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Detection Of Tetracyclines In An Anaerobic Waste Digester Using Solid Phase Extraction And High-Performance Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry, Courtney Cruse

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Antibiotics are introduced to livestock to encourage growth and for the treatment of diseases. These antibiotics are not completely metabolized by swine, and thus these antibiotics are excreted with their waste. This poses a potential risk to human health as these antibiotics, a potential link to antibiotic resistant bacteria, then enter the surface water, ground water, and soil. In collaboration with the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) in Bowling Green, Kentucky, this research is concerned with analyzing the degradation of tetracyclines in swine waste from an anaerobic digester. Waste samples obtained from a digester and swine waste at the USDA …

Cytotoxicity Of Platinum Anticancer Drugs In Mammalian Cell Lines Of Metastatic Cancer, Hosannah Evie

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

With the invention of advanced technology, focus has been put on understanding and looking for potential cures for many diseases, one of which is cancer. The difference in the leaving and non-leaving ligands of the FDA approved cancer drugs contributes to the differential cell specific cytotoxic effects. These drugs such as oxaliplatin approved for colorectal cancer, cisplatin approved for testicular cancer, and their analogs were used to treat different cancer cell lines in an MTT assay. This project aims to determine how changing the molecular shape of these compounds affects their uptake and toxicity into different cell lines. The assay …

A Real Time Optical Biosensor Assay For Amoxicillin And Other Β-Lactams In Water Samples, Israel M. Scott, Lewis J. Kraft, Jonathan D. Parker, Kathryn Daniel, Sarah Kustik, Diana Kennen, Jonathan Mcmurry

Georgia Journal of Science

Antibiotic contamination of drinking water and sewage is a matter of environmental and public health concern. Traditionally, ELISA or HPLC methods have been used to detect and measure antibiotic contamination. By applying an optical biosensing method, biolayer inteferometry (BLI), we have developed a kinetic competition binding assay capable of quantitating less than 1ppm (~33 μM) amoxicillin. Similar to surface plasmon resonance, BLI senses changes that occur upon binding of one molecule to another near a surface to measure association and dissociation. Immobilized amoxicillin was used to screen for binding against an analyte solution of anti-amoxicillin equilibrated with amoxicillin-containing water samples, …

Structure Of Porphyrin Tpps4 And Its Interaction With Metal Ions As Elucidated By 1h Nmr And Uv-Visible Spectra, Zhiyan Song, Adegboye Adeyemo, Jannie Baker, Shakeya Traylor, Marcia Lightfoot

Georgia Journal of Science

Porphyrins are a group of tetrapyrrole pigments. Physical and chemical properties of porphyrins are often related to their compositions and structures. We conducted ¹H solution NMR and UV-visible spectral analysis to characterize the structural feature of a water-soluble, synthetic porphyrin i.e. tetrakis (p-sulfonatophenyl) porphyrin, TPPS₄, and its interaction with different metal ions in aqueous solutions. The results indicate that tetrapyrrole and tetraphenyl rings in TPPS₄ molecule form a co-planar electron conjugation system; transition-metal ions show stronger binding capacity than alkali and alkali-earth metal ions; the relative stabilities of TPPS₄-metal ion complexes can be well …

Photopolymerization Synthesis Of Magnetic Nanoparticle Embedded Nanogels For Targeted Biotherapeutic Delivery, Daniel Jonwal Denmark

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Conventional therapeutic techniques treat the patient by delivering a biotherapeutic to the entire body rather than the target tissue. In the case of chemotherapy, the biotherapeutic is a drug that kills healthy and diseased cells indiscriminately which can lead to undesirable side effects. With targeted delivery, biotherapeutics can be delivered directly to the diseased tissue significantly reducing exposure to otherwise healthy tissue. Typical composite delivery devices are minimally composed of a stimuli responsive polymer, such as poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), allowing for triggered release when heated beyond approximately 32 °C, and magnetic nanoparticles which enable targeting as well as provide a mechanism for …

Inhibiting Translesion Dna Synthesis As An Approach To Combat Drug Resistance To Dna Damaging Agents, Jung-Suk Choi, Seol Kim, Edward Motea, Anthony J. Berdis

Chemistry Faculty Publications

Anti-cancer agents exert therapeutic effects by damaging DNA. Unfortunately, DNA polymerases can effectively replicate the formed DNA lesions to cause drug resistance and create more aggressive cancers. To understand this process at the cellular level, we developed an artificial nucleoside that visualizes the replication of damaged DNA to identify cells that acquire drug resistance through this mechanism. Visualization is achieved using "click" chemistry to covalently attach azide-containing fluorophores to the ethynyl group present on the nucleoside analog after its incorporation opposite damaged DNA. Flow cytometry and microscopy techniques demonstrate that the extent of nucleotide incorporation into genomic DNA is enhanced …

