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Biophysics

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2018

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Articles 1 - 17 of 17

Full-Text Articles in Molecular Biology

Metformin, Oxidative Stress, And Infertility: A Way Forward, Rehana Rehman, Syed Hani Abidi, Faiza Alam Nov 2018

Metformin, Oxidative Stress, And Infertility: A Way Forward, Rehana Rehman, Syed Hani Abidi, Faiza Alam

Department of Biological & Biomedical Sciences

No abstract provided.


Combined High-Speed Single Particle Tracking Of Membrane Proteins And Super-Resolution Of Membrane-Associated Structures, Hanieh Mazloom Farsibaf, Keith A. Lidke Nov 2018

Combined High-Speed Single Particle Tracking Of Membrane Proteins And Super-Resolution Of Membrane-Associated Structures, Hanieh Mazloom Farsibaf, Keith A. Lidke

Shared Knowledge Conference

Many experiments have shown that the diffusive motion of lipids and membrane proteins are slower on the cell surface than those in artificial lipid bilayers or blebs. One hypothesis that may partially explain this mystery is the effect of the cytoskeleton structures on the protein dynamics. A model proposed by Kusumi [1] is the Fence-Picket Model which describes the cell membrane as a set of compartment regions, each ~ 10 to 200 nm in size, created by direct or indirect interaction of lipids and proteins with actin filaments just below the membrane. To test this hypothesis, we have assembled a …


Feronia-Related Receptor Kinase 7 And Feronia And Their Role In Receiving And Transducing Signals, David Vyshedsky Oct 2018

Feronia-Related Receptor Kinase 7 And Feronia And Their Role In Receiving And Transducing Signals, David Vyshedsky

Masters Theses

Receptor kinases (RKs) are transmembrane proteins that have been shown to regulate an array of important processes in A. thaliana, including polar cell growth, plant reproduction, and many other plant growth processes. In this thesis, I examine RECEPTOR KINASE 7 (RK7) and FERONIA (FER), two closely related transmembrane RKs, and their effects on plant reproduction. The RK7 gene when knocked out (rk7) in conjunction with FER resulted in delayed plant growth, decreased seed yield, and a lower percentage of the seeds germinating as compared to the single FER knockout. Transgenic plants with GUS reporter driven by RK7 promoter …


Accurate Flexible Refinement Of Atomic Models Against Medium-Resolution Cryo-Em Maps Using Damped Dynamics, Julio A. Kovacs, Vitold E. Galkin, Willy Wriggers Sep 2018

Accurate Flexible Refinement Of Atomic Models Against Medium-Resolution Cryo-Em Maps Using Damped Dynamics, Julio A. Kovacs, Vitold E. Galkin, Willy Wriggers

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

Background: Dramatic progress has recently been made in cryo-electron microscopy technologies, which now make possible the reconstruction of a growing number of biomolecular structures to near-atomic resolution. However, the need persists for fitting and refinement approaches that address those cases that require modeling assistance.

Methods: In this paper, we describe algorithms to optimize the performance of such medium-resolution refinement methods. These algorithms aim to automatically optimize the parameters that define the density shape of the flexibly fitted model, as well as the time-dependent damper cutoff distance. Atomic distance constraints can be prescribed for cases where extra containment of parts of …


Gq Noncanonical Roles In Translational Regulation, Brett Demarco Aug 2018

Gq Noncanonical Roles In Translational Regulation, Brett Demarco

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates protein nucleic acid interactions, focusing on G-quadruplex (GQ) forming DNA/RNA in human disease. GQ structures are formed in DNA/RNA, when four guanine residues form planar tetrads stabilized by Hoogsteen base pairing, that stack forming a GQ structure stabilized by potassium ions. These GQ structures are targeted by the arginine glycine-glycine (RGG) RNA-binding domain. Fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP), a translation regulator protein implicated in the fragile X syndrome, has an RGG domain and has been previously shown to interact with neuronal GQ forming messenger RNA (mRNA). We have investigated three neuronal FMRP mRNA targets that we …


Characterization Of She1 Spindle Role Using Ceullular, Biochemical, And Biophysical Methods, Yili Zhu Jul 2018

