Digital Commons Network^™

Environment And Sexual Expression: Hormone-Induced Sex Change In Sexually Plastic Trees, Jillian Hickok, Colin Kalkman, Michael Laporte, Arsh Mir, Samantha Weaver

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

In a small number of species, plant sex expression is an environmentally determined characteristic and can change throughout the organism’s lifetime. This plastic response to environmental changes has important and intrinsically interesting ecological and evolutionary implications, but is as yet an understudied phenomenon. In particular, little is known about the proximate hormonal cues that mediate plastic sex determination. This study examines the impact of selective hormonal treatment on sex expression in a sexually plastic tree species, Acer Pensylvaticum, with the aim of further elucidating this idiosyncratic process. Live A. pensylvanicum twig samples were taken from five trees in Sleeping …

Ubiquitination Of Xct: Impacts On The Protein's Stability, Turnover Rate, And Localization, Sofia Rosenberger

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

System x_c^- imports cystine and exports glutamate. Its presence on the plasma membrane has been shown to increase directly with oxidative insults. Ubiquitin, a small protein, is directly involved in the trafficking and degradation of numerous proteins within cells and has been shown to bind to System x_c^-. Moreover, upon oxidative insult, protein ubiquitination increases. However, it is not understood how ubiquitination of the transporter impacts its activity. Therefore, the objective of this project is to directly assess how ubiquitination affects the protein’s stability, turnover rate, and localization in the context of oxidative stress. We …

The Role Of Brain Injury In Neural Proliferation And Neuronal Migration In Adult Zebrafish, Matthew Czmer, Ashley Trainor, Carmen Casper

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is increasing in prevalence, with around 1.5 million people in the United States sustaining a head injury every year. Neural death following TBI contributes significantly to neurological dysfunction and, in extreme cases, death. Adult zebrafish prove a unique and advantageous model of study as they are capable of de novo neural regeneration (i.e., neurogenesis) following brain injury. While it is known that robust cell proliferation occurs in the ventricular zone (VZ) of the telencephalon of adult zebrafish, it is unknown whether these newly-generated cells and their migration aid in the process of neural repair after TBI. …

The Local Is Global: Voices Of Leaders In Coffee Justice, Megan Kamper

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

This interdisciplinary project on coffee and justice considered the impact of local choices in West Michigan on global producers of coffee from both a biology and humanities perspective. The humanities part of the project included a series of video interviews that captured the perspectives of local coffee leaders (roasters, coffee shop owners, and lead staff members) in West Michigan who have a passion for justice issues in the coffee industry. In these interviews conducted using oral history methodologies, leaders shared their understanding of justice as it relates to coffee production, processing, and consumption; methods of pursuing ethically-sourced coffee (including Fair …

Understanding The Role Of Serine 26 Phosphorylation Changes In Peroxidemediated Trafficking Of System XC- To The Cell Membrane, Katherine Lane

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Composed of xCT and 4F2HC, System x_c^- is involved in importing cystine and exporting glutamate from the cell. xCT is directly involved in cystine-glutamate transport, and 4F2hc is responsible for stabilizing and moving xCT onto the cell membrane. Previous studies found that phosphorylating serine 26 (S26) on xCT inhibits xCT activity by moving system x_c^- off the cell membrane into lysosomes to be degraded (Figure 1). A previous study by the Chase lab showed that treating COS7 cells with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) led to significantly higher amounts of xCT on the cell membrane. The objective of …

Investigating Auditory And Visual Seasonality In House Finches, Ashley Lauraine, Hannah Peterson, Jordan Winters

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Many birds receive both visual and auditory signals in mate selection, such as plumage color and song differences within conspecifics, which has implications for behavioral and communication processes. This processing of stimuli from different systems as a combined signal is also known as multimodal sensory processing. Sex hormone levels correlating with reproduction efforts vary seasonally in temperate animals, leading to changes in sensory processing as well. As the seasons progress, sex hormones (i.e. estrogen and testosterone) fluctuate, and an increase or decrease in these hormones has shown an impact on hearing in songbird species, however, less is known about the …

