Digital Commons Network^™

Molecular Docking And Qsar Study On Imidazole Derivatives As 14 /Alpha -Demethylase Inhibitors, Asghar Davood, Maryam Iman

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

14\alpha-Demethylase (CYP51) inhibitors have been widely used in the treatment of fungal infections. In this study, a series of imidazole derivatives with CYP51 inhibitory activity were subjected to a molecular docking study followed by quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) analyses in search of the ideal physicochemical characteristics of potential CYP51 inhibitors. Desired imidazoles were built using the HyperChem program, and conformational studies were performed through a semiempirical method followed by the PM3 method. Docking study was performed using the AutoDock program on all of the compounds. Different QSAR descriptors were calculated using DRAGON, AutoDock, and HyperChem. Multilinear regression was used as …

The Case For Intrinsically Disordered Proteins Playing Contributory Roles In Molecular Recognition Without A Stable 3d Structure, Vladimir N. Uversky, A. Keith Dunker

Molecular Medicine Faculty Publications

The classical ‘lock-and-key’ and ‘induced-fit’ mechanisms for binding both originated in attempts to explain features of enzyme catalysis. For both of these mechanisms and for their recent refinements, enzyme catalysis requires exquisite spatial and electronic complementarity between the substrate and the catalyst. Thus, binding models derived from models originally based on catalysis will be highly biased towards mechanisms that utilize structural complementarity. If mere binding without catalysis is the endpoint, then the structural requirements for the interaction become much more relaxed. Recent observations on specific examples suggest that this relaxation can reach an extreme lack of specific 3D structure, leading …

Modeling Sediment Accumulation In North American Playa Wetlands In Response To Climate Change, 1940–2100, Lucy Burris, Susan K. Skagen

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Playa wetlands on the west-central Great Plains of North America are vulnerable to sediment infilling from upland agriculture, putting at risk several important ecosystem services as well as essential habitats and food resources of diverse wetland-dependent biota. Climate predictions for this semi-arid area indicate reduced precipitation which may alter rates of erosion, runoff, and sedimentation of playas. We forecasted erosion rates, sediment depths, and resultant playa wetland depths across the west-central Great Plains and examined the relative roles of land use context and projected changes in precipitation in the sedimentation process. We estimated erosion with the Revised Universal Soil Loss …

Novel G-Quadruplex Binders With Potential For A Dual Dna Cross-Linking Mechanism Of Action, Nathan S. Duncan

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Genomic DNA is organized around the double-stranded of B-form DNA, which is both durable and flexible enough to store and pass on genetic information. Once freed from the associations of an extended complimentary sequence, single stranded DNA and RNA can adopt a vast array of stable secondary structure motifs, such as stem-loop, pseudo-knots, and tetra-loops, ideal for its involvement in biological settings other than as a store of genetic information. Originally, alkylating agents were used as "mustard gas" and related chemical weapons in World War I. Alkylating agents, in general, can react with one or two different 7-N-guanine residues and …

Design, Synthesis And Characterization Of Peptidomimetic Conjugate Of Bodipy Targeting Her2 Protein Extracellular Domain, Sashikanth Banappagari, Alecia Mccall, Krystal Fontenot, M. Graca H. Vicente, Amit Gujar, Seetharama Satyanarayanajois

Faculty Publications

Among the EGFRs, HER2 is a major heterodimer partner and also has important implications in the formation of particular tumors. Interaction of HER2 protein with other EGFR proteins can be modulated by small molecule ligands and, hence, these protein-protein interactions play a key role in biochemical reactions related to control of cell growth. A peptidomimetic (compound 5-1) that binds to HER2 protein extracellular domain and inhibits protein-protein interactions of EGFRs was conjugated with BODIPY (4,4-difluoro-5,7-dimethyl-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza- s-indacene). Conjugation of BODIPY to the peptidomimetic was investigated by different approaches. The conjugate was characterized for its ability to bind to HER2 overexpressing SKBR-3 …

Ecology Of Glacial Relict Fishes In South Dakota's Sandhills Region, Eli Felts

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Native stream fish zoogeography has changed substantially across North America during the last century as habitat degradation, stream fragmentation and introductions of nonnative species have led to numerous extinctions, extirpations and altered distributions. Insufficient information regarding imperiled species often results in reactive, rather than proactive, management, and knowledge of species status and ecology is critical in identifying conservation priorities. South Dakota populations of three dace species (northern redbelly dace Chrosomus eos, finescale dace Chrosomus neogaeus, and pearl dace Margariscus margarita) are relict of Pleistocene Glaciation and are isolated from the northern core of their distribution, but little information exists regarding …

