The full text of Senior Independent Study Theses submitted during and after 2012 are available to download only by College of Wooster users. Unless listed as an exemplar, all other theses are restricted.

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Senior Independent Study Theses from 2020

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Exploring Peptidoglycan Synthesis: Assessing the Viability of NagZ as a Potential Tool for Obtaining Lipid I, Robert Hunt
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Computational Analysis of PsAvh172 Data to Investigate the Targets of Phytophthora sojae in Soybean Host A Hierarchical Clustering Evaluation of Yeast RNA-Seq Data, Vi Huynh
Department: Mathematics; Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Understanding the transcriptional control of a late expressing gene (BV1) of mungbean yellow mosaic virus (MYMV), Sung Won Kang
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Investigating Changes in Protein Ubiquitylation following Sleep Deprivation in Drosophila melanogaster, Koral Kasnyik
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Organic Synthesis of Potential Small-Molecule Inhibitors for MurG: A Research Tool for Investigating Cell Wall Biosynthesis in Bacteria, Matthew J. Mahoney-White
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Active Site Variants of Yeast Thioredoxin 2: An Analysis of Biological Function, Enzymatic Activity, and Redox Partner Interactions, Stephen W. McGarry
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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The Identification and Characterization of a Halophilic UvrD Homologue, and its Incorporation into Helicase Dependent Amplification, Kevin Miller
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Genetic Control of Neural Development: An RNA-Sequencing Approach to Reveal dNab2 mediated Differential Gene Expression in D. melanogaster, Gargi Mishra
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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The Glow Up: An Investigation into Methods for Improving the Photostability of Fluorescent Proteins TagRFP657 and TurboGFP, Morgan A. Mooty
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Analysis of Saccharomyces cerevisiae transcription factor PHO4 localization when exposed to Phytophthora sojae effector protein PsAvh110, Alex Morris
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Investigating the Role of Phytophthora Sojae Effectors in Suppressing a Hosts Immune Response, Paulo S. Nunes Maldonado
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Determining the Infection Specificity of Bacteriophage Therapy in Multi-Species Biofilms, Mackenzie L. Owen
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Swapping the N-termini of Mitochondrial and Cytoplasmic Taurocyamine Kinase from Arenicola brasiliensis in order to Study the Importance of the Interactions Between the N and C Termini in Controlling Substrate Binding and Specificity, Brent N. Pederson
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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The Binding and Kinetic Mechanisms of 6-Hydroxynicotinate 3-Monooxygenase (NicC), A Decarboxylative Hydroxylase Involved in Nicotinate Degradation, Scott W. Perkins
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Mutational Analysis of Putative Ubiquitination Sites in the Ribonucleotide Reductase Inhibitors Sml1and Dif1, Hunter T. Pierson
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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The Role of Adipokinetic Hormone in female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes Bloodmeal Digestion, Zainab Moyosore Saliu
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Expression, Purification, and Crystallization of S. aureus MurG: Towards Structural Characterization of a Putative Antibiotic Target, Leman WI Simpson
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Chemistry

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Characterization of Ampulex compressa Venom Adenosine Deaminase That Superimposes and Antagonizes Purinergic Signaling in Periplaneta americana, Garrett S.D. Tinline
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Moorea Than You Bargained For: The Attempted Confirmation and Characterization of a Novel Arginine Kinase in Moorea producens, Anneliese C. Wagoner
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Seeing Color a Little Betta: Investigating the role of tyr in melanin-based phenotypic variation in Betta splendens, Sierra Weir
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Synthesis of Novel Fluorescent Unnatural Amino Acid Using Fluorophore from EVOblue 30 Fluorescent Dye, Meghan K. Wells
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Mind Control? Immunohistochemical Analysis of Tachykinin Receptor and GABAergic Neurons in the Cephalic Ganglia of the Cockroach Brain, William J. Yakubik III
Department: Neuroscience; Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Identifying Cell Fate Determining Transcription Factors during Zebra fish development, Qaiser H. Zaidi
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Spooky Scary Skeletons: Sexual Dimorphisms in the Cranial Morphology of Betta splendens, Sara Zidek
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Neuroscience

Senior Independent Study Theses from 2019

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Infection Control! Synergism in Hippocratic Wound Infection Theory and the Antimicrobial Efficacy of the Barbarum Plaster against Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Araam Abboud
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Classical Studies

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The Effects of Phytophthora sojae Effector Protein PsAvh110 on the PHO Regulon within Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Adebola R. Bamidele
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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“Got Sleep?”: An Investigation of Possible Proteomic Sleep Regulators in Drosophila melanogaster, Oscar Benjamin Bautista
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Neuroscience

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Save Our Masses from Starving: Development of a SOMS-Based Spatiotemporal Phytohormone Delivery System, Russell Boston
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Defining the Determinants of Substrate Binding for 6-Hydroxynicotinate 3- Monooxygenase (NicC) from Bordetella bronchiseptica RB50, Ryan Gerald Campbell
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Adipokinetic Hormone Receptors in the Reproductive Tract of Ae. aegypti Mosquitoes, coupled with the history of Ae. aegypti in Haiti, Fredi L. Carey
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; French and Francophone Studies

