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Full-Text Articles in Biology

In Vitro Characterization Of Novel Compounds With Anti-Cancer Activity, Edgar Alonso Borrego Puerta Dec 2022

In Vitro Characterization Of Novel Compounds With Anti-Cancer Activity, Edgar Alonso Borrego Puerta

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Two libraries of chemical compounds were analyzed for their cytotoxic activity against cancer and non-cancerous cell lines. In chapter 1, fourteen novel piperidones were tested on a panel of different cell lines to identify their cytotoxic activity. These compounds were found to have cytotoxic activity toward cancer cells with a cytotoxic concentration 50 (CC50) in the micromolar range. Furthermore, these fourteen compounds have selectivity preferentially towards cancer cells. Based on selectivity, and cytotoxicity, four compounds were selected for further characterization in the HL-60 cell line. The four compounds elicit apoptosis as measured by the externalization of the phospholipid phosphatidylserine (PS), …


Exploring The Anticancer Mechanism Of Thienopyrazole Derivative Tpz-1 In Acute Myeloid Leukemia, Jessica Dyanne Hess Dec 2022

Exploring The Anticancer Mechanism Of Thienopyrazole Derivative Tpz-1 In Acute Myeloid Leukemia, Jessica Dyanne Hess

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Anticancer drug discovery is a time and resource-consuming process for which exceedingly reliable and efficient modern approaches are needed. Phenotypic drug screenings can generate highly potent and innovative drug candidates; however, deconvolution of the drugâ??s target often presents significant barriers to drug development. To overcome this hurdle, we have originally combined in vitro and in silico analyses to uncover the molecular mechanism(s) driving the anticancer activity of the uniquely structured small molecule drug candidate, Tpz-1. Our study revealed that Tpz-1 is a multitargeted agent which induces the programmed death of HL-60 acute myeloid leukemia cells primarily through disruption of microtubule …


Biology And Epidemiology Of Dengue Viruses In The El Paso And The Surrounding Usa And Mexico Border Communities, Pedro Miguel Palermo Infante Dec 2022

Biology And Epidemiology Of Dengue Viruses In The El Paso And The Surrounding Usa And Mexico Border Communities, Pedro Miguel Palermo Infante

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Dengue is considered one of the most important human arboviral diseases worldwide. Dengue cases have increased in the last three decades in the Americas, especially along the United States (US)- Mexico (MX) border region, where the main vector of dengue, Aedes aegypti mosquito, is widely distributed. Explosive outbreaks of dengue in northern Mexico have been associated with imported and local transmission of dengue in the US border communities, especially in the Southeast Texas area, also known as Rio Grande Valley. Due to the unknown if dengue virus (DENV) is present in other areas in the US border located west of …


Two Novel Piperidone Compounds Display Antiproliferative Effects On Human Prostate And Lymphoma Cancer Cell Lines And In Vitro Investigation Of Thiophenecarboxylate Anti-Cancer Activity, Risa Mia Swain Dec 2022

Two Novel Piperidone Compounds Display Antiproliferative Effects On Human Prostate And Lymphoma Cancer Cell Lines And In Vitro Investigation Of Thiophenecarboxylate Anti-Cancer Activity, Risa Mia Swain

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Tumor interactions predominantly dominate cancer progression and its tumor microenvironment. Such interactions include, tumors generating signals that cause dysfunction and death to immune cells [1]. Inflammatory and immune cells present to eliminate cancer cells fail and lose their overall function [1]. These cells lose the overall ability to aid and are co-opted to promote tumor growth. Ultimately, the result is escaping from the hosts' immune system and developing a complex mechanism that evades immune cells and the inability to undergo apoptosis. It is imperative to develop a better understanding of the complex machinery cancer develops. There are current therapies that …


Inhibiting C-C Chemokine Receptor 7 Activation Of T-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia By A Ccl19/Macrophage Inflammatory Protein-3Β Antagonist, Angel Torres Dec 2022

Inhibiting C-C Chemokine Receptor 7 Activation Of T-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia By A Ccl19/Macrophage Inflammatory Protein-3Β Antagonist, Angel Torres

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The binding of C-C Chemokine Ligand 19 (CCL19) to C-C chemokine receptor 7 (CCR7) receptor has been linked to T-cell activation, tolerance, and inflammation. CCR7 is a member of the chemotactic cytokine family, essential in the development of T cells and regulatory processes such as immune-cell trafficking. This is accompanied by chemokine ligand concentration and time-dependent internalization, which is efficiently promoted by CCL19. A novel N-terminal truncation of CCL19 has been previously developed as an antagonist observed to impede induced chemotaxis and calcium mobilization in mouse primary immune cells. The current antagonist has suggested a key role of CCL198-83 in …