Allosteric Control Of Substrate Specificity Of The Escherichia Coli Adp-Glucose Pyrophosphorylase, Ana C. Ebrecht, Ligin Solamen, Benhamin L. Hill, Alberto A. Iglesias, Ken W. Olsen, Miguel A. Ballicora

Chemistry: Faculty Publications and Other Works

The substrate specificity of enzymes is crucial to control the fate of metabolites to different pathways. However, there is growing evidence that many enzymes can catalyze alternative reactions. This promiscuous behavior has important implications in protein evolution and the acquisition of new functions. The question is how the undesirable outcomes of in vivo promiscuity can be prevented. ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase from Escherichia coli is an example of an enzyme that needs to select the correct substrate from a broad spectrum of alternatives. This selection will guide the flow of carbohydrate metabolism toward the synthesis of reserve polysaccharides. Here, we show that …

Nanomaterials As Stationary Phases And Supports In Liquid Chromatography: A Review, Sandya Beeram, Elliott Rodriguez, Suresh Doddavenkatanna, Zhao Li, Allegra Pekarek, Darin Peev, Kathryn Goerl, Gianfranco Trovato, Tino Hofmann, David S. Hage

David Hage Publications

The development of various nanomaterials over the last few decades has led to many applications for these materials in liquid chromatography (LC). This review will look at the types of nanomaterials that have been incorporated into LC systems and the applications that have been explored for such systems. A number of carbon-based nanomaterials and inorganic nanomaterials have been considered for use in LC, ranging from carbon nanotubes, fullerenes and nanodiamonds to metal nanoparticles and nanostructures based on silica, alumina, zirconia and titanium dioxide. Many ways have been described for incorporating these nanomaterials into LC systems. These methods have included covalent …

Solid-Phase Peptide Synthesis Of Analogues Of The N-Terminus A-Ring Fragment Of The Lantibiotic Nisin: Replacements For The Dehydroalanine (Dha) Residue At Position 5 And The First Incorporation Of A Thioamide Residue, Kim Manzor, Keith Ó Proinsias, Fintan Kelleher

Articles

A number of A-ring analogues of the lantibiotic nisin, containing replacements for the Dha at position 5, have been successfully prepared by solid-phase peptide synthesis. The Dha replacements include glycine, alanine, phenylalanine, serine and 1-aminocyclopropyl carboxylic acid (ACCa). The incorporation of a thioamide-isoleucine residue at position 4 is also described and is the first report of the preparation of a lantibiotic ring fragment containing a thioamide link.

Investigation In To The Stabilizing Effects Of The Modified Base Archaeosine In Trna And The Identification Of The Fluorescent Product Of Base Treatment Of Nad(P)+ Cofactors, Ben Turner

Dissertations and Theses

This dissertation covers two projects linked by their involvement in the modification of tRNA bases.

The first project focused on an investigation of a role for the modified base Archaeosine, the ubiquitous modification in tRNA in the archaeal domain. Initial work was performed on a set of in vitro prepared tRNA modified to feature either the canonical guanine base at position 15, preQ₀ (TGT product) or Archaeosine (ArcS product). There was very little difference in the thermal stability of tRNAs containing these modifications in the halophilic H. volcanii tRNA^Ser or E. coli tRNA^Gln. In tRNA^{Gln …}

Synthesis And Identification Of An Investigational Essential Precursor Compound For The Purpose Of The Development Of A Vaccine Treatment Against The Peanut Allergy, Thomas F. Anguella

Theses and Dissertations

Presented in this master's thesis are several studies carried out to determine the viability of several allergoid candidates utilizing the major peanut allergen Ara h 2. The Ara h 2 allergen protein appears naturally as a doublet when observed by gel electrophoresis, SDS-PAGE. Optimization of allergen purification methods successfully led to Ara h 2 purity, and the ability to standardize procedures to yield consistently pure samples. The purified allergen was chemically crosslinked with diketone derivatives selected for their abilities to react with specific amino acids accessible on the Ara h 2 protein. Chemically modified allergen samples were also evaluated using …

The Camkii Holoenzyme Structure In Activation Competent Conformations, Janette B. Myers, Vincent Zaegel, Steven J. Coultrap, Adam P. Miller, K. Ulrich Bayer, Steve L. Reichow