Characterization Of She1 Spindle Role Using Ceullular, Biochemical, And Biophysical Methods, Yili Zhu

Doctoral Dissertations

During development, metaphase spindles undergo large movement and/or rotation to determine the cell division axis. While it has been shown that spindle translocation is achieved by astral microtubules pulling and/or pushing the cortex, how metaphase spindle stability is maintained during translocation remains not fully understood. In budding yeast, our lab has previously proposed a model for spindle orientation wherein the mitotic spindle protein She1 promotes spindle translocation across the bud neck by polarizing cortical dynein pulling activity on the astral microtubules. Intriguingly, She1 exhibits dominant spindle localization throughout the cell cycle. However, whether She1 has any additional role on the …


Nanoscale Organization Of The Small Gtpase Rac1, Kelsey Maxwell May 2018

Nanoscale Organization Of The Small Gtpase Rac1, Kelsey Maxwell

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

Rac1 is a small, guanine-nucleotide binding protein that cycles between an inactive GDP-bound and active GTP-bound state to regulate actin-mediated motility, migration, and adhesion. Plasma membrane (PM) localization is essential for its biological activity. Rac1 PM targeting is directed by a C-terminal membrane anchor that encompasses a geranylgeranyl-cysteine-methyl-ester, palmitoyl, and a polybasic domain (PBD) of contiguous lysine and arginine residues. Using high-resolution imaging combined with spatial mapping analysis, I found that Rac1 forms nanoclusters on the PM. Cycling between the GTP- and GDP-bound states, Rac1 forms nanoclusters that are non-overlapping, consequently undergoing guanine nucleotide-dependent spatial segregation. I further found that …


Regulation Of The Tubulin Homolog Ftsz In Escherichia Coli, Monika S. Buczek May 2018

Regulation Of The Tubulin Homolog Ftsz In Escherichia Coli, Monika S. Buczek

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Escherichia coli is a well-known pathogen, and importantly, a widely used model organism in all fields of biological sciences for cloning, protein purification, and as a model for Gram-negative bacterial species. And yet, researchers do not fully understand how this bacterium replicates and divides. Every year additional division proteins are discovered, which adds complexity to how we understand E. coli undergoes cell division. Due to their specific roles in cytokinesis, some of these proteins may be potential targets for development of antibacterials or bacteriostatics, which are much needed for fighting the current global antibacterial deficit. My thesis work focuses on …


Binding Of Maize Necrotic Streak Virus (Mnesv) 3’ I-Shaped Structure (3’ Iss) To Eukaryotic Translation Factors (Eifs) And Implication In Eif4f Mediated Translation Initiation, Qiao Liu May 2018

Binding Of Maize Necrotic Streak Virus (Mnesv) 3’ I-Shaped Structure (3’ Iss) To Eukaryotic Translation Factors (Eifs) And Implication In Eif4f Mediated Translation Initiation, Qiao Liu

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

5' m7GpppN cap and the 3' poly adenosine (A) tail of eukaryotic mRNAs are key elements for recruiting translation initiation machinery in canonical translation initiation. Unlike host mRNAs, many viruses lack these elements and yet they are translated efficiently. Plant viruses, in particular, have complex structures within their untranslated regions (UTR) that allow them to bypass some cellular translation control steps. In Maize necrotic streak virus (MNeSV) 3' UTR, an I-Shaped RNA Structure (ISS) has been reported to mediate the virus translation initiation progress. 3’ ISS binding with eIF4F has been shown to facilitate translation. 5’ -3’ kissing …


Cloning, Purification, And Preliminary Dna-Binding And Unfolding Results For The Dna Polymerase I From The Psychrophile Psychromonas Ingrahamii, John Tod Baker Apr 2018

Cloning, Purification, And Preliminary Dna-Binding And Unfolding Results For The Dna Polymerase I From The Psychrophile Psychromonas Ingrahamii, John Tod Baker

LSU Master's Theses

Psychromonas ingrahamii is a psychrophilic bacterium that lives in Arctic polar sea ice and grows at a temperature range of -12 to 10º C. This bacterium resides within veins inside the ice where the salinity is high, resulting in a freezing point depression and liquid water. The large fragment of DNA polymerase I from Psychromonas ingrahamii, called Klenpin, has been cloned, expressed, and purified in our laboratory. Although enzyme kinetic studies have been performed on a few psychrophilic enzymes, the thermodynamics of ligand binding and of protein stability have not been well studied for this class of extremophilic proteins. …