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Dirty Hair, You Should Care: An Evaluation of Sebum Removal Ability by Common Cosmetic Absorbents and Organosilica on Human Hair, Caylee Cunningham
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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The Effect of Natural Products on Digestive Tissue and the Differential Expression of TRP Channels in Female Aedes aegypti Mosquitoes, Andrew DeLaat
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Exploring a Role for Dif1 in Promoting Genomic Stability, Nikhil Mukund Dole
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Investigation of Phytophthora Sojae’s RXLR Effectors Effect on the MEKK1/MAPK Pathway, Justin Fox
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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The Identification and Characterization of a Halophilic UvrD Homologue and its Incorporation into Helicase Dependent Amplification (Corrected), Devin Frisby
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Influence of Altered Ribonucleotide Reductase Inhibitor Degradation on Genomic Instability in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Anna L. Gibbs
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Characterization of Fatty Acid Desaturase and Elongase Expression in Meleagris gallopavo using RT-qPCR Analysis, Andrew Irving Gold
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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A Boolean Model of Contact Inhibition of Proliferation, Eric C. Guberman
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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The Role of Arginine Kinase in the Cilia of Paramecium, Jasmine Herd
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Characterization of Metallothionein-2 (mt2) and Rad51 (rad51) as Potential Biomarkers for Cadmium Toxicity in Betta splendens, Kenneth A. Kalikasingh
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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To Be or Not To Be: An Investigation into the Pseudomonas protegens strain 12H11 VgrG2b Protein, Carolyn Lee
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Identifying Gene Targets of Phytophthora sojae Effector Protein PsAvh 172 by Synthetic Lethal Analysis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Colleen O'Sullivan
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Protein Immobilization and Enzymatic Activity in Swellable Organically Modified Silica, Sarah Pitell
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Analyzing the Effect of Nab2 Overexpression on Pathological Phenotypes in a Transgenic Fly Model of Tauopathy, Adam C. Richert
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Biology; Neuroscience

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Facilitating Studies of Peptidoglycan Synthesis: Optimizing NagZ Production to Enable Access to Lipid I, Noelle Sadallah
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Analyzing the effects of PsAvh110 on transcription factor PHO4 under low phosphate conditions, Jennifer Sanchez
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Defying the System: A Boolean Model of Neuronal Fate Decision and Aberrant Cell Cycle Re-entry in Alzheimer’s Disease, Carolina N. Shams
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Neuroscience

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Identifying Mutations Acquired by Porcine Delta Coronavirus (PDCoV) For Infection of Chicken and Human Cells, Aditi Vijeth Sringeri
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Whose Got the Moves?: Building the Tools to Determine the Physiological Role of Arginine Kinase Genes in Caenorhabditis elegans At Lowered Gene Expression Levels, Madigan McKenna Strange
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Characterization of Synergistic Toxicity in a Fungicide-Insecticide Combination in Honey Bees, Emily K. Walker
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Investigation of the Development and Behavior of Heterogeneous Tumors, Afton H. Widdershins
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Mathematics

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Progress Towards Understanding Nicotinic Acid Degradation and the nic Operon in B. niacini Using Differential Gene Expression Analysis, Kaeli Zoretich
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Senior Independent Study Theses from 2018

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Assessing the Subcellular Localization of Phytophthora sojae plant pathogen RXLR Effectors in Saccharomyces cerevisiae., Titas K. Bera
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Attempt at Expression of a Functional Recombinant Nicotinate Dehydrogenase from Bacillus niacini, Nathan M. Brownstein
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Everyday Acts of Amish Resistance: Contextualizing Patterns of Antimicrobial Susceptibility in a Small-Scale Agricultural Setting, Geoffrey Carney-Knisely
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Sociology and Anthropology

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Using A Boolean Model to Identify Requirements for Successful Yamanaka Reprogramming, Campbell Elliott
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Elucidating the Physiological Role of a Putative Arginine Kinase in Myxococcus xanthus Utilizing Homologous Recombinants, Zachary J. Engfer
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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An Evolutionary Myx-up: Characterization of Bacterial Arginine Kinases in Species from the Order Myxococcales, Lindsay J. Fannin
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Niacini, Now You Don’t: The Catabolism of Nicotinic Acid and Nicotine and the Role of a Putative Monooxygenase Enzyme in Bacillus niacini, Sydney R. Fine
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Adsorption of Biomolecules by Porous Organosilica, Amy L. Graham
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Understanding Gene Expression Alterations Following Sleep Deprivation, Ksenia J. Klue
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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It's Ground Breaking: Development of Soil Insertion Passive Sampler for Chemically Informed Crop Management, Katherine J. Longo
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Investigating the Role of Phytophthora sojae Effector Protein PsAvr3c in the Endoplasmic Reticulum UPR Defense Pathway, Katherine Lyden
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Betta Understanding: Characterization and Sequencing of Genes Putatively Responsible for Red Phenotypic Variation in Betta splendens, Maria Mullin
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Characterization of a Putative TplE Protein in Pseudomonas chlororaphis 14B11, Ankitha Nanjaraj
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Modeling the Effects of P14 and P53 on Common Oncogenic Pathways, Elizabeth Obi
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Impact of Altered Redox Homeostasis and Ribonucleotide Reductase Activity on Mutation Rates in S. cerevisiae, Matthew Pleshinger
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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An Attempt to Sequence Genes Tyrp1a and Mc1r in Black and Red Phenotype Betta splendens, Bryan Robb
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Help! Help! I am Being Repressed! : An In-Depth Analysis of the IclR and its In-Vitro Oligimerization, Derek B. Schwarz
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Leaf Me Alone: Investigating The Effect of Phenazines On The Systemic Resistance of Arabidopsis thaliana, Olivia A. Seale
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Investigation of dNab2 Loss in D. Melanogaster Causing Changes in Sleep/ Circadian Rhythms, Kiandra Smith
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Phenotypic Analysis of a Novel LncRNA (Na2) Expression on Arabidopsis thaliana Salinity Stress Response, Trang M. Trinh
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Monitoring Protein Interactions between Ribonucleotide Reductase and Thioredoxin in Yeast Lacking Key Peroxiredoxins, Nicole West
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Senior Independent Study Theses from 2017

