Helena Abad Friday Hendrix College 4:15 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Ecosystem services of the Big Bend region of the Chihuahuan Desert Nathan Taylor, Davis Kendall, Abad Helena, Maureen R. McClung, Matthew D. Moran

Ecosystem services estimates have not been published for some biomes, notably desert ecosystems. The Chihuahuan bioregion is the largest desert in North America, has high biodiversity, is relatively intact, and has considerable cultural significance for parts of Mexico and the United States. We calculated the ecosystem services values for the Big Bend region of the Chihuahuan Desert in southwest Texas, USA. Big Bend has low levels of development and is a relatively unmodified and functioning ecosystem, making it a good representative landscape to study desert ecosystem services. We found that this region has $550 (2015 USD) of annual value per hectare with raw materials, climate regulation, and cultural services contributing the most monetary value. This value was markedly lower than other terrestrial biomes, which was not necessarily surprising considering deserts are low productivity environments. However, given the size of the Chihuahuan Desert, the overall ecosystem services value for the entire bioregion would be sizeable. The Chihuahuan Desert is facing numerous threats, most notably energy development and overuse of natural resources, which is probably negatively impacting ecosystem services today. Projected growth in oil and gas drilling and wind energy could further degrade the vital services provided by this region. The low ecosystem services value also indicates that the widespread desertification occurring globally is causing large decreases in ecosystem services across many landscapes Mahbub Ahmed Saturday Southern Arkansas University 8:00 AM Engineering (EN) CCCS 115 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Developing a Low Cost 3D Printing Lab and the Use of 3D Printing in a Freshman Engineering Lab Course Mahbub Ahmed, Md Islam

3D printing has taken modern manufacturing to an elevated level. As the average price of a 3D printer is becoming more affordable, scientists and engineers are continuously taking advantage of this technology, including the students and the professors of Southern Arkansas University. In the present study the development of a low cost 3D printing laboratory for the engineering program of Southern Arkansas is described. The use of 3D printing technology for a freshman lab course for engineering students was part of this study as well. The students enjoyed the entire design process and an enhanced engagement was observed among the students. Ismaeel Al-Baidhany Friday Al-Mustansaryah University 2:15 PM Physics (PH) CCCS 101 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

A New Relation between Spiral Arm Pitch Angles (p) and the Bulge Luminosity Ismaeel Al-Baidhany, Hayfa Ghazi Daway, Nadir Fadhil Habubi, Nidhal Nissan Jandow, Sami Salman Chiad, Wasmaa Abdulsattar Jabbar

In this study, we have found a new relation between spiral arm pitch angles (p) and the bulge luminosity (P-L). In this study, we measured the spiral arm pitch angle (P) for a sample of Spitzer/IRAC 3.6-µm images of 40 spiral galaxies, estimated by using a 2D Fast Fourier Transform decomposition technique (2DFFT). We selected a sample of nearly face-on spiral galaxies and used IRAF ellipse to determine the ellipticity and major-axis position angle in order to deproject the images to face-on, and using a 2D Fast Fourier Transform decomposition technique, we determined the spiral arm pitch angles.

The measurement of the bulge luminosity is based on a two-dimensional (bulge - bar - disk) decomposition program to model Spitzer/IRAC 3.6 um images. The bulge luminosity was determined for a sample of 40 spiral galaxies by applying the two-dimensional multicomponent decomposition method. Calla Bassett Friday Southern Arkansas University 1:00 PM Physics (PH) CCCS 101 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Suppression of Radiation-Induced Chromosome Damage by GT3 and the Role of Microgravity Calla Bassett, Abdel Bachri, Rupak Pathak

Ionizing radiation, such as outer space radiation, generates reactive oxygen species (ROS), which cause DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) that are responsible for cytogenetic alterations originating from Chromosome damage. Because antioxidants are potent ROS scavengers, we investigated whether the vitamin E y-tocotrienol (GT3), a radio-protective multifunctional dietary antioxidant, can suppress radiation-induced cytogenetic damage. We measured DSB formation in irradiated primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) by quantifying the formation of y-H2AX foci. Chromosomal aberrations (CAs) were analyzed in irradiated HUVECs and in the bone marrow cells of irradiated mice by conventional and fluorescence-based chromosome painting techniques. We found that GT3 pretreatment reduced DSB formation in HUVECS, and decreased chromosome aberration in HUVECs and mouse bone marrow cells after irradiation. Moreover, GT3 increased expression of the DNA-repair gene RAD50 and attenuated radiation-induced RAD50 suppression. We conclude that GT3 attenuates radiation-induced cytogenetic damage, possibly by affecting RAD50 expression. GT3 should be explored as a therapeutic supplement to reduce the risk of developing genetic diseases after radiation exposure. Finally, the effect of outer space radiation exposure and near-zero space gravity environment on DNA damage is not well documented, and is a primary concern to NASA in furthering its goal for deep space exploration. We illustrate technics of subjecting the cells to microgravity and discuss our preliminary findings on the role of microgravity. Elvis Bello Friday University of Arkansas 4:30 PM Geosciences (GS) CCCS 101 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Tectono-Stratigraphic And Sequence Stratigraphic Successions, Ozark Shelf, Tri-State Region, Southern Midcontinent Elvis Bello, Thomas A. McGilvery, Walter L. Manger

The southern Ozark region, Arkansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma, occupies the southern border of the North American craton. Its sedimentary succession reflects a complete Wilson Cycle with rifting of Rodinia into the Laurussia and Gondwanan landmasses (Late Precambrian-Cambrian) eventually opening the Iapetus Ocean basin (Late Cambrian-Middle Mississippian), that was closed (Late Mississippian-Middle Pennsylvanian) by the collision of Laurussia with Gondwana. During this Late Cambrian through the Middle Pennsylvanian history, the Ozark Shelf, comprising the gently sloping, Northern Arkansas Structural Platform (NASP) and its adjacent ramp experienced transgression and regression by epeiric seas producing a record divisible into five Tectono-stratigraphic Successions (TS) and correlated readily to the Sloss Cratonic Sequences. The TS lithostratigraphic record comprises at least 33 formations and a potential thickness >9600 feet. However, sea-level rise and fall produced regional surfaces of erosion that punctuated deposition. Consequently, the preserved thickness on the NASP is significantly less. Based on sandstone development, five distinct, but related, Tectono-stratigraphic Successions (TS1-TS5) can be recognized in the Paleozoic record: Late Precambrian-Middle Cambrian (TS1), Late Cambrian-earliest Ordovician (TS2), Lower Ordovician-Middle Mississippian (TS3), Middle-Late Mississippian (TS4), and Lower-Middle Pennsylvanian (TS5). TS1, pre-Late Sauk Sequence, is the least known succession, consisting of emplaced igneous and low-ranked metasedimentary bodies and pre-Lamotte sedimentary rocks. TS2, Late Sauk Sequence, is potentially >3075 feet of dolomites, sandstones from arkoses to orthoquartzites, and minor shales. TS3, Tippecanoe-Kaskaskia Sequence, is the thickest interval, possibly >5932 feet of dolomites, cherty limestones, shales, and the last orthoquartzitic sandstone. TS4, spanning the Kaskaskia-Absaroka boundary, is at least 1458 feet of limestones, shales, and sporadic first cycle sandstones . The final TS5, Late Absaroka Sequence, is the penultimate thickest interval on the NASP >4160 feet of first cycle sandstones and shales that may exceed 25,000 feet in the adjacent Arkoma Basin. David Bowles Saturday US National Park Services 9:00 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 101 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Long-term aquatic invertebrate monitoring at Buffalo National River, Arkansas David E. Bowles, Janice A. Hinsey, J. Tyler Cribbs, Faron D. Usrey, Lloyd W. Morrison

Aquatic invertebrate community structure was used to assess long-term water quality integrity in the mainstem of the Buffalo National River, Arkansas from 2005 to 2013. Human disturbance to tributaries, including bacterial contamination, threaten water quality and aquatic life in the Buffalo River. Nine benthic invertebrate samples were collected from each of six sampling sites using a Slack-Surber sampler. The Stream Condition Index (SCI) developed for Ozark streams was used to assess integrity of the invertebrate communities. This index is calculated using taxa richness, EPT (Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Trichoptera) Richness, Shannon’s Diversity Index, and Hilsenhoff Biotic Index (HBI). Sørenson’s similarity index was used to assess community similarity among sites, and scores were then analyzed using ascendant hierarchical cluster analysis. The benthic invertebrate fauna was diverse with 167 distinct taxa identified from among all sites, with similarities ranging from 70% to 83%. Cluster analysis showed sites were clustered in a downstream progression. Generally, those sites closest one another in linear distance were most closely related. Overall, the invertebrate taxa of the Buffalo River are largely intolerant (mean tolerance value= 4.38). Taxa richness was typically greater than 20 among samples, and EPT richness values consistently were greater than 12 for all sites in most years. Shannon’s diversity index values generally ranged from 2.0 to 2.5 among sites and years. Metric values tended to decrease in a downstream direction to Site 4, and then increase to levels observed upstream. The exception was for HBI, which did not show this response and values for this metric generally were below 5. SCI scores among sampling sites were variable but not generally impaired and were fully biologically-supporting. Water quality (temperature, dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, pH, turbidity) met state standards in all instances. Aimee Bowman Friday Arkansas Tech University 2:00 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Relative Gene Expression Study on Centruroides vittatus Investigating Sodium Toxin Gene Activity Aimee Bowman, Taylor Bishop, Chloe Fitzgerald

Scorpions release venom when capturing prey or fighting off predators, and a large portion of this venom consists of neurotoxins. The area in the tail where the venom is produced and housed is called the telson gland. The neurotoxins produced are mostly composed of a cocktail of different sodium toxins which alter the kinetics of sodium channel gating in the nervous system cells where they have been injected. This exploratory study on the sodium β toxin gene activity for striped bark scorpion, Centruroides vittatus, specifically focused on gathering relative quantification data for five neurotoxin variants in particular: Na668, Na667, Na1210, CsBeta, and CvAlpha. This was accomplished by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, or qRT-PCR. Preliminary experiments have been conducted on both male and female organisms and the threshold values yielded from these have been statistically analyzed within biological replicates as well as computationally analyzed through the ΔΔCt method which has generated a tentative ratio of activity for these gene variants. The goal of this study was to determine the level of expression for the different sodium β toxin genes in the telson gland relative to body tissue so that we are better able to understand the moderately toxic effects of the striped bark scorpion comparative to similar scorpions. This information may one day be used to help develop anti-toxins for medical use. Amanda Brooks Friday Ouachita Baptist University 4:30 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Biodiversity in Biocubes Amanda Brooks, Ruth Plymale, Jess Kelly

Biodiversity is the scope of all life in a given area; yet working definitions are often limited to plants and animals. Having a more complete understanding of biodiversity and potential human impacts on it is of particular relevance for undergraduate students, as they are developing their own ways of interacting with the world. To that end, I have piloted a biodiversity-themed undergraduate lab based on a one- cubic-foot Biocube. I surveyed ten unique one cubic foot areas across various ecosystems surrounding Ouachita Baptist University. In each Biocube, I assessed invertebrate animals, plant species, and soil microbes. I surveyed invertebrates using sticky traps and pitfall traps and used morphological characteristics to identify them to order. I collected and pressed a subsample of the plants in each biocube; I counted the collected plants and identified them to family. I counted the soil bacteria by plating serial dilutions on tryptic soy agar. I will present my findings about each of the ten locations sampled. Aaron Burgad Friday University of Central Arkansas 1:00 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of Fish Assemblage Structure After Watershed Alteration in the Saline River, Arkansas Aaron Burgad, Ginny Adams, Reid Adams

Long-term data sets are important to understand how fish communities respond to watershed alteration. The Saline River is one of the longest unregulated rivers in Arkansas (325 km), but anthropogenic activities (e.g., development, logging, and gravel mining) continue to influence fish communities, consequently driving community divergence. We quantified temporal changes in fish community structure at multiple spatial scales during three periods (period I [1969-1971], period II [1980-1982], and period III [2016]). At the broadest spatio-temporal scale, fish community composition significantly shifted (PERMANOVA: P < 0.01) through time, but beta diversity was not different among periods (PERMDISP: P > 0.05). However, partitioning of beta diversity into pure spatial turnover and nestedness components revealed nestedness rose markedly over time in the upper Saline River basin. At the species level, Noturus miurus and Etheostoma stigmaeum were strongly associated with period I, whereas Fundulus olivaceus, Gambusia affinis, Lepomis megalotis, and Micropterus punctulatus were strongly associated with period II and period III. In conclusion, we found several benthic species intolerant of siltation were more widely distributed and abundant during period I. In contrast, generalist species increased in abundance and were more widely distributed during period II and period III. These findings provide insight into patterns of change in fish community structure over multiple decades in an unregulated river. Jonathan Chick Friday University of Arkansas - Fayetteville 4:00 PM Geosciences (GS) CCCS 101 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Lower Mississippian, Tripolitic Chert Formed From Hydrothermally Emplaced Silica, And Its Possible Relationship To The Tri-State Lead-Zinc Mining District Jonathan Chick, Sydney McKim, Julie Cains, Forrest McFarlin, Adriana Potra

Across the southern Ozark Region, north Arkansas, southwestern Missouri, and northeastern Oklahoma, exposures of the Lower Mississippian Boone Formation and its equivalents exhibit well-developed tripolitic chert that has been mined, more or less continuously, for at least 80 years. The tripolitic chert is a replacement of an interval within the middle Boone Formation in Arkansas and Oklahoma, and equivalent to the Elsey Formation in Missouri. The movement of silica-rich, hydrothermal fluids appears to have been confined to the interval between the top of the Lower Boone = Reeds Spring Formation in Missouri comprising calcisiltites and black, penecontemporaneous chert, and the base of the Upper Boone = Burlington-Keokuk Formation in Missouri comprising crinoidal packstones and grainstones replaced by later diagenetic chert along their bedding places by groundwater, much as a confined aquifer is bound by impermeable intervals. This hydrothermal event may have produced the MVT lead-zinc deposits in northeast Oklahoma and southwestern Missouri. The famous deposits at Picher, Oklahoma and Joplin, Missouri appear to be positioned in the apparent path of the hydrothermal fluid migration. While timing of the hydrothermal event is unclear, it may reflect lateral secretion produced by the Ouachita Orogeny in the Late Pennsylvanian. Rajib Choudhury Saturday Arkansas Tech University 9:00 AM Chemistry (CH) CCCS 115 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Design and Synthesis of NIR Donor-Acceptor Fluorophores Rajib Choudhury

Long-wavelength (λex/em, red or near-infrared) fluorophores have significant advantages over the conventional blue and green light excitable fluorophores because long-wavelength lights scatter less, can penetrate deeper into tissues, disturbed minimally by the autofluorescence of endogenous chromophores in biological systems, and cause less disturbance and photodamage to cells and living organisms.1,2 To date, several long-wavelength fluorophores have been designed, published, as well as commercialized for various applications. Whereas each fluorophore has advantages over one another, general limitations of many fluorophores are, they are minimally water soluble and thus aggregate extensively in water. Moreover, tailoring a fluorophore to long-wavelength absorption and emission regime and maintaining sufficient water solubility for biological applications require many challenging synthesis steps.

