Cell Biology Commons^™

Investigating The Apoptotic Effects Of Platinum(Ii) Amine Complexes With Only One Leaving Ligand On Zebrafish Auditory End Organs, Joshua Smith

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The FDA-approved platinum compound, cisplatin, is commonly used as a chemotherapy drug to treat many forms of cancer. However, this compound also has several associated side-effects, including ototoxicity. This has made the development of novel platinum compounds that reduce cancer cell viability, while causing fewer and milder side-effects, an area of significant research interest. In the present study, we examined the apoptotic effects that four monofunctional platinum compounds, pyriplatin, phenanthriplatin, Pt(diethylenetriamine)Cl, and Pt(N,Ndiethyldiethylenetriamine) Cl, had on zebrafish inner ear auditory epithelial cells. We then compared the apoptotic effects of these compounds to those of cisplatin, which is a bifunctional platinum …

Maternal Sleep Loss During Fetal Development Alters Offspring Endocrine Responses To Stress Throughout Life, Audrey Brown

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis releases glucocorticoids, including corticosterone (CORT), in response to stress. CORT then negatively feeds back to inhibit its own production by binding to glucocorticoid receptors (GRs) in the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. The HPA axis is subject to “programming” by abnormal stimuli during early development, which may permanently alter how the HPA axis responds to stress. These altered responses have been linked to an increased risk for human psychiatric and metabolic disorders in later life, but the mechanism by which this happens is not fully understood. This study tests the hypothesis that changes to GR expression patterns …

Adding Upstream Sequence And A Downstream Reporter To The Bile Acid Inducible Promoter Of Clostridium Scindens Vpi 12708, Bryan Patrick Mason

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Bile acids in the small intestines of animals serve to breakdown fats and fatsoluble vitamins. Most of the bile acids are reabsorbed into the enterohepatic circulation, but approximately five percent of these bile acids pass into the large intestine. These bile acids are swiftly deconjugated by the bacterial population, and then subjected to further intestinal bacterial chemical modifications. The most significant of these modifications are 7α-dehydroxylations which form secondary bile acids (deoxycholate and lithocholate). Much research has illuminated the 7α-dehydroxylation pathway: of particular interest is the bile acid inducible operon, for which Clostridium scindens VPI 12708 serves as the model …

Assessment Of The Endangered Species Podarcis Carbonelli On A Microgeographic Scale: A Molecular, Morphological And Physiological Approach, Maria Clara Figueirinhas Do Amaral

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The lizard Podarcis carbonelli is an endangered species endemic to the Iberian Peninsula. One location where this species occurs is at the Berlengas Natural Preserve, an Atlantic archipelago off the coast of Portugal. These island populations are geographically separated from nearby mainland populations. The fundamental question is, are these insular individuals distinct from the mainland populations? Four localities were chose for comparison: two island populations and two nearby coastal populations. We assessed this question using three distinct approaches: molecular, morphological and physiological approach. We sequenced the 12S RNA, the mtDNA Control Region and the 7th intron of the !-fibrinogen gene …

Skeletal Myosin Heavy Chain Function In Cultured Lung Myofibroblasts, Nancy A. Rice, Leslie A. Leinwand

Biology Faculty Publications

Myofibroblasts are unique contractile cells with both muscle and nonmuscle properties. Typically myofibroblasts are identified by the expression of smooth muscle actin (ASMA); however some myofibroblasts also express sarcomeric proteins. In this study, we show that pulmonary myofibroblasts express three of the eight known sarcomeric myosin heavy chains (MyHCs) (IIa, IId, and embryonic) and that skeletal muscle myosin enzymatic activity is required for pulmonary myofibroblast contractility. Furthermore, inhibition of skeletal myosin activity and myofibroblast contraction results in a decrease in both ASMA and skeletal MyHC promoter activity and ASMA protein expression, suggesting a potential coupling of skeletal myosin activity and …

The Effects Of Adjacent Cell Fusion And Ultraviolet Radiation Exposure On Viral Plaque Formation With Herpes Simplex Virus Type I, Rebecca Conner

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

In mammalian cell-virus systems, it has been observed that damage caused by exposure of the cell to ultraviolet radiation (UV) will result in an increase in viral plaque development rate. This phenomenon is termed the Large Plaque Effect (LPE). Apparently, viral plaque development increases at a faster rate for Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) when it is assayed on certain UV-irradiated mammalian cells. The consequence of this increase in plaque development rate is that viral plaques appear larger on irradiated monolayers of cells when compared to plaques that developed on unirradiated cellular monolayers.

The cause of the LPE is not yet …

The Effect Of Parental Bone Marrow & Spleen Cells In The Induction Of The Graft-Versus-Host Reaction, Ronald Grane

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Variously aged (C57BL X C3H)F₁ hybrid mice were used as recipients in experiments to determine if spleen or bone marrow cells from normal C57BL or C3H donors, spleen or bone marrow cells from C57BL donors previously treated with cortisone, or C57BL bone marrow cells previously incubated with serum from X-irradiated C57BL mice could induce a graft-versus-host reaction (GVHR).

The mice were assayed for GVHR by mortality or splenomegaly as detected by the discriminant spleen assay developed by Simonsen. Results show that spleen cells from normal C57BL, normal C3H, or cortisone-treated C57BL mice are capable of inducing a GVHR in …

The Effect Of Cv-1 Cell Geometry On The Ultraviolet Radiation Sensitivity Of Mammalian Cells In Vitro, Daniel J. Knauer

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The effect of cell geometry on the radiosensitivity to ultraviolet (UV) light has been studied in the CV-1 host cell-capacity system. In this system the macromolecular damage incurred by monolayers of cells cultures as the result of exposure to UV radiation is monitored by testing the ability of irradiated cells to support the replication of Herpes simplex virus. The target molecule has been shown to be DNA and is centrally located

Mammalian cells have an absolute requirement for Mg⁺⁺ and Ca⁺⁺ in order to remain attached to artificial substrata. To test the effect of cell geometry on UV …