Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology Commons^™

A Novel Method Of Rapid Detection For Heavy Metal Copper Ion Via A Specific Copper Chelator Bathocuproinedisulfonic Acid Disodium Salt, Yali Wang, Tinglin Ma, Joseph Brake, Zhaoyue Sun, Jiayu Huang, Jing Li, Xiaobin Wu

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

The extensive usage and production of copper may lead to toxic effects in organisms due to its accumulation in the environment. Traditional methods for copper detection are time consuming and infeasible for field usage. It is necessary to discover a real-time, rapid and economical method for detecting copper to ensure human health and environmental safety. Here we developed a colorimetric paper strip method and optimized spectrum method for rapid detection of copper ion based on the specific copper chelator bathocuproinedisulfonic acid disodium salt (BCS). Both biological assays and chemical methods verified the specificity of BCS for copper. The optimized reaction …

Naturally Occurring Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Virus H5n1 Clade 2.3.4.4b Infection In Three Domestic Cats In North America During 2023, Sarah J. Sillman, Mary Drozd, Duan S. Loy, Seth P. Harris

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

The Eurasian strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 is a devastating pathogen for birds that also has the capacity to infect mammals. This report describes the presentation, clinical case findings (including haemogram and serum biochemistry), gross and microscopic lesions and virus detection in three HPAI H5N1-infected domestic cats from the USA in 2023. All three cats presented with neurological abnormalities and were euthanized due to a poor prognosis within 2 days (two cats) or 10 days (one cat) of known clinical disease onset. Necropsy consistently revealed pulmonary congestion and oedema, and cerebrocortical malacia with haemorrhage was also seen …

Exploring The Interactions Between Sars-Cov-2 And Host Proteins, Sojan Shrestha

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the causative agent of the current pandemic, Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). SARS-CoV-2 is considered to be of zoonotic origin; it originated in non-human animals and was transmitted to humans. Since the early stage of the pandemic, however, the evidence of transmissions from humans to animals (reverse zoonoses) has been found in multiple animal species including mink, white-tailed deer, and pet and zoo animals. Furthermore, secondary zoonotic events of SARS-CoV-2, transmissions from animals to humans, have been also reported. It is suggested that non-human hosts can act as SARS-CoV-2 reservoirs where accumulated …

Putrescine Detected In Strains Of Staphylococcus Aureus, Javier Seravalli, Frank Portugal

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Most forms of life, including the archaea, bacteria, and eukaryotes synthesize the polyamine putrescine. Although putrescine is widely distributed, several Gram-positive bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), appear to be the exceptions. We report here that strains of S. aureus can produce the polyamine putrescine, as well as the derivative N-acetyl-putrescine. Three strains of S. aureus from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC), one strain listed in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) database, whose genomic sequence is well defined, and well as eight strains from S. aureus-induced brain abscesses of individual patients from multiple …

Quantitative Risk Assessment Of Oocyst Versus Bradyzoite Foodborne Transmission Of Toxoplasma Gondii In Brazil, Sophie Zhu, Elizabeth Vanwormer, Beatriz Martínez-López, Lílian Maria Garcia Bahia-Oliveira, Renato Augusto Damatta, Pedro Souto Rodrigues, Karen Shapiro

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Toxoplasma gondii is a globally distributed zoonotic protozoan parasite. Infection with T. gondii can cause congenital toxoplasmosis in developing fetuses and acute outbreaks in the general population, and the disease burden is especially high in South America. Prior studies found that the environmental stage of T. gondii, oocysts, is an important source of infection in Brazil; however, no studies have quantified this risk relative to other parasite stages. We developed a Bayesian quantitative risk assessment (QRA) to estimate the relative attribution of the two primary parasite stages (bradyzoite and oocyst) that can be transmitted in foods to people in …

Type Iv Pilus-Mediated Inhibition Of Acinetobacter Baumannii Biofilm Formation By Phenothiazine Compounds, Nam Vo, Benjamin S. Sidner, Yafan Yu, Kurt H. Piepenbrink