Modeling Dopaminergic Loss In The Zebrafish Olfactory System, Lexus Putt, Samantha Groenwold, Ted Lockett, Nathaniel Vorhees

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Zebrafish provide an ideal model to study neurodegenerative diseases and regenerative processes as they present neurogenesis and a high degree of neuroplasticity throughout their lifespan. It has been suggested that dopamine has an important role in regulating olfaction. We aimed to study the structural and functional effects of dopaminergic loss in the olfactory system. We injected 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) int the ventricular zone of adult zebrafish at the interphase between the olfactory bulbs and the telencephalon to target dopaminergic neurons in the olfactory bulb.Then, we assessed dopaminergic neural loss, markers of inflammation, morphological changes of olfactory axons, and synaptic connections. Olfactory …

Retrograde Degeneration Of The Olfactory Epithelium Following Neurotoxic Lesioning In Zebrafish, Sophia A. Farbarzhevich, Riley G. Checkley, Mackenzie T. Williams, Rachel J. Mast

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Parkinson’s Disease (PD), a neurodegenerative disease that deteriorates dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra, is characterized by movement deficits, sleep disturbances, mental deficits, and hallucinations. About 95% of those with PD experience olfactory dysfunction or loss of the sense of smell. Prior research found evidence of retrograde degeneration in animal models of PD, which occurs when axons degenerate proximal to the neural injury itself, beginning in the axon terminals and proceeding to the cell body. Although dopaminergic retrograde degeneration has been observed in PD models, it is unknown if this contributes to some non-motor PD’s symptoms, such as olfactory loss. …

Implications Of Iron Oxide Nanoparticle Exposure On The Auditory Physiology And Iron Bioaccumulation In House Sparrows (Passer Domesticus), Shae Johnston, Peyton Hallemann, Olivia Sprys-Tellner

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Air pollution (including particulate matter, PM) has increased as a result of a dramatic increase in urbanization. Nanoparticles within PM can be detrimental to health when inhaled., because they are small enough to bypass the blood-brain and blood-gas barriers, and can potentially accumulate in organs within the organism. For example, previous work has linked bioaccumulation of iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPS) to cancer and organ poisoning. Interestingly, in model organisms, nanoparticle exposure has also been linked to hearing deficits, suggesting that decline in hearing may be an early bioindicator of future health consequences. While the specific mechanism for this hearing deficit …

Validating Boyness: How Art Education Allows Male Adolescent Students A Space For Authenticity, Vulnerability, Empathy, And Connection, Stephanie Behlke-Mcfarland

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines societal norms and unwritten rules for boys as they mature. It is hypothesized that most boys deal with emotional suppression or dissociation in varying degrees of severity due to traumas during their developmental years. This dissociation creates an inability to express their own emotions adequately and therefore affects their ability to empathize with others. A lack of vulnerability may also be a common challenge among boys society still considers vulnerability weakness. This pattern continues into adulthood and is then perpetuated through posterity and future generations. This thesis explores through a qualitative case study how using art integration …

Structure Of Native Four-Repeat Satellite Iii Sequence With Non-Canonical Base Interactions, Erin Chen , '23, M. Trajkovski, Hyun Kyung Lee , '21, Samantha Nyovanie, Kailey N. Martin, W. L. Dean, M. Tahiliani, J. Plavec, Liliya A. Yatsunyk

Chemistry & Biochemistry Faculty Works

Tandem-repetitive DNA (where two or more DNA bases are repeated numerous times) can adopt non-canonical secondary structures. Many of these structures are implicated in important biological processes. Human Satellite III (HSat3) is enriched for tandem repeats of the sequence ATGGA and is located in pericentromeric heterochromatin in many human chromosomes. Here, we investigate the secondary structure of the four-repeat HSat3 sequence 5′-ATGGA ATGGA ATGGA ATGGA-3′ using X-ray crystallography, NMR, and biophysical methods. Circular dichroism spectroscopy, thermal stability, native PAGE, and analytical ultracentrifugation indicate that this sequence folds into a monomolecular hairpin with non-canonical base pairing and B-DNA characteristics at concentrations …

