Life Sciences

Presenters: Anna Everett, College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences, Neuroscience

Presenter: Jordan Davis, College of Life Sciences, Physiology and Developmental Biology

Presenters: Taylor Meurs, College of Life Sciences, Biology

Presenter: Peter Ellsworth, College of Life Sciences, Plant and Wildlife Sciences

Presenter: Daelin Jensen, College of Life Sciences, Plant and Wildlife Sciences

Presenter: Sarah Gottfredson, College of Life Sciences, Plant and Wildlife Sciences

Presenters: Amanda Aamodt, College of Life Sciences, Biology

Presenter: Nolan Cole, Life Sciences, Micor-Molecular Biolody

Presenter: Amanda Morrison, College of Life Sciences, Plant and Wild Life Sciences

Presenter: Connor Littlefield, College of Life sciences, Nutrition, dietetics and food science

Presenter: Weston Elison, College of Life Sciences, Physiology and Developmental Biology

Presenter: Tyler Burke, BYU, Plant and Wildlife Sciences

Maxwell Beers; Jace Pulsipher, Brigham Young University

Courtney Smith, Brigham Young University

Laurel Fortun, University of Utah

John Capitanio; Elizabeth Wood; Alexander Baxter; Ashley Cameron, Brigham Young University

Aaron Leifer; Jasmine Banner; Collin Christensen; Trevor Lloyd; Kenneth Call, Brigham Young University

Brooke Smyth; Moroni Lopez; Mimi Ross; Luaren Manwaring; Mathew Austin, Brigham Young University

Monika Lakk; Derek Young, University of Utah

Jeremy Anderson, Brigham Young University

Bo Price; Kaylynn Ashby; Marianne Maughan, Utah State University Apomixis is an asexual reproductive process that omits the reducing step of meiosis (apomeiosis) thereby producing unreduced eggs that will develop into embryos without the need of gamete fusion (parthenogenesis). The lack of reduced gametes leads to progenies that have identical genomes, i.e., diversification by egg and sperm fertilization is prevented, from generation to generation. Facultative apomixis is the ability to switch from apomixis to sexual reproduction by completing the meiosis divisions to produce reduced haploid gametes. It is understood that the switch to sexual meiosis in facultative apomixis is triggered by environmental stress signals. Sexual reproduction is induced by stress to create a competitive advantage by allowing genetic diversity to increase the possibility of species adaptability and survival. Boechera is a genus of flowering angiosperms that has multiple facultative apomictic species. To understand the molecular cascade that is triggered to cause apomixis to switch to sexual reproduction, Boechera facultative apomictic ovaries were treated exogenously with hydrogen peroxide to induce oxidative stress. RNAseq is being used to identify gene expression differences between apomictic and sex-induced ovary development as a first step toward elucidating the molecular switch from apomeiosis to meiosis.

Brian Jensen; Phillip Ng, Brigham Young University The purpose of this project is to invent a device capable of filtrating oil from fracking waste using a system of Carbon Infiltrated Carbon Nanotubes (CI-CNT) and its passive filtration properties. Fracking produces harmful waste material that pollutes clean water. A large-scale CI-CNT device that can filter large amounts of the microscopic oil particles from the waste will offer drilling companies a viable option to reuse the fracking mixture collected from after the fracking process instead of burying their unusable waste material underground, thereby causing less environmental damage. Pyrolytic CI-CNT’s can isolate water and oil molecules due to their superhydrophobic and oleophilic properties, unique cylindrical nanostructure, and functional groups. The CI-CNT’s will be grown on a stainless steel substrate that will give us the robustness and material properties needed to withstand the forces from fluid flow. We have designed a long channel with unique mechanical features that we anticipate will effectively separate oil from fracking waste as it interacts with it by splashing, rolling, and flowing across its surface.