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Infections by pathogenic Acinetobacter species represent a significant burden on the health care system, despite their relative rarity, due to the difficulty of treating infections through oral antibiotics. Multidrug resistance is commonly observed in clinical Acinetobacter infections and multiple molecular mechanisms have been identified for this resistance, including multidrug efflux pumps, carbapenemase enzymes, and the formation of bacterial biofilm in persistent infections. Phenothiazine compounds have been identified as a potential inhibitor of type IV pilus production in multiple Gram-negative bacterial species. Here, we report the ability of two phenothiazines to inhibit type IV pilus-dependent surface (twitching) motility and biofilm formation …

Mycobacterium Avium Subsp. Paratuberculosis Candidate Vaccine Strains Are Pro-Apoptotic In Raw264.7murinemacrophages, Raul G. Barletta, John P. Bannantine, Judith R. Stabel, Ezhumalai Muthukrishnan, Dirk Anderson, Enakshy Dutta, Vamsi Manthena, Mostafa Hanafy, Denise K. Zinniel

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) is the etiological agent of Johne’s disease, a severe gastroenteritis of ruminants. This study developed a model cell culture system to rapidly screen MAP mutants with vaccine potential for apoptosis. Two wild-type strains, a transposon mutant, and two deletion mutant MAP strains (MOI of 10 with 1.2 × 10⁶ CFU) were tested in murine RAW 264.7 macrophages to determine if they induce apoptosis and/or necrosis. Both deletion mutants were previously shown to be attenuated and immunogenic in primary bovine macrophages. All strains had similar growth rates, but cell morphology indicated that both deletion mutants …

Hematopoietic Stem Cells And Betaherpesvirus Latency, Lindsey B. Crawford

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

The human betaherpesviruses including human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), human herpesvirus (HHV)-6a and HHV-6b, and HHV-7 infect and establish latency in CD34+ hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HPCs). The diverse repertoire of HPCs in humans and the complex interactions between these viruses and host HPCs regulate the viral lifecycle, including latency. Precise manipulation of host and viral factors contribute to preferential maintenance of the viral genome, increased host cell survival, and specific manipulation of the cellular environment including suppression of neighboring cells and immune control. The dynamic control of these processes by the virus regulate inter- and intra-host signals critical to the …

Synthesis And Study Of High-Spin Stable Organic Radicals For Electrical Conductors And Mannosamine Nitroxide For Mri Contrast Agents, Shuyang Zhang

Department of Chemistry: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In the first project, we describe the synthesis of an ambient stable high spin organic diradical 4 based on the Blatter moiety. The high-spin (S = 1) organic diradical 4, which consists of two Blatter radical moieties in a conjugated structure, exhibits a nearly exclusive population (88%) on triplet ground state at room temperature as a consequence of a large single-triplet energy gap (ΔEST = 0.5 kcal/mol). The target diradical molecule is synthesized over five steps with structural confirmation by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) shows the onset of decomposition at ~264 oC, indicating the diradical molecule has …

First Course Portfolio For Bioc205: Scientific Analysis And Technical Writing, Lindsey B. Crawford

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

BIOC205: Scientific Analysis and Technical Writing is a core course for the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. This course is geared for second year (sophomore students) with minimal prerequisites and as a foundation for future classes. Challenges include 1) teaching the needed scientific background and elements of scientific analysis and writing to a broad cohort of students with diverse backgrounds and interests, 2) building student skills towards analysis of primary peer-reviewed scientific literature, 3) developing students as writers of scientific information for different audiences. This course used Genetic Engineering as a broad topic choice to capture students …

Bola3 And Nfu1 Link Mitoribosome Iron-Sulfur Cluster Assembly To Multiple Mitochondrial Dysfunctions Syndrome, Hui Zhong, Alexandre Janer, Oleh Khalimonchuk, Hana Antonicka, Eric Shoubridge, Antoni Barrientos