A Distributed Local-Leg Feedback Algorithm For Robust Walking On Uneven Terrain, Mayur Ramakant Palankar

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Legged animals can traverse significantly more of the Earth's land mass than man-made wheeled and tracked vehicles~\cite{Anonymous67}. Their impressive mobility is largely due to multiple dexterous legs and the robust algorithms that coordinate and control them. A legged animal such as a squirrel can exhibit multiple locomotion modes such as walking, running and jumping and also multiple gaits or leg phase timings within each mode. A robot that could mimic this level of robust locomotion would be highly useful for planetary exploration, military reconnaissance, and time-critical search and rescue in cluttered or collapsed buildings.

A number of biological studies on …

Perceptions Of Psychology Among Seminary And Biology Students At Andrews University, Sandro Moraes

Master's Theses

Problem. Both pastors and biologists frequently interact with individuals. These contacts often involve conversations that deal with an individual’s feelings, behaviors, and the relationship between mind and body. Thus, how seminarians and biologists perceive psychology will greatly affect such interactions. Therefore it is important to know how both professionals perceive psychology. This is not all that different from the research biologists perform as they learn about the brain. Because of the interrelatedness between these two professions, what are the perceptions of psychology among seminary and biology students at Andrews University? -- Method. The data gathered from the responses of biology …

(S)-Trifluoroselenomethionine : A New Non-Natural Amino Acid With Enhanced Methioninase-Induced Cytotoxicity Toward Human Colon Cancer Cells, Stephene Nathele Lodge

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Abstract

Expanding The Chemistry Of Fluorescent Protein Biosensors Through Genetic Incorporation Of Unnatural Amino Acids, Wei Niu, Jiantao Guo

Department of Chemistry: Faculty Publications

Fluorescent proteins are essential tools in biological research, ranging from the study of individual biological components to the interrogation of complex cellular systems. Fluorescent protein derived biosensors are increasingly applied to the study of biological molecules and events in living cells. The present review focuses on a specific class of fluorescent protein biosensors in which a genetically installed unnatural amino acid (UAA*) acts as the sensing element. Upon direct interaction with the analyte of interest, the chemical and/or physical properties of UAA* are altered, which triggers fluorescence property changes of the biosensor and generates readouts. In comparison to mutagenesis approaches …

Inquiro 7 (End Matter), Inquiro Staff

Inquiro (undergraduate research journal)

pp. 68-72

The Identity Of Magnolia Odoratissima (Magnoliaceae) From China, Shugang Chen, Qingwen Zeng

Turkish Journal of Botany

The type specimen of Magnolia odoratissima Y.W.Law & R.Z.Zhou (Magnoliaceae) conflicts with the protologue and belongs to the genus Parakmeria Hu & W.C.Cheng. A new name, Magnolia kwangnanensis S.G.Chen & Q.W.Zeng sp. nov., and a new type are designated to accommodate the original description. Here we provide new data and a detailed morphological description for this species. Notes are also presented on its habitat, pollen morphology, and conservation status.

Effect Of Doping On Β-Tricalcium Phosphate Bioresorbable Bulk Material And Thin Film Coatings, Suhaila Abdalla

Dissertations

Magnesium has emerged as a revolutionary biodegradable metal for use as an orthopedic material, it has several advantages over the permanent metallic materials currently in use, including eliminating the effects of stress shielding, improving biocompatibility and degradation properties, thus removing the requirement of a second surgery for implant removal. Due to the rapid degradation of magnesium, it is necessary to control the corrosion rates of the materials to match the rates of bone healing. This dissertation reports on the effect of doping on the properties of β-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP). It also reports on its application as a thin film coating …

New Perspectives On How To Discover Drugs From Herbal Medicines: Cam's Outstanding Contribution To Modern Therapeutics, Si-Yuan Pan, Shu-Feng Zhou, Si-Hua Gao, Zhi-Ling Yu, Shuo-Feng Zhang, Min-Ke Tang, Jian-Ning Sun, Dik-Lung Ma, Yi-Fan Han, Wang-Fun Fong, Kam-Ming Ko