Fishing For Answers: Studying Hypoxia's Effects On The Zebrafish Olfactory Epithelium, Madelyn Yakes, Skylar Dewitt, Gracie Hill

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Hypoxia, i.e. low oxygen, is a physiologically damaging condition found in many health conditions such as ischemic stroke, sleep apnea, asthma, etc. Additionally, decreased dissolved oxygen levels in aquatic environments occur as a result of climate change. Zebrafish offer an excellent model to study hypoxia due to extensive neuroplasticity and injury-induced cell proliferation, which allows them to recover lost function in the central nervous system (CNS). We have shown that olfaction (i.e., the ability to smell), decreases in response to hypoxic exposure in adult zebrafish. Thus, it is important to study the structural abnormalities underlying this loss of smell. Olfactory …

Explorehope Summer Camps: Amazing Animal Abilities, Hannah Sturgeon, Alyssa Archer, Ashley Lauraine

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Did you know that mice can hear sounds that humans cannot? Or that birds and bees can see colors we can only dream of? ExploreHope is an organization on the Hope College campus that has been hosting summer camps for elementary to high school level students for 27 years. The ExploreHope Amazing Animal Abilities camp for students in grades 6 through 9 will explore the many incredible sensory abilities of animals. This camp will teach participants about a vast variety of sensory systems observed across the animal kingdom including the visual, auditory, and olfactory systems, mechanoreception and kinesthetics, and the …

Lc-Ms/Ms For Proteomic Analysis Of Post-Translational Modifications On Xct, Connor Bricco

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Membrane protein xCT and its heavy chain component 4F2HC make up the xc- transport system. 4F2HC may be necessary for membrane localization of the heterodimer and xCT is responsible for transport activity. Under basal conditions, xCT resides in endosomes, but upon oxidative insult, xCT moves to the membrane and functions to reduce oxidative stress. We hypothesize the movement of xCT to the membrane is directed by changes in posttranslational modifications (PTMs) such as phosphorylation, ubiquitination and glycosylation. The overall goal of this project is to use mass spectrometry to detect the PTMs of xCT isolated from cells grown under basal …

Hope College Abstracts: 23rd Annual Celebration Of Undergraduate Research And Creative Activity, Hope College

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

The 23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity was held on April 12, 2024 in the Richard and Helen DeVos Fieldhouse at Hope College and featured student-faculty collaborative research projects. This program is a record reflective of those projects between the 2023-2024 academic year.

The Effects Of Vasopressin On Aquaporin-1 Expression And Localization In The Presence And Absence Of Vacm-1/Cul5, Parker Friend, Rachel Amicucci

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

The vasopressin-activated calcium mobilizing (VACM-1/Cul-5) protein plays a role in the E3 ubiquitin ligase system which is involved in the destruction of specific proteins. Our focus is on the impact that the (VACM-1/Cul-5) protein has on other proteins' expression and localization within human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC). One of the proteins of interest to us is aquaporin-1 (AQP1). AQP1 is a water transporter that impacts cell growth and angiogenesis. To evaluate how the presence of VACM-1/Cul5 impacts AQP1, cells with and without the VACM-1/Cul5 gene are analyzed in the presence of increased vasopressin. VACM-1/Cul5 is knocked out of the …

Ucc Minutes Apr 12, 2024, Undergraduate Curriculum Committee

Undergraduate Currirculum Committee Minutes

No abstract provided.

Unveiling Sensory Gaps: A Study On Zebrafish Alanine Taste Blindness And The Consequential Neurotoxic Impact On Dopaminergic Neurons In Motor Regions, Samantha Groenwold, Mackenzie Korff

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by deficits in motor functions including loss of coordination and hypertonia. Dopaminergic (DA) neuronal death is found in the substantia nigra and reward centers of the brain in PD patients. Smell loss is also associated with patients with PD as DA neurons are found in the Olfactory Bulb (OB), the brain structure that processes odor signals. We use zebrafish as a model to study neurodegenerative diseases, including PD, as they can regenerate neurons throughout their lifespan. We have established a model to study DA loss in the zebrafish olfactory system. To do …