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

The human mitochondrial ribosome contains three [2Fe-2S] clusters whose assembly pathway, role, and implications for mitochondrial and metabolic diseases are unknown. Here, structure-function correlation studies show that the clusters play a structural role during mitoribosome assembly. To uncover the assembly pathway, we have examined the effect of silencing the expression of Fe-S cluster biosynthetic and delivery factors on mitoribosome stability. We find that the mitoribosome receives its [2Fe-2S] clusters from the GLRX5-BOLA3 node. Additionally, the assembly of the small subunit depends on the mitoribosome biogenesis factor METTL17, recently reported containing a [4Fe-4S] cluster, which we propose is inserted via the …

Serological Prevalence Of Crimean–Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Virus Infection In Small Ruminants And Cattle In The Gambia, Jerusha Matthews, Arss Secka, David Scott Mcvey, Kimberly A. Dodd, Bonto Faburay

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) is a widely distributed tickborne zoonotic agent that infects a variety of host species. There is a lack of information on the true geographic distribution of the prevalence and risk of CCHFV in West Africa. A countrywide cross-sectional study involving 1413 extensively managed indigenous small ruminants and cattle at livestock sales markets and in village herds, respectively, was carried out in The Gambia. In sheep, an overall anti-CCHFV antibody prevalence of 18.9% (95% CI: 15.5–22.8%), goats 9.0% (95% CI: 6.7–11.7%), and cattle 59.9% (95% CI: 54.9–64.7%) was detected. Significant variation (p < 0.05) in the prevalence of anti-CCHFV antibodies at sites in the five administrative regions (sheep: 4.8–25.9%; goats: 1.8–17.1%) and three agroecological zones (sheep: 8.9–32.9%; goats: 4.1–18.0%) was also observed. Comparatively, higher anti-CCHFV antibody prevalence was detected in cattle (33.3–84.0%) compared to small ruminants (1.8–8.1%). This study represents the first countrywide investigation of the seroprevalence of CCHFV in The Gambia, and the results suggest potential circulation and endemicity of the virus in the country. These data provide critical information vital to the development of informed policies for the surveillance, diagnosis, and control of CCFHV infection in The Gambia and the region.

A Ferritin Nanoparticle-Based Zika Virus Vaccine Candidate Induces Robust Humoral And Cellular Immune Responses And Protects Mice From Lethal Virus Challenge, Aryamav Pattnaik, Bikash R. Sahoo, Lucas R. Struble, Gloria E. O. Borgstahl, You Zhou, Rodrigo Franco, Raul G. Barletta, Fernando A. Osorio, Thomas M. Petro, Asit K. Pattnaik

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

The severe consequences of the Zika virus (ZIKV) infections resulting in congenital Zika syndrome in infants and the autoimmune Guillain–Barre syndrome in adults warrant the development of safe and efficacious vaccines and therapeutics. Currently, there are no approved treatment options for ZIKV infection. Herein, we describe the development of a bacterial ferritin-based nanoparticle vaccine candidate for ZIKV. The viral envelope (E) protein domain III (DIII) was fused in-frame at the amino-terminus of ferritin. The resulting nanoparticle displaying the DIII was examined for its ability to induce immune responses and protect vaccinated animals upon lethal virus challenge. Our results show that …

Time And Temperature Stability Of Tritrichomonas Foetus In Phosphate-Buffered Saline As Evaluated By A Reverse Transcription Real-Time Pcr Assay And Field Analysis, Duan S. Loy, Renata Spuri Gomes, Enakshy Dutta, Bruce W. Brodersen, John Dustin Loy

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Tritrichomonas foetus (TF) is a significant reproductive pathogen of cattle, and sample collection, handling, transport, and testing are significant hurdles to surveillance programs. Recent methods have been developed that allow for the direct detection of TF using a reverse transcription real-time PCR (direct RT-qPCR) approach. To evaluate these methods, a comparative analysis was conducted to assess the technical performance of this assay with a commercially available real- time PCR (qPCR) assay. In addition, the evaluation of two types of collection media (PBS and TF transport tube) was conducted that evaluated sample stability from 0 to 3 days when stored at …

