Departamento de Biología
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Spatial Dynamics and Drivers of Land Use and Land Cover Change in Colombia: Implications for Biodiversity Conservation
This dissertation focuses on understanding different aspects of land use and land cover change in Colombia from 2001 to 2010 and the implications for biodiversity conservation. Land use and land cover dynamics during the ... -
Geographic, Demographic, And Ecological Aspects Of Lepanthes (Orchidaceae) Conservation
Biodiversity conservation is one of the most convoluted environmental challenges facing humanity. Various natural and anthropogenic disturbances to the environment have contributed substantially to the extirpation of ... -
Predation on the Tropical Freshwater Schrimp Xiphocaris Elongata: Rostrum Inducibility, Antipredator Responses and Cascade Effects
Predators affect prey indirectly through inducible defenses that are only present when the predator is present, and have a measurable cost. This dissertation is focused on the effects of the predatory fish Agonostomus ... -
Enterococcus faecalis-infecting phages (enterophages) as markers of human fecal pollution and as reservoirs of antibiotic-resistance and virulence genes
The introduction of human fecal material into water sources represents a concern to public health since pathogens could be introduced. Not all laboratories possess the facilities to detect human enteric pathogens and thus ... -
Ecological Interactions of Anolis Cristatellus and Anolis Krugi in Two Secondary Tropical Karst Forests at the Northern Karst Belt of Puerto Rico: Occupancy Estimates and Degree of Omnivory/Frugivory
(2014-05-00)Anolis lizards in the Caribbean islands are a major component of diurnal communities. The natural history of Anolis lizards is well studied, however information about their feeding habits and trophic ecology remains ... -
Do Calves Matter?: The Effect of Number of Boats and Mode of Approach on the Behavioral and Acoustic Responses of Cetacean Groups Groups with Calves
The effect of whale watching on cetacean populations has been of popular concern since the whale watching industry increased dramatically during the past decade. Whales and dolphins show behavior and acoustic reactions ... -
Comparing Proteome Selection Pressure Among Prokaryotes and its Effects on Translational Selection
Factors such as effective population size (Ne) and proteome size modulate the interaction of selection, drift, mutation and recombination for guiding the genome evolution. Prokaryotic genomes are useful for studying these ... -
Function and Diversity of Benthic Biofilm Communities in Tropical Stream Ecosystems: The Relevance of Land Use and Reach Factors
Human activities represent an important cause of degradation to aquatic ecosystems. The replacement of forest cover areas by urbanization can cause changes in ecosystem function as well as the loss of species. In stream ... -
Resistencia al Acido Hipocloroso en Vibrio fischeri
Vibrio fischeri es una bacteria bioluminiscente marina, que forma una simbiosis específica con el calamar hawaiano, Euprymna escolopes. El calamar produce especies reactivas de oxigeno, incluyendo ácido hipocloroso (HOCl), ... -
Interactions Between Sleep, Macrophages and Gut Microbiota of Drosophila melanogaster
The study of the gut microbiota has taken great interest. With advances in technology of sequencing and computer analysis, it has opened great opportunities to study bacteria like never before. The presences of gut ... -
Reproductive Phenology, Fecundity, Survival and Growth of Puerto Rican Anolis Lizards in the Context of Climate Warming
Anolis lizards are vulnerable to climate warming because, like other ectotherms, their basic physiological functions (e.g., locomotion, growth and reproduction) are strongly influenced by environmental temperature. However, ... -
The Reproductive Biology of Zamia (Cycadales: Zamiaceae) in Puerto Rico: Implications for Patterns of Genetic Structure and Species Conservation
Variation in plant reproductive success is affected by how ecological conditions interact with a plant’s sexual, mating, and pollination systems. Long-term viability of natural populations is dependent on the maintenance ... -
Disentangling Vine-Invaded Tropical Landscapes: From Individual Vine Patches to Vine Networks
Vines, like their woody counterparts, lianas, are increasing in abundance in several parts of the World (Warshauer et al. 1983, Mackey et al. 1996) including both tropical (Shrestha and Dangol 2014) and temperate regions ... -
Alpha 7-nAChRs as a Novel Therapeutic Target in HIV-gp120 Neurotoxicity: Implications in the Development of HIV-associated Neurocognitive Disorders.
The syndrome of cognitive and motor dysfunction observed after infection with HIV-1 has been designated HIV-1 associated neurocognitive disorder (HAND) (Antinori et al., 2007). The neuropathology associated with HAND ... -
Genetic, Physiological, and Evolutionary Correlates of Aversive Response in Component Castes of a Social Organism, the Honey Bee (Apis mellifera L.)
Escape, learned avoidance, and defensive behavior underlie adaptive response to aversive stimuli. I examined genetic, physiological, and evolutionary correlates of this response in the honey bee (Apis mellifera sp.). Many ... -
Reproduction, Sex Ratio and Bacterial Communities of the Coffee Berry Borer Hypothenemus Hampei F. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)
The coffee berry borer (CBB) Hypothenemus hampei is the world's most devastating coffee pest. Knowledge of the factors that affect its biology and ecology is an important tool to give effective management recommendations ... -
Ethnicity or location? Differential clinical profile of Alzheimer's disease among Puerto Ricans
The development of a profile of Puerto Ricans with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients was produced considering patients living in areas of high or low mortality rate associated with AD in Puerto Rico (PR). We compared the ... -
Aspergillosis in the Fruit Fly Drosophila melanogaster as a Model System
Aspergilloses are diseases caused by fungi of the genus Aspergillus, which affect humans and a broad spectrum of other animals. Aspergillus flavus is one of the most important pathogenic fungi, responsible for about 30% ... -
Patterns of Soil Properties and Respiration along an Elevation Gradient in the Luquillo Mountains, Notheastern Puerto Rico
(2012-12)Soil respiration is one of the most important components in the global carbon cycle. It is also one of the primary paths to release carbon fixed by vegetation to the atmosphere. Climate change has direct impacts on soil ... -
Impacts of Urbanization and River Water Contaminants on Abundance, Locomotion and Aggression of a Local Freshwater Crustacean
Humanity today is experiencing a dramatic shift to urban living. Local urban environmental stressors and global ones are combining to accelerate the rates of degradation of different marine, terrestrial and freshwater ...