The Play That Goes Wrong Playbill, Department Of Theatre, Dance & Film

Playbill and Promotion

Providence College Department of Theatre, Dance & Film

Angell Blackfriars Theatre

The Play That Goes Wrong, by Henry Lewis, Henry Shields, and Jonathan Sayer

April 12-14 & 19-21, 2024

Fridays & Saturdays, 7:30pm

Sundays, 2pm

Director, Patricia Tulli-Hawkridge

Set & Props Designer, Scott Osborne

Lighting Designer, Michael Clark Wonson

Sound Designer, Stuart Holland

Costume Designer, David Cabral

Vocal Coach, Megan Chang

Hair & Makeup Designer, Joe Rossi

Fight Choreographer, Jim Beauregard

Cast: Kevin Bongiorno - Trevor; Jack Josefowski - Chris; Brendan Phaneuf - Jonathan; Anthony Joseph - Robert; Jack Cormier - …

An Explanatory Sequential Mixed Methods Study To Understand Stakeholder Collaboration In Precision Medicine, Worlanyo Sosu-Sedzorme

Doctor of Philosophy in Translational Health Sciences Dissertations

Background: Precision medicine is a promising approach to healthcare that can improve the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of various health conditions. However, its implementation into clinical practice is complex and requires effective collaboration among multiple stakeholders. Unfortunately, the current state of stakeholder collaboration in precision medicine is poorly understood.

Objective: This study explored stakeholder collaboration in precision medicine to identify barriers and facilitators and propose recommendations for effective collaboration.

Study participants: The study recruited thirty-eight individuals involved in precision medicine, including providers, patients or guardians, administrative personnel, and researchers from multiple healthcare organizations, mainly in the mid-Atlantic …

Role Of Protein Kinase A And A Kinase Anchoring Proteins In Buffering And Compartmentation Of Camp Signalling In Human Airway Smooth Muscle Cells, Rinzhin T. Sherpa, Karni S. Moshal, Shailesh R. Agarwal, Rennolds S. Ostrom, Robert D. Harvey

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Background and Purpose

In human airway smooth muscle (hASM) cells, not all receptors stimulating cAMP production elicit the same effects. This can only be explained if cAMP movement throughout the cell is restricted, yet the mechanisms involved are not fully understood. Phosphodiesterases (PDEs) contribute to compartmentation of many cAMP responses, but PDE activity alone is predicted to be insufficient if cAMP is otherwise freely diffusible. We tested the hypothesis that buffering of cAMP by protein kinase A (PKA) associated with A kinase anchoring proteins (AKAPs) slows cAMP diffusion and that this contributes to receptor-mediated, compartmentalized responses.

Experimental Approach

Raster image …

Emerging Therapies For Glioblastoma, Stella Aime Rios, Stephanie Oyervides, David Uribe, Angelica Maree Reyes, Victor Fanniel, Jonathan Vazquez, Megan Keniry

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences Faculty Publications

Simple Summary

Glioblastoma is the most common malignant brain cancer and is associated with poor prognosis, with an average survival after diagnosis of less than 18 months. Hundreds of clinical trials have been conducted, with more underway to make progress in treating glioblastoma. This review details conventional and emergent targeted therapies for glioblastoma.

Abstract

Glioblastoma is most commonly a primary brain tumor and the utmost malignant one, with a survival rate of approximately 12–18 months. Glioblastoma is highly heterogeneous, demonstrating that different types of cells from the same tumor can manifest distinct gene expression patterns and biological behaviors. Conventional therapies …

Hormetic Modulation Of On Mtor Mitochondria Cross Talk For Mitigation Of Cellular Aging, Mahalakshmi R

Theses and Dissertations

Cellular aging is a gradual process involving structural and functional deterioration of cells. Mitochondria, the biological clock in cells, are known to play a crucial role in the progression of cell aging. According to the mitochondrial free radical theory of aging, oxidative phosphorylation in the mitochondria produces free radicals, such as, reactive oxygen species (ROS), which lead to oxidative stress in cells. This, in turn, results in mitochondrial dysregulation, and eventually causes degeneration of cellular components, thereby propagating cell aging. However, it is to be underscored that aging, at its core, is a multifaceted phenomenon that involves a number of …