In this project we have designed, synthesized and characterized two long-wavelength fluorophores. We have studied photophysical properties and assessed the efficacy of these fluorophores for potential applications in aqueous environment. We have found fluorophore with one hydroxyl (-OH) group remains water soluble at micro molar concentration, leading to a modest fluorescence quantum yield at pH 7.4. Within a rigid protein environment the quantum yield increases a significant amount, suggesting a potential bioimaging candidate. Mitchell Collins Friday Arkansas Tech University 4:45 PM Engineering (EN) CCCS 115 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

An Acoustic-Based Approach For Condition Monitoring Of Pipes Mitchell Collins, Geoffrey Birkemeier, Emad Ali

The municipal sewer system in the United States contains pipes that are between 30 and 100 years old. Traditionally, utility companies use a robot-mounted closed circuit television system to visually observe and record cracks in pipes. A major disadvantage of closed circuit television system is that the robot may have difficulties accessing the entirety of the pipe due to structural defects and blockages. The technology used in the system is also very expensive, causing the method to be very costly. Therefore, it is needed to develop a more economical system to address the shortcomings of the existing technology. One such system would be the method of propagating acoustic signal through the pipe and analyzing the frequency response of the pipe. The pipe behaves as a waveguide to acoustic excitation and can be modeled in a manner similar to transmission lines in electric circuits. Acoustic waves can propagate through a pipe, and any cracks in the pipe will act as impedance mismatch causing attenuation and distortion in the propagating signal. The aim of this research is to correlate attenuation and distortion in the acoustic signal to the condition of a pipe sample. Preliminary experiments have been performed using an acoustic signal comprising multiple tones at one-third octave band frequencies between 50 to 10 kHz. The analysis of acquired data during preliminary trials indicates that acoustic frequencies between 800 to 1500 Hz are severely attenuated due to signal loss from cracks in a pipe. Further analysis on the acquired data is in progress to pinpoint effects of cracks on the frequency response of the pipe. Based on the findings from analysis of the data, different experiments will be conducted by varying the type of acoustic excitation (such as using linear frequency sweep and direct sequence spread spectrum) and using advanced signal analysis techniques (such as wavelet transforms). Obiora Dalu Friday University of Arkansas - Fayetteville 4:45 PM Geosciences (GS) CCCS 101 Graduate Student Judge: No

Significance Of The Middle Mississippian Paleokarst Surface, Western Ozark Uplift, Arkansas, Kansas And Oklahoma Obiora Dalu, William Coffey, Walter Manger

Across much of the southern Ozarks, particularly northwestern Arkansas and northeastern Oklahoma, there is a significant regional disconformity at the top for the Osagean Boone Formation. Commonly, this erosional surface separates the chert-bearing Boone from the Chesterian Hindsville Limestone. This contact is marked frequently by clasts of angular, light-colored, later diagenetic chert derived from the upper Boone Formation redeposited as a basal breccia in the Hindsville. Near the type area for the Hindsville Limestone, Madison County, Arkansas, a remarkable sinkhole has developed in the upper Boone. This paleokarst feature was filled by the Hindsville Limestone, with its characteristic basal chert breccia. Subsequently, the Hindsville experienced erosion by solution, probably of Pleistocene age, that produced a superimposed, second active sinkhole exposed to the present land surface. Moving westward along the outcrop belt, the duration of the erosional contact becomes reduced by deposition and preservation of presumed Meramecian limestones with thin shales separating Osagean-Chesterian strata, and based on 3D seismic, this buried paleokarst interval appears widely distributed in the subsurface across eastern Oklahoma and northward into southeastern Kansas. Yet, development of a buried paleokarst surface is hard to reconcile with most sequence stratigraphic interpretations of the midcontinent that indicate a third-order, maximum flooding interval toward the top of the Meramecian Series and regard the upper Meramecian and all the Chesterian interval as regressive at the third order. The anomaly of this relationship might indicate movement on the Ozark Dome, or perhaps Nemaha Ridge, that interrupted the cratonic depositional pattern suggested by sequence stratigraphy. James Daly Sr. Saturday University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences 8:00 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 101 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Geographic Distribution Of Yellow Grub In Smallmouth Bass Populations Of Crooked Creek As Determined By Metacercarial Cyst Counts In The Gill-Mouth (Orobranchial) Sites James Daly Sr, Kenneth Wagner, Randal Keller

Metacercarial numbers of in the gill-mouth area can be used to estimate total population parameters of yellow grub in smallmouth bass populations (Daly et al., 2007). In 1991, 558 smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieui) from Crooked Creek in North Central Arkansas were examined for yellow grub (Clinostomum marginatum) infection by counting only the number of metacercarial cysts in the gill- mouth (orobranchial) anatomical site. Bass were captured by angling from above Huzzah Creek to the stream’s confluence with the White River. Bass were collected in a linear spatial fashion by moving down river by canoe and releasing fish after examination. Data from the gill-mouth area only was compared to data from a study in1988-90 done with necropsy, to see if the distribution of yellow grub along the stream was similar. The 1988-90 study, unlike the one herein, was done by collecting fish at selected locales along the stream. Both studies showed that upstream the infection was light, and then became heavy, and then dropped to a moderate intensity, and finally at the White River there is a super-heavy infested area. Use of gill-mouth counts and collect-and-release for smallmouth bass conserves a valuable and important game fish, saves time and effort from necropsy, but still provides a detailed profile of yellow grub infection in a smallmouth bass stream population. James Daly Sr. Saturday University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (retired) 8:30 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 101 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Anatomical Distribution Of Clinostomum metacercariae In The Tissues Of Pond-Raised Channel Catfish Jeurel Singleton, James Daly Sr., Kenneth Wagner

Previously Daly et al. 2007; J. Ark. Acad. Sci. 61:43 found that the distribution of Clinostomum marginatum (“yellow grub”) metacercariae in the mouth and gills (orobranchial cavity) of smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomeiu) was highly proportional to the total body metacerariae. One could use this relationship to estimate the Clinostomum larval abundance in a smallmouth population by counting only the number in the mouth and gills without lethal necropsy. An infection of yellow grub in catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) in a pond in Northwest Arkansas offered the opportunity to see if a similar tissue distribution of proportionality existed with another fish host. 54 catfish of similar age and size (35±3.9 cm SL; range 28-45; weight 326±169 gm; range 190-1215) were necropsied. The recovered yellow grub were divided into groupings of mouth, gill, fin, side muscles, internal sites and counted. Results were (mean±sd, % of total grubs) gills 5.7±5.5, 18% ; mouth 13±8.7, 41%; fins 5.8±5.6, 18%; muscles 3.9±5.6, 12%; internal 3.3±3.6, 10%: Regression analysis of visible gill+mouth grubs vs total grubs showed high correlation with r²= 0.74, p =1.02E-16. This data (gill + mouth = 59%) somewhat agreed with that of Viana et al; 2005, with C. complanatum in Rhamdea quellan (a Brazilian catfish) which showed 42.3±6.3 % of metacercariae in the head region of the host but differed from 16 different Ouachita and Ozark smallmouth infections (Daly et al. 2007) where less grubs were found in the head region (14±3.6 %, range 5-16). Conclusion: Counting grubs in the head region of infected catfish without necropsy gives a good estimate of the total yellow grub burden and maybe a useful tool for catfish farmers without having to sacrifice economically valuable stock. Doga Demirel Friday University of Arkansas at Little Rock 3:30 PM Computer Science (CS) CCCS 115 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Generative Anatomy Modelling Language (GAML) Doga Demirel, Alexander Yu, Seth Baer-Cooper, Tansel Halic, Coskun Bayrak

This study presents the Generative Anatomy Modeling Language (GAML) for generating variation of 3D virtual human anatomy in real-time. The process of design, creation, and refinement of a 3D anatomy is an iterative and laborious task, which becomes inevitable in the development of virtual simulators. This process can be arduous when the simulators need to support surgical scenarios based on the variation of anatomy. The GAML framework on the other hand simplifies this design process with a set of operators for modification of a reference base 3D anatomy. GAML supports both the low level (translate, scale, rotate, etc.) and the high level geometry modification commands (irradiation and scarring, adjust, etc.). The perturbation of the 3D models is satisfied with nonlinear geometry constraints to create an authentic human anatomy. The nonlinear constraints support a range of constraints such as absolute distance, flexibility and angle constraints. GAML was used to create 3D difficult anatomical scenarios for virtual simulator of airway management techniques such as Endotracheal Intubation (ETI) and Cricothyroidotomy (CCT). We defined the difficulty scenarios for each technique and procedurally created the model variations with GAML. Patrick Desrochers Saturday University of Central Arkansas 8:45 AM Chemistry (CH) CCCS 115 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Sweeter scorpionates incorporate carbohydrates into functional metal chelates Patrick Desrochers, Triston Clements, Alek Fortner

Scorpionate chelates have incorporated a wide variety of cyclic donors. Missing from this list are carbohydrates, heterocycles with important biological and environmental roles. Here we report the first incorporation of a saccharide ring into a heteroscorpionate. This new ligand class results from pyrazole- for-saccharide ring metathesis with KTp*, previously described by our lab for benzotriazole (Inorg. Chem. 2011). Microwave heating in DMF yielded the potassium carbo-scorpionates, K[HB(pz*)2(sacch)], where pz* = 3,5-dimethylpyrazole and sacch = sucrose, maltose, and cellulose. These new chelates react with metal(II) ion sources, giving well-defined pseudo-tetrahedral LMCl systems. Unlike the parent chelate, Tp* -, these carbo-scorpionates form only half-sandwich metal complexes, presumably owing to steric control imposed by the saccharide rings. These carbo-scorpionates offer a route to starch-supported metal-scorpionates, suitable for the development of magnetic, catalytic, and sensory paper-based devices. Riley Dickson Friday University of Arkansas - Fayetteville 3:30 PM Geosciences (GS) CCCS 101 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Late Mississippian (Chesterian) Shallowing-Upward, Eustatic Cyclicity Reflected By Taphonomy Of Preserved Ammonoid Cephalopods, Northern Arkansas Riley Dickson, Walter Manger

Abundant ammonoid cephalopods are preserved in the black shales of the Fayetteville Shale and the younger the Imo Member, Pitkin Formation, those intervals representing respectively maximum flooding-highstand and regression of the Late Mississippian, Chesterian Series, third-order, eustatic cycle exposed across northern Arkansas. Shells that did not experience post-mortem crushing typically have living chambers filled with pelleted, sideritic concretionary material, while the phragmocones have been filled with a variety of carbonate minerals. In Fayetteville Shale specimens, the septa are usually imploded and the carbonate mineralization includes both ferroan and non-ferroan calcite and dolomite, particularly where there has been some access to inner whorls through crushing of the phragmocone. Fluorapatite partially replaces the presumably inverted carbonate of the conch and septa. Uncrushed specimens from shales of the Imo Member, Pitkin Formation, also have siderite concretions filling their living chambers, but the phragmocones lack imploded septa. Unlike the Fayetteville specimens, many Imo ammonoid interiors exhibit pseudomorphs of calcite after aragonite. These relationships confirm sequence cyclicity indicating that the specimens from the lower Fayetteville are preserved in the deep, maximum flooding interval of the Upper Chesterian cycle at a depth that imploded their septa, while the Imo specimens were likely wind-driven shoreward after death into shallower, warmer water, during the regressive portion of the Upper Chesterian cycle and accumulated on the seafloor at a depth above the pressure gradient that would implode their septa, and where initial carbonate precipitation was penecontemporaneous aragonite, later to be replaced by non-ferroan calcite, which also filled the remaining empty areas of the chambers. Kyle Dineen Friday Arkansas State University 1:30 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Genetic Structure and Diversity of Disjunct Populations of Rainbow Darters (Etheostoma caeruleum) and Southern Redbelly Dace (Chrosomus erythrogaster) Throughout the Mississippi Corridor. Kyle Dineen, Brook Fluker

