Digital Commons Network^™

Upregulation Of The Predominant Cystic Fibrosis Causing Mutation Df508-Cftr By Triazole Compounds In Epithelial Cells, Maggie Taylor

Undergraduate Research Conference

Cystic fibrosis is a common genetic disease that is caused by a mutation in the plasma membrane protein CFTR, which stands for Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane-conductance Regulator. When this membrane protein is mutated, it impairs its chloride ion channel function, blocking the movement of chloride ions that travel in and out of the cell. Previous studies have demonstrated that the most prevalent CFTR mutation, ∆F508-CFTR, can be partially reversed using small molecules (Heda and Marino, BBRC, 271:659-664, 2000). In this study, I have investigated the effects of several triazole compounds known to bind and transport chloride ions in cultured cells, on …

Detecting Interactions Between Mps3 In Linc Complex And Ndj1 In Nuclear Pore Complex In Mechanically Stressed Yeast, Dean Boecher, Rebecca Adams

Belmont University Research Symposium (BURS)

The mechanisms of how mechanical stress is translated into cellular action and structural reorganization within the nuclear envelope are largely unexplored. The Linker of Nucleoskeleton and Cytoskeleton (LINC) complex is a transmembrane protein complex that connects the actin cytoskeleton to the lamin nucleoskeleton, enabling mechanical forces to be translated between the cytoplasm and the nucleus. A better understanding of the translation of physical forces into cell responses can be gained through confirming the existence of interactions between LINC complex proteins and nuclear pore complexes (NPCs), which control the exchange of biochemical signals and macromolecules in and out of the nucleus …

Study Of Protein Extraction Techniques For M. Foliorum Phages, Lola Sibaud, Anna Elgersma

Student Academic Conference

Characterizing phages is becoming increasingly important in biochemistry and biotechnology due to their potential to treat bacterial infections without need for antibiotics. Last year, students attempted to isolate proteins from Microbacterium foliorum infecting phages Babydotz and Rosadiaz. Proteins were successfully extracted; however, after further analysis it was shown that the obtained proteins belonged to the host bacteria and not the phages. The purpose of this study was to find a method to separate phage from host bacterial debris to successfully isolate phage proteins and analyze them later. Isolating phage proteins could help us characterize more phages and know more about …

Locomotor Biomechanics In Stream Gobies, Rhinogobius Sp.: Functional Performance Of Waterfall-Climbing Behavior, Ernest W. Murphy

Student Scholar Showcase

Gobiidae is the taxonomic classification of a large fish family comprising over 2,000 species. A few goby species have the unique ability of scaling waterfalls using pelvic fins that are fused into a suction disc (pelvic sucker) located on the ventral side of the body, aiding them in upstream migration to freshwater feeding and reproduction locations. This study aimed to investigate the locomotor biomechanics of Rhinogobius goby fish due to the lack of literature in the area. In particular, climbing performance variables (pressure differential, force, endurance, and kinematics of attachment), pelvic sucker fatigability, and ontogenetic patterns of physical development and …

Casein Kinases Are Required For The Stability Of The Glucose Sensing Receptor Rgt2 In Yeast, Danny Bloor

Liberty University Research Week

Undergraduate

Basic

Endogenous Cftr Expression In Human Epithelial Cell Lines, Zithlaly Amezquita

Undergraduate Research Conference

CFTR (Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane-conductance Regulator) is a plasma membrane protein that functions as a chloride ion channel on many epithelial cells. There are over 1000 mutations that affect the function of this protein; however, the most common mutation is DF508. CFTR mutations target many secretory organs like pancreas and lungs causing the genetic disease cystic fibrosis (CF), common among Caucasians of northern European origin. Detection of endogenous CFTR expression is possible by a difficult and costly immunoprecipitation method but not by the most used western blotting method. Therefore, the goal of this project was to detect the endogenous CFTR expression …

Effect Of Carbon Monoxide Releasing Molecule 3 (Corm - 3) On Platelet Adhesion To Human Brain Microvascular Endothelial Cells, Najat S. El-Farra

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

Sepsis is characterized by the widespread inflammation of the body. Systemic inflammation activates and recruits inflammatory cells (e.g., leukocytes) and platelets to the affected organs.

During these inflammatory conditions, human brain microvascular endothelial cells (hBMEC) and platelets both upregulate adhesive molecules rendering platelets to adhere to hBMEC.

Although carbon monoxide is thought of as a toxic molecule to many, previous work shows its anti-inflammatory properties. Evidence has shown carbon monoxide-releasing molecules (e.g., CORM-3; that release small, non-toxic amounts of CO) can combat the effects of severe inflammation in several in vivo animal model.

