Medical Cell Biology Commons^™

Alzheimer's And Amyloid Beta: Amyloidogenicity And Tauopathy Via Dyshomeostatic Interactions Of Amyloid Beta, Jordan Tillinghast

Senior Honors Theses

This paper reviews functions of Amyloid-β (Aβ) in healthy individuals compared to the consequences of aberrant Aβ in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). As extraneuronal Aβ accumulation and plaque formation are characteristics of AD, it is reasonable to infer a pivotal role for Aβ in AD pathogenesis. Establishing progress of the disease as well as the mechanism of neurodegeneration from AD have proven difficult (Selkoe, 1994). This thesis provides evidence suggesting the pathogenesis of AD is due to dysfunctional neuronal processes involving Aβ’s synaptic malfunction, abnormal interaction with tau, and disruption of neuronal homeostasis. Significant evidence demonstrates that AD symptoms are partially …

Sciatic Nerve Cut And Repair Using Fibrin Glue In Adult Mice, Erica T. Akhter, Travis M. Rotterman, Arthur W. English, Francisco J. Alvarez

Neuroscience, Cell Biology & Physiology Faculty Publications

Peripheral nerve injury (PNI) is an excellent model for studying neural responses to injury and elucidating the mechanisms that can facilitate axon regeneration. As such, several animal models have been employed to study regenerative mechanisms after PNI, including Aplysia, zebrafish, rabbits, cats and rodents. This protocol describes how to perform a sciatic nerve injury and repair in mice, one of the most frequently used models to study mechanisms that facilitate recovery after PNI, and that takes advantage of the availability of many genetic models. In this protocol, we describe a method for using fibrin glue to secure the proximal …

The Role Of The Tau N-Terminal Phosphatase-Activating Domain And Phosphorylation At Thr175 In The Formation Of Tau Cytoplasmic Inclusions, Matthew A. Hintermayer

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Cytoplasmic inclusions and fibrils of the microtubule-associated protein tau (tau protein) are a key neuropathological hallmark in tauopathies, including Alzheimer’s disease, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis with cognitive impairment. Previous research has demonstrated that the phosphorylation of tau protein at Thr¹⁷⁵ is sufficient for the initiation of fibril formation both in vitro and in vivo. Here we use mutated tau protein constructs to demonstrate that phosphorylation at Thr¹⁷⁵ results in the aberrant exposure of an N-terminal phosphatase-activating domain (PAD). The tau PAD interacts with protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) leading to the activation of glycogen synthase …

Initial Characterization Of The Indole-3-Carboxamide Bic-154 As A Fast Onset And Reversible Orai Channel Blocker, Tetyana Zhelay, Kalina Szteyn, Elisa Liardo, Jae Eun Cheong, Steffi Koerner, Anil Ekkati, Lijun Sun, J. Ashot Kozak

Neuroscience, Cell Biology & Physiology Faculty Publications

Calcium ion elevations are required for human T-lymphocyte proliferation in response to antigen recognition by a T-cell receptor. Calcium influx through the plasma membrane is necessary for efficient T-cell proliferation and effector function. The calcium channels responsible for Ca2+ influx in lymphocytes have been identified and Orai interacting with ER Ca2+ sensor STIM were shown to be crucial for persistent calcium mobilization. Loss-of-function mutations in Orai1 or STIM1 result in severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) with muscle hypotonia. Suppression of calcium influx through Orai/STIM channels gives rise to various lymphoproliferative defects. Thus, deletion of Orai or STIM in mice results in …