Conservation studies of North America’s freshwater fish fauna frequently focus on recently fragmented species or species with naturally small ranges. Our grasp of how recent, natural isolation affects the migration and genetic diversity of common and widespread freshwater fishes is limited. Etheostoma caeruleum and Chrosomus erythrogaster are widespread, abundant, and have overlapping distributions with comparable patterns of naturally disjunct populations on their range margins. Both species have potentially isolated populations in tributaries on Crowley’s Ridge, Arkansas and the Bluff Hills, Mississippi. These regions are relatively recent geological formations that would have been colonized by these species within the last 10,000 years making these species excellent subjects for studying the impacts of recent, natural genetic isolation. In this study, we analyze microsatellite DNA loci from both species to evaluate genetic diversity and connectivity among populations on Crowley’s Ridge, the Bluff Hills, and larger core populations. Using DNA sequence data, we also test hypotheses about the pattern and timing of colonization of Crowley’s Ridge and the Bluff Hills. The results of this study will provide valuable information about the biogeographic and demographic history as well as the conservation status of these potentially disjunct populations of E. caeruleum and C. erythrogaster. Katie Dobbins Friday Hendrix College 4:15 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 211 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Determining recent hybridization of pinyon pines in a zone of sympatry in northern Arizona Katie Dobbins, David S. Gernandt, Ann Willyard

We investigated whether pinyon pines with a mosaic of morphological traits on the Mogollon Rim in northern Arizona are recent hybrids or a different species. This is complicated by uncertainty regarding one of the putative parents. Recent studies have demonstrated that the single-leaf pinyon in Arizona (currently treated as Pinus monophylla ssp. fallax) is more closely related to P. edulis than it is to P. monophylla (the single-leaf pinyons of Nevada and California). In Arizona, we sampled multiple individual that represent P. monophylla ssp. fallax, multiple individuals that represent P. edulis, and putative hybrids of these two species. We compared these to multiple individuals of P. monophylla from California. We used biotinylated probes to enrich for 700 low-copy nuclear loci prior to Illumina sequencing with 100 bp paired end reads. We are also recovering plastome, high-copy nuclear ribosomal, and mitochondrial sequences. We are using de novo and reference-guided assembly to arrange the raw reads, and to filter out putative paralogs using multi-sequence alignments. The most reliably aligned genes will be used to create gene trees, which will in turn be used to build a species tree. As a final step, we will use a parametric approach to explore the power of these data to distinguish hybridization from incomplete lineage sorting. Damaso Dominguez Friday University of Arkansas 3:45 PM Engineering (EN) CCCS 115 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Computing wind field close to the ground using CFD in a tornado chamber. Damaso Dominguez, Panneer Selvam

Tornado forces on a building are measured or simulated in a vortex chamber or using analytical tornado models. The pressure or force coefficient on a building reported in the literature are only for few swirl ratios in a vortex chamber. Most of the time, the analytical model uses Rankine Combined Vortex Model (RCVM) and hence the profile is the same at various heights, while in the vortex chamber the wind field varies at different heights from the ground for different swirl ratios. In this work, the detailed wind field at various heights for different swirl ratios are computed using CFD. The investigation shows that at various heights close to the ground, the wind field is different, and it implies that for different building heights, different wind fields are interacting due to a tornado. For lower swirl ratios such as 0.2, the tornado does not touch the ground and for swirl ratios such as 0.35 or higher, the tornado touches the ground and becomes multiple cell tornado after reaching swirl ratio of 0.95. The variation of velocity with respect to radius is clearly seen. In addition to the effect of swirl ratios, the effect of height of the inlet flow (Ho) and radius (Ro) of the outlet flow are also considered. The details of wind field for other heights, the effect of Ho, Ro, and computational domain will be reported in the full paper.

For the computer modeling, an axisymmetric model is used for investigation. The control volume procedure is used. Large eddy simulation (LES) is used to model the turbulence. The effect of grid resolution at different parts of the chamber on wind field are considered. The computed tangential wind field at various heights and vector plots are presented in order to provide more details of the wind field for various swirl ratios, Ho and Ro. For various building height and width, different wind field are interacting, and hence the force coefficients will be different. Brook Fluker Saturday Arkansas State University 9:15 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 101 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Development of the Arkansas Center for Biodiversity Collections (ACBC) at Arkansas State University Brook L. Fluker, Travis D. Marsico, Stanley E. Trauth, John L. Harris, Kari Harris

The natural history collections at Arkansas State University (A-State) started with a small collection of plant specimens in 1946 and have since grown to eight collections and >500,000 specimens. The collections represent a significant record of biodiversity for the State of Arkansas, but have suffered in recent decades from overcrowding and neglect, resulting in inefficient and limited use and specimen degradation in some cases. A recently funded NSF grant will assist with the development of the Arkansas Center for Biodiversity Collections (ACBC) on the A-State campus. The goals of this project are as follows: (1) alleviate overcrowding and increase room for growth through installation of high-density storage systems and new cabinetry; (2) secure collections through improved storage media and labeling; (3) complete the digitization of specimen data and provide public access to all collection data; and (4) develop a significant outreach program by providing collections-based workshops and tours of ACBC displays and collections. The long-term goal of the ACBC is to serve as a unified, accessible specimen repository and research center for the State of Arkansas, including the Interior Highlands, Upper Mississippi Alluvial Plain, and Crowley’s Ridge ecoregions. Michelle Furr Friday Univeristy of Central Arkansas 1:45 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Historic Changes in Fish Assemblage Patterns in the Little Missouri River, Arkansas Michelle Furr, Ginny Adams, Reid Adams

Long-term data sets are required to understand links between land use change and persistence and stability of fish assemblages. Fish surveys conducted in the 1970s and 1980s by students from University of Louisiana at Monroe were available to begin examining changes in fish assemblages in the Little Missouri River watershed. Jaccard Index, Morisita-Horn Index, and Bray-Curtis Index were used to determine similarity between historic and current fish assemblages. Fish assemblages between time periods had low to moderate similarity based on three indices (Jaccard’s: 0.44, Morisita-Horn: 0.51, Bray- Curtis: 0.43). Micropterus punctulatus increased in frequency of occurrence across sites by 75% in the Little Missouri River from early 1970s to 2016. Similarly, Lepomis megalotis increased by 42%, Etheostoma blennioides 25%, Lepomis cyanellus 33%, and Hybognathus nuchalis 17%. Etheostoma collettei decreased in frequency of occurrence by 33% and Etheostoma chlorosoma by 25%. There was an apparent increase in lowland, pool-adapted species across the 12 study sites. Fish assemblage similarity was negatively correlated with development and agricultural land use (rho= -0.57 and -0.25, p>0.05) and positively correlated with forested land use (rho=0.34, p>0.05). Moving forward, we will use environmental variables to evaluate changes in fish assemblage patterns in the Little Missouri River. Franklin Hardcastle Friday Arkansas Tech Univeristy 2:30 PM Chemistry (CH) CCCS 115 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Carbon-Carbon, Carbon-Oxygen, Carbon-Nitrogen, and Carbon-Hydrogen Bond Valence - Length Relationships Franklin Hardcastle

Bond valence-length empirical relations provide a way of calculating bond valences, or bond orders, directly from bond lengths. Linus Pauling (1947) was the first to suggest the “empirical” logarithmic dependence of bond order or valence, s, to bond length, R, as s = exp[(Ro-R)/b], where Ro is an average bond length or bond length of unit valence, and “b” is an empirical fitting parameter that has recently (and erroneously) been set to a universal constant of 0.37Å. A theoretical expression is derived for the “b” parameter in terms of atomic orbital exponents. Published crystallographic bond length data is used along with the principle of conservation of valence to establish the respective values of Ro (bond length of unit valence) for C-C, C-O, C-N, and C-H chemical bonds as well as relationships for determining their bond orders or bond valences. These relationships are applicable regardless of physical or oxidation state. Newton Hilliard Saturday Arkansas Tech University 10:00 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Sulfur oxidation genomics in the aerobic purple sulfur bacterium Halothiobacillus neapolitanus Newton Hilliard

Halothiobacillus neapolitanus is an obligate aerobic chemolithoautotroph capable of utilizing a variety of reduced and partially reduced inorganic sulfur compounds as its sole source of metabolic energy. Genomic analysis indicates the lack of a single sulfur oxidation operon as is found in many other sulfur oxidizing species. Instead, Ht. neapolitanus appears to possess genes for a variety of sulfur oxidation activities widely distributed throughout its genome. These activities range from a sulfur oxygenase- reductase (sor) related to that found in archaea, a heterodimeric thiosulfate dehydrogenase (thdAB) related to that found in photosynthetic purple sulfur bacteria (PSB) and a second thiosulfate oxidation system (soxAX, soxYZ, soxCD) related to that found in the non-photosynthetic proteobacteria. This wide distribution of activities, along with the lack of a single operon, has led to the suggestion that Ht. neapolitanus may represent a compilo-species. In addition, this unique collection of sulfur oxidizing genes, along with the lack of a single operon, may be partially responsible for its ability to grow in a wide variety of environments. Analysis of pH dependence of substrate induced oxygen consumption indicates the possible existence of two separate pathways for oxidation of elemental sulfur, sulfide and thiosulfate. Observed pH optima for these substrates is near 7.0 with a 2nd peak near 5.5. Surprisingly, there is no change in pH optima when tetrathionate is used as substrate. Brandon Hogland Friday Harding University 3:30 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

A Description of variation in fecundity between two populations of wolf spider Rabidosa rabida in Searcy Arkansas using brood size Measurements Brandon Hogland, Ryan Stork

Fecundity, a very important population variable, can be estimated by measuring the number of juveniles hatching out of individual egg sacks. Rabidosa rabida is a large wolf spider that is common in Arkansas and much of the eastern portion of North America. This study attempts to expand previous estimates of variation in fecundity made for this species by Reed and Nicholas in Mississippi. We hypothesized that a significant variation would be found in fecundity estimates between two populations in Arkansas. We also hypothesized that this variation would be similar to the variation reported in Mississippi. Two populations of R. rabida were collected in late August and early September. The egg sacks were allowed to hatch while both the mothers and juveniles were placed in alcohol, with the exception of twenty which were photographically measured. A comparison was made between the two populations and between variation measured by Reed and Nicholas. We found significant variation between brood size of the two populations in Arkansas similar in magnitude to what was found in Mississippi. We did not find any significant difference in size of juveniles between the two locations similar to what was found in Mississippi. Observing patterns in these traits provide a starting point for comparison to future measurements which may aid in quantifying differences in populations caused by climate change. This has been a frequent challenge in recent ecological and conservation studies of invertebrates. Md Rashedul Islam Saturday Southern Arkansas University 8:15 AM Engineering (EN) CCCS 115 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Restrained shrinkage of fly ash based geopolymer concrete and analysis of long term shrinkage prediction models Md Rashedul Islam, Erez Allouche, Mahbub Ahmed

In this study a testing and analysis procedure is outlined to quantify the behavior of geopolymer concrete (GPC) under restrained shrinkage using ring specimen. Massive concrete structures are susceptible to shrinkage and thermal cracking. This cracking can increase concrete permeability and decrease strength and design life. This test is comprised of evaluating geopolymer concrete of six different mix designs including different activator solution to fly ash ratio and subjected to both restrained and free shrinkage. Test results obtained from this experimental setup was plotted along with the available empirical equation to predict the shrinkage strain of OPC and a numerical model was suggested to predict the shrinkage strain of GPC. It was observed from this test that along with activator solution to fly ash ratio the final compressive strength of GPC plays an important role on shrinkage strain. Alan Jackson Friday Arkansas Tech University 1:00 PM Chemistry (CH) CCCS 115 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Fluorescent Inhibitor Of System Xc- Mariusz Gajewski

System Xc- is an obligate exchange protein of the amino acids cysteine and glutamic acid. It imports an oxidized form of cysteine (a cysteine S-S dimer, known as cystine) with a 1:1 counter-transport of glutamate. Inside the cell, the cystine is enzymatically converted in several steps, eventually leading to the antioxidant glutathione. System Xc- protein is overexpressed by cancerous cells. Due to their rapid metabolism, the cells require abundance of the antioxidant glutathione. Research was conducted over the synthetic design and production of the inhibitor molecules with fluorescent probe capabilities. Previously, 3,5-dibromotyrosine (3,5-DBT) was indicated as a potent inhibitor of the Xc- antiporter protein. The proposed fluorescent molecule was synthesized via the Schotten-Baumann reaction of 3,5-DBT with dansyl chloride. The molecular probe will be used in a larger project for detection, both: quantification and localization, of Xc- transport system in several glioma cancer cell lines in order to target these cancers with novel molecular inhibitors. Douglas James Saturday University of Arkansas 9:45 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Results of trapping small mammal populations in a grassland and forest area at the

Lake Fayetteville Environmental Center. Douglas James, Seth Bartholomew, Anant Deshwal

Trapping in forest and field habitats employed rat-sized Sherman live traps laid out in a grid that equaled around two acres in size (8 rows of traps, 15 traps per row, 30 feet between traps). The traps were checked on each of 3 mornings by students in the mammalogy class under supervision by the instructor. 6 species of mammals were trapped in the prairie-grassland, 3 species were caught in the forest. Trap setting was interrupted by a heavy rain in 2014 causing the students to seek cover so that only 1.5 acres of the grid was set. A hurricane force wind passed through northwestern Arkansas that blew down so many limbs and trees in year 2008 that it was impossible to establish the trapping grid thereafter. So there were only 6 years of trapping in the woods compared to 9 years in the prairie-grassland habitat. All mammals caught were weighed, sex determined, and reproductive condition recorded and ear-tagged with an identifying number then released. Traps were baited with combined oats and peanut butter and cotton was supplied for nesting material. Results were as follows: (the formula for estimating total populations was N=mn/x in which N is the total population, n=is the total catch, m=number previously marked, x=marked ones trapped on the night in question). Note that none of the computer programs for estimating total populations were used because none of these were available in the years when trapping began. In the forest, the white-footed mouse (Peromuscus leucopus) peaked in 1998 and in 2006. In the grassland Cotton Rats (Sigmodon hispidus) peaked in 2004, 2008, 2010 and 2014. The 3rd morning in 2014 only cotton rats were caught and nearly every trap had caught a rat. When trapping began in the field in 1983 it was mainly a broomsedge (Andropogn viginicus) field but as time progressed more and more prairie gasses invaded helped by controlled burns and removal of the invading Eastern Red Cedars (Juniperus viginiana). Jesse Griffiths Friday Arkansas Tech University 1:30 PM Physics (PH) CCCS 101 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Ionization Rate for Breakdown Waves with a Significant Current behind the Wave Front Jesse Griffiths, Mostafa Hemmati, Michael Bowman

For analytical solution of breakdown waves with a large current behind the wave front, we employ a one- dimensional, steady-state, three-component (electrons, ions, and neutral particles) fluid model. This project involves breakdown waves propagating in the opposite direction of the electric field force on electrons, anti-force waves (return stroke in lightning); and the electron gas partial pressure is considered to provide the driving force for the propagation of the wave. The basic set of equations consists of the equation of conservation of mass flux, equation of conservation of momentum, equation of conservation of energy, plus Poison’s equation. The waves are considered to have a shock front. We intend to look into the possibility and validity of large currents measured and reported by few investigators.

