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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

The Effects Of Cucurbitacin B And Silmitasertib On Metastasis And Itga6 Using The Zebrafish Tumor-Xenograft, Alexandra Griffis Jan 2023

The Effects Of Cucurbitacin B And Silmitasertib On Metastasis And Itga6 Using The Zebrafish Tumor-Xenograft, Alexandra Griffis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Ninety percent of cancer deaths are resultant from the metastasis of cancer cells. When cancer cells translocate through blood vessels or the lymphatic system, they may form tumors outside of their primary site. The processes of metastasis can begin quickly; after onset, metastasis is unforgiving, as it does not participate with the body’s physiological systems in an orderly way. In the past, our lab produced results indicating that a cell adhesion molecule, Integrin Alpha-6, may contribute to cancer cells' ability to metastasize. Integrins mediate interactions between the cell and the Extracellular Matrix (ECM), regulating cell attachment and cell migration. With …


Using Zebrafish (Danio Rerio) To Evaluate The Use Of Food Waste Based Feed In Sustainable Small-Scale Aquaculture, Caitlin May Jan 2021

Using Zebrafish (Danio Rerio) To Evaluate The Use Of Food Waste Based Feed In Sustainable Small-Scale Aquaculture, Caitlin May

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Food waste is rich in nutrients and a valuable resource, but currently its primary method of disposal in the United States (US) is unsustainable. In 2018 the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated that the commercial, institutional, and residential sectors of the US economy wasted 63 million metric tons of food, most of which was sent to landfills. Instead, food waste could be recycled and used to supplement or replace commercial feed in aquaculture to sustainably stimulate production of fish. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) are a well characterized animal model closely related to other fish species that are important …


Zebrafish As A Model To Understand The Impact Of Inactivity And Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation On Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, Elisabeth Kilroy Aug 2020

Zebrafish As A Model To Understand The Impact Of Inactivity And Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation On Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, Elisabeth Kilroy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Skeletal muscle plasticity is imperative for functional adaptation to changing demands in activity. Although a great deal is known about the structural and functional plasticity of healthy skeletal muscle, far less is known about plasticity in diseased muscle. Here, we combined the power of the zebrafish model with the adaptability of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) to study the basic mechanisms of plasticity in the zebrafish model of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). Four NMES paradigms, defined by their frequency, delay, and voltage, were designed to emulate the repetition and load schemes of human resistance training programs. Additionally, two inactivity paradigms were …


Neuromuscular Development And Phenotypic Variation In Zebrafish Models Of Dystroglycanopathy, Erin Bailey Aug 2019

Neuromuscular Development And Phenotypic Variation In Zebrafish Models Of Dystroglycanopathy, Erin Bailey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Skeletal muscle is highly conserved among vertebrates and is essential for strength and locomotion. This tissue becomes integrated with the skeletal system via tendons at the myotendinous junction and with the nervous system at the neuromuscular junction. Both of these specialized junctions are rich in extracellular matrix, a protein scaffold that occupies the extracellular space of cells. Skeletal muscle is also highly plastic and can grow in size (hypertrophy) or lose mass (atrophy) in response to genetic or environmental cues. Muscle atrophy is found in individuals battling a number of neuromuscular conditions, including muscular dystrophy. Muscular dystrophies are a suite …


Developing Zebrafish As An In Vivo Model To Screen Compounds For Anti-Cancer Activity In Human Breast Cancer, Trisha Dhawan Jan 2019

Developing Zebrafish As An In Vivo Model To Screen Compounds For Anti-Cancer Activity In Human Breast Cancer, Trisha Dhawan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Breast Cancer (BC) is the most frequently diagnosed cancer; 1:8 women are at risk of developing BC in her lifetime. Cancer metastasis causes the majority of deaths in BC patients. Moreover, side effects of traditional chemotherapeutic drugs (TCD) impair the quality of life of these patients. Discovery and development of safe and effective new therapies is imperative for the treatment of BC and targeting metastasis. The goal herein is to further expand the applicability of in vivo xenotransplantation of human BC cells in transgenic zebrafish to screen potential chemotherapeutics for toxicity and efficacy. For xenotransplantation, MCF-7, BT-474, and MDA-MB-231 BC …


Evaluating The Effects Of Antibody-Conjugated Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes In Combination With Microwave Irradiation, Amy Chall Jan 2019