Pharmacy Faculty Publications

With tens of thousands of plant species on earth, we are endowed with an enormous wealth of medicinal remedies from Mother Nature. Natural products and their derivatives represent more than 50% of all the drugs in modern therapeutics. Because of the low success rate and huge capital investment need, the research and development of conventional drugs are very costly and difficult. Over the past few decades, researchers have focused on drug discovery from herbal medicines or botanical sources, an important group of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapy. With a long history of herbal usage for the clinical management of …

Development Of High-Throughput Catalyst Screening For Ammonia Based Selective Catalytic Reduction Of Nitric Oxide With Parallel Analysis Using Fourier Transform Infrared Imaging, Shahriar Salim

Theses and Dissertations

Lean-burn engines, which operate under excess air to fuel ratio offer significant fuel efficiency as well as contribute to the reductions of greenhouse gas emissions. However, lean burn engines produce three main pollutants carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx) and unburned or partially burned hydrocarbons (HC), which have detrimental effect on both environment and human life. The conventional three way catalyst (TWC) which was designed to reduce NOx under stoichiometric conditions is not effective under lean-burn engine exhaust condition. Recent studies have shown that copper (Cu) exchanged chabazite (CHA) type zeolites are very promising catalysts for urea or ammonia (NH3) …

Phylogeny And Ancestral Genome Reconstruction From Gene Order Using Maximum Likelihood And Binary Encoding, Fei Hu

Theses and Dissertations

Over the long history of genome evolution, genes get rearranged under events such as rearrangements, losses, insertions and duplications, which in all change the ordering and content along the genome. Recent progress in genome-scale sequencing renews the challenges in the reconstructions of phylogeny and ancestral genomes with gene-order data. Such problems have been proved so interesting that a large number of algorithms have been developed rigorously over the past few years in attempts to tackle these problems following various principles. However, difficulties and limitations in performance and scalability largely prevent us from analyzing emerging modern whole-genome data, our study presented …

Discovery Of New Biomarkers Of Mild Cognitive Impairment And Alzheimer's Disease Risk In Buccal Cells Using Laser Scanning Cytometry, Maxime Francois

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Previous studies have shown that mild cognitive impairment (MCI) may reflect the early stages of more pronounced neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD). In clinical practice, patients with AD are not usually identified until the disease has progressed to a stage when primary prevention is no longer possible. Therefore there is a need for a minimally invasive and inexpensive diagnostic to identify those who exhibit cellular pathology indicative of MCI and AD risk so that they can be prioritised for primary prevention. Human buccal cells are accessible in a minimally invasive manner, and exhibit cytological and nuclear morphologies that …

What Is Known About Species Richness And Distribution On The Outer-Shelf South Texas Banks?, Harriet L. Nash, Sharon J. Furiness, John W. Tunnell Jr.

Gulf and Caribbean Research

The outer-shelf South Texas Banks, also known as the snapper banks, are known by fishermen to be excellent fishing grounds. However, few scientific studies have been conducted to describe the ecology of these uncommon but distinctive habitats. This paper describes results of a literature review and an assessment to determine what is known about the biota of the South Texas Banks and to assist in developing renewed interest and focus on these topographic highs. The outer-shelf South Texas Banks include relict coralgal reefs and relict barrier islands, and we also include data for a nearshore site, which is geographically and …

Suitability Of Real-Time Quantitative Pcr To Estimate The Relative Telomere Length In European Hake (Merluccius Merluccius Linnaeus, 1758), Estabaliz López De Abechuco, Manuel Soto, Miguel Angel Pardo, Mark F. Haussmann, Guzmán Díez

Faculty Journal Articles

Telomere length measurement has been proposed as a promising tool to estimate the age of individuals in natural populations. We used real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) to measure relative telomere length in four tissues (brain, kidney, liver and muscle) of European hake (Merluccius merluccius) in different groups based upon body length an otolith age estimate. We observed a high level of inter-individual differences in the measurements of relative telomere length in hakes of similar age and body length groups. The results of qPCR analysis showed a great variability in all measures and a lack of repeatability and reproducibility with significant statistical …

Expression Of Rna Nanoparticles Based On Bacteriophage Phi29 Prna In Escherichia Coli And Bacillus Subtilis, Le Zhang

Theses and Dissertations--Pharmacy

Currently, most of the RNAs used in lab research are prepared by in vitro transcription or chemical synthesis, which can be costly. In vivo expression in bacterial cells is another approach to RNA preparation that allows large scale production at a lower cost. However, there are some obstacles in bacterial expression, including RNA degradation in host cell, as well as RNA extraction and purification. tRNA and 5S RNA have been reported as scaffolds to circumvent the degradation problem. These scaffolds can not only make the RNA product survive in the cell but also increase the stability after extraction.