This investigation involves breakdown waves for which a large current exists in the vicinity of the wave front. Existence of a large current behind the wave front alters the equation of conservation of energy and Poison’s equation, as well as the shock boundary condition on electron temperature. Considering a current behind the shock front, we have made appropriate modifications in our set of electron fluid dynamical equations. Using the modified set of equations and the shock condition on electron temperature, we have been able to integrate the set of electron fluid dynamical equations for current bearing anti-force waves. For a range of wave speeds and with the largest current possible for a specific wave speed, we will present the wave profile for electric field, electron velocity, temperature and number density, as well as the ionization rate within the dynamical transition region of the wave for anti-force waves. Mohammadhossein Kashefizadeh Friday University of Arkansas 4:15 PM Engineering (EN) CCCS 115 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Calculation of the width and period of tornados from Google Earth data and the relationship between the tornado’s period and the wind speed Mohammadhossein Kashefizadeh, Rathinam Panneer Selvam

The width of tornado (W) is defined by NOAA as the maximum damage width of a particular tornado. Based on this definition, W becomes much wide, especially in the non-engineered housing areas. W is an important parameter in calculating the period of the tornados (T), as it is calculated as the width divided by translational velocity of the tornado. The concept of period of tornado is recently introduced by Strasser et al. (2016) from our research group. Calculation of T helps to evaluate the extent of the dynamic effect on structures, since the width can vary depending upon taking the grass damage width, tree damage width and building damage width. Analysis of the damage indicates that that there is a significant effect of hills on tornado damage, and the damage rate on windward of the hill is higher than the leeward. In addition, there is a considerable effect from the plan size of the buildings; where for the same tornado, the larger building has less damage compared to the smaller one. Analysis of the relation between the EF damage scale with the tornado period unveils that larger period is associated with larger damage scale (EF4 and EF5), while the smaller periods are associated with EF0 to EF2. Using engineering principles, the damage path is investigated from Google Earth data in order to arrive a more meaningful tornado width. For this purpose, 8 tornadoes are considered, different procedures of width calculation are presented, and their effect on T are illustrated using aerial photographs of Google Earth data from the field. Results show that the T of the tornadoes calculated from NOAA data vary from 9sec to 262sec; whereas the current procedure using grass damage width yields T between 1.5sec to 5sec. Since the period of thin pole power line structures and traffic signal post vary within 1 to 5sec, therefore, the possibility of the stress increases more than 2 times due to the dynamic effect. Details of the findings will be reported in the presentation. Sophie Katz Friday Hendrix College 4:45 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 211 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Seed dispersal in Osage Orange (Maclura pomifera) by squirrels (Sciurus spp.) Sophie Katz, Jessica Bonumwezi, Matthew Moran, Jennifer L. Penner

The Osage orange (Maclura pomifera) has been described as anachronistic because it does not have a modern seed disperser. It has an unusual morphology, including a large size, numerous seeds, and defenses (i.e., latex), that makes it difficult for modern animals to disperse. Anecdotal observations suggest that squirrels (Sciurus spp.) feed on the seeds within the fruit and may possibly disperse some seeds through the prolonged handling time required to access them. Our preliminary research indicated that squirrels readily consume Osage orange seeds and, in the process, move fruits an unknown distance from parent plants. We presented two populations of squirrels, one urban and one rural, with whole Osage orange fruits and measured the number of fruits moved, the distance they were moved, and the proportion of seeds consumed. In the rural experiment we also measured animal visitation rates using wildlife cameras. We found that 12% of fruits in the urban experiment were moved. However, they were not moved far, and a very small proportion of the seeds was consumed. In the rural experiment, only 2% of fruits were moved, and we detected no consumption. Even though few fruits in the rural experiment were moved or consumed, squirrels comprised about 40% of all animal detections, while 11 species of other mammals visited the fruits. Our results suggest that squirrels are not effective dispersers of Osage orange seeds, and that observations of squirrels feeding on the seeds of this species represent relatively rare events. Furthermore, none of the animals we observed were effective seed dispersers, supporting the hypothesis that the Osage orange is indeed anachronistic Jordan Labrecque Friday Arkansas Tech Univeristy 2:00 PM Chemistry (CH) CCCS 115 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Bond Length and Bond Valence Relationship of Chromium Oxides, Chromium Sulfides, Molybdenum Oxides, and Molybdenum Sulfides Jordan Labrecque, Franklin Hardcastle

Pauling put forth a simple relationship that the total atom valence is equal to the sum of the individual valences. These individual valence values are electrons shared through bonding and when summed, should correspond to the oxidation state of the atom. Pauling determined an empirical logarithmic dependence of bond order (bond valence) s, to bond length, R, s = exp[(Ro-R)/b] where R0 is unit bond length and b is a fitting parameter. Recently, an expression was derived to calculate the b fitting parameter making it more specific to systems under study. The derivation led to b equaling the average of orbital exponents for the bonding atoms b= a0/ξave where a0 is the Bohr radius and ξ is the orbital exponent. With a method to calculate b, R0 and orbital exponents can be experimentally determined through optimized fitting for Cr-O, Cr-S, Mo-O, and Mo-S all in accordance to Pauling’s empirical valence-bond relationship. This relationship is usable for systems of any oxidation state, phase, and chemical bonding type. Silas Lankford Friday University of Arkansas 4:00 PM Computer Science (CS) CCCS 115 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Simulating Foodborne Pathogens in Poultry Production and Processing to Defend Against Intentional Contamination Silas Lankford, Dale Thompson, Steven Ricke

There is a lack of data in recent history of food terrorism attacks, and as such, it is difficult to predict its impact. The food supply industry is one of the most vulnerable industries for terrorist threats while the poultry industry is one of the largest food industries in the United States. A small food terrorism attack against just a single poultry processing center has the potential to affect a much larger population than its immediate consumers. In this work, the spread of foodborne pathogens is simulated in a poultry production and processing system to defend against intentional contamination. An agent-based simulated environment that represents the farm, processing plant, homes, and restaurants is developed, which contains both poultry agents and human agents that move through the system and possibly infect each other. The simulation is run varying several parameters that include probability of infection if exposed for both poultry and humans. The simulation predicts the number of infected poultry and humans over time. Taylor Lee Friday Arkansas State University 1:15 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Environmental DNA vs. Traditional Sampling: a Case Study Using the Federally Threatened Leopard Darter, Percina pantherina Taylor Lee, Brook Fluker

Traditional methods may not always be reliable when searching for rare species. However, the recent development of environmental (e)DNA techniques represents a valuable tool to help counteract inefficiency associated with traditional sampling. One example for which eDNA may be valuable in the detection of a rare species of fish is the Leopard Darter, Percina pantherina. This federally threatened fish, endemic to the Little River system in Arkansas and Oklahoma, is experiencing a decrease in genetic variation due to drastic population decline. Traditional sampling has failed to detect P. pantherina in the Robinson Fork since 2006 and in the Cossatot River since 2011. The objectives of this project are as follows: 1. compare the effectiveness of eDNA water and substrate sampling techniques; 2. compare potential differences in detectability of P. pantherina between eDNA, and traditional methods; and 3. determine if there are extant populations of P. pantherina in the Cossatot River and Robinson Fork. Species-specific primers that amplify a fragment of the cytochrome b gene were designed and revealed a high degree of specificity for P. pantherina. Using PCR, these primers were used to test detectability of P. pantherina from eDNA samples. Traditional sampling during 2016 resulted in zero detection of P. pantherina within our focal systems. Preliminary eDNA results suggested possible positive hits for P. pantherina in all four seasons from 2016. Samuel Lockhart Friday Hendrix College 4:00 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 211 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Determining the Validity of the Species Pinus washoenis in the Western United States Lockhart Samuel, Ann Willyard

The classification of Pinus washoenis Mason and Stockwell has been a topic of heated debate since it was first published in 1945. Many botanists include the “species” within P. ponderosa, citing that morphological differences arise from population adaptations to high altitude environments. Others argue that it is a variety of this species, based on morphological comparisons between P. ponderosa var. washoenis and sympatric P. jeffreyi with P. ponderosa var. ponderosa and P. ponderosa var. pacifica. Previously published plastid DNA data has either suggested that the species is not distinct from P. ponderosa or that it is sister to P. jeffreyi. No unique mitochondrial haplotype has been identified. In order to finalize the classification of Washoe Pine, we targeted 700 nuclear gene sequences for enrichment with solution-based biotinylated probes using High Throughput Sequencing and also recovered plastome sequences. We analyzed hundreds of low-copy nuclear genes and created phylogenetic species trees from multiple samples of multiple populations of P. ponderosa, P. washoenis, and P. jeffreyi. This allowed us to rigorously examine the uniqueness, the phylogenetic placement, and the possible role of hybridization in shaping the morphological differences that first attracted Mason and Stockwell’s attention to Washoe pine. Ruth Lykins Friday Arkansas Tech Univeristy 1:15 PM Chemistry (CH) CCCS 115 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Bond Length and Bond Valence for Tungsten - Oxygen and Tungsten - Sulfur Bonds Ruth Lykins, Franklin Hardcastle

Pauling (1947) was the first to determine an “empirical” dependence of bond valence (s, also referred to as bond order) and bond length R s=exp((R-R0)/b) where R0 is bond length of unit valence and “b” is a fitting parameter. Since then “b” parameters were experimentally found to range from 0.32-0.42 for many bonds, but some “b” values were as high as 0.9 between hard and soft ions. The convention, however, is to use 0.37 as a universal constant for “b”.

Hardcastle (2016) derived an expression for the “b” parameter b=a0/ξave where a0 is the Bohr’s radius and ξave is the average of the orbital exponents of each bonding element. This allows the bond length of unit valence (Ro) to be calculated using experimentally determined bond lengths. In the present study, experimentally determined W-S, W-O, and W-W bond lengths were used to optimize the orbital exponents of tungsten, oxygen, and sulfur. Chris McAllister Friday Eastern Oklahoma State College 4:30 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Distribution, Habitat, and Life History Aspects of the Shrimp Crayfish, Faxonius lancifer (Hagen) (Decapoda: Cambaridae) in Arkansas Henry Robison, Chris McAllister, Renn Tumlison

The shrimp crayfish, Faxonius (syn. Orconectes) lancifer (Hagen) is an uncommon, although widespread, crayfish in Arkansas. This crayfish is herein documented from 19 counties in the state. Between 1974 and 2015, we made 343 collections throughout the 75 counties of Arkansas of which 21 yielded 162 specimens of F. lancifer. Thus, from these collections, plus 12 unpublished collections of Reimer (1963), and one collection from George L. Harp, a total of 32 collections of F. lancifer are now known from the state. Faxonius lancifer ranged from uncommon (1 specimen) to locally abundant (39 specimens) at these collecting localities. The shrimp crayfish occupies the Coastal Plain province in Arkansas becoming less abundant in northeastern Arkansas and extreme southwestern Arkansas. With regard to conservation status, F. lancifer should be considered as "Currently Stable" due to its widespread distribution and general abundance in Arkansas. Chris McAllister Saturday Eastern Oklahoma State College 8:15 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 101 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

The Fishes of Chadron Creek, Dawes County, Nebraska Chris McAllister, Michael Leite, Renn Tumlison

This first comprehensive survey of fishes collected from Chadron Creek, Dawes County, Nebraska, documents collections made with a small seine and backpack electroshocker during November 2007 and February and March 2008. Chadron Creek’s fish community is of low diversity. The total of 3 collections at each of 9 stations along the length of Chadron Creek resulted in 254 individual fishes, which represented only 6 species within 4 families. Water quality parameters, including dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity, total dissolved solids, temperature and fecal coliform counts indicate that Chadron Creek is a healthy stream capable of supporting a greater diversity of fishes. Land management practices may be responsible for elevated fecal coliform levels at one locality on the creek. The presence of brown trout (Salmo trutta) indicates that the watershed is in good health, since this species is intolerant of poor water quality. Comparisons of fishes collected herein are made with historical records of fish collected between 1893 and 2000, and show that there are 50% fewer species present than those known from historical accounts. Chris McAllister Saturday Eastern Oklahoma State College 8:45 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Coccidian Parasites (Apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) of Arkansas Herpetofauna: A Summary with Two New State Records Chris McAllister, Dagmara Motriuk-Smith, Robert Seville, Matthew Connior, Stanley Trauth, Henry Robinson