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Ca²⁺/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) assembles into large 12-meric holoenzymes, which is thought to enable regulatory processes required for synaptic plasticity underlying learning, memory and cognition. Here we used single particle electron microscopy (EM) to determine a pseudoatomic model of the CaMKIIα holoenzyme in an extended and activation-competent conformation. The holoenzyme is organized by a rigid central hub complex, while positioning of the kinase domains is highly flexible, revealing dynamic holoenzymes ranging from 15–35 nm in diameter. While most kinase domains are ordered independently, ~20% appear to form dimers and

Species Identification Of Necrophagous Insect Eggs Based On Amino Acid Profile Differences Revealed By Direct Analysis In Real Time-High Resolution Mass Spectrometry, Justine E. Giffen, Jennifer Y. Rosati, Cameron M. Longo, Rabi A. Musah

Publications and Research

The colonization of decomposing remains by necrophagous insects such as blow flies is of forensic importance because the progression through the various stages of insect development can be correlated to time of death. The ability to infer this information hinges on accurate determination of the fly species that are associated with the entomological evidence collected. This evidence can include eggs, larvae, pupae, and puparial casings. Determination of the egg’s identity is particularly challenging because the eggs of multiple species are morphologically very similar. We report here that the species identity of fly eggs can be determined from their chemical fingerprint …

Comprehensive Silica Removal With Ferric Compounds For Industrial Wastewater Reuse, Ehren D. Baca

Civil Engineering ETDs

Cooling towers, integrated circuit (IC) manufacture and reverse osmosis (RO) generate copious amounts of wastewater high in colloidal and reactive silica inhibiting on-site or synergistic reuse. Silica present in cooling water can reach solubility limits via evaporation and form impervious scale on heat transfer surfaces that decreases efficiency. When water is treated by RO operating at high rejection, silica forms difficult-to-remove scale on the membrane feed side in the form of glassy patches and communities of aggregate particles, inhibiting aspirations for zero liquid discharge. Current methods for silica scale mitigation include abundant dosing with chemical antiscalents or complex operating schemes. …

The Modified Stereospecific Stille Reaction: Palladium-Catalyzed Cross-Coupling Reactions Involving Secondary And Tertiary Alkyl Carbastannatranes, Chao-Yuan Wang

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Organic chemistry is present in all domains of everyday life, from polymer production to medicine. In order to synthesize complex compounds, it is often necessary to make new carbon-carbon bonds. Transition metal catalysts, particularly those derived from second and third row metals such as Pt, Pd, Rh, and Ir metals, display remarkable efficiency for the formation of carbon-carbon and carbon-heteroatom bonds. In the first chapter, introduction of transition metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions is given. While the formation of C(sp²)–C(sp²) bonds has been studied extensively, C(sp³)-C(sp²) bond formation still presents a challenge due to …

Chelating Ligands And Nanomaterials Based On Graphene Oxide For The Reduction And Sequestration Of Radiometals And Protein Purification, Sam Groveman

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Nuclear waste remediation and protein purification using immobilized metals can benefit enormously from the design and implementation of novel chelating nanomaterials. Available commercial resins capable of sequestering metals are based on bulk materials such as organic polymers, ceramics, and their composites. The use of two-dimensional nanoplatforms with large surface areas expands the horizon for the research and development of new systems with higher efficiency and lower cost. Fundamental science challenges remain in the synthesis and characterization of these nanomaterials and their integration with known or novel coordinating ligands.

Chemical exfoliation of graphite under strong oxidizing conditions yields graphene oxide (GO) …

From The Making To The Tuning To The Use Of Chlorins For Biomedical Applications, Junior Gonzales

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Chlorins are porphyrins missing a double bond. These pigments are optimal platforms for the development of novel dyes that display drug-like attributes such as photodynamic therapy (PDT) agents. More recently, it was demonstrated that chlorins can serve both as a PDT agent and as a modality for fluorescence or PET imaging. Thus, multifunctional chlorins eliminate the differences that may occur in specificity, uptake, and distribution between separate compounds or constructs for imaging and therapy. The overall goal of this dissertation is to take advantage of the reputed intrinsic attributes of chlorins as a viable tool in biomedical applications. In this …

Naturally-Derived Molecular Ensembles In Medicine, Materials Science And Evolutionary Biology: An Interdisciplinary Study, Silvio Panettieri

