Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, San Diego, 2009. / Title from first page of PDF file (viewed July 23, 2009). Available via ProQuest Digital Dissertations. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 127-136).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 153-163).

Many studies have investigated the ecological factors that affect behavior in Micrathena gracilis, a diurnal orb-weaving spider that forages exclusively on flying insects during the day. However, none yet have considered how the temporal distributions of prey and predator occurrences shape their daily behavioral rhythms, especially web construction which involves a heavy energetic investment well in advance of potential nutritional benefit. Recently, other spider species have been found to express significant circadian plasticity, suggesting that circadian clock-controlled rhythms may play a larger role in niche partitioning than once thought. Despite the appearance of significant insect abundance in the evenings, M. gracilis individuals stop foraging, take down their webs, and retreat before they can capitalize on this opportunity. Is the nutritional benefit of this forfeited prey significant compared to what they collect during the day, and if so, what potential cost might justify opting out of this potential gain? To investigate, sticky traps for prey collection and a camera array for recording predator activity were used at a local field site to survey what risks and rewards these spiders face throughout the 24-hour day. Spider activity in a lab environment and web captures in the field were also used to confirm behavioral patterns and nutrient uptake throughout the day. It was found that significant prey biomass is given up shortly after the time that spiders typically retreat, suggesting that the spiders truly forfeit this prey and do not simply retreat due to a gradual decrease in overall prey availability. Spiders reliably cease foraging in the early evening and show agitation throughout the night when not comfortably hidden, suggesting that significant extension of foraging behavior may be harshly punished. However, recorded predation events from the camera array were much rarer than anticipated, and no predation was confirmed in the evening. These results support the notion that these spiders’ circadian rhythms are shaped by factors other than prey availability, but more work is necessary to identify these factors

No description available.

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MSc(Med. Pharmaceutical Affairs), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, 2009

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No description available.

Digitized by Kansas Correctional Industries

Circadian rhythms in biological processes occur in a wide range of organisms and are generated by endogenous oscillators. In Neurospora crassa, the FRQ-oscillator (comprised of FRQ, WC-1 and WC-2) is essential for rhythms in asexual sporulation and gene expression. How this oscillator signals to the cell to control rhythmicity is unknown. Furthermore, under certain growth conditions, rhythms are observed in FRQ-null strains, indicating the presence of one or more FRQ-less oscillators (FLOs). Interestingly, while circadian rhythms are observed in the related Aspergillus spp., they lack the frq gene, leading to the hypothesis that a FLO is responsible for rhythms in Aspergillus. Thus, Aspergillus provides a useful organism to investigate the components of the FLO. To investigate how an oscillator controls circadian output, we characterized the role of N. crassa NRC-2. The nrc-2 gene is under control of the clock and encodes a putative serine-threonine protein kinase. In a NRC-2-null strain cultured in low glucose conditions, FRQ-oscillator-dependent outputs are arrhythmic, but are rhythmic in high glucose. Our data suggests a model whereby NRC-2 relays metabolic information to the FRQ-oscillator to control rhythmic output. To understand the role of FLO(s) in the N. crassa circadian system, we examined regulation of the ccg-16 gene. We show that ccg-16 transcript rhythmicity is FRQ-independent, but WC-1-dependent. Furthermore, in contrast to current models for the FRQ-oscillator, we observed that rhythms in WC-1 protein accumulation persist in the absence of FRQ. These data support a new model involving two oscillators that are coupled through the WC-1 protein and that regulate different outputs. One approach to identify components of the FLO involved characterizing circadian rhythms in Aspergillus spp, which lacks FRQ. We find that A. flavus and A. nidulans, display circadian rhythms in sporulation and gene expression, respectively. Together, these findings provide a foundation for the identification of FLO components in both Aspergillus and N. crassa, that will ultimately lead to an understanding of how a multi-oscillator system can generate and coordinate circadian rhythmicity.