Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology Commons^™

Analysis Of Biofilm Remediation Capacity For Octenyl Succinic Anhydride (Osa), A Bioactive Food Starch Modifier Compound, Matthew R. Borglin

Master's Theses

Matthew R. Borglin

This thesis demonstrates efficacy of Octenyl Succinic Anhydride (OSA), as a biofilm sanitizer. Biofilms allow bacteria to adhere to solid surfaces with the use of excreted polymeric compounds. For example, surfaces found in food production or processing facilities such as the interior of a raw milk holding tank, are some of the most susceptible to biofilm contamination. When present, biofilms can cause a variety of negative effects, which include; reduction of product shelf life, corrosion, and outbreaks of foodborne illnesses. The close association of biofilms with the majority of foodborne illness cases led the US Environmental Protection …

Study Of Paper Microbial Fuel Cells For Use In On-Site Wastewater Testing, William A. Tolmasoff

Master's Theses

This study demonstrated a technique for fabricating simple, low-cost Paper Microbial fuel cells (PMFC’s) in the model of a previous study to, for the first time, produce voltage from wastewater effluent. The PMFC’s were created by stacking and gluing the main components of an MFC together: reservoir layer; anode; cation exchange membrane (CEM); air cathode. A wax printer was used to create the hydrophobic borders of the PMFC’s on filter paper, and graphite paint was applied to the paper to create the anode. The CEM’s considered were filter paper, wax, and Nafion, with Nafion being the most efficient. Finally, the …

Adapting Cell-Free Protein Synthesis As A Platform Technology For Education, Grace W. Chu, Max Z. Levine, Nicole E. Gregorio, Javin P. Oza

STAR Program Research Presentations

Cell-free protein synthesis (CFPS) has emerged as an enabling biotechnology for research and biomanufacturing as it allows for the production of protein without the need for a living cell. Applications of CFPS include the construction of libraries for functional genomics and structural biology, the production of personalized medicine, and the expression of virus-like particles. The absence of a cell wall provides an open platform for direct manipulation of the reaction conditions and biological machinery. This project focuses on adapting the CFPS biotechnology to the classroom, making a hands-on bioengineering approach to learning protein synthesis accessible to students grades K-16 through …

An Assessment Of Potential False Positive E.Coli Pyroprints In The Cplop Database, Skyler A. Gordon

Master's Theses

The genetic information found in each species of organism is unique, and can be used as a tool to differentiate at the molecular level. This has caused rapid genotyping methods to become the cornerstone of a new area of research dependent on reading the genome as a form of identification. One of these specific identification methods, known as pyroprinting, relies on the small variation of DNA sequences within the same species to develop a unique, reproducible fingerprint. By simultaneously pyrosequencing multiple polymorphic loci within the ribosomal operons known as the intergenic transcribed spacers, a reproducible output is obtained, known as …

Production And Harvest Of Microalgae In Wastewater Raceways With Resource Recycling, Alexander Colin Roberts

Master's Theses

Microalgae can be grown on municipal wastewater media to both treat the wastewater and produce feedstock for algae biofuel production. However the reliability of treatment must be demonstrated, as well as high areal algae productivity on recycled wastewater media and efficient sedimentation harvesting. This processes was studied at pilot scale in the present research.

A pilot facility was operated with nine CO₂-supplemented raceway ponds, each with a 33-m² surface area and a 0.3-m depth, continuously from March 6, 2013 through September 24, 2014. The ponds were operated as three sets of triplicates with two sets continuously fed …

How Many Particles Are Present In The Air? Bioaerosol Detection Using An Air Particle Counter, Angie Pamela Rivera, Parag Vaishampayan

STAR Program Research Presentations

Relative cleanliness in terms of particle abundance in spacecraft assembly facilities is determined by particle counts carried out in clean rooms during resting conditions. Particle counters assess total particles and particle size distribution, but do not distinguish inert particles from biological particles, which may include bacterial spores that are resistant to standard cleanroom sterilization procedures. Current cleanroom certifications do not fully assess the effects of human presence on spacecraft contamination since humans are known symbionts to enumerate microorganisms and assessments are performed at rest when there is no human presence. In this study, contamination risks and bioburden in spacecraft assembly …

Characterizing The Response Of Multidrug-Resistant Klebsiella Pneumoniae Species To The Application Of A Phage Cocktail, Steven Liu

Symposium

Project Summary: The application of bacteriophages to treat bacterial infections is known as phage therapy, which takes advantage of bacteriophage’s natural ability to infect and lyse bacterial hosts. Phages have been shaped by billions of years of evolution to be highly specialized deliverers of bactericidal agents to the cytoplasm of their target bacteria. Ever since discovery of bacteriophages in 1915, phage therapy was recognized as a potentially powerful tool for eliminating bacterial infections. The effectiveness of phage therapy can be increased by creating a mixture of multiple phages to target a wider variety of bacterial strains. Furthermore, phage therapy has …