Evaluating The Effects Of Antibody-Conjugated Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes In Combination With Microwave Irradiation, Amy Chall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cancer remains one of the largest public health concerns of our day, particularly in developed countries where technological advances have allowed populations to live well into their eighth decade. In America, those in their 80’s have a 1 in 2 chance of developing cancer in their lifetime. Prostate cancer, specifically is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in males. Traditional cancer therapies cause high levels of toxicity to the patient due to mechanisms of action that often attack cancer cells and healthy cells alike. The holy grail of cancer research is to find a treatment that targets the cancer …


Host Mediated Mechanisms Of Fungal Cell Spread In A Transparent Zebrafish Infection Model, Allison Scherer Dec 2018

Host Mediated Mechanisms Of Fungal Cell Spread In A Transparent Zebrafish Infection Model, Allison Scherer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Innate immunity has developed elegant processes for the detection and clearance of invasive fungal pathogens. Disseminated candidiasis is of significant concern for those with suppressed immune systems or indwelling medical equipment, and mortality in these groups approaches 70%. Poor patient outcomes have spurred the need to understand how this non-motile pathogen spreads in the host. Technical limitations have previously hindered our ability to visualize the role of innate immunity and host tissue barriers in the spread of C. albicans in vivo. Using the zebrafish model to overcome these limitations, we have examined three potential host-mediated mechanisms of dissemination: movement …


Molecular Mechanisms Underlying Toxicant Effects On Mast Cell Signaling And Mitochondria, Juyoung Katherine Shim Aug 2018

Molecular Mechanisms Underlying Toxicant Effects On Mast Cell Signaling And Mitochondria, Juyoung Katherine Shim

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Mast cells contribute to numerous physiological processes and diseases including immunological and neurological roles. Mast cells degranulate, releasing potent mediators, following signaling transduction initiated by receptor crosslinking. Previously, we showed that the environmental toxicant arsenic and the antibacterial agent triclosan inhibit mast cell degranulation; thus, we have investigated the mechanisms underlying their inhibitory action. We have discovered that arsenic targets early steps in the mast cell signaling pathway: it inhibits phosphorylation of early tyrosine kinase Syk and of Syk’s direct substrate PI3K. Arsenic’s tyrosine phosphorylation inhibition causes inhibition of calcium influx into the cytosol, a key event necessary for degranulation. …


Effect Of Arsenic Exposure On Early Eye Development In Zebrafish (Danio Rerio), Remy S. Babich Aug 2018

Effect Of Arsenic Exposure On Early Eye Development In Zebrafish (Danio Rerio), Remy S. Babich

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Arsenic is a metalloid that contaminates drinking water supplies worldwide. Due to concerns for human health, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have established a safe level in drinking water of ≤ 10 ppb. Arsenic has been shown to have carcinogenic effects in humans at high and low doses. Chronic exposure may result in dermal conditions such as hyperkeratosis and hyperpigmentation. Recently, arsenic exposure has also been linked to lower IQ values in children. The effect of arsenic on neurogenesis, specifically eye development, has not been widely explored. This study aimed to examine the …


Expression Profiling Of Non-Coding Rna By Environmental Interactions In Innate Immunity, Jacob R. Longfellow Aug 2017

Expression Profiling Of Non-Coding Rna By Environmental Interactions In Innate Immunity, Jacob R. Longfellow

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disorder that affects 30,000 people in the United States and currently has no cure. Although CF affects all of the body’s systems, it is largely characterized as a lung disease. CF is caused by a mutation in both copies of the gene for cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR). A mutation in the CFTR gene leads to improper movement of chloride ions and water into the airways, which dysregulates the airway surface liquid volume and composition. Individuals with CF are prone to lung infections due to inefficient bacterial clearance and by the age of …


Candida And Pseudomonas Interact To Enhance Mucosal Infection In Transparent Zebrafish, Audrey C. Bergeron Jul 2017

Candida And Pseudomonas Interact To Enhance Mucosal Infection In Transparent Zebrafish, Audrey C. Bergeron

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Polymicrobial communities exist throughout the human body and include both fungi and bacteria. During disease, cross-kingdom interactions among bacteria, fungi, and/or the immune system can alter virulence and lead to complex polymicrobial infections. The fungus C. albicans is among the most commonly isolated fungi in the context of fungal-bacterial co-infections and is often accompanied by the bacterium P. aeruginosa at a variety of sites throughout the body including mucosal tissues such as the lung. In vitro, C. albicans and P. aeruginosa have a cyclic, bi-directional, and largely antagonistic relationship, but these interactions do not account for the role of the …