In this current study, we are looking …

Investigating Stop Codon Readthrough In Saccharomyces Cerevisiae, Amy Kwon

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

Stop codon readthrough occurs via genetic and epigenetic mechanisms, resulting in a longer polypeptide chain at the C-terminus. Although these readthroughs may seem like an error made by translational mechanisms, evidence from yeast suggests that stop codon readthrough has an impact on various cellular processes. Readthrough has the potential to create genetic diversity, similar to RNA splicing, mRNA editing, and protein modification. The diversity created by translational readthrough may result in a beneficial change in phenotype, and thus have a role in evolution and adaptability. Translational readthrough is observed in organisms such as yeast and E. coli but may also …

Niche Partitioning And Utilization Of Different Nitrogen Sources By Marine Cyanobacteria Synechococcus, Angel Bui, Anne W. Thompson

McNair Symposium

The Cyanobacterium Synechococcus plays a major role in the ocean’s biochemical processes and is responsible for a significant amount of primary production, especially around coastal areas. Synechococcus has a wide geographical distribution that includes both polar and high-nutrient waters. Within the genus, there are defined subpopulations that are ecologically distinct that allow them to niche partition the dynamic oceans. To further explore niche partitioning of Synechococcus, this project combines a bioinformatic and culture-based approach. I examined data along the North Pacific Subtropical Front (NSPF) to analyze the community structure. This analysis demonstrated that a particular ecotype identified as clade II …

Cd40l And Tnf-Alpha Levels After Traumatic Injury, Queen Revollido, Martin Schreiber

McNair Symposium

The biomarkers CD40 ligand and TNF-alpha are proteins that exhibit proinflammatory and prothrombotic effects. A small clinical study has shown that soluble CD40 ligand may have a role in early coagulopathy and inflammatory complications in severely injured patients. It is known that a CD40 ligand increases the production of cytokines such as TNF-alpha, thus, the current study aims to investigate the kinetics of these biomarkers and the extent of upregulation after traumatic injury. Frozen samples collected from baseline, 8, 24, and 48 hours after admission will be used. CD40 ligand and TNF-alpha levels will be quantified using Luminex that will …

Morph- And Sex-Specific Differences In Corticosterone Of The Arizona Tiger Salamander (Ambystoma Mavortium Nebulosum), Megan Zerger

Scholars Week

Life history morph, sex, and body condition are traits that may influence stress within salamander populations because of differences in physiology and environmental conditions. Given widespread declines and the effects chronic stress can have on amphibian health, it is important to understand within-population drivers of stress and how population level variation may influence population viability. Thus, the objective of our study was to assess how corticosterone varies within the Arizona tiger salamander (Ambystoma mavortium nebulosum) population at the Mexican Cut Nature Preserve. We used a non-invasive skin swabbing method to collect baseline and elevated corticosterone from paedomorph (aquatic …

Insights Into Viral Genome Function Through Comparative Structural Analysis, Lydia Phillips

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Enteroviruses are single stranded RNA viruses which have caused many public health concerns, particularly in children. These viruses are responsible for polio, hand, foot, and mouth disease, many polio-like neurological diseases, and the common cold. The enterovirus called Coxsackievirus B3 (CVB3), a close relative to poliovirus, has been shown responsible for severe human disease, including pancreatitis, myocarditis, and type 1 diabetes. A unique advantage of studying CVB3 is the existence of a naturally occurring strain (CVB3/GA) which displays no known pathogenicity. Earlier comparative genomic studies have shown that the primary difference between avirulent CVB3/GA and the virulent strains of CVB3 …

Improvement In 14-3-3 Binding Site Prediction, Katherine K. Mccormack

ScholarsArchive Data

The 14-3-3 family of phospho-binding proteins regulate a variety of major cellular processes through interaction with a network of dynamic proteins. Deregulation of the 14-3-3 interaction network contributes to a variety of degenerative disorders and cancers. Our lab focuses on identifying novel 14-3-3 interactions and understanding how 14-3-3 binding regulates protein function. A major gap in this process is that identifying the phospho-site where 14-3-3 docks on a given protein is time- and resource-consuming. Prediction algorithms have been developed to predict canonical 14-3-3 binding sites, however, there are many non-canonical sites that existing software is unable to predict. To fill …

Two And Three-Dimensional Radiographic Imaging Of Contrast Agents In Heterogeneous Live Cell Media To Understand Contrast-Induced Toxicity, Fahaneda Hassan, Aldona Gjoni, Subhendra Sarkar

Publications and Research

Radiographic imaging was done using low and high energy radiography equipment. The test hypothesis that macromolecular aggregation changes sample noise in imaging samples for optical imaging methods. Inorganic complexes scatter radiation at the molecular level and may increase the sample noise locally. At high and low photon energies in various x-ray machines, sample and background noise were gathered and compared with those from mammography systems from mammography researchers. The samples with high macromolecular aggregates were prepared using various animal cell compositions and imaged under different conditions that produced different macromolecular dynamics within the samples and thus different image-based sample noise. …

