Unlike the rest of Britain, Scotland has no native crayfish species. There are, however, two introduced species: the white-clawed crayfish (Austropotamobius pallipes) has inhabited Loch Croispol in Sutherland and Whitemoss Reservoir in Renfrewshire for several decades. A. pallip…
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Bacterial mechanosensitive (MS) channels represent the most primitive form of MS channels gating solely in response to changes in bilayer tension. The two main families of bacterial MS channels are MscS and MscL. In concert these channels are imperative to obviate the effects of…
Nigeria has serious environmental degradation resulting from pollution related to the oil and gas industry. The Department of Petroleum Resources reports that there were over 4,200 oil spill incidences in Nigeria over the last 50 years, ranging from minor spills to over half a m…
CaMKII acts as a second messenger to Ca2+ signals within the cardiac myocyte. Cellular stresses such as ischaemia and subsequent reperfusion perturb the normal physiological oscillations of Ca2+ to cause an escalating concentration which damages the cell. CaMKII has been implica…
Irritable bowel syndrome is one of the most common problems reported to general practitioners and gastroenterologists. It has been shown that many of the gut and systemic symptoms are due to lactose sensitivity, the sugar found mainly in milk. Undigested carbohydrates and other …
In the treatment of pre-menopausal women with oestrogen positive (ER+) breast cancer, tamoxifen represents a first line of adjuvant treatment with demonstrable benefits. Despite this, resistance is frequently acquired to tamoxifen with an associated poor prognosis. Breast cancer…
The innate immune system is a vital part of the body's defences against viral pathogens. RIG-I and MDA5 belong to the retinoic acid inducible gene-I (RIG-I)-like receptors (RLRs) family and function as cytoplasmic PRRs that are involved in the elimination of actively replicating…
My aim was to acclimate calli of Medicago truncatula to be NaCl tolerant and discover the extent to which various traits could act as markers of improved NaCl tolerance in vitro. I developed a new tissue culture protocol incorporating multi-step up acclimation (Phase I) followed…
The bactericidal mechanism of hydrogen peroxide is poorly understood, with most evidence being obtained from studies involving greatly reduced concentrations aimed at investigating the effects of stress. Current theory suggests that this mechanism is based on the oxidation of pr…
Primary focal hyperhidrosis (PFHH) is a medical condition characterised by overactivity of the eccrine sweat glands, primarily occurring on palmar, plantar and axillary regions. PFHH can have a significant adverse impact on a patient’s quality of life. Multiple intradermal injec…
The search for new anti-HCV therapeutics continues, as current standard of care based on pegINF and ribavirin is limited and can cause significant side effects. Several families of modified nucleoside are known to inhibit HCV RNA dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp). The 2’-C-!-methy…
In Guinea-Bissau (GB) the Guinea baboon (Papio hamadryas papio) is threatened by hunting pressure. Along with local extinctions, these practices may be inducing long-term genetic changes and disrupting underlying social structure. In this study, the bushmeat trade in GB was eval…
Clostridium difficile, a Gram positive, anaerobic, spore-forming bacterium is the commonest cause of hospital acquired infection in the UK. The organism initiates infection through spore formation and attachment, germination in the gut and then the production of two potent cytot…
Acyclovir (ACV) is an acyclic guanine nucleoside analogue used in the treatment of herpes simplex virus (HSV) and varicella zoster virus (VZV) infections. The human herpes virus-encoded thymidine kinase (HHV-TK) phosphorylates ACV generating ACV monophosphate, which is then conv…
Both excitable and non-excitable cells possess plasma membrane ion channels and evidence has accumulated over the last 30 or so years that these channels perhaps play key roles in the cell life and death. This Thesis investigated the characteristics and putative functions of one…
Biodegradable microneedles (MNs) are currently being developed to painlessly facilitate the effective permeation of therapeutic substances across the skin barrier. As sugar glasses are utilised in nature to protect proteins and other delicate structures upon dehydration, such ma…
Apoptosis is an important process in normal mammary gland physiology and has been implicated in mammary gland involution. In breast cancer cells, apoptotic resistance is an acquired feature that can promote tumour growth and progression. In order to assess the importance of apop…
Saprotrophic fungi are key regulators of nutrient cycling and re-distribution within woodland ecosystems. They are the primary agents of wood and leaf litter decomposition, and their hyphal networks, which grow throughout the soil-litter interface, represent highly dynamic chann…
The aim of the study was to evaluate a community pharmacy-based cardiovascular risk assessment (VRA) service introduced into two pharmacies in south Wales. A longitudinal methodology was adopted where participants had an initial assessment with a follow-up after 12 months. Body …
1. Rivers are highly structured ecosystems in which habitat complexity and heterogeneity are postulated to affect species diversity and abundance. However, the exact links between habitat structure and organisms such as macro-invertebrates remain poorly understood. 2. Field surv…