Coccidian parasites (Protista: Apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) commonly infect reptiles, and to a lesser degree, amphibians. The family Eimeriidae includes 6 genera and 3 of them, Caryospora, Eimeria, and Isospora have been reported previously from various Arkansas herpetofauna. Over the past 3 decades, our community collaborative effort has provided a great deal of information on these parasites found in amphibians and reptiles of Arkansas. Here, we provide a summary of all coccidians reported from herptiles of the state as well as provide 2 new state records for coccidians from non-native Mediterranean geckos, Hemidactylus turcicus. Brittany McCall Friday Arkansas State University 2:00 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Spatiotemporal Population Dynamics of the Caddo Madtom (Noturus taylori) Brittany McCall, Brook Fluker

The Caddo Madtom (Noturus taylori), an endemic to the Ouachita Mountain Ecoregion, was one of 404 species petitioned for listing on the Endangered Species Act by the Center for Biological Diversity. A previous survey stressed concerns of a population decline with evidence of small effective population sizes, historical between-drainage differentiation, and recent reservoir-induced within drainage differentiation. With microsatellite DNA loci, mitochondrial (mt) cytochrome b DNA sequence data, and intensive seasonal sampling we test multiple hypotheses involving patterns of within and among drainage connectivity, spatiotemporal population dynamics, and habitat preferences. Preliminarily, Bayesian phylogenetic analysis of mtDNA using coalescent models resolve the Caddo and Ouachita river drainages as reciprocally monophyletic with recent divergence in the late Pleistocene (aprrox. 125,000 years ago). The microsatellite data suggest a similar pattern of significant between drainage differentiation (Fst = 0.20). Of 15 historical localities, 11 have been thoroughly sampled for presence/absence, with presence at 8 of the 11 localities. For the five localities included in the seasonal survey,an increase in mean relative abundance was observed from spring to summer in the Caddo river (0.29 to 9.05 CPUE, respectively) and in the Ouachita river (0.09 to 4.75 CPUE, respectively). Preliminary analyses of habitat preference using nonmetric multidimensional scaling suggest differences between the Caddo and Ouachita drainages. Results from this study will aid in future listing decisions by U.S Fish and Wildlife, and state rankings by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. Sydney McKim Friday University of Arkansas - Fayetteville 3:45 PM Geosciences (GS) CCCS 101 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Lithologic Character, Sequence And Diagenetic History Of Lower Mississippian Tripolitiic Chert, Northern Arkansas And Southern Missouri Sydney McKim, Jonathan Chick, Julie Cains, Forrest McFarlin, Adriana Potra

Tripolitic chert, or Tripoli, is a light-colored, friable, porous, siliceous (typically chalcedonic) sedimentary rock reflecting the incomplete replacement of fine-grained carbonates, commonly calcisiltites, by silica, later to experience leaching of most of the remaining carbonate that produces its characteristic porosity. Tripolitic chert development in the southern Ozark region is associated with a third-order, transgressive- regressive cycle comprising St. Joe transgressive packstones, succeeded by lower Boone calcisiltites, with black, penecontemporaneous, nodular chert deposited during maximum flooding, overlain by an upper Boone calcisiltite, lacking black, penecontemporaneous chert nodules deposited during highstand. The onset of regression produced upper Boone packstones and grainstones with white-gray, later diagenetic chert reflecting groundwater replacement along bedding planes. Tripolitic chert is a replacement of the highstand calcisiltites at the base of the upper Boone Formation of Arkansas, and its equivalent the Elsey Formation of Missouri. This tripolitic chert appears to reflect a hydrothermal event likely occurring after the emplacement processes of both Boone cherts that had ended by Chesterian time. After hydrothermal silicification, the interval experienced groundwater removal of most of the remaining carbonate leaving open porosity characteristic of tripolitic chert. A second hydrothermal event precipitated terminated and doubly terminated quartz crystals as well as quartz druse in the cavities produced by the earlier carbonate leaching of the tripolitic chert. Timing of the hydrothermal events is not clear, but they may reflect lateral secretion produced by the Ouachita Orogeny in the Late Pennsylvanian. Ali N. Mohammed Saturday Al-Mustansaryah University 8:30 AM Physics (PH) CCCS 115 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Optical properties of Irradiated SnO2 thin films prepared by chemical spray pyrolysis Ali N. Mohammed, Luma Y. Abbas, Ibraheem Mousa Mohammed

Tin Oxide thin films have been prepared by chemical spray pyrolysis method. Optical properties were studied at various irradiation time via mixture of beta and gamma rays using Cs137 with activity 0.499 µCi and gamma energy is 662 keV. Optical properties were calculated from recording the absorbance spectra in the wavelength range 300-900 nm. The absorbance, absorption coefficient are decreased with the increasing of irradiation time, while the energy gap increased. The skin depth increased with the increasing of irradiation time at wavelength more than 700 nm. Zachary Nickell Friday Hendrix College 3:30 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Disease Introduction by Aboriginal Humans in North America and the Pleistocene Extinction Zachary Nickell, Matthew Moran

While overhunting and climate change have been the major hypotheses to explain the late-Pleistocene New World extinctions, the role of introduced disease has only received brief attention. Here, we review pre-Columbian diseases endemic to aboriginal Americans and evaluate their potential to cause large- scale mortality in Pleistocene mammals. Of the probable communicable diseases present in pre- Columbian times, we regard anthrax and tuberculosis as viable candidates. These two demonstrate characteristics that could make them deadly to immunologically naive populations. These diseases, as a primary cause or interacting with overhunting and climate change, could have contributed to the decline and extirpation of megafauna. Kara O'Neal Friday Southern Arkansas University 2:30 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

The analysis of coliform bacteria in Lake Columbia, AR. Kara O'Neal, Gija Geme

Coliform bacteria are Gram negative, rod-shaped bacteria that are capable of fermenting lactose. These bacteria are natural indicators of pollution in fresh water sources such as lakes, ponds, and streams. In order to determine the specific genera of bacteria that constitute the coliform population within Lake Columbia in Magnolia, AR samples were collected from three landing sites and plated on Eosin Methylene Blue agar, MacConkey agar, and MacConkey Sorbitol agar. Types of coliform bacteria that were identified include: Escherichia coli, Klebsiella, and Enterobacter. Non-coliform bacteria that were present included Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The MacConkey Sorbitol agar differentiated between pathogenic and non- pathogenic E. coli. Pathogenic E. coli was found to be present at all three landing sites. Environmental factors that had the potential to affect coliform growth were also monitored weekly in order to determine whether there was a direct correlation between the two. These parameters included: conductivity, dissolved oxygen, pH, and temperature. Analysis of the collected data revealed that there were correlations between environmental factors and coliform growth. Brook Olsen Saturday Henderson State University 9:45 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 101 Undergraduate Student Judge: No

New and Noteworthy Vascular Plant Records from Arkansas Brett Serviss, Brook Olsen, Megan Stone, Keenan Serviss, James Peck

In 2016, a total of 18 species of non-native vascular plants were documented for a first or second occurrence in the Arkansas flora. Fifteen species: Camellia sasanqua Thunb., Crocus flavus West., Ficus carica L., Hosta lancifolia Engl., Hydrangea macrophylla (Thunb.) Ser., Ilex crenata Thunb., Kerria japonica (L.) DC., Liriope graminifolia (L.) Baker, Liriope muscari (Dcne.) L. H. Bailey, Narcissus papyraceus Ker- Gawl., Narcissus Xtenuior Curt., Ophiopogon japonicus (Thunb.) Ker-Gawl., Podocarpus macrophyllus (Thunb.) Sweet, Syringa vulgaris L., and Ulmus parvifolia Jacq., are reported here as new to the flora of Arkansas. These records represent the first voucher specimen-based documentation of these species outside of cultivation in the state. Camellia, Crocus, Ficus, Hosta, Kerria, Ophiopogon, Podocarpus, and Syringa are the first documented occurrences of these genera in the state’s flora outside of cultivation. The Podocarpus macrophyllus record represents the first documentation of the Podocarpaceae family in the state’s flora. Canna indica L., Forsythia suspensa (Thunb.) Vahl, and Pyracantha koidzumii (Hayata) Rehd. are documented for only their second occurrences in the state. Two additional species, Nerium oleander L. and Punica granatum L., are re-affirmed as components of the flora. Jacob Pinkerton Friday Arkansas Tech University 2:15 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Using Escherichia Coli To Generate Scorpion Β-Toxins, As Seen In Centruroides vittatus, To Allow For Further Structural And Physiological Analysis Jacob Pinkerton, Sara Warrick

The nervous system is the primary target for the venom produced by Centruroides vittatus, the striped bark scorpion. This organism produces a sodium β-toxin that affects the proper functioning of voltage- gated sodium channels of its victims initiating action potentials in excitable cells. The toxin proteins inhibit the flow of Na+, therefore causing an electrochemical imbalance of the cell. The definitive goal of this research is to isolate and produce a scorpion β-toxin via protein overexpression, thus understanding how sodium channel toxin variants, labeled Na654, Na667, Na681, and Na682, interact with specific sodium channels. Research includes producing recombinant plasmids encompassing the gene coding for the β-toxin. In order to develop distinct and specialized vector-compatible overhangs, a purified PCR product was treated. The Ek/LIC vector was then annealed and the insert, along with the annealed vector, was transformed into competent E. coli cells. Once the toxin sequence was analyzed, the plasmid/vector was removed from the competent cells and placed into expression cells -Origami, Rosetta, and BL21. Selected colonies were then amplified and analyzed to determine proper placement of the toxin sequence. We will then assess the cell lines to determine over-expression intensities. Once the β-toxin is successfully isolated, future research will include further analysis on substantial samples and evaluation of protein to determine proteomic 3D structure and specific function. As sodium channels have medicinal importance, this project can provide further molecular details regarding sodium channel function and their interactions with toxins. Pristine Pittman Friday University of Central Arkansas 2:45 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Undergraduate Student Judge: No

Observing Fsz-B’s Function in Dictyostelium discoideum Mitochondrial dynamics Pristine Pittman, Kari Naylor

Mitochondria play a central role in the function of normal, healthy cells. In order to carry out physiological processes, mitochondria must function properly. Mitochondrial function is dependent on mitochondrial structure, which in turn is dependent upon mitochondrial dynamics including fission, fusion, and motility. For this project, we quantified the dynamics and morphology of mitochondria expressing FszB-GFP. FszB is predicted to be directly involved in mitochondrial fission and fusion, functioning as a dynamic protein filament that drives these processes. This analysis will provide a better understanding of the role of FszB in mitochondrial dynamics and will contribute to a greater understanding of mitochondrial dynamics across evolutionary lineages. We have determined that fission and fusion remain balanced in FszB-GFP expressing cells, but occurs at significantly lower rates than in wild-type (AX4) cells. FszB-GFP mitochondria moved faster in comparison to AX4 mitochondria though there was not a change in the percent of organelles moving between these two strains. Our most recent analysis indicates that the average distance traveled at one time by the mitochondria in FszB-GFP expressing cells is 20% less than AX4 cells. Thus these mitochondria move faster and change directions more often than in wild-type. The morphology of FszB-GFP mitochondria was assessed based on dispersion (clustered, even, random and overexpressed) and size. We found that FszB-GFP mitochondria are more clustered and larger than AX4 mitochondria. Finally, FszB-GFP is present at almost all fission and fusion events that take place. In conclusion, FszB-GFP is directly involved in mitochondrial dynamics. We propose that it may communicate between the organelle and the microtubules. We have demonstrated that loss of microtubules also decreases fission and fusion. In future experiments we plan to analyze the dynamics of FszB-GFP expressing mitochondria when the microtubules are disrupted. Connor Purvis Friday Harding University 1:30 PM Chemistry (CH) CCCS 115 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Atmospheric Photochemistry Studies Related to Saturn’s Moon Titan Connor Purvis, Edmond Wilson

Saturn’s moon Titan is the second largest moon in the Solar System, even larger than Earth’s Moon. It is the only moon in the Solar System with a dense, planet-like atmosphere. Some believe it is a good model for a pre-biotic Earth because of its atmosphere which is 98.4 percent nitrogen and 1.4 percent methane. Since the oxygen content of the atmosphere is extremely low, oxygenated compounds are rare and unique hydrocarbon compounds have been observed. This study is focused on photochemistry at low temperature of Titan-like gas mixtures in order to learn more about what types of compounds might be formed under these conditions. Of particular interest are those molecules that might be classified as pre- biotic. Dennis Richardson Saturday Quinnipiac University 10:00 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 101 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Leech Parasitism of the Gulf Coast Box Turtle, Terrapene carolina major (Agassiz, 1857) (Testudines: Emydidae) Dennis J. Richardson, Andrew J. Heaton, Chris T. McAllister, Charlotte I. Hammond, William E. Moser

Reports of leeches parasitizing box turtles (Terrapene spp.) are exceedingly rare. A Gulf Coast box turtle, Terrapene carolina major collected in Gulfport, Harrison County, Mississippi was parasitized by 10 leeches. Eight of the leeches of the genus Placobdella were heavily engorged and two of the leeches represented the species Helobdella papillata. This constitutes the second vouchered report of identified leeches from a box turtle and the first report of a leech of the genus Helobdella from a box turtle. Patricia Rivera Friday Harding University 4:00 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

A First Look into the microbiome of Rabidosa rabida, a Wolf Spider in Searcy, Arkansas Patricia Rivera, Ryan Stork