Progress Presentation On The Proposed Function Of Protein 4diu Through Bioinformatics Analyses, Melissa Hoff

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Presentations

The BASIL project is a scientific inquiry project that aims to determine the function of a protein from its structure. Biochemistry students completed wet lab work, while structural biology students worked in silico. The purpose of this study was to determine the function of the protein with PDB ID: 4DIU. Bioinformatics analyses were completed using several databases: BLAST, Dali, Pfam, and Moltimate, and imaging of the protein was completed using PyMOL software. The BLAST database aligned the primary sequence with known protein sequences. The Dali database compared protein structure with known structures through global alignment. The Pfam database matched our …

The Classification Of An Unknown Protein 3h04, Britney Dyszel

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Presentations

An unclassified protein in the Protein Data Bank, 3H04, was selected as a protein of interest. Research was performed in silico to gain key information on the structure, sequence, and homology of protein 3H04. This research was guided using the BASIL Project’s protocols on in silico research. Several databases were utilized to study protein 3H04. Based on the data gathered, unclassified protein 3H04 is an aminopeptidase that cleaves prolyl-dipeptidyl peptide bonds through alpha beta hydrolase function.

Exploring Secondary Structure In Bacteriophage Programmed Frameshift Elements, Samuel Okabayashi, Sean Mcclory

HON499 projects

Bacteriophages are viruses that infect bacteria and reproduce using host bacterial components. Part of the bacteriophage reproduction is assembly of the tail complex, which requires two assembly chaperone (TAC) proteins. In many phages the TAC’s are produced from a single gene through a non-canonical process called programmed translational frameshifting (PTF). The SEA-PHAGES program has produced hundreds of TAC genes that are accessible through phagesdb, a database of sequenced and annotated phage genomes. The sequences for the TAC gene were gathered from phagesdb and analyzed using ClustalOmega; a multiple sequence alignment (MSA) tool which revealed several positions where total conservation was …

Opening Of An Epoxide Ring Using Azide To Form A Triazole, Emily Hufnagel, Jeffrey A. Hansen

Annual Student Research Poster Session

No abstract provided.

Synthesis Of Ether Alcohols With Varying Catalysts, Hannah Grady, Frida Li, Jeffrey A. Hansen

Annual Student Research Poster Session

No abstract provided.

Synthesis And Evaluation Of Novel Silica Hydride-Based Stationary Phases For Bioanalytical Application, Seiichiro Watanabe

Seiichiro Watanabe

Targeted Therapy For The Future: The Use Of Novel Antimicrobial Peptides Against P. Aeurginosa, Matthew Froid

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Pathogenic bacteria, such as the gram-negative bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa, are becoming resistant to our current arsenal of antibiotics at an alarming rate. P. aeruginosa is a leading cause of nosocomial acquired infections and is a primary co-morbidity in patients with compromised immune systems. One potential source of new antibiotic agents is antimicrobial peptides. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are small proteins, and some have shown a high degree of efficacy and broad-spectrum activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. An experimental AMP that has been developed by Dr. Wang at UNMC, DASamp2, has shown to be effective against virulent bacteria, including P. …

Data Analytics Pipeline For Rna Structure Analysis Via Shape, Quinn Nelson

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Coxsackievirus B3 (CVB3) is a cardiovirulent enterovirus from the family Picornaviridae. The RNA genome houses an internal ribosome entry site (IRES) in the 5’ untranslated region (5’UTR) that enables cap-independent translation. Ample evidence suggests that the structure of the 5’UTR is a critical element for virulence. We probe RNA structure in solution using base-specific modifying agents such as dimethyl sulfate as well as backbone targeting agents such as N-methylisatoic anhydride used in Selective 2’-Hydroxyl Acylation Analyzed by Primer Extension (SHAPE). We have developed a pipeline that merges and evaluates base-specific and SHAPE data together with statistical analyses that provides confidence …

Large Scale Dynamical Model Of Macrophage/Hiv Interactions, Matthew M. Froid

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Properties emerge from the dynamics of large-scale molecular networks that are not discernible at the individual gene or protein level. Mathematical models - such as probabilistic Boolean networks - of molecular systems offer a deeper insight into how these emergent properties arise. Here, we introduce a non-linear, deterministic Boolean model of protein, gene, and chemical interactions in human macrophage cells during HIV infection. Our model is composed of 713 nodes with 1583 interactions between nodes and is responsive to 38 different inputs including signaling molecules, bacteria, viruses, and HIV viral particles. Additionally, the model accurately simulates the dynamics of over …

A Crispr Platform For Rapid And Inducible Genome Editing In Human Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Cells, Lloyd Bartley