A Multiscale Mechanistic Model Of Human Dendritic Cells For In-Silico Investigation Of Immune Responses And Novel Therapeutics Discovery, Sara Sadat Aghamiri, Bhanwar Lal Puniya, Rada Amin, Tomáš Helikar

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Dendritic cells (DCs) are professional antigen-presenting cells (APCs) with the unique ability to mediate inflammatory responses of the immune system. Given the critical role of DCs in shaping immunity, they present an attractive avenue as a therapeutic target to program the immune system and reverse immune disease disorders. To ensure appropriate immune response, DCs utilize intricate and complex molecular and cellular interactions that converge into a seamless phenotype. Computational models open novel frontiers in research by integrating large-scale interaction to interrogate the influence of complex biological behavior across scales. The ability to model large biological networks will likely pave the …

Editorial: Structure And Function Of Chloroplasts, Volume Iii, Hongbo Gao, Alistair J. Mccormick, Rebecca Roston, Yan Lu

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Chloroplasts are endosymbiotic organelles derived from cyanobacteria. They have a double envelope membrane, including the outer envelope and the inner envelope. A complex membrane system, thylakoids, exists inside the chloroplast. It is the site of the light-dependent reactions of photosynthesis. The stroma is the main site of the carbon fixation reactions. Although photosynthesis is a very complicated process with many proteins involved, there are many other important processes that occur in chloroplasts, including the regulation of photosynthesis, the biogenesis and maintenance of the structures, carbohydrate, lipid, tetrapyrrole, amino acid, and isoprenoid metabolism, production of some phytohormones, production of specialized metabolites, …

Association Of IsvSa3 With Multidrug Resistance In Salmonella Enterica Isolates From Cattle (Bos Taurus), Gentry L. Lewis, Robert J. Fenton, Etsuko Moriyama, John Dustin Loy, Rodney A. Moxley

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Salmonella enterica is, globally, an important cause of human illness with beef being a significant attributable source. In the human patient, systemic Salmonella infection requires antibiotic therapy, and when strains are multidrug resistant (MDR), no effective treatment may be available. MDR in bacteria is often associated with the presence of mobile genetic elements (MGE) that mediate horizontal spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes. In this study, we sought to determine the potential relationship of MDR in bovine Salmonella isolates with MGE. The present study involved 111 bovine Salmonella isolates obtained collectively from specimens derived from healthy cattle or their environments …

Comparison Of Two Diagnostic Assays For The Detection Of Serum Neutralizing Antibody To Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus, Justin Brown, Korakrit Poonsuk, Ting-Yu Cheng, Chris Rademacher, Erin Kalkwarf, Liying Tian, Lauren A. Mckeen, Chong Wang, Luis Gimenez-Lirola, David Baum, Locke A. Karriker

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Lactogenic immunity is important for the protection of piglets against many pathogens including porcine epidemic diarrhea virus. Circulating neutralizing antibodies levels in sow sera may help determine if a detectable immune response could confer protection to piglets. Neutralizing antibodies can be detected through various diagnostic assays. This study evaluated the diagnostic characteristics of two neutralizing antibody assays for porcine epidemic diarrhea virus neutralizing antibodies in serum of challenged gilts. Four treatment groups, control, non-vaccinated, vaccinated prior to challenge, and vaccinated following challenge, were comprised of 20 gilts. Serum sample were collected from each gilt prior to and following challenge with …

Comparison Of Two Diagnostic Assays For The Detection Of Serum Neutralizing Antibody To Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus, Justin Brown, Korakrit Poonsuk, Ting-Yu Cheng, Chris Rademacher, Erin Kalkwarf, Liying Tian, Lauren A. Mckeen, Chong Wang, Luis Gimenez-Lirola, David Baum, Locke A. Karriker

