Engineering Commons^™

Effects Of Indole Derivative Idc16 On Cell Proliferation, Transfection, And Alternative Splicing In Production Of Lentiviral Vectors By Transient Co-Transfection, Nataly Mier

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Viruses can efficiently introduce genetic material into a variety of cells through cell infection. Therefore, viral vectors, defined as virus-based gene delivery systems, effectively transfer functional gene constructs to target cells. Among different viral vectors, lentiviral vectors are of interest due to the advantages offered to research and therapeutic applications. Low productivity of lentiviral vectors in mammalian producer cells and high production cost, however, remain barriers to the vectors’ routinary use, particularly in clinical settings.

Since most lentiviral vectors are derived from human immunodeficiency virus type I, their genome has been engineered to increase safety. Nevertheless, modifications of the lentiviral …

Surface-Functionalized Silica Nanocarriers For Mitigating Water Stress In Wheat And Benefiting The Root Microbiome, Anthony Cartwright

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Changes in climate and shifting patterns of drought threaten the growth of important cash crops like wheat. The element silicon serves as a plant nutrient and shows promise for strengthening wheat against drought while remaining safe to both the crop and the positive bacteria that grow on its roots. Silicon can be added to wheat in the form of silicon-dioxide nanoparticles featuring protective coatings made from plant-beneficial nutrients. These nanoparticles can be engineered with high surface area or porous structures allowing them to be loaded with additional nutrients that can be delivered to crops. In a laboratory setting, such nanoparticles …

Exploring Versatile Glycosyltransferases From Microorganisms For Natural Product Biosynthesis, Jie Ren

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This dissertation is mainly focused on exploring versatile glycosyltransferases from different microorganisms with the purpose of biosynthesizing bioactive natural product glycosides through microbial fermentation. This engineered biosynthesis approach is environmentally friendly, safe, and efficient compared with plant extraction, chemical synthesis, and enzymatic synthesis. Additionally, we applied these characterized glycosyltransferases as efficient biocatalytic tools to produce novel glycosides to expand the chemical repertoire of nature. These novel compounds showed improved water solubility and some of them exhibited enhanced stability and biological activity, which laid the foundation for the development of new therapeutic agents.

In my dissertation research, I have discovered two …

An Integrated Experimental And Modeling Approach To Design Rotating Algae Biofilm Reactors (Rabrs) Via Optimizing Algae Biofilm Productivity, Nutrient Recovery, And Energy Efficiency, Gerald Benjamin Jones

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Microalgae biofilms have been demonstrated to recover nutrients from wastewater and serve as biomass feedstock for bioproducts. However, there is a need to develop a platform to quantitatively describe microalgae biofilm production, which can provide guidance and insights for improving biomass areal productivity and nutrient uptake efficiency. This paper proposes a unified experimental and theoretical framework to investigate algae biofilm growth on a rotating algae biofilm reactor (RABR). The experimental laboratory setups are used to conduct controlled experiments on testing environmental and operational factors for RABRs. We propose a differential-integral equation-based mathematical model for microalgae biofilm cultivation guided by laboratory …