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for about 85% of lung cancer, which is the leading cause of cancer death in the world. High mortality rate associated with NSCLC is partially attributed to the limited understanding of NSCLC as well as ineffective therapeutic treatments. The initiation and progression of NSCLC involves genetic changes leading to alterations in the control of tissue development and homeostatic maintenance. Better knowledge about these genetic abnormalities is imperative for developing new chemotherapeutic drugs for NSCLC. Recent research demonstrates that the expression of paraoxonase 2 (PON2), a lactonase/arylesterase with anti-oxidant properties, are markedly enhanced in cancer …

Development Of A Pd-L1 Pet Imaging Biomarker, Caleb Jack Bridgwater

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Immunotherapy strategies are very promising treatments for cancer patients. Specifically, Immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy focusing on the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway shows long-lasting positive results in many cancer patients. Unfortunately, not all the patients can benefit from this highly effective treatment. Hence, there is a great need for predictive biomarkers. Immunohistochemical (IHC) staining has been used as a way of predicting patient response, yet shows many problems. For example, IHC utilizes an invasive biopsy and sample fixing, which creates an incomplete and delayed picture of the patient’s biochemistry and the tumor microenvironment, consequently ignoring metastases.

The purpose of this study is to …

Elemental Analysis Of Beer Manufactured In Virginia Satellite Breweries, Jennifer Wiliams

Student Scholar Showcase

Financial incentives from the state and wider distribution potential have lured many west coast brewers to open satellite breweries in Virginia. Quality control is crucial for any brewery and especially important in satellite breweries that need to imitate the standard set by the parent brewery. Zinc, magnesium, iron, sodium manganese, and calcium are trace elements found in wort and are essential for enzymes that catalyze fermentation reactions. These elements protect against cell stress, play a crucial role in flocculation, and can affect the flavoring and coloration of beer. Barley, water, and hops are the sources of these elements in beer. …

Studies Of Amino Acid Mutations In Drug Resistance Of The Smo Protein, Eunice Wintona

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Smoothened receptor (SMO) is a protein that in humans, is encoded by the SMO gene. A systemic mutation in its binding pocket helps predict the sensitivity of mutant proteins to different drugs. Known as a GPCR-like receptor, it is a component of the hedgehog signaling pathway; a pathway involved in body patterning and the regulation of adult stem cells. An uncontrolled or inappropriate activation of the Hedgehog pathway drives tumor progression in cancers and a number of birth defects. To achieve these goals, the molecular modeling software MOE was used to build small molecules and drug molecules like Vismodegib and …

Applied Drug Development And Combinatorial Strategies For Antimicrobial Treatment, Steven K. Lai Hing

Andrews Research Conference

Streptococcus mutans JH1140 is a strain of bacteria which produces a lantibiotic product, named mutacin 1140. Mutacin 1140 has been shown to be effective at inhibiting Gram-positive bacterial infections caused by Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pneumoniae. Mutacin 1140 is a ribosomally synthesized peptide antibiotic that undergoes extensive posttranslational modifications (PTM). We have found that Mutacin 1140 and an aminoglycoside, Kanamycin, when combined together, act synergistically against Staphylococcus aureus. This was determined by performing serial kill curve dilution overlays on solid media, followed up with kill curve by microdilution plate, and most recently confirmed with kill curve CFU count plates …

Swimming Mechanisms Of Temperate Forest Ants, Noah D. Gripshover, Evan M. Gora, Stephen P. Yanoviak

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Swimming Mechanisms of Temperate Forest Ants (Camponotus pennsylvanicus and Formica subsericea)

Noah D. Gripshover, Evan M. Gora, and Stephen P. Yanoviak

University of Louisville

Abstract

Environmental challenges shape the evolution of animal behavior and morphology. For wingless terrestrial invertebrates like ants, pools of water on the forest floor are particularly dangerous. Here we show that ants can overcome this obstacle using a modified gait to transverse the water surface. We compared the locomotor morphology and swimming performance of two arboreal ant species that are common in Kentucky (Camponotus pennsylvanicus and Formica subsericea). We defined performance as speed …

Epigenetic Regulation Of Gene Expression During Spermatogenesis, Karishma Nayak

Senior Honors Projects

In the US livestock production industry, improving reproductive efficiency will improve animal welfare and maintain reasonable costs of meat and milk for consumers. In recent research, abnormalities in epigenetic markers in sperm during spermatogenesis, has been linked to male subfertility in many species. Epigenetics is the study of changes in organisms caused by modifications of gene expression, including DNA methylation, rather than alteration of the genetic code itself. When this process is disturbed, it can negatively impact semen therefore decreasing its fertility. Through further research on how DNA methylation influences gene expression during spermatogenesis and its impact on sperm quality, …