Dallin Hilton; Siera Theobald; Janessa Bassett, Dixie State University

Brooke Smyth; Lauren Manwaring; Moroni Lopez, Brigham Young University

Matt Austin; Brooke Smyth; Lauren Manwaring; Moroni Lopez, Brigham Young University

Neil Duncan, Dixie State University

Craig Schoenberger; Nathan Van Katwyk; Jens Griffin; Insu Kim, Brigham Young University

Parker Booren; Talon Aitken; Samuel Grover; Nathan Jensen; Jackie Crabree, Brigham Young University

Michelle George, Dixie State University

Matthew Bradley, Brigham Young University

Matt Austin; Brooke Smyth; Lauren Manwaring; Moroni Lopez, Brigham Young University

Timothy VanZeben, Salt Lake Community College

Aaron Leifer; Jasmine Banner; Collin Christensen; Trevor Lloyd; Kenneth Call, Brigham Young University

Morgan Abbott, Utah Valley University

Parker Booren; Talon Aitken; Samuel Grover; Nathan Jensen; Jackie Crabtree, Brigham Young University

Matt Austin; Brooke Smyth; Lauren Manwaring; Moroni Lopez, Brigham Young University

Parker Booren, Brigham Young University

Parker Booren; Nathanael Jensen; Talon Aitken; Samuel Grover; Jackie Crabree, Brigham Young University

Aaron Leifer; Jasmine Banner; Collin Christensen; Trevor Lloyd; Kenneth Call, Brigham Young University

Rosanise Odell, Westminster College

Zachary Luscher, University of Utah

Jace Buxton, Dixie State University

Jaimi Butler; Ashley Kijowski; Claire Prasad, Westminster College

Jacob Delano; Nicholas Brian, Utah Valley University

Aaron Leifer; Jasmine Banner; Collin Christensen; Trevor Lloyd; Kenneth Call, Brigham Young University

Ashley Wiltsie, University of Utah

Aaron Leifer, Jasmine Banner, Collin Christensen, Trevor Lloyd, Kenneth Call, Brigham Young University Diabetes Mellitus has become a worldwide epidemic affecting over 400 million people. Both type 1 and type 2 diabetes result from the body’s inability to produce or respond to insulin in order to regulate blood sugar. In both cases, the insulin secreting ë_-cells in the pancreatic Islets of Langerhans have become endangered and in many cases non-functional. The function of these ë_-cells is defined by their ability to multiply and maintain a steady number, to defend against induced cell death and ultimately to secrete insulin. Since ë_-cell production reaches its peak during fetal development, this would suggest that diabetics have an inactive pathway to produce functional ë_-cells. However, recent studies have identified key transcription factors that aid pancreatic progenitors in becoming functional ë_-cells. Pdx1 is a transcription factor that is active throughout the ë_-cell pathway and found in mature ë_-cells. Research has identified Pdx1 as a key component in helping both ë±-cells and ë_-cells proliferate and even in reprogramming ë±-cells to become functional ë_-cells. Additionally, Pdx1 has been identified to help ë_-cells effectively secrete insulin. We present data demonstrating the effect of Pdx1 adenoviral over-expression on three independent markers of functional ë_-cell mass: 1) cell proliferation, 2) cell survival, and 3) insulin content and secretion. Defining the effect of Pdx1 on each of these parameters will provide further data to explore therapeutic interventions for diabetic patients.

Karaleen Anderson; Mariel Hatch, Utah Valley University

Aaron Leifer; Jasmine Banner; Collin Christensen; Trevor Lloyd; Kenneth Call, Brigham Young University

Aaron Leifer, Jasmine Banner, Collin Christensen, Trevor Lloyd, Kenneth Call, Brigham Young University Approximately 9.4 percent of the United States is affected by type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Diabetes results from the body’s inability to maintain healthy blood glucose levels due to the loss of pancreatic ë_-cells (insulin secreting cells) or from the body’s insulin sensitive cells becoming insulin resistant. Both type 1 and type 2 diabetes results in a loss of functional ë_-cells. The current treatments for diabetes are insulin injections or transplants, many times requiring up to three donors per transplant. Neither option is an optimal cure: insulin injections do not cure the disease, and transplants are not available to the majority of people. We propose that being able to replicate ë_-cells in-vivo would allow us to provide a cure to diabetes. ë_-cells stop reproducing (proliferating) soon after birth except in a few occasions such as obesity and pregnancy, leading us to believe that there are key gene(s) that induce cell proliferation when activated. Finding these gene(s) would present a viable cure, being able to grow ë_-cells in-vivo for transplantation or even injection. The gene MafA is present in mature ë_-cells and previous research has revealed its vital role in the pancreas. MafA is turned on around embryonic day 15.5 and steadily increases expression up until the cell becomes a mature ë_-cell. The time period when MafA is turned on corresponds with when a ë_-cell is proliferating and developing leading us to believe that MafA is crucial to finding a cure. Here we show the effect of MafA overexpression on INS1 832/13 ë_-cell proliferation, survival, and insulin secretion.