Life Sciences Commons^™

Peptide Conjugation Of Branched Amphiphilic Peptide Capsules, Baltazar Claro-Martinez

Kansas State University Undergraduate Research Conference

In recent years, nanocarrier cellular therapy has been a rapidly growing area for research in the treatment of malignant and infectious diseases – most notably cancer. Conventional cancer treatment has consisted of highly toxic, highly insoluble, untargeted delivery of drugs that kill both cancerous and healthy cells. Research in the Tomich lab consists of the synthesis of Branched Amphiphilic Peptide Capsules (BAPCs), which are self-assembling peptide nanospheres composed of one or both of these branched peptide sequences: h5 and h9. These peptides possess similar molecular characteristics of phosphoglycerides but are synthesized chemically within the lab. Previous publications by the Tomich …

Characterization Of A Membrane-Bound Insect Transferrin, Diana Najera

Kansas State University Undergraduate Research Conference

Characterization of a Membrane-Bound Insect Transferrin

Diana G. Najera, Michelle E. Coca, Kayla E. Nutsch, and Maureen J. Gorman

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Kansas State University

Transferrins are extracellular proteins that bind iron. Vertebrate transferrins have well-characterized roles in iron transport and immunity, but the functions of transferrins in most other animals are poorly understood. The goals of this study are to identify the functions of transferrin-3 (Tsf3) from Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly), and to determine whether Tsf3 is conserved in other species of insects. Our experimental approach has been to predict important features of the protein, analyze …

Pilot Studies Of Two Possible Iron Uptake Mechanisms In Insect Cells, Michelle Coca

Kansas State University Undergraduate Research Conference

Pilot Studies of Two Possible Iron Uptake Mechanisms in Insect Cells

Michelle E. Coca, Diana G. Najera, and Dr. Maureen J. Gorman

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics

College of Arts and Sciences

Iron plays an important role in energy metabolism and other essential physiological processes; however, because iron can also be toxic, its uptake by cells must be strictly regulated. In humans, there is a well-understood pathway of iron uptake and multiple poorly understood pathways. How iron is transported into insect cells is unknown. The goal of this study was to test two models of iron uptake by cultured …

Boron Uptake In Salt Cedars Via Aquaporins, Alexcis Barnes

Kansas State University Undergraduate Research Conference

Salt Cedar (Tamarix) is a dicot plant highly tolerant to the chemical boron. This is interesting because for most plants boron is an essential yet toxic metalloid. Plants have a hard time excluding it. The goal of the project is to identify a potential protein sequence (order of amino acids forming a protein) for an aquaporin that allows the transport of boron, moving through a pore. In addition to selecting the sequences, a 3D model of the protein has been constructed to see how boron is entering the cells through the channels of these proteins. A dynamic model …