The microbiome, the collection of microorganisms living in and on a host have been the focus of recent biomedical research using vertebrate and invertebrate models. In a first study looking at spiders, we collected excreta and body swab samples from Rabidosa rabida a large wolf spider. Samples were tested using gram stain, catalase and coagulase tests while using aseptic technique. Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus sp., and gram stain positive bacilli were found on the excreta samples while Staphylococcus sp., gram negative bacilli, and gram negative cocci were found on the body swabs. The majority of the excreta samples had no growth and those that did had only one type. The body swab samples grew multiple types of microorganisms that were limited to body location revealing spatial variation. Our study describes potential host-microbiome interactions using a new model with a relatively simple gut and unique characteristics such as extra oral digestion and potential antibiotic proteins in the venom and digestive fluids. A better understanding of the factors affecting microbial-host interactions allow us to understand more complex relationships such as those found in the human. Emily Roberts Friday University of Central Arkansas 4:15 PM Geosciences (GS) CCCS 101 Undergraduate Student Judge: No

Establishing a Trail Visitation Survey Method for the National Ouachita Recreation Trail Emily Roberts

It is difficult for land management organizations to secure funding for ongoing trail maintenance, but collecting data on trail visitation may help support grant proposals for maintenance projects. This project is an attempt to establish a trail visitation surveying method for the Ouachita National Recreation Trail in order to assist the nonprofit organization, Friends of the Ouachita Trail (FoOT), with management objectives and funding requests. To create a reliable survey instrument, visitors were surveyed at Pinnacle State Park, where visitation is remarkably higher than on the Ouachita Trail. Surveys were completed on the Ouachita Trail over Spring Break (March 18th to March 25th) when visitation was expected to be higher. Survey results were compiled into a datasheet that was shared with FoOT, along with the survey instrument, for future data collection by FoOT volunteers. Christopher Robinson Friday University of Central Arkansas 3:45 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

The use of color as a status signal in the prairie lizard, Sceloporus consobrinus Christopher Robinson, Matthew Gifford

In many taxa, colorful morphological features are used to advertise individual quality to conspecifics. Variation in these traits can lead to variation in reproductive success, resulting in directional selection on this signal. In the prairie lizard, Sceloporus consobrinus, males exhibit bright blue badges on their abdomens and throats, which develop as testosterone levels increase at sexual maturity. Badge size and color is variable between individuals, but it is currently unknown if variation in size and color is related to variation in testosterone levels or reproductive success. Since many traits that signal individual quality, and therefore influence reproductive success, are related to testosterone (e.g. performance), it would seem that these badges should serve as an honest indicator of quality. Here, we use a population of prairie lizards in Sherwood, Arkansas to address this question. We quantified badge color (brightness, saturation, and hue) and size, testosterone, and endurance for 45 male lizards. Interestingly, we found that endurance was positively correlated to throat badge size, but was negatively correlated to testosterone concentrations. Testosterone, though, was not a significant predictor of badge size. Surprisingly, testosterone was not linearly related to badge color metrics; instead, testosterone curvilinearly predicted color, such that individuals with intermediate testosterone levels had the brightest, most saturated badges. This could have interesting fitness and selection consequences if females use badge color to choose mates. Individuals with intermediate testosterone levels would be selected for, resulting in stabilizing and sexual selection on testosterone. Currently we are assessing paternity for each juvenile lizard in this populations to test how badge morphology, testosterone, and performance influence reproductive success in males and how selection acts on these traits. Virginie Rolland Saturday Arkansas State University 9:30 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Bat Occupancy Estimates and Species Richness at Cache River National Wildlife Refuge Sam Schratz, Virginie Rolland, Jason Phillips, Richard Crossett, David Richardson, T. Risch

Six bat species of special concern, threatened or endangered may occur in one of Arkansas’ largest bottomland hardwood forests, the Cache River National Wildlife Refuge (CRNWR). However, inventory of bat species throughout the refuge has been lacking and management plans may not be adequate in promoting bat conservation. The objectives of this study were to inventory bat species present in the CRNWR, and determine bat-habitat associations via occupancy estimates. From May–August 2014 and 2015, we mist-netted from sunset for 5 hours and deployed bioacoustic devices throughout 5 habitat types (cypress-tupelo, emergent wetland, mature forest, reforestation, and managed hardwood). Mist- netting yielded 460 bat captures with Rafinesque’s big-eared bats (Corynorhinus rafinesquii; n = 156) being the most common capture, followed by eastern red bats (Lasiurus borealis; n = 104), southeastern myotis (Myotis austroriparius; n = 91), evening bats (Nycticeius humeralis; n = 58), tri-colored bats (Perimyotis subflavus; n = 54), and a big-brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus; n = 1). Based on 3,896 calls identified with 85% certainty, evening bats and big-brown bats tended to occupy managed hardwood forests more than any other habitat (occupancy probabilities Ψ = 0.81 ± 0.17 and 0.58 ± 0.50, respectively). Tri-colored bats tended to be more present in mature forest habitats (Ψ = 0.90 ± 0.09), and Myotis species tended to have highest occupancy rates in cypress-tupelo stands (Ψ = 0.59 ± 0.15). Not all species were detected with both methods. Thus, we encourage future studies to combine mist-netting and acoustic surveying methods to minimize bias in species presence estimate. This would ensure management practices that would benefit all present species. Sami Salman Chiad Friday Al-Mustansaryah University 1:45 PM Physics (PH) CCCS 101 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Optical and Dispersion Parameters of PMMA Doped by Indium Salt Sami Salman Chiad, Nadir Fadhil Habubi, Khalid Haneen Abass, Nidhal Nissan Jandow, Ismaeel A. Al- Baidhany, Wasmaa Abdulsattar Jabbar

Poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) doped by InCl3 has been prepared utilizing drop casting technique.

Transmittance and absorbance spectra were calculated in the wavelength range (300-900) nm. The transmittance was decreased by increasing the salt concentration, while the reflectance was increased with the increase in doping concentration. The value of refractive index and extinction coefficient were increased upon doping. The dispersion parameters introduced by Wemple- Didomenico were also investigated. The result shows that all the dispersion parameters were affected by indium salt. The values of the Urbach energy were increased with the increasing in doping ratios.

Selena Sasser Saturday Southern Illinois University 9:00 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Ecology of Blanchard Springs Caverns, Ozark National Forest, Arkansas, 42 Years Later Chris Midden, Selena Sasser, Jim Grove

Interrelationships between subterranean and epigean environments affect dispersion and distribution of cave organisms among the macro and microhabitats. This study examines the environmental impact of 42 years of tourism on Blanchard Springs Caverns, found in Stone County, Arkansas; and contributes to a better understanding of the seasonal fluctuations of the abiotic and biotic parameters.

Researchers collected data on temperature, water quality, and fauna. The approximately 12,500 visitors to the Discovery and Wild tours had no effect on cavern temperatures. Water quality measurements were the same as compared to Grove’s 1974 study, with the exception of pH, which changed from pH 8.2 to pH 7. Gray bat, Myotis grisescens, populations and distributions increased from an estimated maximum of 5000 (Grove 1974) to 372,726 reported by U.S. Forest Service (2016). This study reported five obligate species all recorded in previous studies. Hunter Scharbor Friday University of Central Arkansas 2:30 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Undergraduate Student Judge: No

Mitochondria Morphology and rotenone Hunter Scharbor

Mitochondria are rod shaped organelles that produce ATP. ATP, is used by cells as their source of energy therefore allowing the cells in our body to function appropriately. Without proper production of ATP, our cells have trouble producing a neurotransmitter, dopamine. Dopamine allows nerve cells in our brain to communicate and function. An example of low dopamine production in Parkinson’s disease (PD). An inducer of Parkinson’s disease is the drug rotenone. Rotenone that inhibits the electron transport chain in mitochondria. It interferes with the production of ATP by inhibiting complex I activity. Already in the lab we are using the PD inducer to determine the effect on ATP synthesis, ROS concentrations, and oxygen consumption to determine if our cells behave similarly to PD cells

We use Dictyostelium discoideum to study mitochondrial morphology and the effect of rotenone on the cells. In previous experiments, we looked at the morphology of the mitochondria and the microtubules of the cells after being treated with rotenone. Currently we are assessing the effect of rotenone on actin.

Our results show that rotenone drives the normally dispersed mitochondria towards loose clusters and partially disrupt the microtubules. Our preliminary data suggests that rotenone has no effect on the actin structure.

This analysis of structure and morphology will be combined with work studying the dynamics of mitochondria in the presence of rotenone to determine if rotenone, in addition to altering ATP supplies also alters mitochondrial dynamics and structure. By understanding the effect of rotenone on mitochondria, we will better understand the role mitochondria play in PD progression. Ashley Schulz Friday Arkansas State University 4:00 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Who Cites Whom? Communication Insights from a Bibliometric Analysis of Invasion and Biological Control Literature Ashley Schulz, Rima Lucardi, Travis Marsico

Invasive species are one of the most pronounced forces altering the ecology of our planet today. Biological control agents are introduced to invaded ecosystems in an effort to control some of the most impactful non-native, invasive species. Often, these introduced biological control agents are also non- native, so their impacts are variable with respect to efficacy and non-target effects, suggestive of “fighting fire with fire.” The aims of this study were to: 1) determine whether invasion ecologists and biological control scientists cite each other, or are citing others within their own fields, 2) assess the similarities in mechanisms and stages of invasion of invasive pests and biological control agents, and 3) identify areas of overlap between the two disciplines. To evaluate communication between the two disciplines, we reviewed insect invasion and biological control literature from the last ten years (2006-2015), categorized the literature, and assessed the categories of research publications that biological control scientists and invasion ecologists typically cite. We also tabulated available, general invasion ecology and biological control literature to assess documented mechanisms and stages of invasion, and identify areas for overlap between the two disciplines. Through bibliometric analyses, we show that biological control literature largely cites other biological control studies, while invasion literature mainly cites other invasion studies, suggesting a significant area where cross-talk may be facilitated. Further, we propose a new framework that incorporates the stages of invasion of invasive species and biological control agents to demonstrate the potential for novel utilization of discoveries across biological control and invasion research. Due to shared characteristics with non-native, invasive species, biological control agents can provide researchers with an unconventional model by which to study mechanisms of invasion. Anna Sharabura Friday Hendrix College 1:00 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Collagen Increases Tumorigenicity of Papillary Thyroid Cancer Cells Harboring BRAFV600E Mutations Anna Sharabura, Mackenzie Gearin, Laura MacDonald

Thyroid cancer is the most common endocrine cancer, and incidence is increasing worldwide. Thyroid cancer can be classified as either well-differentiated or poorly differentiated. Of well-differentiated thyroid cancers, papillary and follicular thyroid cancers are most common, but are associated with different genetic mutations and display different pathologies and sites of metastasis. Activating BRAF mutations are prevalent in papillary carcinoma, which metastasizes to lymph nodes in the neck, while activating HRAS mutations are most prevalent in follicular carcinoma, which metastasizes to the lungs and bones. While our understanding of the genetic basis for thyroid cancer continues to expand, less is known about how the tumor microenvironment alters tumorigenic characteristics of thyroid tumor cells. Recently, Jolly et al. reported that papillary thyroid tumors derived from cells harboring activating BRAFV600E mutations and PTEN deletions are enriched with fibrillar collagen which is associated with decreased survival. In this study, we investigated whether growth on collagen enhanced tumorigenic characteristics of papillary thyroid cancer cell lines with BRAFV600E mutations. Three distinct cell lines were grown on collagen and assessed for morphology, proliferation, altered activation of signaling pathways, and cellular secretion or reception events. Interestingly, our results suggest that growth on collagen increases contributes to a more mesenchymal morphology, increased proliferation, altered metabolism, and increased small vesicle secretion by tumor cells, which may be important for signaling required for metastasis. These and other results implicate an important role for collagen in the progression of thyroid cancer. Chelsey Sherwood Friday University of Central Arkansas 2:15 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Fish-Habitat Associations In The Kings River, Arkansas Chelsey Sherwood, Ginny Adams, Reid Adams

The Kings River is a free-flowing river that is home to several species of fish endemic to the Ozark Mountains and three Species of Greatest Conservation Need, Notropis ozarcanus, Erimystax harryi, and Etheostoma autumnale. Despite being recognized as a regionally important aquatic resource; no basin wide studies of fishes have been conducted. We collected a total of 13,928 individuals encompassing 43 species across 21 sites via seines. Total abundance ranged from 187 to 1189 and species richness ranged from 3 to 29 species at a given site. We classified 27 of the 43 species collected as intolerant. Percent intolerant ranged from 12% to 96% at a given site. Using non-metric multidimensional scaling, we found a general grouping of sites from upstream to downstream and at the mesohabitat level (riffle, run, and pool). Fish assemblage structure was most similar within habitats with riffle fish assemblage structure being significantly different than run and pool (MRPP). Noturus albater, Etheostoma caeruleum, and Etheostoma juliae were highly correlated with riffles and Cyprinella galactura was highly correlated with pools and runs. We also found that within the mesohabitats instream habitat also determines fish assemblage structure. Fish species composition was different at our degraded sites and our more degraded riffles had higher velocities and smaller substrate and our most degraded runs were wider and shallower. Baseline data will be used in future assessments of fish-habitat relationships. Alaa H. Shneishil Friday Al-Mustansaryah University 2:00 PM Physics (PH) CCCS 101 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Design of central receiver solar thermal concentrator Alaa H. Shneishil

The use of solar thermal concentrators has significantly importance for energy saving in recent years. This paper presents the oretical study of central receiver solar thermal concentrator located at Baghdad (33° latitude, 44° longitude) in order to analyze typical energy output at any time during the year. In power towers, incident sunrays are tracked by large mirrored collectors (heliostats), which concentrate the energy flux onto radiative/ convective heat exchangers called solar receivers, where energy is transferred to a thermal fluid. After energy collection by the solar subsystem, the thermal energy conversion to electricity is quite similar to fossil-fueled thermal power plants and the above-described parabolic trough system power block. The simulation program of the design has been built by using (MATLAP) in order to determining the solar energy collected by the system.