Autoantibody Against Tumor-Associated Antigens As Diagnostic Biomarkers In Hispanic Patients With Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Yangcheng Ma Dec 2022

Autoantibody Against Tumor-Associated Antigens As Diagnostic Biomarkers In Hispanic Patients With Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Yangcheng Ma

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Liver cancer is one of the most prevalent malignancies, in which hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) takes up more than 80% of liver cancer cases. Early diagnosis and treatment are practical approaches to impede HCC progression. Identifying and classifying autoantibodies against tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) have long been interested in cancer diagnosis, especially for HCC. Circulating anti-TAA autoantibodies amplify the antigen expression and are more stable in blood, guaranteeing anti-TAA autoantibodies as valid diagnostic biomarkers in clinical application. Nonetheless, very few studies had focused on the Hispanic HCC group, which might retain distinct etiological risk factors compared to other ethnicities. The high incidence …


Landscape Genomics Of The Tussock Cottongrass (Eriophorum Vaginatum) And The Dwarf Birch (Betula Nana) In North Central Alaska, Elizabeth Stunz Dec 2022

Landscape Genomics Of The Tussock Cottongrass (Eriophorum Vaginatum) And The Dwarf Birch (Betula Nana) In North Central Alaska, Elizabeth Stunz

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Global climate change has resulted in geographic range shifts of flora and fauna at a global scale. Extreme environments, like the Arctic, are seeing some of the most pronounced changes. This region covers 14% of the Earthâ??s land area, and while many arctic species are widespread, understanding ecotypic variation at the genomic level will be important for elucidating how range shifts will affect ecological processes. Increase in shrub cover is a major effect of ongoing climate change in arctic tundra ecosystems. The relative increases in abundance and cover of shrub species such as birch, willow, and alder (Betula, Salix, and …


Survey Of Fleas And Ticks For Rickettsia Rickettsii And Rickettsia Typhi And Surveys Of Humans And Wild Animals For Serological Evidence Of Infection By These Rickettsiae In Rural And Urban Areas Of El Paso, Texas And Other Areas Of Texas, Karen Rocio Valdez Dec 2022

Survey Of Fleas And Ticks For Rickettsia Rickettsii And Rickettsia Typhi And Surveys Of Humans And Wild Animals For Serological Evidence Of Infection By These Rickettsiae In Rural And Urban Areas Of El Paso, Texas And Other Areas Of Texas, Karen Rocio Valdez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The ecology and epidemiology of Rocky Mountain Spotted fever and typhus fever pathogens are poorly understood along the United Statesâ??Mexico border, especially in the far Southwestern region of Texas. The objective of this dissertation was to understand the prevalence and distribution of Rickettsia rickettsii and Rickettsia typhi and associated tick and flea species and the prevalence of these Rickettsiae in domestic and feral mammals in urban and rural areas of the El Paso community and other areas of Texas. Also, the goal was to determine if humans are being infected by R. rickettsii and R. typhi in the El Paso …


Development Of A Ph-Triggered Cargo Delivery System With Esxa Mutants, Shuchen Chen Aug 2022

Development Of A Ph-Triggered Cargo Delivery System With Esxa Mutants, Shuchen Chen

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Tuberculosis (TB) is a communicable disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). It was the leading cause of human death generated by a single infectious agent before the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Mtb has a special mechanism to evade the hostâ??s immune system and utilize macrophages as reservoirs. Latent TB infections have been a threat to public health. Liposome has been widely used for drug delivery. Immunoliposomes are special liposome carriers coated with ligands, such as antigens, targeting certain cells or organs to regulate the uptake of liposome. By constructing the liposome components, or surface modification, cargo release of liposome can be …


Eluication Of Lipid Metabolic Pathways In Differentiating Giardia Lamblia Using High Resolution Mass Spectrometry, Cameron Ellis Aug 2022

Eluication Of Lipid Metabolic Pathways In Differentiating Giardia Lamblia Using High Resolution Mass Spectrometry, Cameron Ellis

