Life Sciences Commons^™

Solving The Hiv Enigma: Investigating Mutant Long-Term Non-Progressor Vpr Strands, Megan Knight, Bradford Berges

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2024

Different variants of HIV:

➢ Rapid Progressor: aggressive symptoms, quick progression into AIDs

➢ Wild-Type: regular symptoms, regular progression into AIDs

➢ Long-Term Non-Progressor: little-

Changes In Rna Expression Of Hut78 Cells Resulting From The Hiv-1 Viral Protein R R77q Mutation, Joshua S. Ramsey

Theses and Dissertations

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) is the causative virus for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). AIDS is characterized by chronic inflammation and reduction of CD4+ T-cells in the blood. This leads to the patient becoming immunocompromised and much more susceptible to disease in general. Different phenotypes in the progression of AIDS have been observed in patients in either progressing to AIDS faster as a Rapid Progressor (RP), or slower as a Long-Term Non-Progressor (LTNP). Researching elements that result in the LTNP phenotype is of interest as it has the potential to offer alternative treatments and therapies to those suffering from …

The Effects Of Polymorphisms Of Viral Protein R Of Hiv-1 On The Induction Of Apoptosis In Primary Cells And The Characterization Of Twelve Novel Bacillus Anthracis Bacteriophage, Jacob D. Fairholm

Theses and Dissertations

Viral protein r (Vpr) of Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) plays an important role in the ability of the virus to infect cells and cause disease. Two polymorphisms to Vpr have been shown to result in differences in disease progression in infected individuals. R36W tends to result in rapid disease progression while R77Q results in long-term non-progression. In order to better understand how these polymorphisms result in these different disease phenotypes, our lab has recently shown that in cell culture, the R36W polymorphism results in increased viral replication and greater induction of cell death. On the other hand, infection …

The Role Of Cdk5r1 In Β-¬Cell Survival From Apoptosis, Amanda Hobson, Jeffrey Tessem

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes are classified as a decrease in functional ß-cell mass, which results in impaired blood glucose regulation. Functional ß-cell mass is defined as the glucose stimulated insulin secretion rate multiplied by the total cellular mass which is determined by the proliferation and cell death rates. Though ß-cell mass proliferation rates generally decrease by adolescence, obesity and pregnancy have been shown to be times of significant ß-cell proliferation (1). This implies that the inherent molecular pathways necessary for ß-cell proliferation are present, but highly regulated. Discovering the molecular pathway of ß-cell proliferation could lead to diabetes …

Determining If C-Fos Protects Β-Cells From Apoptosis, Kyle Kener, Jeffery Tessem

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Diabetes, a disease characterized by the inability of the body to maintain a normal blood glucose level, continues to affect the lives of many. In both Type I and Type II diabetes, eventual β-cell destruction results in decreased β-cell mass. Regeneration of functional β-cells and protection of such, could help reverse the effects of this disease and could possibly lead to a cure. Many studies have been done to increase functioning β-cell mass, but protecting regenerated β-cells from further apoptotic insults could greatly increase the effectiveness of β-cell transplants and other future treatments of the disease.

Exploring The Antibacterial, Antioxidant, And Anticancerproperties Of Lichen Metabolites, Gajendra Shrestha

Theses and Dissertations

Natural products have been a significant source of new drugs, especially in treating cancer, infectious diseases, hypertension, and neurological disorders. Although many natural metabolites have been screened and yielded pharmaceutically important drugs, many potential sources of natural product drug therapies still need to be investigated, including lichens. Lichens are symbiotic systems consisting of a filamentous fungus and a photosynthetic partner (an eukaryotic alga and/or cyanobacterium). Lichens produce an impressive variety of unique secondary compounds and have been used as ingredients in folk medicines for centuries. Demonstrated biological roles based on lichen chemistry include: antibiotics, anti-proliferative, antioxidants, anti-HIV, anti-cancer, immunomodulation, and …

Characterization Of Secondhand Smoke (Shs) And Materno-Fetal Interactions In Receptors For Advanced Glycation End-Products (Rage)-Targeted Mice, Duane Ray Winden

Theses and Dissertations

Receptors for advanced glycation end-products (RAGE) are pattern recognition receptors of the immunoglobulin superfamily highly expressed in the lung. Likely functions include the modulation of pulmonary inflammation during disease. However, the contributions of RAGE in the developing lung in cases where secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure occurs are unknown. In order to test the hypothesis that RAGE misexpression adversely affects lung morphogenesis, we exposed gestating dams to a controlled dose of SHS during the last four critical days of in utero lung morphogenesis. We discovered that both maternal and fetal lungs respond to SHS by up-regulating RAGE. Exposed fetuses were markedly …

Inhibition Of Pim And Axl Kinases As Potential Treatments For A Variety Of Hematological Malignancies And Solid Tumors, Kent James Carpenter

