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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Microwave-Assisted Synthesis Of Quinoxaline Derivatives, Eric Horsting
Microwave-Assisted Synthesis Of Quinoxaline Derivatives, Eric Horsting
Honors Theses
Quinoxaline and its derivatives have been studied extensively for their relevant biological activity and transition metal selectivity. These compounds are commonly used for their antimicrobial, antifungal, antiparasitic activity, and relevance in the treatment of metabolic diseases [6]. More recently, quinoxaline’s ability to inhibit gram-positive bacterial growth has been found especially in oxygen- containing compounds, yielding promising candidates to prevent cancerous tumor growth [5]. The breadth of quinoxaline makes it a valuable tool within the research community However, its synthesis requires complex solvents, extended reaction times, and often produces a low yield. By using a microwave-assisted synthesis, this novel methodology offers …
Isolating And Manipulating Microorganisms Using Ureolysis For Creating Extraterrestrial Microbial Biotechnology Systems, Nina M. Wendel
Isolating And Manipulating Microorganisms Using Ureolysis For Creating Extraterrestrial Microbial Biotechnology Systems, Nina M. Wendel
Honors Theses
The conversion of CO2 into valuable feedstocks, such as high energy sugars would create paradigm shifting technologies for applications on earth and for interplanetary exploration. Microbes and microbe consortia may be one way to accomplish this conversion. Approximately 70% of the Earth’s microorganisms live in the dark marine biosphere (DMB). The DMB, which covers more than two-thirds of the Earth, is known as the most isolated region of the Earth’s largest CO2 sink. Despite its role in reducing CO2 and its vast majority of microorganisms, only about 5% of the sea floor has been explored. Due to the limited knowledge …
Development Of Nucleic Acid Aptamers To Inhibit Bacterial Efflux Pumps, Emilie A. Moses
Development Of Nucleic Acid Aptamers To Inhibit Bacterial Efflux Pumps, Emilie A. Moses
Honors Theses
Multidrug resistance in bacteria, defined as the ability of a bacterial strain to resist the killing effects of more than one antibiotic, represents a major threat to global healthcare. Every year in the United States, two million people are infected with a multidrug resistant strain of bacteria. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), out of those two million people, about 35,000 will die from their infection. Thus, these multidrug resistant diseases are considered by the CDC to be the most dangerous diseases in the world. While multidrug resistance can occur through several different mechanisms, a major contributor to …
The Tolerance Of Shewanella Woodyi For Electric Potentials And Heavy Metals As Biofilms, Christopher Thomas Mortensen
The Tolerance Of Shewanella Woodyi For Electric Potentials And Heavy Metals As Biofilms, Christopher Thomas Mortensen
Honors Theses
Shewanella woodyi is a bioluminescent marine organism that is known to be metal tolerant and modulate the intensity of its luminescence with electrochemical potential. The viability of S. woodyi as a bioreporter for the toxic heavy metal zinc, copper, and silver was analyzed. Biofilms of S. woodyi was grown on marine broth agar plates and then exposed to various concentrations of each metal ion to evaluate biofilm response to the metal ions that were generated from an operating short circuited electrode containing either Zn, Cu, or Ag metal. The ability of the bacteria to tolerate the heavy metals and continue …
Tracking Disparate Colony Morphological Trends With Thermus Scotoductus, Matthew P. Leverick
Tracking Disparate Colony Morphological Trends With Thermus Scotoductus, Matthew P. Leverick
Honors Theses
When plating most mesophilic bacteria, the colony shape, size, and color tends to be uniform when a single strain is present. When plating defined cell densities of T. scotoductus, however, the colonies were not of uniform size and shape while it grew on the surface. In this project, we sought to observe trends in colony morphology (shape and size) changes using the thermophile Thermus scotoductus on nutrient rich agar plates at 60°C. A general planktonic growth curve was also created to help characterize the activity of this bacterium. This project was our first attempt to characterize if this unusual phenomenon …
Boron Dipyrromethenes: Synthesis And Computational Analysis, Eduardo Rivé Lockwood
Boron Dipyrromethenes: Synthesis And Computational Analysis, Eduardo Rivé Lockwood
Honors Theses
Recently, there has been a growing interest in the boron dipyrromethene (BODIPY, 4,4′- difluoro-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene) compounds. BODIPY compounds have fascinating properties that allow for the absorption and emission of light in the near infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum. These molecules are highly modifiable making them ideal chemicals for the use of photoelectric energy conversion such as for commercial use in dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). It has been previously shown that different meso compounds have only a slight effect on the absorptive capabilities of these BODIPY compounds. We believe that the BODIPY compounds’ lack of planarity is one of the …
Analysis And Review Of The Effects Of Bacterial Competition On Efflux Pump Inhibition, Robert Leszcynski
Analysis And Review Of The Effects Of Bacterial Competition On Efflux Pump Inhibition, Robert Leszcynski
Honors Theses
Multidrug resistant antibacterial strains are a dangerous problem for modern medical professionals. When cells of two different strains are grown together, they must compete with each other for nutrients. This competition can lead to the production of harmful compounds that are toxic to the competing strain. One such compound may be a compound that inhibits the efflux of antibiotics from the cell. When the cells compete with one another, one or both of the cells will produce compounds that are harmful to the competing strain.
