cells will then be sorted to create a population of cells that express both the CRISPR and gRNA genes and will then be infected with the NL4-3 strain of HIV. For in vivo experiments, human hematopoietic stem cells will be transduced with the lentivirus vectors, after which they will be transplanted into humanized mice, thus producing a human-like immune system for testing the efficacy of our anti-HIV approach. After the human immune system has sufficiently developed in the mice, HIV-1 will be introduced. We expect that human immune cells with CRISPRs will be protected against HIV infection and death due to the use of gRNAs. These cells are postulated to no longer be susceptible to HIV-1 infection, thus preventing further cell lineages from becoming infected. We will analyze data for three main endpoints: 1. Cell killing of HIV, 2. HIV rebound due to the high mutation rate of the virus, 3. Amount of HIV replication, examined by assessing the viral RNA outside of cells using Q-RT-PCR. Data from this project will support whether cells transfected with CRISPR and guide RNAs offer cell lineages that adequately disrupt the HIV-1 genome. Efforts of this study hope to address HIV infection in humans following trials with humanized mice.

Gottfredson, Sarah; Chaston, John (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Chaston, John (Life Sciences, Plant and Wildlife Sciences)

The microbiome of Drosophila melanogaster can have significant effects on the host, and many of these have been studied. However, the reason why the bacterial species associate with and persist in D. melanogaster has not been studied in depth. Here we define persistence as how long a microbe associates with a host. The early assumption has been that the D. melanogaster gut microbiome is established solely through diet, but recent work suggests that other factors may be at play in the microbiome establishment. This experiment aims to study the correlation between bacterial genotype and persistence in the D. melanogaster microbiome. In this study, a metagenome wide association (MGWAS) was done using 40 different strains of bacteria to find distinct bacterial genes that are significantly correlated with persistence. To do this, each strain was mono-associated with twenty-four individual flies. The flies were reared for fourteen days, transferred onto new food three times a day for two days, homogenized, and plated. Using the significant genes found through the MGWAS, the same experiment protocol will be used to test mutants of these genes for their effect on persistence. These data will provide us with distinct genes that are necessary for effective bacterial persistence.

Evans, Justin; Murray, Cameron; Crowley, Bailey; Welker, Dennis; (Utah State University)
Faculty Advisor: Welker, Dennis (College of Science, Biology Department)

In previous experiments, we explored the abilities of a set of newly derived vectors to transform Lactobacillus casei, specifically, the 32G and the A2-362 strains. We have now expanded our research to study the abilities of these vectors to transform additional Lactobacillus species, Lactobacillus paracasei strain LPC-37 and Lactobacillus rhamnosus strain HN001. The vectors were transformed into the cells by electroporation, after which the cells were given a 4-hour incubation to allow expression of the erythromycin resistance gene carried on the vectors. The cells were then plated to MRS agar containing erythromycin and incubated for 2-3 days until colonies appeared. The colonies were counted and the transformation efficiencies for each vector tabulated as colony forming units per _g of vector DNA. These studies help us to understand how effective the vectors are at transforming different species of lactic acid bacteria. We can also start to ask why some vectors performed better in some bacterial strains than they did in other strains.

Maria Stokes (University of Utah)
Faculty Advisor: Burnett, Brandon (Weber State University, Chemistry)

This paper considers the relationship between new technologies and the history of astronomy. Using a comparative framework, I show some of the ways in which new technological introductions alter scientific practice. I argue that this dynamic is a historical pattern. To make this case, I juxtapose two astrophysical developments: the invention and early uses of optical telescopes in the early seventeenth century, most famously by Galileo, and the introduction of gravitational wave detectors beginning with the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO). The former has been heavily examined by historians of science; the latter is almost exclusively of interest to astronomers and physicists. In constructing this comparison, I examine primary sources such as Galileo's Discourses and Mathematical Demonstrations Related to Two New Sciences and consult other commentaries on seventeenth-century astronomy, particularly remarking on the optics used in the Galilean telescope. I then provide a survey of gravitational wave astronomy. This comparative study evidences the importance of both empirical data and networks in the development of science. Such a conclusion is significant as it carries implications for the relationship between scientific and non-scientific communities.

Sanchez, Mary; Martin, Cayla; Butler, Jaimi; Parrott, David (Westminster College)
Faculty Advisor: Butler, Jaimi (Westminster College, Great Salt Lake Institute); Parrott, David (Westminster College, Biology)

The Great Salt Lake is one of the largest migratory stops for many species of birds in North America. Along the banks of the Great Salt Lake, at Rozel point, there are tar seeps, where some species of birds have gotten entrapped and died. These petroleum seeps are both naturally occurring and human created at Rozel Point. The temperature that the seeps become sticky, the possibility of prey animals drawing predators in, and the appearance of the tar seeps are all important aspects of why birds are drawn to these seeps. Using motion sensor cameras and temperature monitoring devices, the animals that are visiting the tar seeps and the temperature variation of the seeps were monitored. One of the largest human created oil wells at Rozel Point was recapped in January of 2019. The impacts of this recapping was monitored throughout the summer of 2019 to determine if there are fewer birds entrapped due to the reduction of oil escaping from the ground at this well.