Mason Sifford Friday Hendrix College 3:45 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 211 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Mitochondrial lineages of Pinus subsection Ponderosae to resolve the relationship of species named in the United States and Mexico Mason Sifford, Hassan Karemera, David S. Gernandt, Ann Willyard

Pinus subsection Ponderosae (Pinus, subgenus Pinus, section Trifoliae) includes about seventeen tree species distributed from Canada to Nicaragua. This research extended a previous study that used haplotypes based on a variable length intron in the mitochondrial gene nad1 to identify patterns within Pinus ponderosa. In the U.S.A., P. ponderosa is distributed over a vast geographic range and is thought to comprise at least two divergent lineages. We compared published mitochondrial haplotypes from across the range of P. ponderosa in the U.S.A. to haplotypes that we identified in related species of Pinus in Mexico and Central America. Alignments were performed on nucleotide sequences and relative relationships were determined among the newly identified haplotypes. These mitochondrial lineages, which move only through seed dispersal, provide information for detecting centers of diversification and glacial refugia for the Ponderosae that can be compared to phylogeographic patterns that are observed in pine’s pollen-dispersed plastid lineages. Geoffry Spooner Friday University of Central Arkansas 4:15 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Migration Dynamics of Ohio Shrimp, Macrobrachium ohione, in Arkansas Geoffry Spooner, Reid Adams, Lindsey Lewis

The Ohio shrimp (Macrobrachium ohione) is amphidromous, requiring a marine environment for early juvenile development, but other life stages are completed in freshwater. Ohio shrimp serve as a trophic link between the Gulf of Mexico and inland reaches of coastal plain rivers. The historical range of Ohio shrimp included the Ohio River and Upper Mississippi River, but abundance upriver of Louisiana has reportedly declined. Current distribution, abundance, and life history of Ohio shrimp are relatively unknown upriver of Louisiana. Wire-meshed traps were deployed at three sites along the mainstem Mississippi River and at sites in the Lower Arkansas, White, and St. Francis rivers from March-November 2016. Total catch increased in May (20.9 oC), peaked in June (29.5 oC), and declined from July to November (29.5 - 14.0 oC). We captured a male-skewed population in May, slightly male-skewed in June, and in July the population was female-skewed. Preliminary examination of shrimp collected from May- July suggests sex ratios of migrants varied with size/age class. Age-0 migrants (TL range 21.8 - 43.3 mm) were female-skewed (522 females: 278 males), whereas older shrimp, presumably continuing upstream migration, were male-skewed (48 females: 235 males). Age-0 shrimp migrate further than 600 river kilometers from the Gulf of Mexico, and preliminary data suggest a number of older Ohio shrimp, primarily males, also continue upriver migration. Despite historic density decline, Ohio shrimp likely remain important components of food webs in the lower Mississippi River and its tributaries. Megan Stone Saturday Henderson State University 9:30 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 101 Undergraduate Student Judge: No

Liriope and Ophiopogon: overview of two genera of Ruscaceae naturalized in the Arkansas flora Brett Serviss, Megan Stone, Brook Olsen, Keenan Serviss, Cynthia Fuller, James Peck

Liriope graminifolia (L.) Baker, Liriope muscari (Dcne.) L.H. Bailey, and Ophiopogon japonicus (Thunb.) Ker–Gawl. are newly documented as naturalized in the Arkansas flora. Our record of L. graminifolia apparently is only the second documented occurrence of this species outside of cultivation in the USA. Thirteen distinct colonies of L. graminifolia, ranging from about a half–dozen plants to 100s of individuals and/or ramets, were discovered along an ca. 530 m stretch of a small stream in a highly disturbed riparian habitat in Pulaski County. The Pulaski County location is bordered on two sides by residential areas. Two additional escaped occurrences of L. graminifolia in Clark County also are documented. Naturalized plants of L. muscari are documented from Clark, Garland, and Pulaski counties. The O. japonicus records represent the first documented occurrence of the genus Ophiopogon in the state outside of cultivation and naturalized. Seven distinct populations of O. japonicus, ranging from about 10 plants to 100s of individuals and/or ramets, were discovered along an ca. 530 m stretch of a small, intermittent stream in a disturbed riparian habitat in Clark County, Arkansas. An additional small population of O. japonicus was documented along a second, distinct riparian zone, which is separated from the preceding by over 2 km. A number of other occurrences of naturalized plants of O. japonicus have been documented from Clark County. Naturalized plants of O. japonicus also were documented from Garland and Pulaski counties. Naturalized plants and populations of L. spicata Lour. are documented from several locations in Clark, Garland, Hot Spring, and Pulaski counties, and with the exception of Pulaski County, these represent new county records for this species. Notes on both genera in Arkansas are provided. Taylor Stone Friday Hendrix College 4:30 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 211 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Seed Dispersal of Diospyros virginiana in the Past and the Present: Evidence for a Generalist Evolutionary Strategy Mimi Rebein, Charli N. Davis, Helena Abad, Taylor Stone, Natalie Skinner, Matthew D. Moran

Several North American trees are hypothesized to have lost their co-evolved seed disperser during the late-Pleistocene extinction, and are therefore considered anachronistic. We tested this hypothesis for the American persimmon (Diospyros virginiana) by studying the effects of gut passage of proposed seed dispersers on seedling survival and growth, natural fruiting characteristics, and modern animal consumption patterns. We tested gut passage effects on persimmon seeds using three native living species, the raccoon (Procyon lotor), Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana), and coyote (Canis latrans), and two Pleistocene analogs, the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) and alpaca (Vicugna pacos). Persimmon seeds excreted by raccoons, coyotes, and elephants survived gut transit. Gut passage did not affect sprouting success, but did tend to decrease time to sprout and increase seedling quality. Under field conditions, persimmon fruits were palatable on the parent tree and on the ground for an equal duration, but most fruits were consumed on the ground. Seven vertebrate species fed upon persimmon fruits, with the white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) – a species not capable of dispersing persimmon seeds – comprising over 90% of detections. Conversely, potential living seed dispersers were rarely detected. Our results suggest the American persimmon evolved to attract a variety of seed dispersers and thus is not anachronistic. However, human-induced changes in mammal communities could be affecting successful seed dispersal. We argue that changes in the relative abundance of mammals during the Anthropocene may be modifying seed dispersal patterns, leading to potential changes in forest community composition. Stephanie Stoughton Friday University of Central Arkansas 2:45 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Components of urbanization and urban proximity identify threats to stream water quality Stephanie Stoughton, Sally Entrekin

The urban stream syndrome predicts stressors and associated biological responses common in urban streams. However, variation in stressor intensity may be attributed to urban proximity to streams and urban components (e.g. residential, commercial). We measured water quality at low and high flow in 10 Arkansas streams representing an urban gradient. Land use proximity was quantified at catchment and buffer scales. Multiple linear regression and Akaike’s Information Criterion identified factors that explained variation in nutrients and sediment across catchments. First, we predicted greater nutrient and sediment concentrations with increasing urbanization in buffers. Nutrients and sediments did increase with greater urbanization, but hydrology determined the influence of proximity. For example, catchment- scale urbanization explained variation in nutrients at storm flow, while buffer-scale urbanization explained variation in nutrients at low flow. Second, we predicted as the most-rapidly expanding land use, residential development, would explain greater variation in nutrients and sediment. As predicted, residential development explained greater variation of most stressors at high and low flow. Our results suggest hydrology, land use proximity, and urban components interact to govern water quality in a recently-urbanized watershed. Jade Toth Friday Harding University 1:45 PM Chemistry (CH) CCCS 115 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Analysis of Surface Waters in Searcy, Arkansas Jade Toth

Gin Creek is the primary drainage feature for surface water runoff in Searcy, Arkansas. This study concentrates on creating a catalog of chemicals present in the waters of Gin Creek. Of special interest is determination of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCP) in the runoff water. The initial study is restricted to those substances in surface water that can be extracted with methylene chloride and whose concentrations are large enough to be detected with a quadrupole mass selective detector after separation with a gas chromatography instrument. All peaks in the survey chromatograms above a threshold value have been recorded and those with structural similarity indices of 85% or greater have been assigned tentative structures. Also included in the summary spreadsheet is the areas of all the peaks recorded. Stan Trauth Saturday Arkansas State University 8:30 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Histology of Rathke’s Glands in the Razor-backed Musk Turtle, Sternotherus carinatus (Chelonia: Kinosternidae), with Comments On Lamellar Bodies Stan Trauth

I examined the histology and ultrastructure of Rathke’s glands in two adult male razor-backed musk turtles (Sternotherus carinatus) collected in northeastern Arkansas. This species possesses two pair of Rathke’s glands that are embedded beneath marginal bones and are named according to their anatomical location (i.e., axillary and inguinal). These integumentary glands are similar anatomically to one another. Each gland is comprised of a single, highly vascularized secretory lobule, which is surrounded by a thick tunic of asymmetrically arranged, striated muscle. Two types of large secretory vacuoles characterize most of the holocrine cells produced by the gland's relatively thin secretory epithelium. My results suggest that the chief secretory material of the smaller dark-staining secretory vacuole appears to be a glycoprotein complex. The larger, mostly translucent secretory vacuole contains multilaminar and variously sized osmophilic lamellar bodies, whose structural design is reminiscent of an epidermal lipid delivery system in vertebrates. The functional role of Rathke’s glands in turtles remains unknown. Renn Tumlison Saturday Henderson State University 9:15 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Vertebrate Natural History Notes from Arkansas, 2017 Renn Tumlison, Chris McAllister, Henry Robison, M.B. Connior, D.B. Sasse, D.G. Cloutman, L.A. Durden, C.R. Bursey, T.J. Fayton, S. Schratz, M. Buckley

Although vertebrates are a commonly studied group of animals, the distribution and natural history of many species within Arkansas remains undocumented or poorly understood. We continue to augment current literature with new records of distribution and provide notes on the natural history of selected vertebrates from Arkansas. Herein we include previously unreported records of distribution, reproduction, parasites, and other aspects of natural history of the vertebrates of Arkansas. Particularly, we include new data concerning reproduction of fishes in Arkansas about which very little is known within the state. Claire Turkal Friday Hendrix College 4:45 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

A fracking racket: do birds change the way they sing when experiencing chronic noise from shale gas extraction? Claire Turkal, Anna Claire Atkins, Charlotte Marchioni, Evan Mitchell, Maureen McClung

The recent boom in shale gas development in the U.S. has raised concerns about associated environmental impacts, including chronic noise from gas compressor stations that produce loud, continuous, low frequency noise. These stations are scattered throughout important habitat for birds, which rely on acoustic signals for communication. Our study examined whether forest birds change song characteristics when exposed to noise from compressor stations. We hypothesized that if birds modify their songs to escape noise, then those near compressors will sing faster and at higher frequencies. We recorded singing males of six target species between May-June 2015 in ten patches of forest near noisy compressors and nine patches near quiet well pads in the Fayetteville Shale of Arkansas. We collected data on song characteristics from spectrograms, and compared their means between noisy and quiet sites using independent sample t-tests. Tufted Titmice (Baeolophus bicolor) sang more notes and syllables per song at noisy sites. Tufted Titmice and Northern Cardinals (Cardinalis cardinalis) sang faster, delivering more notes per second at noisy sites. Indigo Buntings (Passerina cyanea) and Carolina Wrens (Thyrothorus ludovicanus) had higher minimum frequencies at noisy sites. Black-and White Warblers (Mniotilta varia) and Red-eyed Vireos (Vireo olivaceus) showed no response to noise. Differences in species that changed timing compared to those that changed frequency components could be due to song complexity. Indigo Buntings and Carolina Wrens sing more complex songs, so it may be easier to change frequency rather than number of notes. Noise attenuates in forests, so birds in the interior forest canopy (Black-and-white Warblers and Red-eyed Vireos) are exposed to less noise, and might experience less pressure to change songs. These findings highlight one way the rapid rise in shale gas development impacts wildlife, and could inform noise regulation guidelines. Michael Ukpong Saturday North Arkansas College 8:00 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Comparison Of Bacterial Communities In Natural And Developed Watersheds Of The Buffalo National River Using Cultivation And 16S Metagenomics Techniques Michael Ukpong, Faron Usrey, Sherri Townsend, Jennifer Usrey, Shawn Hodges, Nathan Windel

Buffalo National River water quality team has conducted an ongoing 30 year program monitoring bacterial fecal coliform numbers at key points in the Buffalo River. A tributary of the Buffalo River, Mill Creek, has consistently shown contamination levels above safe quality standards for human use. As part of a STEM workshop for students, hosted by North Arkansas College, molecular methods were used to compare the Mill Creek tributary with a most natural main river site (Upper Buffalo). This study presents the first bacterial 16s DNA community survey of the river generated using high throughput sequencing methods. The results show a distinct shift in bacterial community composition. The Mill Creek tributary shows less diversity when compared to the most natural site and displays a 10 percent or greater increase in the percentage of sequences from the phylum Bacteriodetes. The data suggests that molecular based techniques can be a key tool in recognizing shifts in bacterial communities in response to human interaction with the Buffalo River. Bacterial 16sDNA community composition provides insight into possible root causes of Mill Creek consistent contamination. Jazmin Urioste Friday Arkansas Tech University 1:15 PM Physics (PH) CCCS 101 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

A sign-changing interaction between dark energy and matter Hamed Shojaei, Jazmin Urioste, Yosuke Kitakaze

