Tag: Bovee

Annika Poet

Mammalian Pregnancy: The Placental, the Pouch, and the Peculiar

There are three main methods found in Class Mammalia to reproduce and create the next generation. These methods divide mammals into three groups: placental, marsupial, and monotreme. Most mammals, humans included, develop their young with the use of a temporary organ called the placenta. Marsupials, while still producing a placenta, utilize a different organ, the pouch, to facilitate a large portion of the development. For monotremes, reproduction involves laying a soft-shelled egg. Even throughout these diverse methods of development, there are many similarities and differences which highlights the uniqueness of each species and the connectiveness across the Earth.

BIOL 312, Human Anatomy and Physiology 2

Tammy Bovee

Womack 100

1 – 1:30 PM

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Annika Poet

The Dangers of Selective Breeding in Horses: An Overview of Hyperkalemic Periodic Paralysis

Impressive the Quarter Horse was not just the first Champion of the AQHA World Championship Show, but the index case of an autosomal dominant genetic disorder called Hyperkalemic Periodic Paralysis (HYPP). HYPP is caused by a mutation in the gene that codes for the sodium channels which replaces the normal amino acid leucine with phenylalanine. As a result, the channels occasionally become “stuck” open, leading to an abnormally high concentration of potassium in the extracellular space. HYPP causes attacks that are characterized by muscle weakness, paralysis, and involuntary recumbency. The muscle fibers become unable to maintain a stable membrane potential, though not all muscles throughout the body may be affected by an attack. Treatments focus on lowering the intake of potassium, maintaining normal exercise, and diuretics to increase the excretion of ions in the urine. HYPP can also be seen in humans with many of the same symptoms and triggers. In Quarter Horses, HYPP is paired with desirable muscle structure and traits which means a disease that could be breed out is found in almost 4.4% of Quarter Horses.

BIOL 311, Anatomy and Physiology 1

Tammy Bovee

Womack 100

11 – 11:30 AM

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