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Full-Text Articles in Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology

Deciphering The Perpetual Fight Between Virus And Host: Utilizing Bioinformatics To Elucidate The Host's Genetic Mechanisms That Influence Jc Polyomavirus Infection, Michael P. Wilczek Aug 2021

Deciphering The Perpetual Fight Between Virus And Host: Utilizing Bioinformatics To Elucidate The Host's Genetic Mechanisms That Influence Jc Polyomavirus Infection, Michael P. Wilczek

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

JC polyomavirus (JCPyV) is a human-specific pathogen that infects 50-80% of the population, and can cause a deadly, demyelinating disease, known as progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML). In most of the population, JCPyV persistently infects the kidneys but during immunosuppression, it can reactivate and spread to the central nervous system (CNS), causing PML. In the CNS, JCPyV targets two cell types, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes. Due to the hallmark pathology of oligodendrocyte lysis observed in disease, oligodendrocytes were thought to be the main cell type involved during JCPyV infection. However, recent evidence suggests that astrocytes are targeted by the virus and act …


Infection And Diet-Induced Gut Dysbiosis: Impact On Sleep Quality In Danio Rerio, Benjamin Williams May 2021

Infection And Diet-Induced Gut Dysbiosis: Impact On Sleep Quality In Danio Rerio, Benjamin Williams

Honors College

A known bidirectional relationship between intestinal microflora and the central nervous system, coined the gut-brain-axis, has stimulated work on the association between gut dysbiosis and inflammation, and sleep quality. Previous studies in the Hayes Lab have reported that a high fat (HF) diet was correlated with immobile phases, a marker of low motility during sleep found in some neurological disease and sleep duration[1]. Long sleep duration (>1 S.D. above norms for age) is associated with poor sleep quality or sleep fragmentation in participants who are overweight or obese according to body mass index values[2]. The current work utilizes a …


Examining The Function Of Protein Acyltransferase Via The Dhhc Domain Of The Paz5 Protein In The Organism Dictyostelium Discoideum, George M. Stuart-Ranchev Dec 2020

Examining The Function Of Protein Acyltransferase Via The Dhhc Domain Of The Paz5 Protein In The Organism Dictyostelium Discoideum, George M. Stuart-Ranchev

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Protein S-palmitoylation plays a crucial role in many biological systems. S-palmitoylation involves the post-translational attachment of palmitate to a cysteine residue through a reversible thioester linkage. S-Palmitoylation is used to modify both integral and membrane proteins, many of which are involved in intracellular trafficking, membrane localization, and signal transduction pathways. Intracellular palmitoylation is mediated by a family of protein acyltransferases (PATs). PAT mutations are associated with neurological diseases and cancer progression. Proteins in the PAT family are defined by the presence of a 51-amino acid cysteine-rich domain (CRD), which contains a highly conserved aspartate-histidine-histidine-cysteine (DHHC) motif. The …


Quantification Of Interactions Between Influenza Hemagglutinin And Host Cell Phosphoinositides By Super-Resolution Microscopy, Matthew T. Parent May 2020

Quantification Of Interactions Between Influenza Hemagglutinin And Host Cell Phosphoinositides By Super-Resolution Microscopy, Matthew T. Parent

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The influenza viral membrane protein hemagglutinin (HA) forms dense nanoscale clusters on host cell plasma membranes (PM), but the mechanisms that direct HA clustering are not well understood. Previous studies have observed HA associated with actin rich regions of the PM, but there are no known direct interactions between HA and actin. Phosphatidylinositol 4,5-biphosphate (PIP2) is a signaling lipid in the PM which can regulate the actin cytoskeleton, and actin comets initiated by PIP2 are known to be exploited by HA to reach the PM of infected cells. PIP2 is also used by other viruses, such as HIV and Ebola, …


The Potential For Dickeya Dianthicola To Be Vectored By Two Common Insect Pests Of Potatoes, Jonas K. Insinga Dec 2019

The Potential For Dickeya Dianthicola To Be Vectored By Two Common Insect Pests Of Potatoes, Jonas K. Insinga

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Dickeya dianthicola (Samson) causing blackleg and soft rot was first detected in potatoes grown in Maine in 2014. Previous work has suggested that insects, particularly aphids, may be able to vector bacteria in this genus between plants, but no conclusive work has been done to confirm this theory. In order to determine whether insect-mediated transmission is likely to occur in potato fields, two model potato pests common in Maine were used: the Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decimlineata Say) and the green peach aphids (Myzus persicae Sulzer). Olfactometry and recruitment experiments evaluated if either insect discriminates between infected and …


