University Of Saskatchewan

MELANIZED FUNGI AS DISCRIMINATORS FOR NUCLEAR FALLOUT RADIONUCLIDES

QUANTIFYING THE INFLUENCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS AND AMERICAN BLACK DUCK BEHAVIOR AND MOVEMENTS THROUGHOUT THE FULL ANNUAL CYCLE ON SUBSEQUENT PRODUCTIVITY USING STATE-OF-THE-ART TRACKING DEVICES

INVESTIGATION OF RADIATION RESISTANCE MECHANISMS IN MELANIZED FUNGI

GRANT

DOES LONG-TERM EXERCISE INCREASE THE RESILIENCE OF THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM AGAINST CHRONIC NEURODEGENERATION AND PROGRESSIVE MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS?

JAPANESE ENCEPHALITIS VIRUS INFECTION IN THE NATURAL AMPLIFIYING HOST DURING PREGNANCY: IMPLICATIONS FOR THE EMERGENCE OF MORE PATHOGENIC VIRUS VARIANTS

FERAL SWINE WILD BOAR DISTRIBUTION AND E

EFFECT OF VARIATIONS IN BCG VACCINE CAPSULE POLYSACCHARIDES ON IMMUNOGENICITY AND PROTECTIVE EFFICACY

INTERMITTENT HYPOXIA ELICITS PROLONGED RESTORATION OF MOTOR FUNCTION IN HUMAN SCI

WE PROPOSE TO EXPLORE FEATURES OF BLACK DUCK BREEDING BIOLOGY AND HABITAT USE, WITH RESULTS THAT WILL DIRECTLY AND IMMEDIATELY BENEFIT OUR EXISTING WORK STUDYING BLACK DUCKS THROUGHOUT THE FULL ANNUAL CYCLE. WE PROPOSE TO HIRE A POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW TO LEAD THIS WORK AND BUILD ON THE EXISTING INTEGRATED POPULATION MODEL (IPM) FOR BLACK DUCKS BY STRUCTURALLY LINKING DEMOGRAPHIC PROCESSES WITH INDIVIDUAL PROCESSES, TO TEST HYPOTHESES ABOUT REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS AND SURVIVAL AT MULTIPLE SCALES SIMULTANEOUSLY. OUR OBJECTIVES ARE:1. DEPLOY 104 GPS-ACC TRACKING DEVICES ON BLACK DUCKS DURING WINTER IN THE MISSISSIPPI FLYWAY, SPLIT ACROSS THE NEXT TWO YEARS.2. ADAPT MACHINE LEARNING ALGORITHMS TO IDENTIFY BREEDING PROPENSITY AND BROOD-REARING, BASED ON LIBRARIES DEVELOPED FOR FULL-TERM INCUBATION FOR GREATER CONFIDENCE IN ALL THREE REPRODUCTIVE PERIOD METRICS.3. EXAMINE AVAILABLE SPACE AND TIME SCALES OF COVARIATE DATA IN THE BOREAL FOREST DURING SUMMER THAT COULD EXPLAIN VARIATION IN BLACK DUCK MOVEMENTS AND BEHAVIOR, AS WELL AS REPRODUCTIVE METRICS.4. INTEGRATE BLACK DUCK DEMOGRAPHY WITH INFORMATION ABOUT MOVEMENTS, BEHAVIOR, SURVIVAL AND REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS FROM GPS-ACC TRACKING DEVICES, FOR HOLISTIC HYPOTHESIS TESTS OF POPULATION AND INDIVIDUAL PROCESSES AND MORE INFORMED CONSERVATION PLANNING.5. USE THE MODIFIED IPM TO CONDUCT SCENARIO-PLAYING ABOUT THE RELATIVE CONTRIBUTIONS OF SURVEY, BANDING, AND GPSACC DATA TOWARD DEMOGRAPHIC ESTIMATES.RESULTS FROM THIS WORK WILL BETTER INFORM OUR UNDERSTANDING OF BLACK DUCK BREEDING BIOLOGY AND DRIVERS, WITH LINKS TO OTHER PARTS OF THE ANNUAL CYCLE. WE ALSO ANTICIPATE THAT LINKING INDIVIDUAL AND POPULATION PROCESSES WILL PROVIDE A MORE HOLISTIC FRAMEWORK TO TEST FUTURE HYPOTHESES ABOUT BLACK DUCK MOVEMENTS, BEHAVIOR, SURVIVAL AND REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS, AND ALLOW OTHER PRACTITIONERS TO CUSTOMIZE OUR MODELS FOR THEIR QUESTIONS.