Identifying Natural Inhibitors Of Bacterial Efflux Pumps, Marrisa Therriault
Identifying Natural Inhibitors Of Bacterial Efflux Pumps, Marrisa Therriault
Honors Theses
Antibiotic resistance is a constantly progressing epidemic. Many strains of bacteria have developed a resistance to antibiotics, resulting in prolonged sickness and death. Resistance can be to a specific drug (single drug resistance) or to multiple drugs (multi-drug resistance). This resistance can be caused by a tripartite protein pump called an efflux pump that extends through the inner and outer membranes of the bacterium to pump antibiotics from the inside of the cell to the extracellular environment. In E. coli the efflux pump is called AcrAB-TolC. In the efforts to combat this problem, this experiment focuses on the inactivation of …
The Impact Of The 515nm Effect On 1o2 Quenching In Photosynthesis: Model System Studies Using Β-Carotene–Acid Complexes, Lauren A. Hoody
The Impact Of The 515nm Effect On 1o2 Quenching In Photosynthesis: Model System Studies Using Β-Carotene–Acid Complexes, Lauren A. Hoody
Honors Theses
β-carotene (βC) is an orange pigment present in the photosynthetic reaction center (PRC) of green plants, where it plays a vital role in photosynthesis: It quenches singlet oxygen (1O2 , a toxic oxidizing species generated during photosynthesis) before the 1O2 damages chlorophyll and other components of the PRCs. During photosynthesis, βC temporarily converts from its native orange–450 state to a pink–515 state via the so–called 515nm Effect. Because of the differences between the electronic structures of orange–450 and pink–515, I hypothesize that pink–515 will quench 1O2 less efficiently than orange–450. This hypothesis has not been tested to date because orange–450 …
The Effects Of Structural Modification Of The Wing Helix Domain Of Pria On Bacterial Dna, Erich Auer
The Effects Of Structural Modification Of The Wing Helix Domain Of Pria On Bacterial Dna, Erich Auer
Honors Theses
During a cell’s life it must copy itself or face death. For the cell to form a new copy it must replicate its DNA, this DNA is the blueprint for the essential components of the cell. The replication process does not always go to completion, which is necessary for the cell to survive, so there are mechanisms to keep the replication process running smoothly. In bacteria, PriA is used to restart replication after damage to the DNA. By looking at the structure of PriA we can start to determine how exactly it works with the damaged DNA and restart the …
Synthesis Of Bis(Quinoxalino) Ligand For The Removal Of Transition Metal Contamination, Alexander J. Farmer
Synthesis Of Bis(Quinoxalino) Ligand For The Removal Of Transition Metal Contamination, Alexander J. Farmer
Honors Theses
Transition metal contamination is a constant concern both in the environment and in chemical reaction mixtures. One proposed solution, is the use of peraza-crown macrocycles to selectively bind and remove transition metals. The aim of our project is to determine the novel synthesis of bis(quinoxalino) peraza-crown macrocycles for use as ligands to bind to transition metals. Our proposed molecules incorporate the rigid quinoxaline subunit into an aza-crown macrocycle which can improve binding properties. The synthesis route is novel and overcomes several limitations of the existing methods of aza-crown macrocycle preparation. We have designed the synthesis in such a way that …
Preparation, Analysis And Derivatization Of Benzotris(Thiazole) Triamine, Jonathan Patrick Peter Alessi
Preparation, Analysis And Derivatization Of Benzotris(Thiazole) Triamine, Jonathan Patrick Peter Alessi
Honors Theses
Multiple fields are areas of active research where organic materials hold considerable promise, such as thermoelectrics or photovoltaics. In an effort to design and prepare a new system which would exhibit a set of promising features such as high thermal stability, high degree of planarity, rigid skeleton and strong electron accepting properties, we have undertaken the preparation and characterization of benzotrithiazole and its derivatives. Our work has led to a reproducible and scalable protocol for the generation of one particular structure: benzo[1,2-d:3,4-d':5,6-d"]tris(thiazole)-2,5,8-triamine. We have also conducted further attempts to functionalize this structure, leading to other derivatives of the target compound.