The Role Of The Metallochaperone Hypa In The Acid Survival And Activities Of Nickel Enzymes In Helicobacter Pylori, Heidi Hu Mar 2018

The Role Of The Metallochaperone Hypa In The Acid Survival And Activities Of Nickel Enzymes In Helicobacter Pylori, Heidi Hu

Doctoral Dissertations

Helicobacter pylori is a bacterium that has colonized the human gastric mucosa of over 50% of the world population. Persistent infection can cause gastritis, peptic ulcers, and cancers. The ability of H. pylori to colonize the acidic environment of the human stomach is dependent on the activity of the nickel containing enzymes, urease and NiFe-hydrogenase. The nickel metallochaperone, HypA, was previously shown to be required for the full activity of both enzymes. In addition to a Ni-binding site, HypA also contains a structural Zn site, which has been characterized to alter its averaged structure depending on pH and the presence …


Confirmation That Mrub_1751 Is Homologous To E. Coli Xylf, Mrub_1752 Is Homologous To E. Coli Xylh, And Mrub_1753 Is Homologous To E. Coli Xylg, Ben Price, Dr. Lori Scott Jan 2018

Confirmation That Mrub_1751 Is Homologous To E. Coli Xylf, Mrub_1752 Is Homologous To E. Coli Xylh, And Mrub_1753 Is Homologous To E. Coli Xylg, Ben Price, Dr. Lori Scott

Meiothermus ruber Genome Analysis Project

In this project we investigated the biological function of the genes Mrub_1751, Mrub_1752 and Mrub_1753 (KEGG map number 02010). We predict these genes encode components of a D-xylose ATP Binding Cassette (ABC) transporter: 1) Mrub_1752 (DNA coordinates 1809004-1810224 on the forward strand) encodes the permease component (aka transmembrane domain), predicted to be an ortholog and 2) Mrub_1753 (DNA coordinates 1810227-1811000 on the forward strand) encodes the ATP-binding domain (aka nucleotide binding domain); and 3) Mrub_1751 (DNA coordinates 1807855-1808892 on the forward strand) encodes the solute binding protein. The ABC-transporter for M. ruber to transport D-xylose is homologous with the transporter …


Dielectric Properties Of Isolated Adrenal Chromaffin Cells Determined By Microfluidic Impedance Spectroscopy, A. C. Sabuncu, M. Stacey, G. L. Graviso, N. Semenova, P. T. Vernier, N. Leblanc, I. Chatterjee, J. Zaklit Jan 2018

Dielectric Properties Of Isolated Adrenal Chromaffin Cells Determined By Microfluidic Impedance Spectroscopy, A. C. Sabuncu, M. Stacey, G. L. Graviso, N. Semenova, P. T. Vernier, N. Leblanc, I. Chatterjee, J. Zaklit

Bioelectrics Publications

Knowledge of the dielectric properties of biological cells plays an important role in numerical models aimed at understanding how high intensity ultrashort nanosecond electric pulses affect the plasma membrane and the membranes of intracellular organelles. To this end, using electrical impedance spectroscopy, the dielectric properties of isolated, neuroendocrine adrenal chromaffin cells were obtained. Measured impedance data of the cell suspension, acquired between 1 kHz and 20 MHz, were fit into a combination of constant phase element and Cole-Cole models from which the effect of electrode polarization was extracted. The dielectric spectrum of each cell suspension was fit into a Maxwell-Wagner …


Esope-Equivalent Pulsing Protocols For Calcium Electroporation: An In Vitro Optimization Study On 2 Cancer Cell Models, Stefania Romeo, Anna Sannino, Maria Rosaria Scarfi, P. Thomas Vernier, Ruggero Cadossi, Julie Gehl, Olga Zeni Jan 2018

Esope-Equivalent Pulsing Protocols For Calcium Electroporation: An In Vitro Optimization Study On 2 Cancer Cell Models, Stefania Romeo, Anna Sannino, Maria Rosaria Scarfi, P. Thomas Vernier, Ruggero Cadossi, Julie Gehl, Olga Zeni