BASIC: 24 MONTHS, INCREMENTS, MECHANISM(S) OF THE ANOMALOUS ELECTRON CURRENT AND COHERENT STRUCTURES IN MAGNETIZED EXB DISCHARGES

TAS::57 3600::TAS 'TOWARDS PREDICTIVE MODELING OF EXB PLASMA DISCHARGES'

TAS::57 3600::TAS "FLUID MODELING OF INSTABILITIES AND STRUCTURES IN HALL PLASMAS" DATED 28 JAN 2015 (THE GRANTEE'S TECHNICAL PROPOSAL); IS HEREBY

DEVELOPMENT OF AN INDUCIBLE CONDITIONAL GENE DELETION MOUSE MODEL TO STUDY PLASMA CELL DEVELOPMENT AND LONGEVITY - PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT AGING IS ASSOCIATED WITH AN OVERALL DECLINE IN THE ADAPTIVE IMMUNE RESPONSE WITH A BULK OF THE RESEARCH FOCUSING ON THE DEFICIENCIES SURROUNDING NOT ONLY THE FUNCTION, BUT ALSO THE GENERATION, OF NAIVE B AND T LYMPHOCYTES. IN CONTRAST, NOT MUCH IS KNOWN ABOUT HOW AGING ALTERS THE FUNCTIONALITY OF PLASMACYTES. PLASMACYTES REPRESENT THE TERMINAL DIFFERENTIATION STEP OF MATURE B CELLS AND CONSIST OF BOTH SHORT-LIVED, PROLIFERATIVE PLASMABLASTS (PBS) AND MORE MATURE, NON-PROLIFERATIVE PLASMA CELLS (PCS). THESE CELLS ARE KEY FACILITATORS OF HUMORAL IMMUNITY THROUGH THEIR ROBUST PRODUCTION OF ANTIBODIES (ABS) AS WELL AS THEIR POTENTIAL TO BE LONG-LIVED. IN HUMANS, THIS LONGEVITY CAN SPAN DECADES. HISTORICALLY, THESE CELLS HAVE BEEN CONSIDERED NOTHING MORE THAN AB FACTORIES; HOWEVER, RECENT WORK HAS DEMONSTRATED THE ABILITY OF PLASMACYTES TO REGULATE A VARIETY OF PHYSIOLOGICAL PROCESSES. IN THE CONTEXT OF AGING, PCS HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO EVOLVE A PRO-INFLAMMATORY PHENOTYPE AND BE KEY DRIVERS OF THE INCREASED BONE MARROW (BM) MYELOPOIESIS NORMALLY OBSERVED IN THE ELDERLY. THIS IS IN PART THROUGH THE PC-DEPENDENT EXPANSION IN THE NUMBERS OF HEMATOPOIETIC STEM CELLS AND MYELOID PROGENITORS WHICH HAS BEEN LINKED TO THE ELEVATED INCIDENCE OF MYELOID LEUKEMIAS IN THE AGED POPULATION. MORE RECENTLY, WE HAVE IDENTIFIED A SEX DISPARITY THAT EXISTS IN REGARD TO PB/PC POPULATIONS WITHIN THE YOUNG THYMUS (THY) IN