Optimizing Electrode Design For Microbial Fuel Cells Used For Wastewater Treatment, Lindsay Nichols, John A. Hogan

STAR Program Research Presentations

Microbial fuel cells (MFC) utilize bacteria to generate an electrical current that can be used in the decomposition of sludge and human urine. In a MFC there is an anode (for oxidation of organic compounds), cathode (reduction of oxygen or carbon dioxide), and a proton exchange membrane (PEM, allows protons to migrate); reduction-oxidation reactions between the anode and cathode produce a measurable current. Bacteria that are found in sludge can be used to produce electrons in a voltaic cell, but optimizing conditions for harnessing the energy is crucial to making a MFC efficient. Research has shown that the ratios of …

Detection Of Viable Microorganisms Using Propidium Monoazide, Erik J. Mcfarland, Adrian Ponce Dr.

STAR Program Research Presentations

Propidium monoazide (PMA) is a molecular tool used to assess viability of microorganisms. Currently, PMA is thought to discern viability through membrane permeability; PMA enters only membrane compromised cells, irreversibly crosslinks to theirDNAand precipitates theDNAout of solution, preventing it from being amplified during polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Using PMA on a sample of live and dead microorganisms results in only theDNAof living organisms being amplified and identified. Therefore, a comparison ofPCRresults with and without PMA allows one to determine the live fraction and total population, respectively.

Current literature provides conflicting evidence as to the effectiveness of the technique. Our research …

Analyzing Environmental Microbes For Genomic Regions Promoting Ionic Liquid Tolerance In E. Coli, Ann Nguyen, Alison Richins, Thomas Rüegg, Steven Singer, Michael Thelen

STAR Program Research Presentations

Ionic liquids (ILs) are promising as solvents to increase the efficiency of biofuel production; however, ILs are toxic to microbes used in the fermentation of liquid fuels. To engineer IL resistant biofuel hosts, environmental bacteria were screened for tolerance, and these were used to create gene libraries to test in E. coli. Future characterization of these libraries using molecular techniques will be used to identify genes that contribute IL-tolerance to transformed microbes.

Impact Of Collateral Enlargement On Smooth Muscle Phenotype, Alexander Jerome Bynum

Master's Theses

Peripheral Artery Disease is a very serious disease characterized by an arterial occlusion due to atherosclerotic plaques. In response to an arterial occlusion, arteriogenesis occurs, causing smooth muscle cells to transition from a contractile to synthetic state. Also following an arterial occlusion, functional impairment was seen in the collateral circuit. An immunofluorescence protocol was developed in order to assess the impact of collateral enlargement (arteriogenesis) on smooth muscle phenotype at various time points. Smooth muscle α-actin was used to mark all smooth muscle cells, Ki-67 was used to label proliferating smooth muscle cells, and a fluorescent nuclear stain was used …

Interspecies Comparison Of Αii-Spectrin Abundance Between Chinook Salmon And Steelhead, Brielle D. Kemis, Ann L. Miracle, Katie A. Wagner, Christa M. Woodley

STAR Program Research Presentations

Salmonids, such as Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) and steelhead (O. mykiss), are a staple economic, recreational, tribal, and environmental resource, yet many populations are unsustainable. This study was part of a broad scale effort to monitor the impact of downstream migration obstacles on juvenile salmonid health and survival, which is an essential step towards increasing Smolt-to-Adult Return ratios (SARs). The objective of this study was to determine if juvenile Chinook salmon and steelhead exhibit differing quantities of alphaII-Spectrin Breakdown Products (SBDPs) over two consecutive spring migration periods, indicative of neurogenesis rate and/or biological response to head …

Performance Screening Of Chemostat Adapted Recombinant Zymomonas Mobilis Strains, Deirdre M. Beard, Nancy Dowe

STAR Program Research Presentations

Corn stover biomass can be pretreaed and hydrolyzed into soluble sugars to be fermented by microorganisms to ethanol. NREL has developed a recombinant bacteria Zymomonas mobilis 8b that metabolizes both five and six carbon sugars. During pretreatment, toxic inhibitors such as furfural and acetate are produced. NREL has made an attempt to adapt two sub-strains of Z. mobilis 8b to acetate and furfural by using a chemostat method. During the chemostat process, cultures were frozen back in glycerol and saved. In this study, those frozen cultures were revived and analyzed for performance in environments with varying concentrations of furfural and …

Temperature Influence And Heat Management Requirements Of Microalgae Cultivation In Photobioreactors, Thomas Hagen Mehlitz

Master's Theses

Microalgae are considered one of the most promising feedstocks for biofuel production for the future. The most efficient way to produce vast amounts of algal biomass is the use of closed tubular photobioreactors (PBR). The heat requirement for a given system is a major concern since the best algae growth rates are obtained between 25-30 °C, depending on the specific strain. A procedure to determine temperature influence on algal growth rates was developed for a lab-scale PBR system using the species Chlorella. A maximum growth rate of 1.44 doublings per day at 29 °C (optimal temperature) was determined. In addition, …