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Real-Time PCR Analysis of a Salt Stress Responsive LncRNA in Arabidopsis under Salt Stress Conditions, Peter J. Arts
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Characterizing Ribonucleotide Reductase's Role in Promoting Genomic Instability in tsa1Δ Mutants, Brianna L. Bauer
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Mechanistic Investigation into the Liver Kinase β-1 – AMP-Activated Protein Kinase – Phosphagen Kinase Phosphorylation Cascade, Camille K. Boufford
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Investigating Changes in Protein Markers Following Sleep Deprivation in Drosophila Melanogaster, Petra N. Boutros
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Neuroscience

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A genetic approach to examine how the Thioredoxin system influences genomic stability in S. cerevisiae, John Buchan
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Determining the effects of polyadenylation on long noncoding RNA expression and stability in response to stress, Allyson Caselberry
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Evidence of Differential Expression in the Calcineurin Gene Family in Paramecium Tetraurelia And Science in Fiction is not always Science Fiction: An analysis of the German Vergangenheitsbewältigungsliteratur through a Science Fiction Lens as a means to discredit Nazi Racial Science, Alexander G. Day
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; German Studies

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Exploring The Molecular Function of cAMP and Phosphodiesterase PDE1C during Axon Pathfinding in Drosophila Melanogaster, Alexandra R. Elchert
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Identification of Catalytic Residues in the 3C-like Protease of Maize chlorotic dwarf virus, Anna Emmick
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Development of a Novel Method of Unrestricted Polypeptide Synthesis Utilizing a Salicylaldehyde Based Auxiliary Molecule, Jake Eshelman
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Assessing the Effects of Recombinant AK Genes on the Growth and Development of Myxococcus xanthus, Mark A. Grady
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Novel Synthesis of Difluorene Bisintercalators via Direct Amidation Using Swellable Organically Modified Silica (SOMS) and Employment of the CAN1 Forward Mutation Assay to Assess Mutagenicity, Hannah M. Hicks
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Environmental Studies

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Investigating the Potential Genetic Causes of the Marbled Phenotype in the Betta splendens, Jennifer Hurtig
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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The Drosophila melanogaster polyadenosine RNA binding protein, Nab2, is necessary for survival and neural development, in a model of intellectual disability., Michael Kahl
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Neuroscience

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The Effect of a His Tag on IclR Interactions with DNA and Ligands in Escherichia coli, Mara A. Kingscott
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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The Effects of Male-Produced Adipokinetic Hormone I on the Fertility of Female Aedes aegypti, Anna L. McGlade
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Substrate Specificity of Horseradish Peroxidase for the Oxidation of Pharmaceutical Compounds, Lance Metsger
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Chemistry

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Allelochemical Extraction from Soil Using Swellable Organically Modified Silica, Adrienne Reding
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Biophysical Characterization of the Cofactors in the NicAB Complex from Bacillus niacini, Laura A. Sherer
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Modeling the Commitment to Senescence Through Mitochondrial Fusion and Chromosomal Restructuring, Herbert Sizek
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Analyzing H7 as a Possible Structural Determinant of Negative Cooperativity within the Phosphagen Kinase Enzyme Family, Katie Stock
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Investigating the Relationship Between Self-Interaction and Function of the Viral Suppressor of RNAi Expressed by Maize Chlorotic Dwarf Virus, Ben R. Stromberg
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Genetic Engineering of the GFP Coding Region for Expression of Fusion Proteins in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Jenna S. Taira
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Characterizing the genetic determinants of the nicotinic acid degradation pathway in Bacillus niacini, Tsun Ki Jerrick To
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Insecticide Fungicide Interaction and Synergistic Toxicity in Honey Bees, Andrea H. Wade
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Investigating The Genetic Basis Of Melanistic Betta splendens, Harrison P. Wooten
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Senior Independent Study Theses from 2016

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Stabilizing Redox-Responsive Protein Network Interactions with a Thiol-Reactive Cross-Linker, Kristin M. Allan
Department: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology