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Full-Text Articles in Entire DC Network
Investigating Smooth Muscle Myosin Dynamics And Assembly In Physiology And Pathology, Maggie Bennett
Investigating Smooth Muscle Myosin Dynamics And Assembly In Physiology And Pathology, Maggie Bennett
Dissertations
Vascular smooth muscle cells (SMCs) surround many blood vessels throughout the body,where they dynamically alter vessel diameter to regulate blood pressure, provide structural integrity, and absorb shock on a beat-to-beat timescale. As smooth muscle function fails, profound vascular disease ensues, often with tragic results- even death. Smooth muscle myosin 2 (SM2) is the dominant motor protein that actuates contractility and allows SMCs to perform these vital functions. To function, SM2 monomers dynamically assemble into filaments, which upon SMC activation, associate with filamentous actin to drive contractility. Despite the critical contribution of SM2 to SMC function, foundational aspects of SM2 assembly …
Investigating The Impact Of Nonenzymatic Lysine Acetylation On The Function Of The Bacterial Ribosome, Sarah Caldwell Feid
Investigating The Impact Of Nonenzymatic Lysine Acetylation On The Function Of The Bacterial Ribosome, Sarah Caldwell Feid
Dissertations
An under-investigated target of lysine acetylation is the bacterial ribosome. Although lysine acetylations on the ribosome are common and conversed in diverse bacterial species, little work has been done to understand how lysine acetylation affects the bacterial ribosome. The goal of this work is to determine if lysine acetylation has functional impact on the bacterial ribosome.I have identified in vitro and in vivo effects of nonenzymatic, AcP-dependent lysine acetylation on translation and the ribosome. In vitro acetylation of transcription-translation reactions causes a translation-specific defect that is unaffected by the addition of the CobB deacetylase. This suggests certain AcP-sensitive residues that …
Role Of Micrornas In Intestinal Inflammation And Barrier Homeostasis After Alcohol And Burn Injury, Caroline J. Herrnreiter
Role Of Micrornas In Intestinal Inflammation And Barrier Homeostasis After Alcohol And Burn Injury, Caroline J. Herrnreiter
Dissertations
MicroRNAs are small noncoding RNA molecules that negatively regulate gene expression. Within the intestinal epithelium, miRNAs play a critical role in gut homeostasis and aberrant miRNA expression has been implicated in various disorders associated with intestinal inflammation and barrier disruption. In this study, we sought to profile changes in intestinal epithelial cell miRNA expression after alcohol and burn injury and elucidate their impact on inflammation and barrier integrity. In a more targeted approach, we began by focusing on anti-inflammatory miRNAs that, when downregulated, could exacerbate inflammation and result in intestinal barrier disruption. Using a mouse model of acute ethanol intoxication …
Characterization Of Mroq-Dependent Regulation Of Staphylococcus Aureus Quorum Sensing, Madison Ruth Stock
Characterization Of Mroq-Dependent Regulation Of Staphylococcus Aureus Quorum Sensing, Madison Ruth Stock
Dissertations
Gram-positive bacteria produce small autoinducing peptides (AIPs), which act to regulate expression of genes that promote adaptive traits including virulence. The Gram-positive pathogen Staphylococcus aureus generates a cyclic AIP that controls expression of virulence factors via the accessory gene regulatory (Agr) system. S. aureus strains belong to one of four Agr groups (I, II, III, and IV), and each group harbors allelic variants of AgrD, the precursor of AIP. In a prior screen for S. aureus virulence factors, the Alonzo lab identified MroQ, a putative peptidase. A ΔmroQ mutant closely resembled a Δagr mutant and had significant defects in AIP …
Characterizing The Dynamic Localization Of Cmi In Early Drosophila Development, Asra Habibullah
Characterizing The Dynamic Localization Of Cmi In Early Drosophila Development, Asra Habibullah
Master's Theses
The COMPASS-like family of lysine methyltransferases, MLR/MLX complexes, are epigenetic regulators that are essential for normal development through the methylation of the fourth lysine residue on histone 3 (H3K4), a universal epigenetic mark associated with active transcription. This family of complexes is highly conserved from yeast to mammals and the genes encoding the human MLR complexes have been associated with various developmental diseases and cancers (Dingwall and Fagan, 2019). In D. melanogaster, the enzymatic methyltransferase core of this complex is composed of two proteins: Cara Mitad (Cmi, also known as Lpt) and Trithorax-related (Trr). Although these proteins have been shown …
Targeting The Subacute Progression Of Hippocampal Cellular Senescence Following Repetitive Mild Traumatic Brain Injury, Jacob Edward Exline
Targeting The Subacute Progression Of Hippocampal Cellular Senescence Following Repetitive Mild Traumatic Brain Injury, Jacob Edward Exline
Master's Theses
Repetitive mild traumatic brain injury (rmTBI) increases an individual’s risk for developing persistent deficits in recognition memory with symptoms experienced by up to 30% of rmTBI patients. Cellular senescence has been suggested as an underlying mechanism of persistent rmTBI symptoms; however, the subacute progression of cellular senescence following rmTBI has not been evaluated. Furthermore, the use of subacute testosterone administration to treat persistent recognition memory deficits and the cellular and molecular underpinnings has yet to be well characterized. Our lab utilizes a 5-hit closed-head rmTBI rat model to induce deficits in recognition memory and determine the effects of subacute testosterone …
How To Build A Cortex: Coordinated Assembly Of Cortical Septins And Actomyosin In The Leader Bleb, Asia Marie Paguntalan
How To Build A Cortex: Coordinated Assembly Of Cortical Septins And Actomyosin In The Leader Bleb, Asia Marie Paguntalan
Master's Theses
In confined spaces, migrating cells can undergo mesenchymal-to-amoeboid transitions by altering their cortical dynamics and adhesion with the environment. Septins frequently associate with cortical actin and non-muscle myosin (NMII), but the functional nature of these interactions remains unclear. Upon non-adhesive confinement and NMII enrichment, fibroblasts can switch to a fast, leader bleb-based mode of motility, characterized by the absence of adhesions and stress fibers and formation of a single, elongated leader bleb. During this transition, cortical actin remodeling and polarized NMII contractility drive leader bleb stabilization by generating long-range cortical flows, in coordination with changes in septin localization and assembly …
Incorporating Sex Chromosomes In Transcriptome Prediction Models And Improving Cross-Population Prediction Performance, Daniel S. Araujo
Incorporating Sex Chromosomes In Transcriptome Prediction Models And Improving Cross-Population Prediction Performance, Daniel S. Araujo
Master's Theses
Transcriptome prediction models built with data from European-descent individuals are less accurate when applied to different populations because of differences in linkage disequilibrium patterns and allele frequencies. We hypothesized multivariate adaptive shrinkage may improve cross-population transcriptome prediction, as it leverages effect size estimates across different conditions - in this case, different populations. To test this hypothesis, we made transcriptome prediction models for use in transcriptome-wide association studies (TWAS) using different methods (Elastic Net, Matrix eQTL and Multivariate Adaptive Shrinkage in R (MASHR)) and tested their out-of-sample transcriptome prediction accuracy in population-matched and cross-population scenarios. Additionally, to evaluate model applicability in …
Characterization Of The Full-Length Bag3 Protein And Stress Induced Formation Of Bag3-Z, Ahmed Gamal Abdalla Zied
Characterization Of The Full-Length Bag3 Protein And Stress Induced Formation Of Bag3-Z, Ahmed Gamal Abdalla Zied
Master's Theses
Bcl2-associated athanogene-3 (BAG3) is a pro-autophagy co-chaperone that we havepreviously shown localizes to the cardiac sarcomere and is critical for proteostasis and maintenance of normal sarcomeric function. Indeed, BAG3 loss in heart failure (HF) results in accumulation of ubiquitinated sarcomeric proteins, and depressed maximum force generating capacity (Fmax). However, how BAG3 is regulated in the cell is not well understood, with uncertainty about its structure and proteoforms. During our analysis of human heart tissue, BAG3 appears as a “doublet”, with one band at 74 kDa (BAG3-Z) and a second at a higher 85 kDa (BAG3-FL). Previous studies hypothesized the full-length …
A Population Level Examination Of The Incredible Fruit Diversity In Astragalus Lentiginosus, Quinn Thomas
A Population Level Examination Of The Incredible Fruit Diversity In Astragalus Lentiginosus, Quinn Thomas
Master's Theses
Astragalus lentiginosus is the most taxomically diverse species in the North American flora with over 40 recognized varieties. The incredible diversity within A. lentiginosus, particularly in respect to its fruit morphology, makes it an exceptional model to study adaptation and evolution. However, it remains unknown whether fruit morphology is an adaptation and, if so, the extent to which selection or neutral evolutionary processes shape the striking diversity in this trait. In order to understand the adaptive significance of fruit morphology we must first understand the genetic structure of A. lentiginosus. Varieties of A. lentiginosus vary considerably in their range size …
Comparison Of Taxonomy Assignment And Strain Detection In Urobiome Communities Using 16s Rrna Sequencing And Shotgun Metagenomic Sequencing, Delaney Sauer
Master's Theses
Advancements in sequencing technologies have enabled scientists to gain insight into the microbes that inhabit the human body, including the urinary tract. Cataloging the bacteria that inhabit the urinary tract has primarily relied on amplification and sequencing of specific variable regions of the 16S rRNA gene enabling genus-level taxonomic identification. Recently, shotgun metagenomic sequencing has been employed such that bacterial taxonomy as well as the functionality that they encode can be inferred. In this study, we compare taxonomies assigned by 16S sequencing and shotgun metagenomic sequencing of the urinary microbiota (urobiome) of females with and without a clinical diagnosis of …
Identification Of Conditions That Promote Biofilm Formation By Vibrio Fischeri And Elucidation Of The Underlying Signal Transduction Pathway, Courtney Noelle Dial
Identification Of Conditions That Promote Biofilm Formation By Vibrio Fischeri And Elucidation Of The Underlying Signal Transduction Pathway, Courtney Noelle Dial
Dissertations
Biofilms are communities of microorganisms that have intrinsically antimicrobial properties and are difficult to treat in the clinical setting. The marine bacterium Vibrio fischeri efficiently colonizes its symbiotic squid host, Euprymna scolopes, by producing a transient biofilm dependent on the symbiosis polysaccharide (SYP), making it the perfect model system to study biofilm dynamics. In vitro, however, wild-type (WT) strain ES114 fails to form SYP – dependent biofilms. Instead, genetically engineered strains, such as those lacking the negative regulator BinK, have been developed to study SYP biofilms. Historically, V. fischeri has been grown using LBS, a complex medium containing tryptone and …
Identification Of New Substrates From Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Exos, Adam V. Thota
Identification Of New Substrates From Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Exos, Adam V. Thota
Master's Theses
Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a gram-negative environmental bacterium that uses its intrinsic and acquired antibiotic resistance to infect patients with compromised epithelium, such as cystic fibrosis and burn wounds, and corneal keratitis. In order to cause disease, most strains of P. aeruginosa use the type three secretion system (T3SS) to disrupt cellular signaling and integrity. However, P. aeruginosa may also secrete exotoxins after invading host cells, which prolongs host cell death and maintains an intracellular niche. Of the T3 secreted effector toxins, ExoS, specifically the ADP-ribosyltransferase activity of ExoS, was shown to delay the death of invaded corneal cells, but it …
Dynamic Control Of The Cardiac Calcium Pump, Sean Robert Cleary
Dynamic Control Of The Cardiac Calcium Pump, Sean Robert Cleary
Dissertations
The sarco/endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase (SERCA) sequesters Ca2+ into the endoplasmic reticulum of cells to establish a reservoir for Ca2+ signaling. In the heart, the activity of this transporter is tightly controlled via direct interactions with two competing regulatory micropeptides: phospholamban (PLB) and dwarf open reading frame (DWORF). PLB inhibits SERCA, while DWORF activates SERCA. These competing interactions determine cardiac performance by modulating the Ca2+ signals that drive the contraction/relaxation cycle. Previous studies indicated these SERCA-micropeptide interactions are Ca2+-sensitive; SERCA binds PLB more avidly at low cytoplasmic [Ca2+] but binds DWORF better when [Ca2+] is high. Here, FRET-microscopy demonstrated that this …
Distinct Roles For Free Fatty Acid Receptor 3 (Ffar3) In Vagal And Spinal Afferents Regulating Energy Balance And Glucose Homeostasis, Tyler M. Cook
Distinct Roles For Free Fatty Acid Receptor 3 (Ffar3) In Vagal And Spinal Afferents Regulating Energy Balance And Glucose Homeostasis, Tyler M. Cook
Dissertations
energy balance, glucose homeostasis, gut-brain axis, microbiome, nutrient sensing, satiety
Elucidating The Mechanisms Underlying How Vmp1 Regulates Inflammatory Responses, Stephanie Zack
Elucidating The Mechanisms Underlying How Vmp1 Regulates Inflammatory Responses, Stephanie Zack
Dissertations
autophagy, inflammation, mitochondria, NLRP3 inflammasome, SERCA, VMP1
The Role Of Gut Microbiome And Scfa Butyrate In The Development Of Obesity Associated Pre-Hfpef, Jomana Hatahet
The Role Of Gut Microbiome And Scfa Butyrate In The Development Of Obesity Associated Pre-Hfpef, Jomana Hatahet
Dissertations
No abstract provided.
Cataloging And Engineering Temperate Coliphages Of The Human Urinary Microbiome, Elias Crum
Cataloging And Engineering Temperate Coliphages Of The Human Urinary Microbiome, Elias Crum
Master's Theses
In the US, around 60% of females will be diagnosed with a Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) in their lifetime, and Escherichia coli is the most implicated etiological agent in UTIs. Despite its frequent association with lower urinary tract symptoms, recent studies have found that the urinary microbiome (UMB), the viral, bacterial, and fungal resident members of the urinary tract, of healthy females can also consist of E. coli. While most research has focused on the bacterial constituents of the UMB, bacteriophages, viruses that infect bacteria, are far more abundant. Bacteriophages (phages) of other human microbiomes have been shown to play …
Interplay Between Human Microbiota And Celiac Disease, John James Colgan
Interplay Between Human Microbiota And Celiac Disease, John James Colgan
Master's Theses
Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder of the small intestine in which gluten, an energy-storage protein in wheat and other cereals, elicits an immune response leading to villous atrophy. Despite a strong genetic component, the disease arises sporadically over the lifetime leading us to hypothesize the microbiome might be a trigger. Here, we re-examined 16S data from 3 prior studies examining celiac disease and the microbiome with newer computational tools: the dada2 and PICRUSt 2 pipelines. Our results both confirmed findings of previous studies and generated new data regarding the celiac microbiome of India and Mexico. The datasets were also …
Phylogenetic Relationships Among Fishes In The Order Zeiformes Based On Molecular Data From Three Mitochondrial Loci, Lindsay Scarpitta
Phylogenetic Relationships Among Fishes In The Order Zeiformes Based On Molecular Data From Three Mitochondrial Loci, Lindsay Scarpitta
Master's Theses
The Zeiformes (dories) are mid-water or deep (to 1000 m) marine acanthomorph fishes with a global, circumtropical, and circumtemperate distribution. Some species have a near-worldwide distribution, while others appear to be regional endemics, e.g., near New Zealand. Six families, 16 genera, and 33 species are currently recognized as valid. Relationships among them, however, remain unsettled, especially in light of recent proposals concerning the phylogenetic placement of zeiforms within the Paracanthopterygii rather than allied with beryciforms or percomorphs. The present study uses mtDNA characters to investigate zeiform interrelationships given their revised phylogenetic placement and attendant changes to their close outgroups, carried …
Polyomavirus Jcpyv And Its Role In The Urinary Tract, Rita Lauren Mormando
Polyomavirus Jcpyv And Its Role In The Urinary Tract, Rita Lauren Mormando
Master's Theses
Polyomaviruses are the smallest closed-circular supercoiled double-stranded viruses found in the human microbiota. The polyomavirus JC (JCPyV) is most commonly found within the urinary tract, and prior studies estimate that 20-80% of older adults carry JCPyV. In very rare cases, JCPyV leaves the kidneys, causing progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy. However, the role of JCPyV within the urinary tract remains an open question. In a prior study conducted by our group, the bladder microbiota of females with and without overactive bladder symptoms (OAB) were sequenced. Interestingly, JCPyV was only detected in females with OAB; none of the control (“asymptomatic”) microbiota contained JCPyV. …
Role Of Tetraspanins In Sars-Cov-2 Fusion And Entry, Marcos Saul Santiago Figueroa
Role Of Tetraspanins In Sars-Cov-2 Fusion And Entry, Marcos Saul Santiago Figueroa
Master's Theses
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is responsible for the pandemic the world has been facing in recent years. Even as new countermeasures are developed, there is still much we don’t know in terms of its entry into host cells. Tetraspanins are transmembrane proteins that are near ubiquitous amongst cell types. They fulfill numerous roles, including that of a viral co-receptor. Here, we considered whether tetraspanins, specifically CD9, CD63, and CD81 influence SARS-CoV-2 fusion and entry. Using ACE2-LgBit and tetraspanin overexpressing EVs and HeLa cells, we find that the presence of excess tetraspanins inhibit fusion and entry. However, we …
Exploring The Role Of Lactobacillus Jensenii And Lactobacillus Mulieris In The Urogenital Tract, Adriana Daniela Ene
Exploring The Role Of Lactobacillus Jensenii And Lactobacillus Mulieris In The Urogenital Tract, Adriana Daniela Ene
Master's Theses
Lactobacillus is a predominant species of the urogenital tract and it has been found in females with and without lower urinary tract symptoms. The Lactobacillus genus is thought to be beneficial to the host due to its capability to produce hydrogen peroxide, secondary metabolites, and lactic acid. L. jensenii is an organism frequently isolated from the urogenital tract. In March 2020, a new sister taxon of L. jensenii was described, L. mulieris. Shortly thereafter we produced a genomic analysis of all publicly available genomes (n = 43) which reclassified some L. jensenii as L. mulieris. This motivated the in-depth study …
The Impacts Of Framework Mutations On Steady-State Kinetics Of An Aldolase Abzyme, Charles Andrew Mettler
The Impacts Of Framework Mutations On Steady-State Kinetics Of An Aldolase Abzyme, Charles Andrew Mettler
Master's Theses
During affinity maturation, antibodies acquire point mutations that lead to enhanced binding strength to a particular ligand while simultaneously becoming more conformationally restricted as they become increasingly complementary to their ligand’s electrostatic geometry. This property has catalytic potential in transition-state (TS) stabilization whereby kinetic barriers (i.e., the energetic gap between the substrate and its TS) are reduced and reaction rates are enhanced. This basic mechanism is thought to underlie the majority of the rate enhancement observed for enzymes. A key integration of antibody binding specificity and strength with enzymatic catalytic strategy is the development of catalytic antibodies (“abzymes”). Abzymes are …
Integrating Current Analyses Of The Breast Cancer Microbiome, Sidra Sohail
Integrating Current Analyses Of The Breast Cancer Microbiome, Sidra Sohail
Master's Theses
Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer death for women in the US. Many cancertypes have significant associations with their resident microbial communities - emerging evidence suggests that breast cancers also interact with the local tissue-associated microbiota. Studies have examined the relationship between breast cancer and its microbiome, however, the studies varied in their approaches used to evaluate these relationships. Microbiome research advances rapidly and analysis pipelines and databases are updated frequently. This dynamic environment makes inter-study comparisons and superficial evaluations challenging as no two studies are using the same standards for evaluation. Researchers have observed the microbiota of …
Interrogating Antagonistic Differences Among Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Cdia Alleles, Haotian Yang
Interrogating Antagonistic Differences Among Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Cdia Alleles, Haotian Yang
Master's Theses
Bacteria are complex social organisms that live within mixed communities where microorganisms compete for limited resources. We studied Contact-Dependent Growth Inhibition (CDI), a particular type of competition mediated by a type 5b, or two-partner, secretion system that is widely spread among Gram-negative bacteria. CdiB and CdiA make up the two-partner secretion system that mediates CDI. CdiB translocates CdiA to the cell surface, and CdiA delivers its C-terminal toxin domain to the target cell. The C-terminal toxin (Tox) domain of CdiA is highly diverse. We studied Tox domains of various Pseudomonas aeruginosa clinical isolates. We found different strains that contain unique …
Structural And Transient Kinetic Analysis On Mechanism-Based Inactivators Of Human Ornithine Aminotransferase, Arseniy Butrin
Structural And Transient Kinetic Analysis On Mechanism-Based Inactivators Of Human Ornithine Aminotransferase, Arseniy Butrin
Dissertations
HCC, Hepatocellular carcinoma, MBI, Mechanism-based inactivator, OAT, Ornithine Aminotransferase
The Roles Of A Probiotic Exopolysaccharide In Breast Cancer, Mai Rachel Nguyen
The Roles Of A Probiotic Exopolysaccharide In Breast Cancer, Mai Rachel Nguyen
Dissertations
breast cancer, exopolysaccharide, probiotic
Three-Dimensional Staging Series Of Anolis Sagrei, Lilian Epperlein
Three-Dimensional Staging Series Of Anolis Sagrei, Lilian Epperlein
Master's Theses
With the rapid rise of Evo-devo and the concurrent development of new imaging techniques, comparative studies of development have accelerated over the last decade. Squamates, lizards and snakes, lack a traditional experimental model species for developmental investigations, yet are important for understanding fundamental evolutionary questions because of their remarkable diversity. However, several squamate species have growing communities of biologists building new resources for comparative and experimental studies of lizard development. Creation of detailed embryological atlases for these species will help promote their advancement. In the past, scientists have had to rely on destructive methods to take apart biological samples which …
The Role Of Ly49 Receptors In Maintaining Healthy Murine Pregnancy, Michelle Belmont
The Role Of Ly49 Receptors In Maintaining Healthy Murine Pregnancy, Michelle Belmont
Master's Theses
Natural Killer (NK) cells are abundant in pregnancy and contribute to the health of the fetus. Uterine NK (uNK) cells provide less cytotoxic function than their conventional NK (cNK) cell counterparts. Various combinations of Killer Immunoglobulin Receptor (KIR)- Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) on maternal NK and fetally derived cells, respectively, can have different effects on the health of pregnancy in humans. Murine NK cells contain Ly49 receptors, an equivalent to KIRs. Therefore, Ly49 receptor interactions with fetally-derived MHC-I molecules can be a valuable model for studying the role of NK cells in pregnancy. The process of spiral artery remodeling can …