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The first chapter will introduce the work carried out in collaboration with the Govind laboratory at CCNY. Our quest was set forth to investigate the intimate relationship lying between chronic inflammation and tumor development. For at least the last fifteen years much research has been conducted on this topic; yet, the level of complexity arising from exceedingly interwoven biochemical pathways in mammals has resulted in slow advancements in this field. This is why we resorted to a simple yet powerful immunogenetic model organism, the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, in combination with the administration of the most common anti-inflammatory drug, …

Fabrication And Applications Of Multifunctional Superhydrophobic Surfaces Based On Surface Chemistry And Morphology, Yang Liu

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Superhydrophobic surfaces are gaining great interests in both fundamental researches and technological applications, because of their unique non-wetting and self-cleaning properties. By mimicking the hierarchical surface structure of the natural superhydrophobic surface, i.e. lotus leaf, numerous artificial surperhydrophobic surfaces were developed. However, the challenge is how to fabricate superhydrophobic surfaces by a scalable and economical method. To address this challenge, our group has developed methodologies that enable the fabrication of superhydrophobic surfaces in inexpensive and potentially scalable ways, such as lamination and 3-D printing. To expand on applications, we also combined other desired functionalities into the superhydrophobic surfaces.

The transparent …

Climate Change, One Health And Mercury, L. K. Duffy, T. Vertigan, B. Dainowski, K. Dunlap, Amy Hirons

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Climate change is occurring on both regional and global scales. The use and global distribution of toxic metals is increasing and affecting environmental, animal and human health as a result of air, water and food contamination. Mercury (Hg) in major forms Hg°, Hg²⁺ and methyl mercury (CH₃Hg⁺) are increasingly available around the globe. Both metal and organic contaminants are impacting the health of all species on the planet. Mercury is an example of a metal that can cause or aggravate a disease state, for example, diabetes. Habitat stewardship is needed to maintain a healthy system, …

Novel Spectroscopic Tools To Differentiate Drug-Dna Binding Interactions, Fadwa Dhafer Hamad

Masters Theses

DNA-drug interactions play a major role in therapeutics, diagnostics, forensics and imaging. Drugs bind to DNA in several ways based on the mode of interaction and they alter protein-DNA interactions or breaks/cleaves DNA that can lead to the cure of the disease. The major goal of the research carried out in this thesis is to develop novel optical spectroscopic tools that can differentiate Drug-DNA binding interactions mode whether its intercalation or minor-groove binding. To achieve this goal, we developed two-photon absorption (2PA) cross-section based technique to differentiate between Drug-DNA binding modes. The investigations were carried out on two drug molecules, …

Chemotypic Variation Of Biogenic Volatile Organic Compounds In Midwest Forest And Atmospheric Role Of Peroxyacyl Nitrates In Southeastern U.S., Shino Toma

Dissertations

Biogenic volatile organic compounds (VOC), including isoprene and terpenes, impact atmospheric processes such as production of tropospheric ozone, formation and growth of secondary organic aerosol (SOA), global climate change, and human health. Although estimated emission rates of total biogenic VOC exceed anthropogenic emissions, there are many challenges to direct measurements because they are very reactive with atmospheric oxidants and some are still difficult to detect by current analytical techniques. Therefore, high uncertainties lead to discrepancies between individual and total biogenic VOC budget with atmospheric oxidants and an underestimation of SOA formation.

White pine (Pinus strobus) was once a dominant species …

Structures Of Metallacarboranes And Coordination Complexes: Coordination Sensors Based On Rhodamine B And Quinolines, Agozie Nnaemeka Oyeamalu

Dissertations

Rhodamine-based ligands that can complex different metals has been designed and synthesized. Using Rhodamine B as starting material, we synthesized and characterized quinoline precursors as well as successfully carried out the oxidation of methyl and aldehyde groups on the quinoline ring, and on the hydroxyl moiety of the quinoline spirolactone ring. These turn-on/off rhodamine fluorescence probes sense Cr³⁺ and Ni²⁺ with high selectivity and sensitivity. These probes can be applied to detect other metal ions that are present in chemical, biological and environmental settings. They were designed to fluoresce when bonded to ions such as cyanide in detecting …

Scitech News Volume 71, No. 2 (2017)

Sci-Tech News

Columns and Reports

• From the Editor 3

Division News

• Science-Technology Division 5
• Chemistry Division 8
• Engineering Division 9
• Aerospace Section of the Engineering Division 12
• Architecture, Building Engineering, Construction and Design Section of the Engineering Division 14

Reviews

• Sci-Tech Book News Reviews 16

Advertisements

• IEEE 4

Characterization Of Γ-Butyrolactone Rings: A Computational And Toxicological Study, Donald C. Kidd

Masters Theses

Given the declining state of the natural environment, identifying green methodologies in synthetic chemistry is becoming paramount. An under explored area of green chemistry, is the use of catalytic systems in green solvents. One interesting concept in green chemistry is the use of N-Heterocyclic Carbenes (NHCs) as organocatalysts.

