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Full-Text Articles in Neurosciences

Hypercapnic Hyperoxia Increases Free Radical Production And Cellular Excitability In Rat Caudal Solitary Complex Brain Slice Neurons, Geoffrey Edward Ciarlone Nov 2016

Hypercapnic Hyperoxia Increases Free Radical Production And Cellular Excitability In Rat Caudal Solitary Complex Brain Slice Neurons, Geoffrey Edward Ciarlone

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The caudal solitary complex (cSC) is a cardiorespiratory integrative center in the dorsal medulla oblongata that plays a vital role in the central CO2-chemoreceptive network. Neurons in this area respond to hypercapnic acidosis (HA) by a depolarization of the membrane potential and increase in firing rate, however a definitive mechanism for this response remains unknown. Likewise, CO2-chemoreceptive neurons in the cSC respond to hyperoxia in a similar fashion, but via a free radical mediated mechanism. It remains unknown if the response to increased pO2 is merely an increase in redox signaling, or if it’s the …


Regulation Of Palmitoylation Enzymes And Substrates By Intrinsically Disordered Regions, Krishna D. Reddy Nov 2016

Regulation Of Palmitoylation Enzymes And Substrates By Intrinsically Disordered Regions, Krishna D. Reddy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Protein palmitoylation refers to the process of adding a 16-carbon saturated fatty acid to the cysteine of a substrate protein, and this can in turn affect the substrate’s localization, stability, folding, and several other processes. This process is catalyzed by a family of 23 mammalian protein acyltransferases (PATs), a family of transmembrane enzymes that modify an estimated 10% of the proteome. At this point in time, no structure of a protein in this family has been solved, and therefore there is poor understanding about the regulation of the enzymes and their substrates. Most proteins, including palmitoylation enzymes and substrates, have …


Hormone Replacement Therapy (Hrt) Modulates Peripheral And Central Auditory System Processing With Aging, Tanika Williamson Nov 2016

Hormone Replacement Therapy (Hrt) Modulates Peripheral And Central Auditory System Processing With Aging, Tanika Williamson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

After the findings were reported for the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) study in the past decade, there has been a significant decline in the overall use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) among women. However, there are still millions of middle-aged, menopausal women in the U.S. who are currently undergoing hormone therapy. Their reasons for continuing treatment include relief of severe menopausal symptoms, aid in the management of osteoporosis and reduction in the risk of colon cancer (Ness et al., 2005). The purpose of the following investigation was to evaluate the impact of HRT on the central and peripheral auditory systems …


Inhibiting The Interaction Between Grp94 And Myocilin To Treat Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma, Andrew Stothert Jun 2016

Inhibiting The Interaction Between Grp94 And Myocilin To Treat Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma, Andrew Stothert

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Glaucoma is a neurodegenerative protein misfolding disorder classified by increases in IOP, damage to retinal ganglion cells (RGCs), optic nerve (ON) head damage, and progressive irreversible blindness. Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is the most common form of glaucoma, constituting over 90% of clinical cases. POAG is observed in patients where normal outflow channels, mainly the trabecular meshwork (TM), are exposed at the angle formed by the iris and cornea. However, due to TM cellular dysfunction, aqueous outflow resistance is increased preventing normal circulation of aqueous humor. Recent studies have shown that in 2-4% of POAG cases, increased intracellular levels of …


Targeting Tau Degradation By Small Molecule Inhibitors For Treatment Of Tauopathies, Mackenzie Martin Jun 2016

Targeting Tau Degradation By Small Molecule Inhibitors For Treatment Of Tauopathies, Mackenzie Martin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Tauopathies are neurodegenerative diseases that affect millions of people around the world. Tauopathies include more than 20 neurodegenerative diseases. Some of the most common tauopathies are Alzheimer’s disease (AD), frontotemporal dementia (FTD), chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), Pick’s disease, corticobasal degeneration, progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), agyrophillic grain disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). These diseases can cause significant memory loss, behavioral changes, motor deficits and speech impairments. Tauopathies stem from accumulation of the microtubule associated protein tau (MAPT). Tau stabilizes microtubules and helps with axonal transport. In a disease state tau becomes hyperphosphorylated and truncated leading to its aggregation. More recently …


Leukemia Inhibitory Factor As A Neuroprotective Agent Against Focal Cerebral Ischemia, Stephanie Davis May 2016

Leukemia Inhibitory Factor As A Neuroprotective Agent Against Focal Cerebral Ischemia, Stephanie Davis

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Previous publications from this laboratory demonstrated that administration of leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) (125 µg/kg) to young, male Sprague-Dawley rats at 6, 24, and 48 h after middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) reduced infract volume, improved sensimotor skills, and alleviated damage to white matter at 72 h after the injury. In vitro studies using cultured oligodendrocytes (OLs) showed that LIF (200 ng/ml) also protects against 24 h of oxygen-glucose deprivation through activation of Akt signaling and upregulation of the antioxidant enzymes peroxiredoxin IV and metallothionein III. Other groups have demonstrated that LIF reduces neurodegeneration in animal models of disease, but …


Cell Permeability Studies Of Aapeptides And Novel Molecular Probes For Ad, Ge Bai Apr 2016

Cell Permeability Studies Of Aapeptides And Novel Molecular Probes For Ad, Ge Bai

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Alzheimer's diseases(AD) has been discovered and under research for more than 70 years, However there is no cure for these progressive and devastating diseases. Based on the following hypothsis: Aß metabolite problem/over production result in the accumulation, and lead to aggregation is the cause of Alzheimer’s disease. AApeptide and Melatonin derivatives can bind to Aß and block the aggregation of β amyloid monomers, decrease the toxicity of Aß to neurons and slow the progressive of Alzheimer’s diseases. In addition, AApeptide which mimic transmembrane peptide Tat will have similar transmembrane function. We have set up our goals as follows: 1) Using …


Modulation Of Whole Cell Currents In Human Neuroblastoma Cells Via The Hormone Aldosterone: An In Vitro Study, Harish Kumar Chittam Mar 2016

Modulation Of Whole Cell Currents In Human Neuroblastoma Cells Via The Hormone Aldosterone: An In Vitro Study, Harish Kumar Chittam

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Ion channels play a critical role in maintaining homeostasis by moving various ions in and out of cells. The Na+-K+-2Cl- or NKCC1 ion channel is involved in the regulation of Na+, K+, and Cl- across cell membranes, and plays a key role in many forms of cellular physiology. In the cochlea, NKCC1 is involved in endolymph production and maintenance of the endocochlear potential. Our hypothesis is that blocking NKCC1 channels should directly impact auditory sensitivity causing hearing loss. Our lab has also shown that the hormone aldosterone (ALD) can upregulate …