Synthesis Of Phosphorus-Based Hemiacetals For Potential Flame Retardants, Sara Alakkad
Synthesis Of Phosphorus-Based Hemiacetals For Potential Flame Retardants, Sara Alakkad
Honors Theses
Flame retardants which contain a phosphorus moiety attached to a carbohydrate backbone were developed. To synthesize the flame retardants, carbohydrates and polyols were used as the starting materials which occur in nature and are environmentally and toxicologically safe materials. The two target structures include one with a triose substructure and one with a pentose substructure. For both situations, however, multiple steps were taken for the synthesis of the flame retardant, as the carbohydrate needed to be generated into its protected form. The protected carbohydrate then interacted with a dialkyl phosphite, resulting in a phosphorous hemiacetal. This hemiacetal was then deprotected …
Synthesis Of Potential Phosphorus-Nitrogen Containing Flame Retardants, Colin Kloock
Synthesis Of Potential Phosphorus-Nitrogen Containing Flame Retardants, Colin Kloock
Honors Theses
Production of extremely efficient flame retardants is ideal because, in many instances, the amount of flame retardants that are added to pre-production to the mixture are so large that they can have an effect on the physical properties of the material. In addition, these types of polymers, when added during production, are homogenously mixed throughout the mixture which means not only uniform distribution and therefore function, but a less concentration of the retardants need to be used. Using Phosphorus-Nitrogen containing flame retardants in mixtures can have two means by which they function. First is the ability of P-N compounds to …
Exploration Of Protein-Protein Interactions Involving Deinococcus Radiodurans Pria, Dnab And Ssb, Christopher S. Morrow
Exploration Of Protein-Protein Interactions Involving Deinococcus Radiodurans Pria, Dnab And Ssb, Christopher S. Morrow
Honors Theses
Deinococcus radiodurans is a species of bacteria that has sparked a lot of interest since its discovery due to its incredible resistance to ionizing radiation. When exposed to ionizing radiation the genome of D. radiodurans will sustain over one hundred double stranded breaks. D. radiodurans demonstrates the ability to repair its genome and restart replication after sustaining, typically lethal, DNA damage. This project examined the mechanism of replication restart in D. radiodurans by investigating primosome protein PriA interacting with replicative helicase DnaB and single stranded binding protein. Many different types of gel electrophoresis were employed to investigate potential protein complex …
Kinetic Characterization Of B-Carotene In N-Hexane At Various Oxygen Concentrations, Katelyn Mary Arnold
Kinetic Characterization Of B-Carotene In N-Hexane At Various Oxygen Concentrations, Katelyn Mary Arnold
Honors Theses
We have characterized the photo – degradation of ẞC in oxygenated and deoxygenated n–hexane solvent and in the solid phase using broadband (BB; λ ≥ 200 nm) and 313 nm filtered output of a 100 W Hg Arc lamp. Oxygen concentrations of 0, 10, 20, and 100% were used in the solution phase studies. ẞC(s) did not photo – degrade upon exposure to BB light under air atmospheres; the mass and appearance of the samples, TLC chromatograms, and the absorption spectra were all identical pre- and post-irradiation. In the solution phase, the order of the photo – degradation with respect …
Classifying The Functionality Of Primosome Protein A In Deinococcus Radiodurans, Jacob Boone
Classifying The Functionality Of Primosome Protein A In Deinococcus Radiodurans, Jacob Boone
Honors Theses
Deinococcus radiodurans is an extremophile bacterium with the capacity to withstand tremendous DNA damage that causes disruption of replisome complex activity. The efficiency of origin-independent replisome reloading directly correlates to effectiveness of DNA damage coping strategies, and remains largely undefined in D. rad primosome components. Investigation of D. rad PriA as a helicase protein was conducted to determine if PriA could be classified as a fossilized helicase. This project tested the three functions of known helicases by comparing E. coli and D. rad PriA. DNA binding, DNA unwinding, and ATP hydrolysis assays were performed on both proteins separately and results …
Synthesis And Characterization Of Three Unique Mono-Metallic Lanthanide Complexes, Jasminder S. Grewal
Synthesis And Characterization Of Three Unique Mono-Metallic Lanthanide Complexes, Jasminder S. Grewal
Honors Theses
