Browsing by Author "Mandviwala, Sakina"
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Item An Investigation into the Correlation between PM 2.5 and Low Birth Weight Rates in Texas(2020-09-29) James, Anjali; Jimenez, Ashley; Juhas, Claire; Mandviwala, Sakina; Sanati, SalarStudies from countries such as Brazil and the Czech Republic show pregnancy and infant abnormalities relating to an increased concentration of particulate matter (PM) 2.5 in the atmosphere for inhalation by mothers during the second trimester. Texas has been highlighted as one of the United States’ most polluted states due to excess petrochemical and manufacturing facilities, which emit PM 2.5 along with other carcinogens. This study evaluates the impacts of PM 2.5 emissions on the newborn population in Texas by comparing regional emissions data to reported Low Birthweight (LBW) Rates of newborns across Texas. Average PM 2.5 measurements are taken in micrograms per cubic meter (ug/m^3) throughout different regions where air monitors are distributed, sorted by county. Low Birth-weight Rates are identified as the average population of reported newborns under 2,500 grams in a given year per county. Furthermore, this study identifies the top PM 2.5 emission sites in Texas throughout the years of 2014-2018 and compares them to trends in their yearly county LBW rate. LBW has been linked to increasing complications with age including diabetes and heart disease. The findings of this study can provide further insight onto whether Texas, who receives one of the highest funding allocations for air quality monitoring and pollution control of any state by the EPA, should redistribute a bulk of its funding from monitoring to preventative measures in PM 2.5 pollution due to harmful links associated with these prenatal inhalants by mothers.Item Endospheric Microbiome Variation Across Wild vs. Cultivated-Type Populations of the Bowellia Sacra Tree(2022-12-19) Mandviwala, Sakina; Khan, Abdul L.; Crawford, Kerri M.; Chitrala, Kumaraswamy N.The Boswellia sacra (Burseraceae family) is an air-land tree endemic to Oman and Yemen. It is one of the key producers of high-quality frankincense – culturally, medicinally, religiously, and economically valuable resin. The tree population faces severe regeneration issues due to unsustainable resin harvesting and climate change. Since endophytic microbes play a crucial role in plant growth, here, we aimed to understand the endophytic microbiome structure and variation across tree populations growing in the wild (unwatered) and cultivated-type (watered) conditions. The amplicon sequencing and in-depth bioinformatic analysis showed the existence of amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) for vast bacterial and fungal communities within the roots and shoots of the B. sacra samples. Overall, the cultivated-type population showed significantly higher ASVs in root compared to shoot and wild-type samples. Among the bacterial communities, 23 major phyla were found, with the most significant presence of Proteobacteria, and substantial amounts of Firmicutes, Actinobacteria, and Bacteroidota in both populations. The diversity and abundance of the microbiome varied significantly between the root and shoot parts. Among the fungal communities, two significant phyla, Ascomycota, and Basidiomycota were most prominent, and substantial amounts of Aspergillus, Penicillium, and Tylospora were found at the genus level. In addition, significantly higher amounts of nutrients, calcium, magnesium, and organic acids (citric and malic acids) were found in the cultivated-type trees compared to the wild tree populations. In conclusion, these findings suggest that microbial abundance can play an important role in the survival and health of plants in harsh, arid, environmental conditions. This study advances our knowledge about the core-bacterial microbiome associated with this considerable tree.