LanguageTerm (authority = ISO 639-3:2007); (type = text)
English
Abstract (type = abstract)
The causative agent of White-Nose Syndrome (WNS) in bats is the psychrophilic fungus, Pseudogymnoascus destructans. Since its discovery in the winter of 2006-2007 there has been a flurry of research to better understand this pathogenic fungus as well as find a treatment to save the bats. There is promise in finding a potential treatment through the use of safe Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC). There was potential for the use of 1-octen-3-ol, mushroom alcohol as a treatment for WNS. The first chapter shows the effectiveness of the R and S enantiomers and the racemic form of 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom alcohol) as well as trans-2-hexenal (leaf aldehyde), on mycelial plugs and conidiospores at temperatures of 5, 10 and 15˚C. 1-octen-3-ol was able to inhibit mycelial and conidiospore growth of P. destructans at 0.4 and 0.8 μmol/mL and the R enantiomer of this compound was more effective than the S enantiomer, supporting the finding that biological systems can be sensitive to stereochemistry. trans-2-hexenal was more effective than 1-octen-3-ol and showed fungicidal activity at 0.05 μmol/mL to both conidiospores and mycelia of P. destructans. The second chapter is a transcriptomics study to understand a potential pathway trans-2-hexenal takes in inhibiting P. destructans growth. P. destructans was treated with trans-2-hexenal at sublethal concentrations, and RNA was extracted for Illumina sequencing. It was found that trans-2-hexenal was able to inhibit growth, possibly through downregulating the production of essential genes, like Superoxide Dismutase. Also discovered was the downregulation of known endopeptidase enzyme, Destrucin-2, indicating trans-2-hexenal may also able to reduce virulence while inhibiting growth.
Subject (authority = RUETD)
Topic
Microbial Biology
Subject (authority = LCSH)
Topic
White-nose syndrome -- Prevention
Subject (authority = LCSH)
Topic
Volatile organic compounds
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Rutgers University Electronic Theses and Dissertations
I hereby grant to the Rutgers University Libraries and to my school the non-exclusive right to archive, reproduce and distribute my thesis or dissertation, in whole or in part, and/or my abstract, in whole or in part, in and from an electronic format, subject to the release date subsequently stipulated in this submittal form and approved by my school. I represent and stipulate that the thesis or dissertation and its abstract are my original work, that they do not infringe or violate any rights of others, and that I make these grants as the sole owner of the rights to my thesis or dissertation and its abstract. I represent that I have obtained written permissions, when necessary, from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis or dissertation and will supply copies of such upon request by my school. I acknowledge that RU ETD and my school will not distribute my thesis or dissertation or its abstract if, in their reasonable judgment, they believe all such rights have not been secured. I acknowledge that I retain ownership rights to the copyright of my work. I also retain the right to use all or part of this thesis or dissertation in future works, such as articles or books.
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