WHICH 3 MONTHS OLD FEMALE MICE HAVE SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER NUMBERS OF THESE CELLS COMPARED TO MALES. INTERESTINGLY ENOUGH, THESE THY PBS/PCS EXPRESS KEY PROTEINS REQUIRED FOR THY T CELL SELECTION AND THEIR NUMBERS SIGNIFICANTLY CORRELATE WITH OVERALL THY CELLULARITY. SIMILAR TO BM, WE HAVE OBSERVED CHANGES IN THY PB/PC POPULATIONS IN THE CONTEXT OF AGING. IN PARTICULAR, MALE MICE ACCUMULATE THY PBS/PCS WITH AGE WHILE NUMBERS REMAIN CONSTANT IN FEMALES. THIS IS IN CONTRAST TO BM AND SPLEEN (SPL) WHERE PBS/PCS INCREASE WITH AGE IN BOTH SEXES. THUS, UNDERSTANDING HOW PBS/PCS AGE WILL ALLOW US TO BETTER EVALUATE THEIR ROLE(S) IN ADAPTIVE IMMUNE RESPONSES IN THE ELDERLY AS WELL AS THEIR EVOLVING REPERTOIRE OF AB-INDEPENDENT FUNCTIONS. ULTIMATELY, THIS MAY LEAD TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF THERAPIES THAT ALTER PB/PC BEHAVIOR AND PROMOTE INCREASED HEALTHSPAN IN AGED INDIVIDUALS. IT IS CURRENTLY DIFFICULT TO IDENTIFY BONA FIDE LONG-LIVED, OR AGED, PLASMACYTES. WHILE A VARIETY OF CELL SURFACE MARKERS HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO IDENTIFY PLASMACYTES, THESE DETERMINANTS DO NOT NECESSARILY CORRELATE WITH LONGEVITY BUT RATHER MATURITY. ALTERNATIVELY, CELL LABELING TECHNIQUES RELY ON EFFICIENT LABELING OF UPSTREAM B CELLS AND LABEL RETENTION IN THE SUBSEQUENTLY GENERATED PBS/PCS. IN SOME INSTANCES, DETECTION OF THESE LABELS REQUIRES CELL PERMEABILIZATION THUS ELIMINATING THE ABILITY TO FURTHER STUDY LIVING, AGED PBS/PCS. AIM 1 FOCUSES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN INDUCIBLE SYSTEM TO INDELIBLY MARK, OR TIMESTAMP, PLASMACYTES USING A FLUORESCENCE REPORTER THUS FACILITATING THE ABILITY TO ASSESS POPULATION DYNAMICS AND POTENTIALLY ISOLATE CELLS OF VARIOUS AGES. AIM 2 WILL DEMONSTRATE THE FEASIBILITY OF THIS REPORTER SYSTEM TO SPECIFICALLY DETERMINE DIFFERENTIAL POPULATION TURNOVER AND/OR MAINTENANCE IN FEMALE VERSUS MALE THY PLASMACYTES.