The packaging …

Immature Stages Of Spodoptera Albula (Walker) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae): Developmental Parameters And Host Plants, Débora G. Montezano, Alexandre Specht, Tarciso M. Bortolin, Edegar Fronza, Daniel Ricardo Sosa-Gómez, Vânia F. Roque-Specht, Patricia Pezzi, Priscila C. Luz, Neiva M. Barros

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

This study aimed to detail the temporal and morphological parameters of the immature stages of Spodoptera albula (Walker 1857) under controlled conditions (25 ± 1°C, 70 ± 10% RH and 14 hour photophase) and to gather information about their larval host plants. For this purpose, a new rearing method and artificial diet was employed and validated. The viability of the egg, larval, pupal and pre-pupal stages was 94.54, 97.33, 93.84 and 92.34%, respectively. The average duration of the egg, larval, pupal and pre-pupal stages was 4.14, 16.37, 1.69, and 9.34 days, respectively. During the larval stage, 80.85% of females and …

Synthetic Efforts Toward The Eastern Hemisphere Of Theonellamide C, Douglas D. Wong

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The theonellamides (TNMs) A-F are bicyclic dodecapeptides isolated from marine sponges of the genus Theonella and were shown to display potent antifungal activity. Despite considerable synthetic effort to produce TNM F by the Shioiri group in the early 1990s, a total synthesis of a TNM has yet to be reported. This dissertation describes our efforts toward some of the required amino acid residues of TNM C and the eastern hemisphere. The production of erythro-β-hydroxyasparagine (eHyAsn) followed the synthesis of threo-β-HyAsn by Boger and co-workers, utilizing a key Sharpless aminohydroxylation reaction. The eHyAsn building block, Boc-eHyAsn(OTBS)-OH, was coupled with HCl.Phe.OMe using …

Synthesis, Characterization And Biological Studies Of Carboranyl-Porphyrin Bioconjugates For Treatment Of Brain Tumors, Naga Venkata Satya Dinesh Kumar Bhupathiraju

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Chapter 1 gives a brief introduction to brain tumors, approaches to deliver drug across the blood brain barrier (BBB), boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) for brain tumors, application of carboranyl derivatives in attempt to treat brain tumors using BNCT. Chapter 2 involves synthesis, characterization and toxicity studies (In vitro and In vivo) of high boron containing pegylated cobaltabisdicarbollide porphyrin for treatment of brain tumors using BNCT. To improve the selectivity towards brain tumors we attempted conjugate several peptides to this non-toxic pegylated cobaltabiscabollide porphyrin. In vivo studies were conducted in collaboration with Dr. David G. Baker at LSU veterinary Medicine. …

Phytochemicals From The Roots Of Northern Highbush Blueberry (Vaccinium Corymbosum), Amanda Cirello

Open Access Master's Theses

Growing evidence from many in vitro studies suggest that plants produce secondary metabolites which may have potential physiological properties. The northern highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.) plant is commercially cultivated for its valuable dark-blue fruit, which has been extensively researched and has been shown to contain phenolic compounds recognized to have positive health benefits. Thus, an evaluation of other parts of the plant, that as of yet have not been investigated, could be worthwhile. There may be undiscovered bioactive compounds within the roots of this plant that may contribute to the improvement of human health. This rationale supports further …

Ambidentate Salicylaldimines N-(3-Aminopropyl) Morpholine: Coordination Behaviour Towards Copper, Nickel And Zinc Divalent Ions And Biological Applications / Nurul Azimah Binti Ikmal Hisham, Nurul Azimah Ikmal Hisham

Student Works (2010-2019)

Two flexidentate Schiff-base ligands condensed from salicylaldehyde or 5-chlorosalicylaldehyde with N-(3-aminopropyl)morpholine were prepared in situ and reacted with zinc(II), copper(II) and nickel(II) salts. These compounds were characterised by elemental analyses and various physico-chemical techniques. Single crystal X-ray analyses were carried out on nine different complexes. Upon complexation, the Schiff bases underwent deprotonation at the hydroxyl to act as mono-anionic ligands. When a ligand:metal ratio of 2:1 was applied, the deprotonated Schiff bases coordinated metal ions through phenolate and imine groups in a square-planar or tetrahedral geometry. In contrast, 5-chlorosalicylaldimine reacted with the metal ions in a 1:1 ratio to form …

