About: crockett

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http://oak.cats.ohiou.edu/~crockett/

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Molecular and Cellular NeuroscienceAdaptational and Comparative Physiology, BiochemistryTo understand dietary factors that limit zooplankton growth it is necessary to identify key components in the diet and define the conditions under which these components become limiting. One biomolecule that has never systematically been tested as a possible limiting factor is cholesterol and its sterol precursors. Requirements for cholesterol in animals are likely to be driven largely by contents of cholesterol in plasma membranes. In collaboration with Patrick Hassett (also in Biological Sciences) we will examine both ecological and physiological aspects of cholesterol biology in zooplankton. More specifically, we will 1) identify the physical and biotic conditions for which dietary sterols become limiting, and 2) define the coupling between dietary and membrane-specific requirements for cholesterol. This is a project particularly well-suited for undergraduate student participation and will involve work both at OU and in Maine (at the Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory). We have funding from NSF to take two undergraduate students with us to Maine in the summer.