ALTERNATIVES TO ANTIBIOTICS: NEONATAL IMMUNOMODULATION TO IMPROVE DISEASE RESISTANCE IN ANIMALS - THE GOAL OF THE PROPOSED COLLABORATION IS TO EVALUATE THE UTILITY OF BCG COMPONENTS TO INDUCE INNATE TRAINING AND THEIR POTENTIAL TO BE USED AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO BCG AS A NON-ANTIBIOTIC IMMUNOMODULATOR.

ABUNDANCE OF MIDCONTINENT SNOW GEESE INCREASED RAPIDLY FROM THE 1980S TO 2000S BUT SINCE ABOUT 2010 HAS DECLINED AT A GREATER RATE THAN THE FORMER INCREASE. THE POPULATION DECLINE IS BELIEVED TO BE DUE TO POOR REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS, NOT DECLINING ADULT SURVIVAL, BUT PATTERNS IN THESE DEMOGRAPHIC RATES WITHIN AND AMONG SUBPOPULATIONS HAVE NOT BEEN EVALUATED IN A HOLISTIC MODELING FRAMEWORK. SUCH A FRAMEWORK WOULD IMPROVE UNDERSTANDING ABOUT WHETHER (I) SURVIVAL, REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS AND OR MOVEMENTS ARE SIMILAR AMONG SUBPOPULATIONS (SUGGESTING SYNCHRONY IN RESPONSE TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS, WHETHER ACROSS THE ARCTIC AND SUBARCTIC OR ON MIGRATION AND WINTER AREAS) OR (II) SPECIFIC SUBPOPULATIONS HAVE DIFFERENT DEMOGRAPHIC RATES (SUGGESTING VARYING ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS OR BIRD RESPONSES TO THEM). WE PROPOSE TO DEVELOP AN INTEGRATED METAPOPULATION MODEL (IMM) FOR MIDCONTINENT ARCTIC AND SUBARCTIC SNOW GEESE REPRESENTING FIVE SUBPOPULATIONS, USING ALL AVAILABLE DEMOGRAPHIC AND POPULATION SURVEY INFORMATION TO ESTIMATE DEMOGRAPHIC RATES AND ABUNDANCES, AND IDENTIFY MECHANISMS THAT INFLUENCE DEMOGRAPHIC PROCESSES, WITHIN AND AMONG SUBPOPULATIONS. WE WILL USE THE IMM TO CONDUCT HYPOTHESIS TESTS ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENTAL DRIVERS OF WITHIN AND AMONG COLONY VARIATION IN POPULATION DYNAMICS. WE BELIEVE THIS WORK WILL PROVIDE A FLEXIBLE FRAMEWORK THAT OTHER RESEARCHERS COULD USE AND ADAPT, ACCORDING TO THEIR SPECIFIC RESEARCH QUESTIONS. THESE PRODUCTS WILL CONTRIBUTE SUBSTANTIALLY TOWARD ONGOING ASSESSMENT OF MIDCONTINENT SNOW GOOSE DYNAMICS, WHICH COULD INFORM MANAGEMENT DECISIONS AND CONSERVATION PLANNING.

ASCRIBING THE IMPORTANCE OF ATLANTIC BRANT STAGING AREAS FOR HOLISTIC CONSERVATION PLANNING

OVERABUNDANCE OF LESSER SNOW AND ROSS GEESE HAS CAUSED ALTERATION OF ARCTIC VEGETATION IN THE CANADIAN ARCTIC AND SUBARCTIC. ATTEMPTED CONTROL OF THESE GOOSE POPULATIONS HAS NOT SUCCEEDED AND THERE IS CONCERN THAT ALTERATION OF VEGETATION COMMUNITIES BY THESE GEESE MAY IMPACT ARCTIC ECOSYSTEMS. THIS PROPOSAL SEEKS SUPPORT FOR CONTINUING WORK ON BOTH ROSS AND SNOW GEESE AT KARRAK LAKE FROM 2024 TO 2025 TO MEASURE POPULATION TRAJECTORY DURING CONTINUING EFFORTS TO REDUCE THESE POPULATIONS. WORK TO DATE AT KARRAK LAKE QUEEN MAUD GULF BIRD SANCTUARY QMG HAS INCLUDED NESTING STUDIES FOR POPULATION SIZE AND RECRUITMENT ESTIMATION AND BANDING STUDIES FOR SURVIVAL ESTIMATION. SUCH INFORMATION FOR ROSS GEESE CAN ONLY BE ACQUIRED AT QMG A REGION WHERE MORE THAN 95 PERCENT OF THE CONTINENTAL POPULATION NESTS. PRECISE ANNUAL ESTIMATES OF BREEDING POPULATION SIZE FOR BOTH ROSS AND MIDCONTINENT SNOW GEESE SINCE 1993 IS AVAILABLE ONLY FROM THE KARRAK LAKE NESTING COLONY. IT PROVIDES A MOST VALUABLE AND UNIQUE LONG TERM RECORD FROM WHICH ASSESSMENTS OF MANAGEMENT ACTIONS CAN BE EVALUATED.