Wound Healing Potential Of Copper (Ii) Bis [N'- (5-Chloro-1hindol-3-Yl) Methyl Nicotinic Hydrazide] On Experimentally Induced Excision Wounds In Rats / Morvarid Rahnama, Morvarid Rahnama

Student Works (2010-2019)

Considering the importance of wounds in human health proclaims the necessity of discovering and developing new effective drug-to-be agents. Cl-indole-nicotinic is a Schiff base compound with promising structural potentials in accelerating healing of wounds. The purpose of present study is to investigate Cl-indole-nicotinic effects on wound healing and acute toxicity on Sprague Dawley rats as well as its activity as an antimicrobial and an antioxidant agent. The manually induced dermal incision on dorsal neck area of four groups of male SD rats were treated for 10 days with high dose compound (50 mg/kg), low dose compound (25 mg/kg), CMC 5%, …

Phytochemical And Biological Studies On Lindera Oxyphylla And Litsea Costalis (Nees) Kosterm (Lauraceae) / Masoumeh Hosseinzadeh, Masoumeh Hosseinzadeh

Student Works (2010-2019)

The phytochemical studies on Lindera oxyphylla and Litsea costalis (Nees) Kosterm from the family Lauraceae were performed. The extraction process was carried out using various solvent such as hexane, dichloromethane and methanol and the separation was conducted using column chromatography followed by preparative TLC or PTLC and finally the structural elucidation of isolated compounds was established on the basis of spectroscopic studies such as UV, IR, CD, OR, 1D and 2D NMR and MS (LC-MS) experiments. A total of thirty compounds were isolated from Lindera oxyphylla and Litsea costalis (Nees) Kosterm and these plant species have never been investigated before. …

Viability Of Butternut (Juglans Cinerea L) In The Northeastern United States: An Assessment Of The Genetic Diversity, Health, And Hybridization And Recruitment Of Butternut In The Northeast, Andre A W Boraks

Master's Theses and Capstones

Butternut (Juglans cinerea) trees are being extirpated from their natural range by means of an epidemic caused by a fungal pathogen. Widespread mortality is reminiscent of past epidemics on American chestnut (Castanea dentata) and American elm (Ulmus americana ). Understanding the course of contemporary decline of this tree species will provide greater insight on processes of potential extinction and the results of management to prevent it.

This thesis applies an interdisciplinary approach to characterize butternut of the northeastern Unites States. While there is evidence of weak genetic structuring, butternut appears to have maintained sufficient dispersal to prevent isolation and inbreeding …

Synthetic Biology Of Cyanobacteria: Unique Challenges And Opportunities, Bertram M. Berla, Rajib Saha, Cheryl M. Immethun, Costas D. Maranas, Tae Seok Moon, Himadri B. Pakras

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Photosynthetic organisms, and especially cyanobacteria, hold great promise as sources of renewably-produced fuels, bulk and specialty chemicals, and nutritional products. Synthetic biology tools can help unlock cyanobacteria's potential for these functions, but unfortunately tool development for these organisms has lagged behind that for S. cerevisiae and E. coli. While these organisms may in many cases be more difficult to work with as "chassis" strains for synthetic biology than certain heterotrophs, the unique advantages of autotrophs in biotechnology applications as well as the scientific importance of improved understanding of photosynthesis warrant the development of these systems into something akin to a …

Geostatistical Analysis Of Arsenic In Soils At The University Of Mississippi Field Station., Elsie Ekene Okoye

Honors Theses

Arsenic is pervasive throughout North Mississippi’s soils (Pettry and Switzer, 2001; Fordham and Norrish, 1983 and; Kaiser and Guggenberger, 2003). This is largely due to the use of pesticides and herbicides in past and present years, as arsenic is a fundamental component in chemicals used for agricultural purposes. Soils contaminated with arsenic present a serious hazard to human health due to the possibility of contaminating surface and groundwater, as well as food through plant uptake of arsenic. Consequently, it is important to understand the process and effects of arsenic absorption in soil. The focus of this research is on the …