Dark energy is one of the mysterious constituents of the cosmic inventory and although its existence is confirmed by observations, its nature is not fully known to physicists. In ∧CDM model it is assumed that dark energy evolves independently from other constituents. However, introducing an interaction between dark energy and matter could address some of the issues of modern cosmology. For example, we know that at the present time dark energy and matter densities have the same order of magnitude, although the current models predict an eventually dark energy dominated universe. Is this simply a coincidence? Introducing the interaction generates new equilibrium points and stabilizes the densities in such a way that the current state of the universe will not be a coincidence. In this project we used an interaction which is proportional to the deceleration parameter, and hence its sign would change if the state of the universe switched from a decelerating phase into an accelerating one . The behavior of dark energy and matter density parameters, as well as the value of deceleration parameter will be studied. Sofia Varriano Friday Hendrix College 3:45 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Seasonal changes of arthropod community structure in inactive bison wallows Sofia Varriano, Zachary Nickell, Matthew Moran

American bison (Bison bison) are often described as ecosystem engineers, in part through their wallowing behavior. Previous research indicates that the creation of bison wallows enhances plant diversity in tallgrass prairies. We studied the effect of this habitat change on the arthropod community by comparing inactive bison wallows with adjacent prairie. We found that total arthropod abundance was enhanced in the wallows early in the season while it declined relative to adjacent prairie late in the season. Arthropod diversity, however, was not different between the two habitats. Within the arthropod community, herbivores tended to have higher abundance in the wallows while detritivores tended to have higher abundance outside the wallows. Carnivores appeared unaffected by wallowing behavior. Our results indicate that bison wallowing creates distinctive arthropod communities, and during certain seasons, produces areas of enhanced arthropod abundance. These areas of enhanced abundance could be valuable for other consumers, especially for insectivorous animals. James E. Vire Friday University of Central Arkansas 3:30 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 211 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Transcriptome analysis for three Erigeron (Asteraceae) genotypes differing in mode of reproduction James E. Vire, Richard D. Noyes

Erigeron, a member of the sunflower plant family (Asteraceae), serves as a model for the study of different modes of plant reproduction, including apomixis. Transcriptomic resources for Erigeron individuals differing in strategies for reproduction potentially would serve as a resource for the discovery of candidate genes affecting reproduction. This experiment aims to develop RNA-Seq resources for Erigeron, using a multi-faceted bioinformatic approach that includes transcriptome assembly, annotation, and comparison of transcripts from individuals with contrasting modes of reproduction. Transcriptome assemblies were constructed for each reproductive type through de novo, genome-guided, or hybrid assembly approaches using Trinity and PASA. Quality metrics were obtained from RSEM, which permitted comparison of assembly method. Transcriptome annotation for different classes of transcripts was carried out with Trinotate, which also provided a Gene Ontology (functional) classification. The annotated transcriptomes will provide a tool for evaluating gene content and expression differences among the different reproductive types. Brian Wagner Friday Arkansas Game & Fish Commission 4:45 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Crayfish Changes to the Arkansas Wildlife Action Plan Brian Wagner, Daniel Magoulick

The Arkansas Wildlife Action Plan was revised in 2015. This plan describes the Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SCGN) and priority habitats that may receive funding through the State Wildlife Grant Program in Arkansas. In this presentation, we review the Wildlife Grant Program, species addition and removal, and future crayfish conservation priorities. Arkansas has 60 recognized crayfish taxa. A total of 27 crayfish species were listed as SGCN, a net increase of 3 species over the original plan. Procambarus ferrugineus was removed from the list because it was found to be an invalid species and four species (Cambarus hubbsi, Fallicambarus dissitus, Orconectes acares, and O. leptogonopodus) were added. Among species that appeared in both versions of the plan, one showed increased conservation priority and nine showed decreased conservation priority. During the decade that the original plan was in place, research was conducted involving 13 crayfishes resulting directly in the reduced conservation priority for seven of them. The 2015 plan will be used to prioritize projects that will receive State Wildlife Grant funding over the next decade. Timothy Wakefield Saturday John Brown University 8:15 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 105 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Persistence of Downstream Negative Impact of Point Source and Non-Point Source Stream Pollutants T.S. Wakefield

In a previous study, Sager Creek, a small 1st-3rd order creek in northwest Arkansas was shown to be negatively impacted by urban stream syndrome. It could be hypothesized, though, that these negative impacts could be mitigated by both biological and physiochemical remediation processes downstream from the previous research sites. A three-year investigation to test this hypothesis was completed. Utilizing physiochemical properties and biological assessments, four stream reaches, two in the previous research site and two downstream, were assessed for negative urban impact. Some acquired data supported the hypothesis that negative effects are mitigated downstream. However, a larger amount of data supported the null hypothesis that all reaches were equal in the resulting negative urban influence on the stream. Natalie Whitlock Friday Harding University 2:45 PM Chemistry (CH) CCCS 115 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Searching for Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products in Wastewater in Searcy , Arkansas Natalie Whitlock, Edmond Wilson

The goal of this study is to identify substances found in the Wastewater of Searcy Arkansas a city with a population of approximately 25,000. The focus is on determining Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCP) in the wastewater with other compounds also tabulated. The following constraints limit our survey: only those substances present and concentrations high enough to be detected by the quadrupole mass selective detector are tabulated. Sampling consisted of collecting for leader samples of raw sewage at the entrance point of circe's water treatment plant the samples were extracted with three 200-milliliter portions of methylene chloride using separatory funnels. The extracted methylene chloride solution was filtered with coarse filter paper and tried using anhydrous magnesium sulfate. Samples were concentrated by rotary evaporation - 3 milliliters. 2 milliliters of the concentrate was filter through a 0.45 micrometer filter and placed into a sample vial for gas chromatographic analysis using a quadrupole mass selective detector. A spreadsheet was created that listed substances detected according to the retention time. Preliminary identification of sample components was attempted by means of a library of mass Spectra provided by shimadzu instrument company. Those substances that match the library compounds with an 85% or higher similarity Factor were tentatively named. David Williams Friday Arkansas Tech University 2:15 PM Chemistry (CH) CCCS 115 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Photocatalytic Sterilization Of Aqueous Solutions Mariusz Gajewski, Justin Barrett

This project focused on a prototype of a device designed to be used in sterilization of water contaminated by microorganisms. The device has potential applications in biomedical field where sterile solutions or potable water is required, but where other means are not available or impractical. The method of sterilization described here is based on action of photoactivatable porphyrins covalently anchored to a solid support. Porphyrins are remarkably efficient light absorbers throughout practically entire visible spectrum, not just a specific region such as the UV, which makes them very attractive tools for the abovementioned applications. Linking them covalently to a solid support dramatically increases the system’s stability and ease of use. The choice of components of the system was based on the following principles: it must be inexpensive, easily maintained, require minimal user input, long lasting, and have the ability to be configured to meet alternative demands. The device design, application, and efficiency of the process of water photo-decontamination utilizing standardized samples of E. coli contaminated water are discussed and preliminary results are presented. David Williams Friday Arkansas Tech University 1:30 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

The Use Of Ligation Independent Cloning To Generate Escherichia coli Capable Of Producing Centruroides Vittatus Scorpion Β-Toxins Na681 And Na682 To Allow For Further Analysis Of Physiological And Medical Significance David Williams, Sara Eagle, Tsunemi Yamashita

Centruroides vittatus, commonly referred to as the Striped Bark scorpion, is found throughout the South Central United States and Northern Mexico. These scorpions inhibit their prey via production of β-toxins which interact with neuronal cells and inhibit the transmission of an action potential. This occurs via the interaction of the β-toxin with sodium channels of neuronal cells causing inhibition in the flow of sodium across the membrane. This inhibition of sodium transport across the membrane leads to increased extracellular sodium concentrations and subsequent hyperpolarization of the cell, thus inhibiting creation of an action potential. The inhibition of an action potential stops the transmission of neuronal impulses and results in paralysis or death of the prey. This research is focused on the Scorpion -toxins Na681 and Na682. The primary goal of the research is to use Escherichia coli expression cells to produce a properly folded, functional, sodium toxin for further physiological analysis and research. The first portion of this research was accomplished by insertion of the toxin gene into EK/LIC vectors, followed by insertion of the vector into competent E. coli cells. Proper insertion of the vector was then assessed via DNA sequencing of the competent cells followed by subsequent extraction of the plasmid containing the toxin sequence. The plasmid was then inserted into Escherichia coli expression cell lines BL21, Rosetta, and Origami and proper insertion was confirmed by DNA sequencing of each sample. Future research goals include experimentation by conducting small and large scale expression of the sodium toxin genes in hopes to induce proper protein folding and function to be used in further physiological and structural analysis. The production of scorpion toxins has a wide array of application in the medical field as the propagation of neuronal signals plays a vast role in human physiology. Wallace Williamson Friday Arkansas Tech University 1:45 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Validation Of Methods To Improve The Use Of P19 Cells As A Model Of Neuronal Differentiation. Wallace Williamson, Ivan Still

Damage to the central and/or peripheral nervous system can occur from age-related processes such as Alzheimer’s disease, or through acute physical damage that can occur at any ages. Little advancement in the treatment for those affected has been made due to the difficulties associated with the repair of neuronal cell damage in vivo at the site of damage. Currently researchers are focusing on supplying exogenous neuronal progenitors at the site(s) of injury that lead to maturation of new neuronal cells.

The P19 embryonal carcinoma cell line is a commonly used model for neuronal differentiation. However, a significant problem with P19 cells is their capability to differentiate into a number of other proliferative stem cells. These cells accumulate and come to dominate the differentiating cell culture bringing death to the desired neuronal cells. Recently, Nakayama et al, 2014(J Neurosci Methods 227:100-6) reported a method that increases the speed of neurogenesis, while lowering the appearance of other non-neuronal cell types. Though the efficacy has been reported, no follow-up data on this method has been published.

We report validation of the Nakayama culture method as a superior method compared to the previously used standard protocol. Neuronal clusters with projecting neurites formed 6 days after initial induction and differentiated cultures subsequently remained free of contaminating proliferative cells. Furthermore, the neuronal cells exhibited significant longevity, and in a scratch assay, to model neuronal cell damage, neurites were able to extend across the damaged area. Thus, we have demonstrated that, with the Nakayama method, the P19 cell model can be used for long-term studies of factors affecting neuronal maturation and survival. Tsunemi Yamashita Saturday Arkansas Tech University 8:45 AM Biology (BI) CCCS 101 Faculty / Researcher Judge: No

Phylogeography and vicariant separation of two river darters, Percina uranidea and Percina vigil, from the North American Interior Highlands Tsunemi Yamashita, Jeremy Rigsby, Joe Stoeckel

The phylogeography and separation of two large river darters, Percina uranidea and Percina vigil were investigated through the mitochondrial Cytochrome B and Cytochrome Oxidase genes. These molecular markers revealed the darters exhibit moderate genetic divergence between two large river drainage systems within the Mississippi River basin associated with the Interior Highlands of Midwestern North America. An additional haplotype network analysis also supported these trends. Phylogenetic divergence dating indicated that population separation between the river systems occurred after recent Pleistocene glacial events rather than an early Pleistocene separation. Marzia Zaman Friday University of Arkansas 4:30 PM Engineering (EN) CCCS 115 Graduate Student Judge: Yes

Nanostructures for Infrared Linear Polarizers Marzia Zaman, Dr. Ligang Chen, Dr. Simon Ang

The purpose of this research is to design inexpensive infrared linear polarizers using nanostructures. Three designs of polarizer were simulated in COMSOL to accomplish high transmittance. In the first model, a thin conductive metal layer on top of a soda lime glass is designed and simulated. The nanostructure is a rectangular opening in the metal layer. The length of the rectangular nanostructure is designed to allow the polarized light parallel to its length. On the other hand, the width of the rectangular nanostructure is 40nm through which no polarization state of light can transmit. The operational wavelength is from 600nm to 1400nm with a transmittance of 0.8 and an extinction ratio of 10^4. In the second model, a gold rectangular hollow structure with a minimum feature of 240nm on silicon dioxide is designed and simulated. The operational wavelength is at 1500nm with a transmittance of 0.7. The third model is an array of silicon grid with a minimum feature of 500nm on top of a silicon dioxide substrate. The transmittance is about 0.95 at a wavelength of 1850nm. Ben Zamzow Friday Hendrix College 1:15 PM Biology (BI) CCCS 207 Undergraduate Student Judge: Yes

Focal Adhesion Kinase Displays Altered Regulation in Papillary Thyroid Cancer Ben Zamzow, Laura MacDonald

Thyroid cancer is the most common endocrine cancer and occurrence is expected to exceed that of colon cancer by 2030. Except for surgical removal of tumors and radioactive iodine therapy to remove remaining thyroid cancer cells, there are few therapeutic options for thyroid cancer patients, highlighting an important need for basic science research into the mechanisms of cancer progression and potential treatment options. Papillary thyroid cancer is most common and is associated with BRAF mutations. Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) has known roles in tumor cell signaling and motility. Notably, FAK is overexpressed in patient thyroid tumor samples. Additionally, in other solid malignancies such as breast cancer, FAK is alternatively spliced, resulting in increased resistance to apoptosis. Therefore, we sought to determine whether FAK might also play a role in papillary thyroid cancer progression driven by BRAFV600E mutations and PTEN deletions. Our data show that several FAK products are present in three independent papillary thyroid cancer cell lines derived from mouse papillary thyroid cancer tumors. Additionally, FAK cleavage product phosphorylation depends on activation of Akt, MEK, and FAK. Collectively, our data suggest the products may have distinct functions in papillary thyroid cancer that may be potential therapeutic targets.