Thermal And Microbial Effects On Brown Macroalgae: Heat Acclimation And The Biodiversity Of The Microbiome, Charlotte Tc Quigley Nov 2018

Thermal And Microbial Effects On Brown Macroalgae: Heat Acclimation And The Biodiversity Of The Microbiome, Charlotte Tc Quigley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines effects of stress on brown algal biology from a macroscopic scale by examining the whole aquaculture crops, and at a microscopic level by examining the macroalgal microbiome, across the vertical stress gradient of the intertidal zone and across the latitudes of their biogeographic ranges. Thermal stress negatively affected seedstock gametophytes of the kelp Alaria esculenta isolated from northern and southern locations in Maine. However, previous thermal stress had a positive effect on growth of the next-generation sporophytes. Alaria esculenta has potential as a kelp crop in Maine’s sea vegetable aquaculture sector and implementing this protocol may allow …


Identification Of Tnfaip8l1 Binding Partners Through Co-Immunoprecipitation And Mass Spectrometry, Audrey Hoyle May 2018

Identification Of Tnfaip8l1 Binding Partners Through Co-Immunoprecipitation And Mass Spectrometry, Audrey Hoyle

Honors College

The expanded understanding of the gene families and mechanisms governing tumorigenesis pathways has enormous potential for improving current cancer therapies and patient prognoses. One such gene family that participates in the regulation of tumorigenesis is the tumor necrosis factor alpha-induced protein 8 (TNFAIP8) gene family, which is comprised of four members: TNFAIP8, TNFAIP8L1, TNFAIP8L2, and TNFAIP8L3. The TNFAIP8L1 gene is thought to function as a tumor suppressor, but the mechanisms by which it exerts this function have yet to be elucidated. We hypothesize that the TNFAIP8L1 protein acts as a tumor suppressor through protein-protein …


Determining The Role Of Saly In Streptococcus Pyogenes Immune Evasion Using Fluorescence Microscopy, Taaniel Kiidli May 2018

Determining The Role Of Saly In Streptococcus Pyogenes Immune Evasion Using Fluorescence Microscopy, Taaniel Kiidli

Honors College

Streptococcus pyogenes, the etiologic agent for several life-threatening invasive diseases, utilizes numerous mechanisms to evade the host immune response and establish a successful infection causing a significant source of morbidity and mortality risks for patients. The bacterium is known to cause necrotizing fasciitis in both humans and zebrafish, with extensive necrotic damage to tissues but surprisingly lacking in an inflammatory response for a systemic infection. This suggests that the recruitment of inflammatory cells to the site of infection is inhibited. To observe this in real-time, we used the zebrafish model of Streptococcal pathogenesis to analyze immune cell recruitment in …


Dynamic Host-Pathogen Interactions Result In Fungal Epitope Unmasking, Alex Hopke Aug 2016

Dynamic Host-Pathogen Interactions Result In Fungal Epitope Unmasking, Alex Hopke

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Molecular camouflage is used by a diverse set of pathogens to disguise their identity and avoid recognition by protective host receptors. The opportunistic fungal pathogen Candida albicans is a good example, as it masks the inflammatory component β-glucan in its cell wall to evade detection by the immune receptor Dectin-1. Interestingly, it has been seen that β-glucan becomes unmasked during infection in vivo, though the underlying mechanisms remained unclear. Exposure levels of this epitope may be important, as Dectin-1 mediates protection from some strains of C. albicans and alterations in the organization and composition of the Candida cell wall …


Evolutionary And Molecular Analysis Of Conserved Vertebrate Immunity To Fungi, Erin Carter May 2013

Evolutionary And Molecular Analysis Of Conserved Vertebrate Immunity To Fungi, Erin Carter

Honors College

The innate immune system is highly conserved amongst all multicellular organisms. Yet a constant battle exists between host cells and pathogens due to the rapid evolution of immune system components. Functional genomics and in silico methods can be employed to elucidate the evolutionary patterns of vertebrate immunity to pathogenic fungi such as Candida albicans, an opportunistic fungal pathogen that can cause lethal candidiasis in the immunocompromised. Mammals such as humans and mice possess conserved C-type lectin receptors that recognize the C. albicans cell wall. However, these receptors have not been identified in fish. Here I describe how we identified potential …