School of Biology Theses and Dissertations
Original work in partial fulfillment of a graduate degree in the School of Biology
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Recent Submissions
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Fish response to macroalgal removal
Coral reefs are rapidly degrading into macroalgae dominated systems sustained through positive feedback loops. Macroalgae can harm corals directly via competition and indirectly via suppression of recruitment and increasing ... -
K-mer based data structures and heuristics for microbes and cancer
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2018-05-15)Recent technological advances allow for high throughput profiling of biological systems in a cost-efficient manner. The low cost of data generation is leading us to the “big data” era and the availability of big data ... -
Understanding pathways regulating liver versus pancreas fate decision and beta-cell regeneration
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2017-08-02)The liver and pancreas originate from common endodermal progenitors in early development. It has been shown that Bone morphogenetic protein 2b (Bmp2b) signaling is essential for determining the fate of these bipotential ... -
Applied bioinformatics for exploring diversity patterns in meta-omic data
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2018-04-25)This thesis explores the utility of applied bioinformatic approaches to better understand sequence space and phylogenetic diversity in meta-omic clinical and environmental datasets. In three chapters, the thesis describes ... -
Investigating ice slurry’s perceived mechanical abrasive quality to increase pathogen reduction on poultry during immersion chilling
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2018-04-26)The poultry industry is an integral part of Georgia’s economy, accounting for more than half of the state’s agricultural output. In Georgia, more than 20 million pounds of broiler meat are produced daily. Poultry processing ... -
Individualization of the pubic hair/pubic area microbiome and its potential as an indicator of sexual contact
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2018-03-29)The microbiome, specifically the human microbiome, is an area of intense research with potential forensic applications. If the microbiome of a given body area is individualizing, then the transfer of microbiomes between ... -
Understanding the mechanisms and consequences of DSB induced by palindromic DNA sequences
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2017-04-07)Palindromic DNA sequences, capable of forming hairpin or cruciform structures, are often a potent sources of genome instability by inducing double strand breakage (DSB). Studies on palindrome-induced instability have ... -
Discovery, characterization and mechanism of RNA and CDNA-mediated DNA double-strand break repair
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2017-04-06)A double-strand break (DSB) is one of the most deleterious DNA lesions and its repair is crucial for genome stability. Even if a single DSB is not repaired precisely, this could cause mutations, chromosomal rearrangements, ... -
Genetics of type VI secretion and natural transformation in Vibrio cholerae
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2017-01-13)The facultative waterborne pathogen Vibrio cholerae transitions between its human host and the environment where it colonizes chitinous surfaces in aquatic settings. Growth on chitin coordinates the induction of sets of ... -
Structural analysis of virus assembly by cryo-electron tomography: Measles virus and respiratory syncytial virus
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2018-03-27)Viruses, are such efficient nano-machines that they can pack all the genomic materials in a confined space essential for self-replication; and yet they are the smallest of living entities among all life forms. When studied ... -
Transposable element polymorphisms and human genome regulation
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2017-11-13)Transposable elements (TEs) are DNA sequences that are capable of moving from one genomic location to another. A large proportion of the human genome is derived from TEs, and TE-derived sequences have been shown to contribute ... -
Population genetics and genomics of eusocial animals
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2017-11-09)Major evolutionary transitions have been associated with increases in organismal complexity. One of the latest evolutionary transitions is from solitary life to eusociality. This transition led to a reproductive division ... -
Unrecognized diversity of microbes linking methanotrophy to nitrogen loss in marine oxygen minimum zones
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2017-11-13)Methane (CH4) is a potent greenhouse gas with 25 times the warming potential of carbon dioxide (CO2) on a per mol basis. Marine oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) are enriched in CH4 compared to oxygenated water columns and are ... -
Quantifying marine virus-host abundance relationships
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2017-08-17)Marine microbes are the most abundant cellular life forms on Earth yet we know viruses to be even more numerous than microbes. Marine microbes are estimated to total roughly ten to the thirtieth power while marine viruses ... -
Environmental niche partitioning of microbial community genomic diversity, gene expression, and metabolism in a marine oxygen minimum zone
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2016-11-14)Oxygen Minimum Zones (OMZs) serve as habitats to diverse assemblages of microorganisms that play an important role in mediating global biogeochemical cycles. OMZ microbial communities have not been extensively characterized, ... -
Bioinformatic tools for testing microbial ecology theory in natural environments through metagenomics
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2016-11-14)Metagenomics offers unique opportunities to close the gaps that exist between theory and empirical testing in microbial ecology given the windows it can provide into the large fraction of yet-unculturable organisms and ... -
The interactive effects of environmental warming and habitat fragmentation on the structure of experimental protist communities
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2016-08-01)Global biodiversity is threatened by substantial and increasing human activity, such as human-induced environmental warming and habitat fragmentation. The effects of warming and fragmentation on biodiversity have been ... -
Effects of competition, disturbance and productivity on the dynamics of inducible trophic polymorphism in tetrahymena vorax
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2016-08-01)Inducible trophic polymorphism enables organisms to alter their trophic level when facing environmental changes, and therefore can ameliorate the intensity of competition. The freshwater ciliated protist Tetrahymena vorax ... -
Understanding the systemic roles of exosomes in innate immunity
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2016-07-13)Cell-cell communication is critical for rapidly spreading the message of infection and enabling the innate immune system to mount a broad response against the pathogen. Exosomes are nanovesicles (~50nm in diameter) that ... -
Scalable mapping-free algorithms and K-mer data structures for genomic analysis
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2016-07-19)An organism’s DNA sequence is a virtual cornucopia of information, and sequencing technology is the key to unlocking it. The past few decades have been witness to meteoric growth of these technologies and the volume of ...
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