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Full-Text Articles in Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology

Functional Characterization Of The Newly Discovered Type V Crispr-Cas Protein Cas12a2, Dylan J. Keiser Dec 2022

Functional Characterization Of The Newly Discovered Type V Crispr-Cas Protein Cas12a2, Dylan J. Keiser

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Similarly to people, bacteria are under the treat of infection by viruses. To circumvent these threats, bacteria evolve complex immune systems. Our understanding of some of these immune systems has led to many advancements in the field of Biotechnology including tools that made expressing proteins for study in a lab easier, tools that revolutionized the feasibility of gene editing, and tools that could change the way we think about viral diagnostics and cancer therapeutics. A certain type of immune system that bacteria use to fight virus is called a CRISPR system. Presented here is work to understand the function of …


Development Of Nucleic Acid Diagnostics For Targeted And Non-Targeted Biosensing, Christopher William Smith Dec 2022

Development Of Nucleic Acid Diagnostics For Targeted And Non-Targeted Biosensing, Christopher William Smith

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The field of nucleic acid technology is rapidly expanding with new impactful discoveriesbeing made each year. Starting from the discovery of the double-helix structure, cloning, gene editing, polymerase chain reaction (PCR), CRISPR technology, and even the late mRNA vaccines; nucleic acid technology is at the forefront of improving medicine. Nucleic acid technology is extremely versatile due to its easy programmability, automated cheap synthesis, and even its catalog for numerous chemical modifications that can be used to alter structure stability. For example, the number of permutations that can be made with DNA just by altering the code for adenine (A), cytosine …


Characterization Of Genetic Pathways Involved In Resistance To A Novel Antifungal Peptide, Kayla L. Haberman Aug 2022

Characterization Of Genetic Pathways Involved In Resistance To A Novel Antifungal Peptide, Kayla L. Haberman

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Antibiotic resistance is increasing prevalence, particularly in Candida glabrata. This opportunistic pathogen is closely phylogenetically related to Saccharomyces cerevisiae; however, its characterization is limited. C. glabrata is only second to Candida albicans as a fungal pathogen in immunocompromised patients. Commonly resistant to azoles, the most common fungal therapy, it has become costly and challenging to treat. A histatin 5 derived antifungal peptide, KM29, has a high degree of efficacy in Candida species and S. cerevisiae. The objective of this work is to advance our understanding of the mechanism of action of KM29 against C. glabrata. Previous work in the lab …


Test-Driving The Next Generation Of Crispr Gene Editing, Olivia Gornichec, Kailey Mayer Feb 2022

Test-Driving The Next Generation Of Crispr Gene Editing, Olivia Gornichec, Kailey Mayer

Research on Capitol Hill

USU team Kailey, recent graduate of animal science, and Olivia, senior in biochemistry, have led and funded this project through a student grant. CRISPR has been making waves in the scientific community for its potential to help us edit genomes. However, that is just one of the known types of CRISPR, and other types aren’t in forms that are accessible to study. Kailey and Olivia have successfully cloned Type IV-B into a plasmid that can now be used to perform further research into what this system does. The two students never expected that, as undergrads, they would make a foundation-level …