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Giardia lamblia is an intestinal protozoan found worldwide, including the U.S. This parasite exists in two morphologic stages - a replicative trophozoite and a relatively dormant yet viable cyst. While exposures of cysts to gastric acid during passage through the human stomach induces excystation, factors in the small intestine, where trophozoites colonize trigger encystation or cyst formation. Transformation into cyst stage is essential for Giardia to survive in the environment for months before infecting new hosts. Because of its small genome size (11.7 Mb), metabolic pathways in Giardia are highly reduced. As far as lipid metabolism is concerned, only limited …


Chihuahuan Desert Rock Pool Community Assemblages: Patterns Of Taxonomic Diversity, Joseph Lee Mcdaniel Aug 2022

Chihuahuan Desert Rock Pool Community Assemblages: Patterns Of Taxonomic Diversity, Joseph Lee Mcdaniel

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

As climate change continues to become more prevalent, increasing temperatures and altering precipitation patterns will disrupt the environmental balance of ecosystems and spark the imminent threat of a 6th mass extinction event. Many researchers believe this has already begun, as losses for numerous taxonomic clades have been well documented; however, the loss of invertebrates is still unknown and may be much more severe than those of other animal clades. A significant factor contributing to the shortfall of invertebrate biodiversity loss is rooted in the lack of understanding of the diversity and distribution of these animals. There is still much to …


Understanding The Anticancer Mechanism Of Oridonin Using Proteomics Approach, Xiaojun Zhang May 2022

Understanding The Anticancer Mechanism Of Oridonin Using Proteomics Approach, Xiaojun Zhang

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Oridonin has attracted extensive attention from cancer biologists ascribed to its outstanding anticancer ability. It is a kaurane diterpene, the first bioactive natural compound from Rabdosia rubescens (Hemsl.) Hara, a natural herb. Oridonin is conventionally used as an anti-tumor, ani-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-bacterial compound as well as an adjunct treatment for many cancers, especially gastrointestinal tumors, such as esophageal and liver cancers. Its antitumor effects have been connected to its interference with several pathways involved in apoptosis, cell cycle arrest, cell proliferation, autophagy, and cell migration. Presently, both the molecular chaperone Hsp70 and Nucleolin have been identified as targets interacting …


Mathematical Modeling Of Potassium Modulated Viral Infection, Zaira Elizabeth Mather May 2022

Mathematical Modeling Of Potassium Modulated Viral Infection, Zaira Elizabeth Mather

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

In recent years, there is a growing interest in the investigation of using potassium to treat virus infections. In the region of infection, there is a biological observation of extracel- lular potassium level being typically very low whereas the intracellular potassium levels are much higher. There are numerous biological studies showing that elevated potassium levels in the extracellular membrane tends to block virus infections. A recent effort in this direction is a collaborative research conducted by mathematicians and biologists from the University of Texas at El Paso, New Mexico State University, and the University of New Mexico, where we develop …


Generating And Sustaining Meaningful Professional Development Opportunities For Graduate Teaching Assistants Facilitating Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences In The Biological Sciences, Amie M. Kern May 2022

Generating And Sustaining Meaningful Professional Development Opportunities For Graduate Teaching Assistants Facilitating Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences In The Biological Sciences, Amie M. Kern

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Current national efforts to reform postsecondary laboratory education have emphasized the incorporation of authentic research opportunities into science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) curricula. Within the last decade, course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) have emerged as a viable mechanism to achieve this goal. Evidence within the biology education literature suggests that student engagement in CUREs has the potential to positively impact their development of scientific inquiry and process skills, content knowledge, and affect in the domain. While the majority of studies have focused on student outcomes, few studies have examined instructor outcomes in CURE learning environments. This is especially true …


Nanotechnology-Based Approaches To Mitigate Environmental Pollutants -- Induced Neurological Disorders, Jyoti Ahlawat May 2022

Nanotechnology-Based Approaches To Mitigate Environmental Pollutants -- Induced Neurological Disorders, Jyoti Ahlawat

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease (PD), Alzheimerâ??s Disease (AD) and Huntingtonâ??s Disease (HD) have no cure despite intensive research efforts geared towards therapeutics development. In the USA, patients with PD and AD alone cost the nation ~ $200 billion annually in patient care and lost productivity. Therefore, there remains an urgent and unmet need to develop novel drugs and drug carriers with the potential to slow down, halt and ideally reverse the course of neurodegenerative disorders. The dissertation focuses on developing approaches towards targeting PD using multifactorial mechanisms including the targeting of protein aggregation and oxidative stress. This is …