Honors Theses from 2022
Analyzing Function of the Novel Gene, Childless Gambino, During Drosophila Development, Pedro Massa
Carrying Capacity of Cultured Bivalves in Cherrystone Inlet, VA, and the Implications of Spatial Distribution and Environmental Change, Sophia Chirico
Climate Change and Conservation of Milkweed: Evidence of Extensive Admixture Between Common Milkweed and Poke Milkweed, Elizabeth Davies
Frequency and Success of Larval Clone Production in the Daisy Brittle Star Ophiopholis aculeata, Erin-Darby McClain
Investigating the Effect of Longhorned Milkweed Beetle Larval Root Feeding on Resprouting in Common Milkweed, Margaret Donnan
Metamor-Foes: Settlement Preferences and Post-Settlement Cannibalism in the Sea Star Asterias forbesi, Augustin Kalytiak-Davis
Metamorphic Success of Sea Star Larval Clones, Alexis Abigail Reece
Regulation of Testis Stem Cell Behavior by the Novel Drosophila Gene Childless gambino, Natalie Luffman
Relating Occupancy Patterns to Multi-Life-History Scales for Pond-Breeding Anurans in Eastern Virginia, Patrick A. Hardner
The Application of Acetyltransferase Inhibitors and Neural Networks to Thyroid Hormone Receptor Mutants, Thomas Hess
The Characterization of the Type I DNA Methyltransferase hsdM1 (HP0463) in Helicobacter pylori, Elise Zimmerman
The Genetic Consequences of Selection for Plastic Adherence on Evolving Yeast Populations, Benjamin Epley
Transcriptome Analysis of Zebra Finch Tissue After Chronic Low-Level Methylmercury Exposure, Paula Petersen
Understanding Viral Impacts in Soil Microbial Ecology Through the Persistence and Decay of Infectious Bacteriophage Particles, Alli DiPietro
Honors Theses from 2021
A Comparison Between the Evolutionary Genomics of Pseudophosphatases MK-STYX and STYX, Yi Qi
Characterizing the Microbiome of Floral Nectar of Asclepias syriaca and other Asclepias species, Heather Natterer
Effects of Gamete Age on Development in Asterias forbesi, Amanda Yeo
Evaluating Autophagy as a Mechanism for MK-STYX-induced Stress Granule Reduction, Tatiana Prioleau
Life stage explains variation in habitat use of the black-legged tick (Ixodes scapularis), Joyner Miller
Mysteries and Uncertainties in Tracing Cryptic Viral Infections, Melaina Jacoby
Rapid Morphological Divergence in Three Introduced Cichlid Species, Khalil Russell
The Effect of MK-STYX on the Interaction of HDAC6 and Ubiquitin, Emma Gergel
The Role of Spider Silk in Peripheral Nerve Regeneration, Langston Forbes-Jackson
Tools in Bioengineering: From Bacteriophage to Bioprinting, Stephanie Do
Honors Theses from 2020
Characterization of TRα1 Mutants Associated with Metabolic Disorders and Cancer, Carolina Lopez Silva
Design of Smart, Lipid-Secreting Nasal Probiotic for the Suppression of Respiratory Viral Infections, Julia Urban
Evolutionary Dynamics of Alzheimer's-linked Prion Conformers in Yeast, Matthew M. Dungan
Impacts of Spatial and Temporal Variation on the Benthic Nitrogen Cycle in the York River Estuary, Evan Lawrence
Inferring Diet of Clidastes liodontus through Comparative Skull and Pterygoid Tooth Morphology of Toxicoferan Squamates, Ian Wilenzik
Investigating Differential Gene Expression in Zebra Finch Embryos due to Methylmercury Exposure, Natalie Caputo
Investigating the Genetic Diversity of Viruses in Soil Using a Marker Gene Approach, Nakul Dar
Predator-Induced Phenotypic Plasticity Across Life History Stages in Echinoderms, Danielle K. Barnes
Probing the Localization Patterns and Selectivity Filter of Thyroid Hormone Receptor alpha 1 Mutants, Jerry O'Dwyer
THE EFFECTS OF MERCURY AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEAVY METAL EXPOSURE ON GENE EXPRESSION, Maya Watson
Two Component System Independent Acid Response in Helicobacter pylori, Catharine Burgess
X Chromosome Segregation During Spermatogenesis in Auanema rhodensis XX Males, Emily Ling Xu
Honors Theses from 2019
An investigation of the role of Ttyh1 in neuronal development via CRISPR/Cas9 genetic knockouts in Xenopus Laevis, Sabrina Bracero
Annual Movement Patterns and Microhabitat Use of Two Anaxyrus Species in the Southeastern Coastal Plain, Courtney Check
Cloning and Characterizing Nrf2-Antioxidant Pathway Gene Expression During Embryonic Neurogenesis in Xenopus laevis., Nana Yaa Amoh
Cryptic Viral Infections In Benthic Biofilm Communities, Alexandra Payne
Flow Dynamics in the Oral and Opercular Cavities of the American Shad (Alosa sapidissima), Cassandra Chang
Light Limitation of Eelgrass, Zostera marina, by The Egg Capsules of The Mud Snail Tritia obsoleta, Matthew Baker
Mutations in Thyroid Hormone Receptor Alpha 1 and Their Implications for Resistance to Thyroid Hormone Alpha, Elizabeth Trampenau
Nighttime Habitat Use and Movement of Two Anaxyrus Species in Southeastern Virginia, Olivia Windorf
