Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience Commons^™

Functions Of Fibroblast Growth Factor Homologous Factor 2 In Excitable Tissues, Christopher Marra

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Purpose: Fibroblast Growth Factor Homologous Factors (FHFs) are a group of proteins known to associate with and modulate voltage-gated sodium channels (Na_v) in excitable cells. The four FHF genes are differentially expressed in specific cell-types, with FHF2 expressed prominently in the hippocampus, cerebral cortex, heart and dorsal root ganglia. Due to previous unavailability of an Fhf2 knockout mouse, this gene’s functions have been understudied in comparison to other those encoding other FHFs. The purpose of this research has been to better understand the normal physiological functions of FHF2 at the cellular and system levels in the heart, sensory …

Employing High Probability Gene Choice Elements To Understand Singular Odorant Receptor Expression, Raena Mina

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The ability to detect odorous chemicals in the environment is the oldest of the senses necessary for survival, from escaping danger, finding mates, to locating food. It is said that humans can identify and discriminate up to a trillion different odor mixtures. For chemoreception to have such a high discriminatory power, would require a diverse population of cells dedicated for odor detection. These detector cells are the olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs), which express odorant receptors (ORs) that bind to chemical odors in the environment. In order to increase specificity and sensitivity, an essential property in olfaction is for each OSN …

The Effects Of A New Mutation In Lis1 And Its Potential Role In Autism Spectrum Disorder, John A. Slovensky

Senior Theses

LIS1 is a protein, particularly concentrated in the brain, that is important in regulating the movement and transport capabilities of dynein. Dynein is protein that can move along pathways in the cell, carrying various cellular components and also helping brain cells migrate. These two proteins are crucial during the development of the nervous system, and mutations in them can lead to lissencephaly, a disorder in which the brain does not form properly. This disease causes patients to develop cognitive-motor defects and seizures that can lead to early death. While all previously identified mutations in LIS1 are known to cause lissencephaly, …

The Expression Of Mtor And Trib3 In Oligodendrocyte Lineage Cells, Katie Lazur

Senior Theses and Projects

Oligodendrocytes are a type of glial cell in the central nervous system that are responsible for producing the myelin sheath which allows for faster neuronal firing rates. Myelin production is a metabolically expensive process, which requires the oligodendrocytes to be aware of the nutrients are available to them. It has been demonstrated that the mammalian target of Rapamycin (mTOR) is required for the later stages of maturation in oligodendrocytes. However, when mTOR is inhibited by Rapamycin in the early stages of oligodendrocyte development, the oligodendrocytes are still able to fully differentiate. Tribbles Homolog 3 (Trib3) is a pseudo …

Amino Acid Sensing Ability By The Mechanistic Target Of Rapamycin In Oligodendrocytes, Emma England

Senior Theses and Projects

Oligodendrocytes (OLs) are a type of glial cell in the central nervous system that require substantial nutrients such as lipids and amino acids to create the extensive, metabolically expensive myelin sheath surrounding the axons of neurons. The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a regulatory kinase that is necessary for the maturation of progenitor OLs through their distinct oligo-lineage phases. Amino acids are vital for the functioning of cells. The focus of this study was to determine if mTOR activity is dependent on the availability of leucine, methionine, and alanine. This was assessed by examining the phosphorylation level of the …

Mushroom Body-Specific Gene Regulation By The Swi/Snf Chromatin Remodeling Complex, Kevin Cj Nixon

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Over the lifetime of an organism, neurons must establish, remodel, and maintain precise connections in order to form neural circuits that are required for proper nervous system functioning. Disruptions in these processes can lead to neurodevelopmental disorders such as intellectual disability (ID) and autism spectrum disorder. Mutations in genes encoding subunits of the SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complex have been implicated in ID, yet the role of this complex in neurons is poorly understood. In this project, I established cell-type specific methods to examine the effect of SWI/SNF subunit knockdowns on gene transcription and chromatin structure in the memory-forming neurons of …

Characterizing The Requirements For The Matricellular Protein, Dccn, In Nervous System Function, Elizabeth L. Catudio Garrett

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The brain is organized as a complex network of specialized neurons that communicate via a combination of electrical and chemical signals. Our brains function to generate movement, control organ function, or direct complex behaviors; all of which requires the ability to regulate the flow of communication between circuits and networks. Work in this thesis addresses two areas of neuron communication: first, how does the release of more than one neurotransmitter from a single neuron impact behavior, and second, are matricellular proteins (MCPs) key contributors to synaptic transmission and neuron function? The conserved CCN family of MCPs have a …

Combination Of Investigational Cell-Based Therapy And Deep Brain Stimulation To Alter The Progression Of Parkinson’S Disease, Nader El Seblani

Theses and Dissertations--Pharmacy

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder and the motor symptoms are caused by progressive loss of midbrain dopamine neurons. There is no current treatment that can slow or reverse PD. Our current “DBS-Plus” clinical trial (NCT02369003) features the implantation in vivo of autologous Schwann cells (SCs) derived from a patient’s sural nerve into the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc) in combination with Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) therapy for treating patients with advanced PD.

The central hypothesis of our research is that transdifferentiated SCs within conditioned nerve tissue will deliver pro-regenerative factors to enhance the survival of …

Neuroanatomy Of The Blackspotted Rockskipper, Entomacrodus Striatus, Pooja Dayal

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Here I characterized the central neuroanatomy of the Blackspotted Rockskipper, Entomacrodus striatus, native to French Polynesia. The neuroanatomy of E. striatus has not been studied prior to this paper. I used several histology and antibody staining techniques to accomplish this, including Crystal Violet, immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, and Bielschowsky’s Silver Nitrate staining. This paper describes the most successful techniques used, identifies major structures in the species’ neuroanatomy, and also explains why studying E. striatus is important in the future of vertebrate research.

Assessing Morphology Of Iprgcs After Traumatic Brain Injury, Brian Foresi, Matt Smith

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

ipRGCs are retinal ganglion cells that project to visual processing centers of the brain for nonimage forming visual functions. The relation of ipRGCs to tramatic brain injury (TBI) is emerging as data has been published describing ipRGC functional changes in TBI affected military veterans. Major symptomologies of concussions, a mild form of TBI, also overlap with the function governed by sites in the brain with major ipRGC projection percentages. Assesing if a morphological change is occuring in the ipRGCs after a TBI could support the idea of a pathological mechanism of the injury. This study could also indicate further relevance …

Non-Invasive Method For Leptin Supplementation In Zebrafish (Danio Rerio), Regan Mcnamara

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

I tested the hypothesis that recombinant leptin protein can be introduced to zebrafish in vivo through non-invasive soaking in a solution containing the protein. One way to study various molecules’ effects in vivo is through intraperitoneal or intracerebroventricular injections during the embryonic or larval stage, which is invasive, difficult to administer, and can have a high mortality rate. 48 hours post fertilization (hpf) zebrafish were soaked in a His-tagged recombinant leptin protein solution at 10 nM and 100 nM concentrations (produced by Genscript). After soaking, zebrafish larvae were washed extensively to remove all recombinant protein on their exterior before homogenization. …