Thornton, Sherie; Cardona,Rebecca (Weber State University)
Faculty Advisor: Culumber, Michele (Weber State University, Microbiology); Oberg, Craig (Weber State University, Microbiology)

Lactobacillus wasatchensis was initially isolated from cheese produced at Utah State University and was found to be a Non-Starter Lactic Acid Bacteria (NSLAB) that causes late-gas production in cheese that can damage packaging and produce defects in the cheese. The goal of this project was to locate an environmental reservoir for Lactobacillus wasatchensis. Five samples of silage that were in different stages of fermentation and content and raw milk samples were obtained at the Utah State University dairy. Samples were serially diluted, plated on de Man, Rogosa and Sharpe agar supplemented with 1% D-Ribose (NRS-R) and incubated anaerobically for 5 days. Colonies that looked like potential Lb. wasatchensis were selected and regrown for isolation. All isolates were gram-positive rods. The isolates were further grown in broth for DNA extraction, sequencing, and analysis with API 50 carbohydrate panel (API 50CH). The API 50CH results were significantly different from Lb. wasatchensis, which only demonstrates use of ribose in this assay. Sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, however, produced a match to three isolates from two different silage samples that had 99% sequence identity to Lb. wasatchensis. Further analysis of the isolates is being done to confirm this finding and describe the organism isolated from the soil. We hypothesize that these organisms are very closely related to Lb. wasatchensis and that silage could be an environmental source of contamination.

Call, Emily; Manesse, Alana (Utah State University)
Faculty Advisor: Colton, Jared (College of Humanities and Social Sciences, English Department)

What visual rhetoric was used in the women's suffrage movement and how was it effective? There were many forms of persuasion in the women's suffrage movement, some of the greatest examples being the visual rhetoric. Rhetoric in this analysis will be defined as linguistic and visual elements crafted with the purpose to persuade the viewer to believe in the presented truth and to conform with the represented female identity. For this presentation we will focus on two political cartoons from the suffrage movement: one pro-suffrage piece, Henry Mayer's "The Awakening" (1915), and one anti-suffrage piece, "Looking Backward" by Laura E. Foster (1912). While suffrage is often discussed through a feminist lense, we will apply a cultural rhetoric analysis as our primary research method with supporting analysis coming from a feminist perspective. Our analysis will use cultural frameworks with a focus on the cultural theorist Stuart Hall. Cultural rhetoric focuses our analysis on the values and practices of English and American culture in the 20th century rather than solely looking at the object of analysis. In that context, we will examine the rhetorical strategies the artists use to craft arguments to persuade the viewer to accept the "truth" they are presenting. Through the comparison of opposing pieces of propaganda, we will also show that truth is relative to the viewer. Through Hall's frameworks, we will analyze ideas about fixed meaning in the images, female representation in a culture, and the audience's response to rhetoric. As we examine these particular elements in conjunction with cultural rhetoric, the audience will gain insight into how pro-suffrage and anti-suffrage propaganda used similar rhetorical techniques to persuade its viewers.

Andersen, Jacob (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: DeSchweinitz, Rebecca (Brigham Young University, History)

During the 1912 Lawrence, Massachusetts Textile Strike, Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, a speaker and organizer for the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), planned to address local workers at a Greek Catholic Church. Before she stepped to the pulpit, a local priest forbid her from speaking because she was a woman. She only spoke to the audience that night after she convinced the priest that she "spoke as an organizer, not as a woman." This incident hints at the complex and often contradictory role of gender in the IWW. Indeed, many scholars have argued that while the IWW preached universal human equality, in practice they maintained a limited, domestic vision for women. Francis Shor, in particular, has argues that the IWW's approach to gender constituted a kind of "virile syndicalism," in which their aggressive tactics were a form of "masculine posturing" in defiance of industrial capitalism. While an important insight about the role of gender in the IWW, few scholars have used his theory to understand women's experiences in the IWW. This paper will examine the role of gender in the IWW through the lives and experiences of three women: Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, Matilda Robbins, and Jane Street. All three women came from different backgrounds and made unique contributions to the IWW, yet the IWW's virile syndicalism circumscribed their activities within the bounds of the IWW's narrow gender ideology. The lives of these women suggest that virile syndicalism in the IWW limited the role of Wobbly women and curbed the IWW's ability to effectively organize workers in the long term. Indeed, the IWW notoriously struggled to maintain an organized base of workers; their distinctly gendered tactics may help explain why.

Almaw, Naredos; Chaudhuri, Dipayan (University of Utah)
Faculty Advisor: Chaudhuri, Dipayan (School of Medicine, Internal Medicine)

Fibroblast Growth Factor 21 (FGF21), a regulator of metabolism that is typically expressed in the liver, has recently been shown to be induced by other tissues in the body as a response to mitochondrial stress. Elevated levels of serum FGF21 was exhibited in children with mitochondrial mutation-induced mitochondrial dysfunctions. Similarly, in dilated cardiomyopathy, a common type of heart failure (HF) mitochondrial dysfunction is associated with mitochondrial DNA damage. This study aims to determine the signaling pathway that leads to the production and effects of FGF21 during mitochondrial dysfunction associated HF. We hypothesize that in left ventricular failure, cardiomyocytes experience oxidative stress, which initiates signaling pathways that leads to the production of FGF21 by other organs.

To test this hypothesis, HF was induced in four mice models via Transverse Aortic Constriction (TAC), and tissue samples were collected. Messenger RNA (mRNA) was extracted, and quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR) was performed to examine the FGF21 gene expression in control and experiment mice models. The qPCR data showed an upregulation of FGF21 in the heart, liver, and pancreas of experiment mice. qPCR results were confirmed through FGF21 protein expression via western blot. Our preliminary results appear to support our hypothesis that during heart failure, the heart sends stress signals to other organs to produce FGF21. Understanding the origin of FGF21 production could help better understand the critical role it plays in preventing disease progression in HF patients.