Sketching to Learn in High School Biology Classrooms, Emma Arents
The Impact of Cancer-associated Mutations in Thyroid Hormone Receptor on Its Localization, Sri Harshini Malapati
The SUMO-Stress Response (SSR) in Normal and Cancerous Cells, Rui Yin
Thyroid Hormone Receptor and Coregulators: A Dynamic Model, Xiaopeng Sun
Honors Theses from 2018
Anterior-Posterior Neural Axis Plasticity in Xenopus laevis, Chen Dong
Characterizing the Intracellular Distribution of Mutant Thyroid Hormone Receptor α-1 A382PfsX7, Kristin Passero
Characterizing the role of spe-6 in C. elegans spermatogenesis, Elena Parcell
Effects of Traffic Noise on Foraging, Vigilance, and Aggression of the Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia guttata), Sophia Palia
Exploring Nucleophagy and Inflammation in the Tumor Microenvironment, Likhitha Kolla
Exposure to environmentally-relevant levels of ultrasound has biological effects: reduction in the cellular growth of yeast colonies, Elizabeth M. Ransone
Homeolog Gene Regulation in the Developing Allotetraploid Frog, Xenopus laevis, Ronald Cutler
Investigating Phenotypic and Genetic Variation in Quorum Sensing in Natural Isolates of the Model Yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Benedict Lenhart
Mutant Thyroid Hormone Receptors and the Potential Effects on Cancer, Michael Salomon
Particle Interactions with the Gill Rakers in the Filter-Feeding American Shad (Alosa sapidissima), Hannah Bruzzio
pH Tolerance and Luminescence in Vibrio fischeri, Devin Jones
The Acid Response in Helicobacter pylori via the Two Component System ArsRS, Jiajia Chen
The Evolutionary and Genomic Analysis of the Axon Degeneration Gene SARM1 and use of similar genomic techniques on the C9ORF72 gene, Sri Harshavardhan Malapati
The Genetic Basis of Social Behaviors in Yeast: An Investigation into FLO11, Zachary Oppler
The Role of Protein-coding and Regulatory Evolution in Speciation of Wild Yeast, Danting Jiang
The Unusual Paradigm of the Acid Response Two Component System of Helicobacter pylori, Anna Kenan
Ultrasound noise pollution and the potential for chronic human exposure, Isabel Ritrovato
Honors Theses from 2017
An Analysis of Outer Inflammatory Protein A in cag Pathogenicity Island Negative and Positive Strains of Helicobacter pylori, Danielle N. Horridge
A Novel Method for Quantifying Spatial Patterns in Plants, Logan H. George
Are You What You Eat? Selective Sequestration of Toxic Milkweed Cardenolides in the Monarch Butterfly, Jacob Brammer
A study of a novel self-fertility mechanism in the hermaphroditic nematode Rhabditis sp. SB347, Xiaoxue Lin
Beyond "self-eating": The Role of the Pseudophosphatase MK-STYX in Regulating Autophagy, Patrick Christian
Cytological and Bioinformatical Analysis of SPE-26, a C. elegans Kelch-like Protein that Functions during the Karyosome Stage of Spermatogenesis, Stephen A. Gurley
F. psychrophilum resistant and susceptible rainbow trout show differences in abundance of IgT+ and IgM+ B cells, Erin Hennessey
Hemichordates as a model system for investigating intertidal zonation in soft sediments, Kharis R. Schrage
Modulating Intra-Nuclear LC3 with Small Molecules Rescues Cells from an Aneuploidogen-Induced Phenotype, Daniel P. Rosenberg
Receptor Gone Rogue: Investigating Localization of a Cancerous Thyroid Hormone Receptor, Michelle Barbeau
Regulation of Neurite Outgrowths by the Pseudophosphatase MK-STYX in PC12 cells and Primary Neurons, Arya Dahal
The Fitness Effects of Biofilm Formation and Toxin Production in Natural Yeast Isolates, Bernadette M. Deschaine
The Role of RNF4 in Stripping Transcriptionally-Active Huntingtin, Jen Peek
The virulence factor OipA in Asian isolates of Helicobacter pylori, Kexin Fan
Variations in flanking residues of thyroid hormone receptor alpha1 isoform, Christine W. Gao
Honors Theses from 2016
Acetylation Controls the Subcellular Localization of Thyroid Hormone Receptor α1, Cyril S. Anyetei-Anum
Characterization of Novel Export Sequences in the Thyroid Hormone Receptor, Cheyenne Williams
Characterizing Importin Binding to Thyroid Hormone Receptor α1, Emma Lynn McGregor
Effects of Changes in Egg Size and Larval Food Supply on the Development of Two Species of Seastars, Stacy Nicole Trackenberg
Implications of Mycorrhizae and Seedling Competition for American Chestnut Restoration, Olivia Ryan Trani
Investigating Dispersal of Red Oak (Quercus rubra) Acorns by the Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis), Aaron Samuel Bland
Keeping birds away from food using sonic technology: a potential for protecting crops, Waverly Gabrielle McClusky
Mechanisms of Helicobacter pylori Adhesion Regulation and Impacts on Host Immune Response, Catherine Rose Acio
Modeling the Fluid Dynamics of Filtering Structures in Suspension-Feeding Fish, Erin Michele Roberts