Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 11 of 11

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

Analyzing Conformational Changes In The Binding Of Hiv-1 Matrix Protein, N And C Terminals, To Calmodulin, Nousha Karimi, Fabian Valdez, Davis Mau, K. Sakamaki May 2023

Analyzing Conformational Changes In The Binding Of Hiv-1 Matrix Protein, N And C Terminals, To Calmodulin, Nousha Karimi, Fabian Valdez, Davis Mau, K. Sakamaki

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Worldwide, more than 38 million people are living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), about 84 million people have become infected with HIV since the start of the epidemic, and 40.1 million of those diagnoses led to death. HIV Type-1 is the most common type of HIV, attacking the body’s immune system by destroying CD4 cells. The virus attaches itself to the CD4 cell, taking control of its DNA and replicating itself to release more HIV into the bloodstream. The Gag proteins of HIV-1 are crucial players in the virus’ assembly, release, and maturation; it utilizes its essential matrix protein (MA) …


Analyzing Interactions Of Calmodulin With Hiv-1 Matrix Protein, Andrea Sandoval, D. Mau, N. Karimi, K. Sakamaki, C. Owens, Jerry Larue Nov 2022

Analyzing Interactions Of Calmodulin With Hiv-1 Matrix Protein, Andrea Sandoval, D. Mau, N. Karimi, K. Sakamaki, C. Owens, Jerry Larue

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) attacks the immune system and if left untreated, could cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). The HIV matrix protein (HIV-MA) is involved in replication and regulation of the HIV virus. Calmodulin (CaM), a calcium-binding protein found in all eukaryotes, has a potential role in the viral replication of HIV-MA which plays a key role in the replication of HIV. In order to investigate the interactions between calmodulin and the HIV-MA, a series of titrations with CaM are performed using circular dichroism. Circular dichroism (CD) uses circularly polarized light to observe the secondary structure of a molecule. The …


Evaluation Of The Trunarc Handheld Narcotics Analyzer As A Pre-Analysis Screening Device For The Orange County Crime Lab, Sarah Yang, D. Bauer, C. Woltz, S. Soto, Michael Ibba Dec 2021

Evaluation Of The Trunarc Handheld Narcotics Analyzer As A Pre-Analysis Screening Device For The Orange County Crime Lab, Sarah Yang, D. Bauer, C. Woltz, S. Soto, Michael Ibba

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Forensic analysis of suspected narcotics is often dangerous as the substances’ composition is unknown. Many techniques for drug identification require handling of the substance outside of its packaging, which can expose the analyst to potentially harmful chemicals. The TruNarc Handheld Narcotics Analyzer is a portable Raman spectroscopy device that is non-destructive of evidence and can be used to screen drugs through simple packaging to minimize the risk of exposure. The Orange County Crime Lab (OCCL) is testing the limits of this device to determine if it can be used to screen new evidence within the Seized Drugs Lab. The OCCL …


Fundamental Causes Of Racial And Ethnic Covid-19-Related Health Disparities, Hana Neutz May 2021

Fundamental Causes Of Racial And Ethnic Covid-19-Related Health Disparities, Hana Neutz

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Underserved low-income communities of color in the U.S. have endured an unequal burden of COVID-19 morbidity and mortality. This pattern of pandemic-related health disparities has been pervasive throughout history. However, no known studies have simultaneously examined social and biological factors that contribute to these concerning health disparities. Therefore, this paper aims to bridge the gap by employing a scoping literature review of (1) the deleterious impacts of systemic racism on COVID-19-related outcomes; and (2) the cellular and molecular mechanisms connecting COVID-19 and hypertension (a comorbidity known to exacerbate COVID-19 severity). My findings indicate that systemic racism manifests in inequitable access …


Investigating The Interactions Between Individual Calmodulin And Hiv-1 Protein Domains, Riley K. Kendall, Jerry Larue May 2020

Investigating The Interactions Between Individual Calmodulin And Hiv-1 Protein Domains, Riley K. Kendall, Jerry Larue

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

The World Health Organization found that 37.9 million people were living with HIV by the end of 2018. HIV is a virus that weakens the immune system through viral replication and the destruction of CD4+ T-cells, which are white blood cells that detect infection and make antibodies. A cure for HIV has not yet been discovered. HIV-1 contains a Gag polyprotein which regulates the stages of viral replication. Previous studies suggest that the myristoyl group of a matrix protein peptide found on the Gag polyprotein, MA, forms a complex with a calcium-binding, multifunctional regulatory protein called Calmodulin (CaM). CaM …


The Effects Of Gibberellic Acid And Auxin Hormones On Heliotropism In Sunflowers, Brandon Bernardo, Hagop S. Atamian May 2019