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Lactogenic immunity is important for the protection of piglets against many pathogens including porcine epidemic diarrhea virus. Circulating neutralizing antibodies levels in sow sera may help determine if a detectable immune response could confer protection to piglets. Neutralizing antibodies can be detected through various diagnostic assays. This study evaluated the diagnostic characteristics of two neutralizing antibody assays for porcine epidemic diarrhea virus neutralizing antibodies in serum of challenged gilts. Four treatment groups, control, non-vaccinated, vaccinated prior to challenge, and vaccinated following challenge, were comprised of 20 gilts. Serum sample were collected from each gilt prior to and following challenge with …

Endogenous L- To D-Amino Acid Residue Isomerization Modulates Selectivity Between Distinct Neuropeptide Receptor Family Members, Baba M. Yussif, Cole V. Blasing, James W. Checco

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

The L- to D-amino acid residue isomerization of neuropeptides is an understudied post-translational modification found in animals across several phyla. Despite its physiological importance, little information is available regarding the impact of endogenous peptide isomerization on receptor recognition and activation. As a result, the full roles peptide isomerization play in biology are not well understood. Here, we identify that the Aplysia allatotropin-related peptide (ATRP) signaling system utilizes L- to D-residue isomerization of one amino acid residue in the neuropeptide ligand to modulate selectivity between two distinct G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). We first identified a novel receptor for ATRP that is …

Supplementation Of Sulfide Or Acetate And 2-Mercaptoethane Sulfonate Restores Growth Of The Methanosarcina Acetivorans Δhdrabc Deletion Mutant During Methylotrophic Methanogenesis, Alicia M. Salvi, Niaz Bahar Chowdhury, Rajib Saha, Nicole R. Buan

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Methanogenic archaea are important organisms in the global carbon cycle that grow by producing methane gas. Methanosarcina acetivorans is a methanogenic archaeum that can grow using methylated compounds, carbon monoxide, or acetate and produces renewable methane as a byproduct. However, there is limited knowledge of how combinations of substrates may affect metabolic fluxes in methanogens. Previous studies have shown that heterodisulfide reductase, the terminal oxidase in the electron transport system, is an essential enzyme in all methanogens. Deletion of genes encoding the nonessential methylotrophic heterodisulfide reductase enzyme (HdrABC) results in slower growth rate but increased metabolic efficiency. We hypothesized that …

Displaying And Delivering Viral Membrane Antigens Via Ww Domain–Activated Extracellular Vesicles, Sengjin Choi, Zhiping Yang, Qiyu Wang, Zhi Qiao, Maoyun Sun, Joshua Wiggins, Shi-Hua Xiang, Quan Lu

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Membrane proteins expressed on the surface of enveloped viruses are conformational antigens readily recognized by B cells of the immune system. An effective vaccine would require the synthesis and delivery of these native conformational antigens in lipid membranes that preserve specific epitope structures. We have created an extracellular vesicle–based technology that allows viral membrane antigens to be selectively recruited onto the surface of WW domain–activated extracellular vesicles (WAEVs). Budding of WAEVs requires secretory carrier-associated membrane protein 3, which through its proline-proline-alanine-tyrosine motif interacts with WW domains to recruit fused viral membrane antigens onto WAEVs. Immunization with influenza and HIV viral …

Vaccines Against Group B Coxsackieviruses And Their Importance, Kiruthiga Mone, Ninaad Lasrado, Meghna Sur, Jay Reddy

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

The group B coxsackieviruses (CVBs) exist in six serotypes (CVB1 to CVB6). Disease associations have been reported for most serotypes, and multiple serotypes can cause similar diseases. For example, CVB1, CVB3, and CVB5 are generally implicated in the causation of myocarditis, whereas CVB1 and CVB4 could accelerate the development of type 1 diabetes (T1D). Yet, no vaccines against these viruses are currently available. In this review, we have analyzed the attributes of experimentally tested vaccines and discussed their merits and demerits or limitations, as well as their impact in preventing infections, most importantly myocarditis and T1D.