SINCE THE 1970S, LESSER SNOW GOOSE MANAGEMENT IN THE PACIFIC FLYWAY HAS RELIED ON DEMOGRAPHIC AND POPULATION SURVEY DATA COLLECTED DURING SUMMER ON ARCTIC BREEDING AREAS AND WITHIN VARIOUS WINTERING AREAS. WHILE THERE HAVE BEEN SEVERAL PREVIOUS EFFORTS TO QUANTIFY ABUNDANCE, HARVEST, AND DEMOGRAPHIC RATES OF WRANGEL ISLAND POPULATION (WIP) AND WESTERN ARCTIC POPULATION (WAP) LESSER SNOW GEESE, DETERMINING THE MECHANISM(S) FOR POPULATION CHANGE HAS BEEN DIFFICULT BECAUSE THESE POPULATIONS COMINGLE IN STAGING AND WINTERING AREAS, WHICH CREATES CHALLENGES FOR OBTAINING POPULATION-SPECIFIC DATA AND ESTIMATES, AND THERE HAVE BEEN GAPS IN OPERATIONAL MONITORING. THESE LIMITATIONS REQUIRE A COMPREHENSIVE MODELING FRAMEWORK THAT ACCOUNTS FOR, AND LEVERAGES MULTIPLE DATA SETS, TO ACCURATELY ESTIMATE DEMOGRAPHY OF EACH POPULATION. ALSO, THERE IS SUBSTANTIAL UNCERTAINTY ABOUT FUTURE MONITORING OF WIP AND WAP LESSER SNOW GEESE. DEVELOPMENT OF A MODELING FRAMEWORK THAT ESTIMATES THE DEMOGRAPHIC MECHANISM(S) FOR POPULATION CHANGE AND IDENTIFIES THE RELATIVE CONTRIBUTIONS OF DEMOGRAPHIC DATA SETS WOULD BE VERY USEFUL TO GUIDE FUTURE INVESTMENTS IN MONITORING AND MANAGEMENT OF LESSER SNOW GOOSE POPULATIONS THROUGHOUT THE PACIFIC FLYWAY. WE PROPOSE TO DEVELOP AN INTEGRATED POPULATION MODEL FOR WIP AND WAP LESSER SNOW GEESE USING ALL AVAILABLE DEMOGRAPHIC AND POPULATION SURVEY INFORMATION TO ESTIMATE DEMOGRAPHIC RATES AND ABUNDANCES, AND IDENTIFY MECHANISMS THAT INFLUENCE DEMOGRAPHICS PROCESSES FOR THESE POPULATIONS. THE IPM WILL BE USED TO EVALUATE THE RELATIVE IMPORTANCE OF EACH DATA SET TOWARD DEMOGRAPHIC ESTIMATION AND PRIORITIZE FUTURE MONITORING STRATEGIES THAT WILL ENABLE PRACTITIONERS TO MAKE INFORMED MANAGEMENT DECISIONS (E.G., ABOUT ESTABLISHING POPULATION OBJECTIVES, MONITORING AND HARVEST). THESE PRODUCTS WILL ESTABLISH THE FOUNDATION TO DEVELOP EFFECTIVE MONITORING PROGRAMS AND A METAPOPULATION MODEL LINKING LESSER SNOW GOOSE ARCTIC BREEDING COLONIES AND WINTERING AREAS FOR MORE HOLISTIC MANAGEMENT IN FUTURE YEARS.

TO PROVIDE FEDERAL ASSISTANCE TO MAP FERAL SWINE POPULATIONS IN CANADA AND TO PROVIDE INSIGHT IN MOVEMENT OF ANIMALS ALONG THE BORDER BETWEEN CANADA

COORDINATION OF SOURCES FOR COLLECTION OF CLOACAL AND OROPHARYNGEAL SWAB SAMPLES OF DABBLING DUCKS DURING BANDING OPERATIONS IN WESTERN PROVINCES OF