The Effects Of Gibberellic Acid And Auxin Hormones On Heliotropism In Sunflowers, Brandon Bernardo, Hagop S. Atamian

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Sunflowers are one of many different plant species that are able to track and face the sun in order to optimize the amount of sunlight they are exposed to. This process of orienting towards the sun is called Heliotropism. Sunflowers are able to effectively orient themselves towards the sun because the growth rate on the East and West side of the stem alternates depending on the time of day. At dawn, the East facing stem will grow at a faster rate than the West facing side, resulting in the flower orienting towards the West. This alternating and uneven growth is …


The Role Of Exosomes In Prostate Field Cancerization, Julie Nguyen May 2017

The Role Of Exosomes In Prostate Field Cancerization, Julie Nguyen

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Field cancerization is formally defined as the presence of molecular alterations in structurally normal tissues adjacent to tumors. Currently, the etiology of prostate field cancerization is still unknown. We hypothesize that exosomes (vesicles excreted by cells that may contain protein, lipids, or RNA) are released by tumors and are endocytosed by adjacent normal cells converting them into abnormal cells, thereby aiding cancer progression. The following biomarkers have been associated with field cancerization: MIC-1, PDGF-A, FASN, and EGR-1, while markers for exosomes are CD-9, CD-63, and PSMA. To test this hypothesis, exosomes were isolated from human prostate cancer cell models LNCaP …


Manual And Automated Solid Phase Synthesis Of Peptides For Breast Cancer Cell Targeting, Savannah Carlson Dec 2016

Manual And Automated Solid Phase Synthesis Of Peptides For Breast Cancer Cell Targeting, Savannah Carlson

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Four peptides were synthesized using solid phase peptide synthesis. The two target peptides synthesized were based off peptide 18-4 and its negative analog. Each were synthesized once manually, and once using an automatic peptide synthesizer. Peptide 18-4 has a high affinity for breast cancer cells, allowing it to be used to detect circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in blood (Kaur et. al, 2015). Manual solid phase peptide synthesis is performed by anchoring the first amino acid to Wang resin and coupling each Fmoc protected amino acid individually until the target sequence is achieved. To synthesize the peptides automatically, the automated Tribute …


A Pilot Study Analyzing Solvents In Electronic Cigarette “E-Liquid” Using High Performance Liquid Chromatography, Austin Matranga, Olivia Sellers, Matthew Gartner May 2016

A Pilot Study Analyzing Solvents In Electronic Cigarette “E-Liquid” Using High Performance Liquid Chromatography, Austin Matranga, Olivia Sellers, Matthew Gartner

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Introduction: Electronic cigarettes, also known as an e-cigarette, are battery-powered devices that use a heating element to convert a liquid (“e-liquid”) into an inhalable aerosol. Their advertised use is as a nicotine delivery system minus the harmful chemicals. Since “e-liquids” and the electronic cigarettes are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, it is not well known under what conditions, if any, carcinogenic compounds are produced. There has been little research on the toxicity of electronic cigarettes. The aim of this study was to determine if formaldehyde or acetaldehyde are formed from the e-liquid by the high heat of …


Connecting The Physiological And Behavioral Response To Heat Stress On A Warming Planet, Anastasia Kalyta May 2016

Connecting The Physiological And Behavioral Response To Heat Stress On A Warming Planet, Anastasia Kalyta

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Intertidal communities are considered good models of the biological effects of climate change on ecosystems, as their resident organisms are subjected to heat spells during daytime low tides. The increasing heat exposure can elicit behavioral as well as physiological responses in intertidal organisms. We studied the relationship between these responses to heat stress in the blue-banded hermit crab, Pagurus samuelis, by inducing a “heat shock” with elevated water temperature of 29 °C for 2.5 h. The behavioral effect of heat-shock was quantified using a 30-minute feeding assay, measuring the mass of a standard squid pellet consumed by individual hermit crabs. …


Dancing Through Life: Allosteric Transitions And Structural Analysis Of Hsp70 And Hsp110 Chaperone Proteins, Gabrielle Stetz, Gennady M. Verkhivker Dec 2014

Dancing Through Life: Allosteric Transitions And Structural Analysis Of Hsp70 And Hsp110 Chaperone Proteins, Gabrielle Stetz, Gennady M. Verkhivker

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

The molecular chaperone protein Hsp70 is centrally involved in cellular homeostasis by assisting in the folding and degradation of protein substrates. Hsp70 is joined by co-chaperones, such as Hsp110, which contribute to specialized tasks of the Hsp70 complex. Imbalances of this heat shock protein system are believed to be involved with the deregulation of cancer pathways and other human diseases. Better understanding of how these heat shock proteins work at the molecular level, which has been investigated using molecular docking tools, will give more clues about biological function. Simulating the formation and function of Hsp70 based chaperone complexes could provide …