Characterizing The Developmental And Reproductive Toxicities Of Cannabidiol And Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol, Dennis Ray Carty Jan 2017

Characterizing The Developmental And Reproductive Toxicities Of Cannabidiol And Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol, Dennis Ray Carty

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Medical marijuana is legal in twenty-nine of the United States and an additional nineteen states have passed legislation for cannabidiol (CBD) treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy, such as Dravet Syndrome (DS) which is diagnosed in children as young as two months. While CBD has shown anecdotal and recently clinical trial efficacy in reducing seizure frequency in DS patients, little is known about the potential adverse side-effects on child physiology, brain development, adult disease, or subsequent generations. Moreover, CBD is rarely administered without including low concentrations of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). The goal of this project is to characterize the relative morphological, behavioral, reproductive, …


The Behavioral, Biochemical And Genetic Effects Of Sleep Deprivation In Zebrafish (Danio Rerio), Jade Catherine Boykin Jan 2016

The Behavioral, Biochemical And Genetic Effects Of Sleep Deprivation In Zebrafish (Danio Rerio), Jade Catherine Boykin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Vertebrate sleep is a universal phenomenon and encompasses an array of conserved behavioral and physiological characteristics. Studies of sleep in humans have shown that sleep deprivation leads to adverse effects to human health and additional stress. Teleosts have emerged as a useful model species to study the vertebrate stress response, given its stress axis has high levels of homology with the mammals, including humans. For this study, the behavior of zebrafish (Danio rerio) subjected to acute (24 hours) and chronic (20 days) extended light exposure was monitored and whole-body cortisol was analyzed as an indication of activation of …


Effects Of Benzo[A]Pyrene And Cyp19a1b Knockdown On Zebrafish Development, Khalid M. Alharthy Jan 2015

Effects Of Benzo[A]Pyrene And Cyp19a1b Knockdown On Zebrafish Development, Khalid M. Alharthy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) is a ubiquitous environmental contaminant that is both an endocrine disruptor and a carcinogen. Aromatase (CYP19) is a key enzyme in steroidogenesis playing a key role in the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonad feedback loop. We hypothesized that BaP would negatively impact cyp19a1b expression in zebrafish, in turn, adversely affecting development and physiology. Here, we consider whether the toxicities observed following BaP exposure are comparable to those following a transient morpholino (MO)-mediated CYP19a1b knockdown or exposure to an aromatase inhibitor (fadrozole) during early development. One-cell zebrafish embryos were injected with a CYP19a1b-MO or control-MO. Other non-injected embryos were exposed to nominal waterborne …


Myosin 10 Is Required For Spinal Motor Axon Growth And Guidance In Zebrafish Embryos, Crystal Ivey Jan 2015

Myosin 10 Is Required For Spinal Motor Axon Growth And Guidance In Zebrafish Embryos, Crystal Ivey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Neurodevelopmental disorders are disabilities caused by malfunctioning mechanisms within the developing nervous tissue. These abnormalities often result in conditions such as autism spectrum disorders, Attention Deficient Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), motor dysfunctions, learning disabilities and mental retardation. Recent surveys indicate that there will be a 12% increase of children in the United States alone who are affected by neurodevelopmental disorders. Thus, it is important to understand both the normal and abnormal mechanisms of neural development. Neural development involves specification of new neurons and formation of neural circuits that connect the nervous system to every organ of the developing embryo. Neural circuits …


Myosinx Is Required For Craniofacial Development In Danio Rerio, Cole Yancey Jan 2015

Myosinx Is Required For Craniofacial Development In Danio Rerio, Cole Yancey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Craniofacial development is the process of laying early cartilage and bone patterns in the anterior region of the embryo, which ultimately results in shaping the structure of the face and head of an organism. Craniofacial abnormalities in humans, such as cleft lip and palate, are among the most common of all birth defects. Therefore, investigating the molecular mechanisms involved in craniofacial development will help us understand both evolutionary processes and genetic diseases. Craniofacial cartilage and bone structures are almost entirely derived from neural crest cells. Neural crest are a pluripotent migratory stream of cells that originate from the early developing …