Bioelectrics Publications

Reversible electroporation is used to increase the uptake of chemotherapeutic drugs in local tumor treatment (electrochemotherapy) by applying the pulsing protocol (8 rectangular pulses, 1000 V/cm, 100 µs) standardized in the framework of the European Standard Operating Procedure on Electrochemotherapy multicenter trial. Currently, new electrochemotherapy strategies are under development to extend its applicability to tumors with different histology. Electrical parameters and drug type are critical factors. A possible approach is to test pulse parameters different from European Standard Operating Procedure on Electrochemotherapy but with comparable electroporation yield (European Standard Operating Procedure on Electrochemotherapy-equivalent protocols). Moreover, the use of non-toxic drugs …


Altering Oligomerization Of Epha2 Via Mutations In The Intracellular Domain, Ryan W. Lingerak Jan 2018

Altering Oligomerization Of Epha2 Via Mutations In The Intracellular Domain, Ryan W. Lingerak

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Eph receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) are activated by membrane-bound ligands called ephrins. Eph RTKs are divided into two subclasses, each activated by a specific classes of the ligand ephrin. The overexpression of Eph receptors is correlated to cancer cell metastasis in several different types of cancers. Studies with the EphA2 extracellular domain (ECD) and ephrinA1 ligand have shown that upon binding of ephrin to the receptor, EphA2 undergoes increased oligomerization and activation. This indicates that oligomerization is intimately connected to kinase activity. High resolution crystal structures of the EphA2 ECD have revealed some details of these ligand bound oligomers, as …


Coordination Of Different Ligands To Copper(Ii) And Cobalt(Iii) Metal Centers Enhances Zika Virus And Dengue Virus Loads In Both Arthropod Cells And Human Keratinocytes, Shovan Dutta, Michael J. Celestine, Supreet Khanal, Alexis Huddleston, Colin Simms, Jessa Faye Arca, Amlam Mitra, Loree Heller, Piotr Kraj, Michael Ledizet, John F. Anderson, Girish Neelakanta, Alvin A. Holder, Hameeda Sultana Jan 2018

Coordination Of Different Ligands To Copper(Ii) And Cobalt(Iii) Metal Centers Enhances Zika Virus And Dengue Virus Loads In Both Arthropod Cells And Human Keratinocytes, Shovan Dutta, Michael J. Celestine, Supreet Khanal, Alexis Huddleston, Colin Simms, Jessa Faye Arca, Amlam Mitra, Loree Heller, Piotr Kraj, Michael Ledizet, John F. Anderson, Girish Neelakanta, Alvin A. Holder, Hameeda Sultana

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Trace elements such as copper and cobalt have been associated with virus-host interactions. However, studies to show the effect of conjugation of copper(II) or cobalt(III) metal centers to thiosemicarbazone ligand(s) derived from either food additives or mosquito repellent such as 2-acetylethiazole or citral, respectively, on Zika virus (ZIKV) or dengue virus (serotype 2; DENV2) infections have not been explored. In this study, we show that four compounds comprising of thiosemicarbazone ligand derived from 2-acetylethiazole viz., (E)-N-ethyl-2-[1-(thiazol-2-yl)ethylidene]hydrazinecarbothioamide (acetylethTSC) (compound 1), a copper(II) complex with acetylethTSC as a ligand (compound 2), a thiosemicarbazone ligand-derived from citral (compound 3) and a cobalt(III) complex …


Assembly And Trafficking Of The Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator And Associated Proteins, Zhihui Zhang Jan 2018

Assembly And Trafficking Of The Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator And Associated Proteins, Zhihui Zhang

Theses and Dissertations--Chemistry

Cystic Fibrosis (CF) is an autosomal recessive genetic disease that leads to severe malfunction in many organs, but particularly the lungs. The primary cause of this malfunction is the decrease of the airway surface liquid layer on the lung epithelium. The lack of hydration leads to mucus build up on the epithelial lining, leading to blockage of airways. The underlying cause of CF is the dysfunction of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR), which results from mutations in the protein. Almost 90% of CF patients are caused by the deletion of the phenylalanine at position 508 of CFTR, which …