IN MANY RELATIVELY LONG-LIVED SPECIES, VARIATION IN POPULATION GROWTH RATE IS DRIVEN BY VARIATION IN REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS AND RECRUITMENT. THUS, RESEARCHERS AND CONSERVATION PRACTITIONERS OFTEN FOCUS ON THE COMPONENTS OF REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS AND THEIR ENVIRONMENTAL DRIVERS IN ORDER TO DETERMINE ACTIONS THAT MIGHT IMPROVE POOR REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS TO GROW A POPULATION OR DECREASE REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS TO REDUCE A POPULATION. IN THIS PROJECT, WE WILL ASSESS THE ENVIRONMENTAL DRIVERS OF THE COMPONENTS OF RECRUITMENT IN KING EIDERS, WHICH ARE A RELATIVELY UNDERSTUDIED HIGH PRIORITY SEA DUCK SPECIES. REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS IS BELIEVED TO CONTRIBUTE MOST TO KING EIDER POPULATION PATTERNS, IN THE ABSENCE OF PERIODIC MASS STARVATION (FOURNIER AND HINES 1994). WE ARE AIDED BY DATA SETS ON KING EIDER CLUTCH SIZE AND NESTING SUCCESS COLLECTED AT KARRAK LAKE IN THE CENTRAL CANADIAN ARCTIC FROM 1995 TO 2019. WE WILL ASSESS THE EXTENT TO WHICH CLIMATIC INDICES SUCH AS THE NORTHERN PACIFIC INDEX AND NORTH ATLANTIC OSCILLATION INDEX HAVE EXPLAINED VARIATION IN KING EIDER CLUTCH SIZE AND NESTING SUCCESS OVER OUR STUDY PERIOD. WE ALSO WILL TEST THE EXTENT TO WHICH LOCAL TEMPERATURE AND PRECIPITATION, AS WELL AS GREEN-UP, EXPLAIN VARIATION IN REPRODUCTIVE METRICS. THUS, WE WILL TRADE OFF WHETHER CLIMATE DURING WINTER OR SPRING MIGRATION OR LOCAL WEATHER EFFECTS ON NESTING AREAS EXPLAIN MORE VARIATION IN KING EIDER REPRODUCTIVE METRICS. IN ADDITION, KARRAK LAKE COMPRISES ONE OF THE LARGEST LESSER SNOW GOOSE AND ROSSS GOOSE (I.E., LIGHT GOOSE) BREEDING COLONIES IN NORTH AMERICA, AND THE DEMOGRAPHY OF THESE BIRDS HAS BEEN WELL STUDIED. WE WILL TEST THE EXTENT TO WHICH THE POPULATION DYNAMICS OF LESSER SNOW GEESE AND ROSSS GEESE EXPLAIN VARIATION IN REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS OF KING EIDERS DURING THE STUDY PERIOD. THIS IS PARTICULARLY INTERESTING BECAUSE THE LIGHT GOOSE COLONY RAPIDLY EXPANDED FROM 300,000 BIRDS IN THE EARLY 1990S TO 1.3 MILLION INDIVIDUALS IN 2009 BUT HAS COLLAPSED TO 230,000 BIRDS IN 2024. UNDERSTANDING THE ENVIRONMENTAL DRIVERS FOR KING EIDER REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS WILL FILL AN IMPORTANT INFORMATION GAP ABOUT HOW THIS SPECIES AND SEA DUCKS GENERALLY MIGHT RESPOND TO CLIMATE CHANGE AND LOCAL WEATHER IN FUTURE YEARS. FURTHER, LINKING KING EIDER REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS WITH LIGHT GOOSE POPULATION DYNAMICS WILL BE IMPORTANT IN UNDERSTANDING HOW SPECIES WITH DIFFERENT LIFE HISTORIES INTERACT IN AN ARCTIC ECOSYSTEM, WITH IMPLICATIONS FOR OTHER MULTISPECIES INTERACTIONS AMONG SEA DUCKS AND OTHER TAXA ACROSS THE NORTH.

DEVELOPING THE BUSINESS CASE FOR WILDLIFE HEALTH SURVEILLANCE: PHASE 1, 12 FEB 2015

AN ACCELEROMETER-BASED WATERFOWL BEHAVIOR LIBRARY

DEVELOPMENT OF GENOMIC RESOURCES OF LENTIL FOR GENE DISCOVERY CONTROLLING ECONOMIC TRAITS USING ASSOCIATION MAPPING IN GERMPLASM COLLECTIONS

SEEDLING ESTABLISHMENT UNDER CLIMATE CHANGE

IT IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT TO HAVE LOW POWER HIGH CAPACITY COMPUTING FOR SPACE APPLICATIONS SUCH AS AUTOMATED LANDING AND AUTOMATED RENDEZVOUS AND DOC