Multivalency Of The Mdmx Acidic Domain Slims Use Different Binding Modes To Inhibit Mdmx And P53, Malissa Fenton

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Regulation of protein binding through autoinhibition commonly occurs via interactions involving intrinsically disordered regions (IDRs). These intramolecular interactions can directly or allosterically inhibit intermolecular protein or DNA binding, regulate enzymatic activity, and control the assembly of large macromolecular complexes. Autoinhibitory interactions mediated by protein disorder are inherently transient, making their identification and characterization challenging. In this work, we explore the structural and functional diversity of disorder-mediated autoinhibition for a variety of biological mechanisms, with a focus on the role of multivalency and effective concentration. We also discuss the evolution of disordered motifs that participate in autoinhibition using examples where sequence …

A Digital Twin Of The Infant Microbiome To Predict Neurodevelopmental Deficits., Nicholas Sizemore, Kaitlyn Oliphant, Ruolin Zheng, Camilia R Martin, Erika C Claud, Ishanu Chattopadhyay

Internal Medicine Faculty Publications

Despite the recognized gut-brain axis link, natural variations in microbial profiles between patients hinder definition of normal abundance ranges, confounding the impact of dysbiosis on infant neurodevelopment. We infer a digital twin of the infant microbiome, forecasting ecosystem trajectories from a few initial observations. Using 16S ribosomal RNA profiles from 88 preterm infants (398 fecal samples and 32,942 abundance estimates for 91 microbial classes), the model (Q-net) predicts abundance dynamics with R² = 0.69. Contrasting the fit to Q-nets of typical versus suboptimal development, we can reliably estimate individual deficit risk (M_δ) and identify infants …

Ruth Bader Ginsburg Essay/Art Contest 2024, Roger Williams University School Of Law

School of Law Conferences, Lectures & Events

No abstract provided.

Ud In The News April 6-12, University Of Dayton

News Releases

Local media featured our giving day and the Roger Glass Center for the Arts grand opening. The New York Times, Associated Press, USA TODAY, National Jurist and four national Catholic outlets are among those highlighting UD programs or expertise.

Collapsing Education And Teacher Rights In South Korea: Exploring Korean Teacher, Student, And Parent Relationships, Briyanna Moore

Honors Projects

South Korea has one of the best education systems, as Korean students tend to excel in multiple academic areas in comparison to the national averages of other countries (WENR, 2018). However, due to the high academic and societal pressures placed on Korean students to succeed in school, South Korean teachers have become increasingly overwhelmed with handling parent and student demands. Due to the updated Korean Child Welfare Act (2014), Korean teachers now face claims of child abuse from parents either for reprimanding students who were initially combative in class, or for denying parents’ request for after school extracurricular services for …

Occentatia: Community And Escapism Through Queer World-Building, Ian Cooper

Theses and Dissertations

55 PagesOccentatia is an investigation into queer world-building, inspired by fantasy games, electronic media, and the culture of the ‘90s and early 2000’s. Built by a diverse creative team of 22 artists, audiences and readers are invited to explore the medieval-Gothic world of Occentatia through drawing and illustration, video and audio, sculpture, and installation This supportive statement guides readers through inspirations, socially engaged art, insight into characters, and the development of fantastical narratives. I hope to provide clarity to my practice, displaying the need for more research on the role fantasy and gaming play in understanding queer identities, aesthetics, and …

Evaluation Of Seizure Recognition And First Aid Training Course And Improving Self-Efficacy Related To Medical Emergencies In Mississippi, Anna Katherine Herrington, Collin Earl Wayne Crawson, Daniel Robert Zuckerman

Honors Theses

Within recent years, there has been increased attention to the growing physician shortage across the United States. This shortage has placed substantial strain upon regions of lower healthcare access, particularly those of rural regions such as much of the state of Mississippi. As rural healthcare providers are placed under more strenuous conditions, they encounter issues of increased patient volume, lack of a trauma team, or adequate transportation to higher-level care facilities. These issues may exacerbate the present inequities in cost of living, access to adequate healthcare, and the distress caused by these concerns. Individuals with epilepsy are one cohort with …