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is divided into three chapters. In each case, the goal is to achieve inhibition of a growth kinase (PIM or AXL) and subsequent arrest of cell growth and induction of apoptosis (in vitro cell culture models) or decrease in tumor volume (in vivo xenograft studies). Chapter one and chapter two discuss inhibition of proviral integration site for Moloneymurine leukemia virus (PIM) kinases. The three PIM kinases, PIM-1, PIM-2, and PIM-3, are a subfamily of serine/threonine kinases that are known to be involved in signaling pathways as downstream effectors of signal transducer and activator of transcription-5 (STAT5) signaling and …

Susceptibility Of Apoptotic Cells To Hydrolysis By Spla2: Molecular Basis And Mechanisms Defined, Elizabeth Gibbons

Theses and Dissertations

Secretory phospholipase A2 hydrolyzes phospholipids at a lipid-water interface, resulting in pro-inflammatory products being released from cell membranes. Healthy cells are resistant to cleavage by this enzyme, but apoptotic cells become susceptible to its activity. Only bilayers with certain characteristics are able to be hydrolyzed. Most recently, studies in this lab have emphasized the idea that the biophysical state of the bilayer (in terms of lipid order, spacing, and fluidity) is relevant in determining the probability of one phospholipid escaping the membrane to be hydrolyzed. Prior to this study, it had been shown that apoptotic cells undergo biophysical alterations that …

Promoter Polymorphisms In Interferon Regulatory Factor 5, Daniel N. Clark

Theses and Dissertations

The promoter region of interferon regulatory factor 5 (IRF5) contains the rs2004640 T or G single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and a CGGGG indel. Both of these polymorphisms have been implicated as genetic risk factors for several autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus, whose pathology involves altered apoptosis and cytokine signaling. The polymorphisms' overall effect is to increase IRF5 levels. IRF5 is a transcription factor of several cytokines, including interferon, and is pro-apoptotic. Thus an alteration of cytokine levels and apoptosis signaling due to high IRF5 levels is the proposed source of autoimmune risk. Each of IRF5's four first exons (1A, …

Characterization Of Altered Epithelial Cell Turnover And Differentiation In Embryonic Murine Lungs That Over-Express Receptors For Advanced Glycation End-Products (Rage), Jeffrey Alan Stogsdill

Theses and Dissertations

Receptors for advanced glycation end-products (RAGE) are multi-ligand cell surface receptors highly expressed in the lung that modulate pulmonary inflammation during disease. However, the contributions of RAGE signaling are unknown during pulmonary organogenesis. In order to test the hypothesis that RAGE misexpression adversely affects lung morphogenesis, conditional transgenic mice were generated that over-express RAGE in alveolar type II cells of the lung. When RAGE is over-expressed throughout embryogenesis, severe lung hypoplasia ensues, culminating in perinatal lethality. Flow cytometry and immunohistochemistry employing cell-specific markers for various distal cell types demonstrated anomalies in key epithelial cell populations resulting from RAGE up-regulation through …

Mechanisms By Which Apoptotic Membranes Become Susceptible To Secretory Phospholipase A2, Rachel Williams Bailey

Theses and Dissertations

During apoptosis, changes occur in T-lymphocyte membranes that render them susceptible to hydrolysis by secretory phospholipase A2 (sPLA2). To study the relevant mechanisms, a simplified model of apoptosis using a calcium ionophore was first applied. Kinetic and flow cytometry experiments provided key observations regarding ionophore treatment: initial hydrolysis rate was elevated, total reaction product was increased four-fold, and adsorption of the enzyme to the membrane surface was unaltered. Analysis of these results suggested that susceptibility during calcium-induced apoptosis is limited by substrate availability rather than enzyme adsorption. Fluorescence experiments identified three membrane alterations that might affect substrate access to the …

The Effect Of Febrile Temperature On Plasmodium Falciparum, Heidi Sue Porter

Theses and Dissertations

Previously it has been shown that cultures of Plasmodium falciparum died following exposure to a febrile temperature of 40°C, as demonstrated by a decrease in parasitemia of the following generation. In the current study, the effect of 40°C treatment on culture media, erythrocytes, and parasite glucose consumption, were ruled out as possible influences on parasite death, demonstrating that 40°C impacted the parasites directly. Metabolic profiling of DNA synthesis, protein synthesis, and glucose utilization during exposure to 40°C clearly indicated that febrile temperatures had direct effect on major metabolic pathways and parasite development, beginning 20-24 hr after erythrocyte invasion. The ring …

Assessment Of Cell Death Parameters In Bovine Parvovirus-Infected Ebtr Cells, Lubna Salah Eldin Abdel Latif

Theses and Dissertations

Bovine parvovirus (BPV) is a helper-independent parvovirus. It has a small icosahedral capsid with a single stranded DNA genome. It is a highly stable virus with a narrow host range. It causes acute gastroenteritis in calves. It is considered to be a cytolytic virus because it kills the host cells. However, the mechanism by which the virus causes cell death is not known. The work described in this thesis assessed different parameters of cell death in BPV infected embryonic bovine tracheal (EBTr) cells. There are several ways for viruses to induce cell death. Viruses can induce apoptosis in the infected …