Scholarworks

ScholarWorks is an open access repository for the capture of the intellectual work of Montana State University (MSU) in support of its teaching, research and service missions. MSU ScholarWorks is a central point of discovery for accessing, collecting, sharing, preserving, and distributing knowledge to the Montana State University community and the world.

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Fourteen genome sequences from bacterial, environmental isolates from the Cotton Glacier stream, Antarctica
(American Society for Microbiology, 2025-08) Foreman, Christine M.; Smith, Heidi J.; Dieser, Markus
We report the genomic sequences of 14 bacterial isolates from a supraglacial stream on the Cotton Glacier, Antarctica. Fine sediments in the streambed provide habitat for bacterial growth and biofilm formation. The stream represents a natural laboratory for studying the evolution and adaptation of microbes to a humic-free environment.
Assessing the Impact of Post‐Fire Land‐Surface Changes on Weather Forecasting in Two Forested Areas
(Wiley, 2025-09) He, Siwei
Wildfires have extensively burned areas worldwide, with significant impacts in various aspects of life. Among these, wildfires affect land-surface properties, such as vegetation nature and soil characteristics, from active burning to years and decades afterward. Despite this, the qualitative effects of post-wildfire conditions on short-term weather forecasting remain obscure. In this study, we investigated the impact of post-wildfire conditions on weather forecasting by considering post-wildfire land-surface conditions using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model in two burned forest areas. The changes in land-surface properties caused by wildfires were considered, including vegetation fraction, leaf area index, roughness length, emissivity, and soil hydraulic conductivity. The results show that post-wildfire land-surface properties have noticeable impacts on near-surface variables and atmospheric profiles. Over the study areas, the simulated near-surface air temperature could be approximately 1 K cooler and 0.75 g/kg moister if post-wildfire conditions are ignored, with impacts extending more than 3 km high in the vertical direction. This study also demonstrates that the effects of changes in land-surface properties over burned areas could extend to surrounding unburned areas.
Dynamically Reconfigurable Coprocessor for Floating-Point Arithmetic Capability in Small Satellites
(IEEE, 2025-03) Austin, Hezekiah; Major, Chris; Becker, Zach; Running Crane, Tristan; Allick, Kris; LaMeres, Brock J.
Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) are increasing used in small satellite missions for tasks ranging from command & data handling to sensor data processing. An FPGA is a dense system of computing resources, logic gates, memory, look-up tables (LUTs), etc. The size, mass, input/output (I/O), and low power constraints of small satellites prevent designers from taking advantage of the full capability of FPGAs. Implemented yet unused components waste power and FPGA resources. This paper proposes increasing FPGA-based computer capability by implementing a dynamically reconfigurable coprocessor in parallel to the main processor on the FPGA. The coprocessor functions as a hardware accelerator for data intensive operations or operations unsupported by the main processor. This approach minimizes the coprocessor's footprint by reconfiguring the coprocessor in-real time to reuse the same FPGA resources for different stages of a computation. Complex computational operations are broken up into multiple discrete stages with individual coprocessors sequentially performing each stage. This allows the required FPGA resources for the coprocessor to be minimized while taking advantage of the computational boost in FPGA hardware instead of the main processor. A secondary benefit to is this approach is that the coprocessors can support functionality not provided by the main processor. To investigate the feasibility of this approach, a set of floating-point operation were implemented as coprocessors and integrated into a RISC-V soft processor system. The results of this proof-of-concept provide evidence that the use of dynamically reconfigurable floating-point coprocessors has the ability to increase the computational capability of small satellite computers while fitting within the constrained resources of such missions.
Postprandial amino acids and health markers from organic grass-fed and conventional beef in healthy participants – a pilot randomized clinical trial
(Informa UK Limited, 2025-09) Spears, Meghan; Cooper, Gwendolyn; Sather, Brett; Peterson, Emily J.; Boles, J. A.; Bothner, Brian; Miles, Mary P.
This study investigates the impact of organic grass-fed (GRA) versus conventional (CON) cattle-feeding systems on human postprandial metabolism. A randomized, double-blind crossover study was used to compare GRA and CON beef consumption in healthy participants (n = 10). Blood samples from participants were collected at fasting and postprandially after consuming a 6-ounce steak from each condition. Triglycerides (TG), cholesterol (CHOL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), glucose (GLU), and insulin (INS), eight inflammation markers, and 16 amino acids were measured. Analysis utilized net area under the curve (AUC), linear models, and repeated measures ANOVA. Postprandial lipid and glucose responses did not differ. INS AUC was significantly greater in CON than GRA (p = .006). Inflammation response did not differ. Leucine AUC was greater in CON than GRA (p < .05). These results suggest that when consuming CON and GRA beef, lipid and inflammatory responses are similar, but amino acid differences may influence insulin response.
A Teosinte Branched‐B1 null mutation increases durum wheat tillering, increasing grain yield in certain environments
(Wiley, 2025-07) Hale, Caleb; Volkman, McKenna M.; Martin, John M.; Hogg, Andrew C.; Giroux, Michael J.
Wheat (Triticum spp.) is a hardy, drought-tolerant crop well suited to harsh environments like the Northern Great Plains. In regions with higher rainfall or irrigation, a densely planted, high-biomass crop ideotype may be preferable. However, in moisture-stressed climates with variable weather, crops are planted at a lower density, and lines with increased tillering potential can improve yields. Drought-tolerant genotypes with higher tillering potential can provide a harvestable crop in poor years while maximizing yields in favorable conditions. Greater tillering potential allows plants to capitalize on timely rainfall. Teosinte Branched-1 (TB1) is a transcription factor that regulates axillary meristem outgrowth in wheat. This study examines its effects on tillering, mature inflorescence morphology, and their impact on grain yield in durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L. subsp. durum). Reducing TB1 function through nonsense mutations in one homeolog can enhance tillering potential, boosting yield under favorable conditions. TB1 variants were analyzed in near-isogenic line populations across 3 years and five Montana environments. Lines with mutations in both TB1 homeologs had 20% more productive tillers but reduced grain yields in some environments due to reduced spike size. Genotypes containing only the tb-B1-W341* nonsense mutation allele had a grain yield increase of up to 20% in environments with optimal mid-season rainfall and did not yield significantly lower than the wildtype genotypes in any other environment. Integrating a TB-B1 nonsense allele into durum wheat breeding programs could be useful to increase productive tillers and yield potential.