Three unique lanthanide complexes of formula Ln(tdh)3dpp (where Ln = Eu3+, Tb3+or Nd3+; tdh = 1,1,1- trifluoro-5,5-dimethyl-2,4-hexanedione and dpp = 2,3-Bis(2-pyridyl)pyrazine) were structurally characterized. X-ray quality crystals were grown through slow evaporation in a solution of concentrated ethyl acetate and hexanes. Each of the metals are eight coordinate, with 6 oxygen atoms from the tdh ligand and two nitrogen atoms from the dpp. Specifically, the nitrogen from 1-pyridyl group and the 1-pyrazine group coordinate to the lanthanide metal. Luminescent studies were performed on all three compounds. The Eu and Tb complexes were able to emit light in the visible region …
Investigating Bacterial Replication Restart: Can D.Rad Pria Load D.Rad Dnab Onto Dna Forks With A Leading Strand Gap?, Michael Ryan
Investigating Bacterial Replication Restart: Can D.Rad Pria Load D.Rad Dnab Onto Dna Forks With A Leading Strand Gap?, Michael Ryan
Honors Theses
The bacteria Deinococcus radiodurans (D. rad) is able to survive multiple double stranded breaks to its DNA with no detriment to its health as its genome can be fully repaired in a matter of hours. During bacterial DNA replication, points of DNA damage can cause replication to cease, requiring an origin independent replisome loading pathway to resume the replication. This pathway is called replication restart , a highly conserved pathway in bacteria. In the E. coli replication restart pathway primosome proteins function by binding to the DNA fork and facilitating the loading of the DnaB helicase onto the replication fork. …
Synthesis And Purification Of A Nucleoside Platinum Complex That Promotes Dna Cross-Linking, Ryan Spear
Synthesis And Purification Of A Nucleoside Platinum Complex That Promotes Dna Cross-Linking, Ryan Spear
Honors Theses
Cancer is a deadly and ever present disease in humans and its treatment has become a focus of many types of research. This project was designed to synthesize a platinum complex that will cross-link DNA and in turn cause cell death for rapidly dividing cells (usually cancer cells). The target compound strongly resembled the structure of a nucleic acid, thymidine. Further, nucleic acids are extremely important to cell life and cell membranes have transporters specific for them. Therefore, the purpose to exploring this new platinum complex was to create compound that a cell can easily transport inside its cell and …
Synthesis And Characterization Of A Tetra-Ruthenated Naphthylbiliverdin, Ashley M. Berding
Synthesis And Characterization Of A Tetra-Ruthenated Naphthylbiliverdin, Ashley M. Berding
Honors Theses
A new naphtylbiliverdin compound has been synthesized which offers intense absorption with the photodynamic therapy window (600 nm – 850 nm). The compound has been characterized by proton NMR, high resolution electrospray mass spectrometry, elemental analysis, and UV/vis spectroscopy. Coordination of four ruthenium(II) polypyridyl complexes was accomplished by standard procedures. The new tetra-ruthenated naphthylbiliverdin was characterized by elemental analysis. Cyclic voltammetry measurements reveal that all four ruthenium moieties are coordinated to the pyridyl groups of the biliverdin compound. The intense metal to ligand charge transfer (MLCT) bands of the peripheral ruthenium groups overshadow the absorption due to the biliverdin compound; …
Design And Characterization Of Photoresponsive Supramolecular Aggregates, Julie A. Fitz
Design And Characterization Of Photoresponsive Supramolecular Aggregates, Julie A. Fitz
Honors Theses
Supramolecular chemistry concerns the manner in which molecular building blocks associate via non-covalent interactions and form aggregates. The particular building block in this research is a photoresponsive molecule 4,4’-azobenzene dicarboxylic acid (ADA), a molecule that isomerizes reversibly around an N-N double bond upon irradiation with different wavelengths of light. The large structural changes in the molecule that result from isomerization have the potential to modulate the properties of a supramolecular aggregate. ADA was studied under a variety of environmental conditions for the purpose of understanding aggregation behavior and geometries. A UV-Vis and Circular Dichroism (CD) spectroscopic study of ADA showed …
Photoreactions Of A Water Soluble Poly-Isoquinolpyrrole With Plasmid Dna, Gregory Versteeg
Photoreactions Of A Water Soluble Poly-Isoquinolpyrrole With Plasmid Dna, Gregory Versteeg
Honors Theses
With the goal of creating a porphyrin we reacted isoquinol pyrrole, p-fluorobenzaldehyde, and boron trifluoride etherate under appropriate conditions. Instead of a porphyrin being synthesized, we created polyisoquinol pyrrole in high yield and with great absorption properties around 600nm. We characterized this compound via UV/vis spectroscopy, proton NMR, and electrochemistry. The compound was then reacted with [Ru(bipy)2Cl2] to create a cationic compound and this molecule was tested as a possible photosensitizer for photodynamic therapy (PDT) but it was unable to photocleave plasmid DNA above 550nm. The original compound was then methylated and this new compound was also tested as a …