Thiamine or vitamin B1 was one of the first NHCs recognized. Thiamine is required for carbohydrate metabolism and helps the cell produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Over the last 20 years NHCs have been found to be efficient catalysts in carbon-carbon bond forming reactions.

But to date, little research has been done exploring …

Industrial Grade 2d Molybdenum Disulphide (Mos2): An In-Vitro Exploration Of The Impact On Cellular Uptake, Cytotoxicity, And Inflammation, Caroline Moore, Hugh Byrne, Jonathan N. Coleman, Yuri Volkov, Jennifer Mcintyre

Articles

The recent surge in graphene research, since its liquid phase monolayer isolation and characterization in 2004, has led to advancements which are accelerating the exploration of alternative 2D materials such as molybdenum disulphide (MoS2), whose unique physico-chemical properties can be exploited in applications ranging from cutting edge electronic devices to nanomedicine. However, to assess any potential impact on human health and the environment, the need to understand the bio-interaction of MoS2 at a cellular and sub-cellular level is critical. Notably, it is important to assess such potential impacts of materials which are produced by large scale production techniques, rather than …

Conformational Studies Of Gram-Negative Bacterial Quorum Sensing 3-Oxo N-Acyl Homoserine Lactone Molecules, Darren Crowe, Alan Nicholson, Adrienne Fleming, Ed Carey, Goar Sanchez-Sanz, Fintan Kelleher

Articles

In their ¹H NMR spectra in CDCl₃ 3-oxo-N-acyl homoserine lactones (OHLs) show significant downfield chemical shifts of the amide N-H proton when compared to the parent N-acyl homoserine lactones (AHLs). NMR spectroscopic and DFT calculation studies have shown that this is most likely due to the presence of a stabilising intramolecular H-bond from the N-H to the 3-oxo group. The ¹H NMR spectra also show evidence for the enol tautomers and that the amount of enol present for a range of OHLs is 4.1-4.5% in CDCl₃ and 6.5-7.2% in CD₃CN. In …

Detection Of Cathinone And Mephedrone In Plasma By Lc-Ms/Ms Using Standard Addition Quantification Technique, Theron W. Ng-A-Qui

Student Theses

Designer drugs are structural analogs of Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Schedule I and II substances. They are synthesized to mimic the effects of illegal drugs of abuse and to bypass the provisions of drug regulations. Despite the increased availability of designer drugs, few studies have focused on specific analytical extraction techniques for their detection and quantification in biological samples. Solid phase extraction (SPE) is the most commonly used technique for sample preparation. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the extraction efficiency of the various SPE columns with different sorbent materials for two designer drugs, cathinone and mephedrone in …

An Investigation Of Chemical Identity Thinking, Courtney L. Ngai

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Chemical identity is a foundational crosscutting concept in chemistry and encompasses the knowledge, reasoning, and practices relevant for the classification and differentiation of substances. Substances are found everywhere – from the chemistry classroom to the kitchen at home – so classification and differentiation of substances is important for everyday decisions as well as challenges that are solved using chemistry. An understanding of chemical identity, then, is essential for scientifically literate citizens in addition to students training to be chemists. A better understanding of how chemical identity thinking develops could be used to inform instruction and education research, with the intent …

Serendipitous Discovery Of Light-Induced (In Situ) Formation Of An Azo-Bridged Dimeric Sulfonated Naphthol As A Potent Ptp1b Inhibito, Robert D. Bongard, Michael Lepley, Khushabu Thakur, Marat R. Talipov, Jaladhi Nayak, Rachel A. Jones Lipinski, Chris Bohl, Noreena Sweeney, Ramani Ramchandran, Rajendra Rathore, Daniel S. Sem

Chemistry Faculty Research and Publications

Background

Protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs) like dual specificity phosphatase 5 (DUSP5) and protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) are drug targets for diseases that include cancer, diabetes, and vascular disorders such as hemangiomas. The PTPs are also known to be notoriously difficult targets for designing inihibitors [sic] that become viable drug leads. Therefore, the pipeline for approved drugs in this class is minimal. Furthermore, drug screening for targets like PTPs often produce false positive and false negative results.

Results

Studies presented herein provide important insights into: (a) how to detect such artifacts, (b) the importance of compound re-synthesis and verification, and …