Personalized Matched Targeted Therapy In Advanced Pancreatic Cancer: A Pilot Cohort Analysis, Justin Shaya, Shumei Kato, Jacob J. Adashek, Hitendra Patel, Paul T. Fanta, Gregory P. Botta, Jason K. Sicklick, Razelle Kurzrock

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Despite progress, 2-year pancreatic cancer survival remains dismal. We evaluated a biomarker-driven, combination/N-of-one strategy in 18 patients (advanced/metastatic pancreatic cancer) (from Molecular Tumor Board). Targeted agents administered/ patient = 2.5 (median) (range, 1–4); first-line therapy (N = 5); second line, (N = 13). Comparing patients (high versus low degrees of matching) (matching score ≥50% versus <50%; reflecting number of alterations matched to targeted agents divided by number of pathogenic alterations), survival was significantly longer (hazard ratio [HR] 0.24 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.078–0.76, P = 0.016); clinical benefit rates (CBR) (stable disease ≥6 months/partial/complete response) trended higher (45.5 vs 0.0%, P = 0.10); progression-free survival, HR, 95% CI, 0.36 (0.12–1.10) (p = 0.075). First versus ≥2nd-line therapy had higher CBRs (80.0 vs 7.7%, P = …

Genome‑Wide Investigation Of Snrk2 Gene Family In Two Jute Species: Corchorus Olitorius And Corchorus Capsularis, Borhan Ahmed, Fakhrul Hasan, Anika Tabassum, Rasel Ahmed, Rajnee Hassan, Ruhul Amin, Mobashwer Alam

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Background Sucrose non-fermenting-1 (SNF1)-related protein kinase 2 (SnRK2), a plant-specific serine/threonine kinase family, is associated with metabolic responses, including abscisic acid signaling under biotic and abiotic stresses. So far, no information on a genome-wide investigation and stress-mediated expression profiling of jute SnRK2 is available. Recent whole-genome sequencing of two Corchorus species prompted to identify and characterize this SnRK2 gene family.

Result We identified seven SnRK2 genes of each of Corchorus olitorius (Co) and C. capsularis (Cc) genomes, with similar physico-molecular properties and sub-group patterns of other models and related crops. In both species, the SnRK2 …

Functional Impact Of A Cancer-Related Variant In Human Δ1‑Pyrroline-5-Carboxylate Reductase 1, Oseeyi I. Daudu, Kaylen R. Meeks, Lu Zhang, Javier Seravalli, John J. Tanner, Donald F. Becker

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Pyrroline-5-carboxylate reductase (PYCR) is a proline biosynthetic enzyme that catalyzes the NAD(P)H-dependent reduction of Δ¹-pyrroline-5-carboxylate (P5C) to proline. Humans have three PYCR isoforms, with PYCR1 often upregulated in different types of cancers. Here, we studied the biochemical and structural properties of the Thr171Met variant of PYCR1, which is found in patients with malignant melanoma and lung adenocarcinoma. Although PYCR1 is strongly associated with cancer progression, characterization of a PYCR1 variant in cancer patients has not yet been reported. Thr171 is conserved in all three PYCR isozymes and is located near the P5C substrate binding site. We found that …

Cellular Zinc Deficiency Impairs Heme Biosynthesis In Developing Erythroid Progenitors, Juyoung Kim, Jaekwon Lee, Moon-Suhn Ryu

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Anemia is the most prevalent nutrition-related disorder worldwide. Zinc is an essential trace element for various biological processes in the body, and zinc deficiency has been associated with anemia in humans. However, the molecular mechanisms by which zinc availability alters red blood cell development remain uncertain. The present study identifies the essentiality of zinc during erythroid development, particularly for normal heme biosynthesis. G1E-ER4 mouse cells were used as an in vitro model of terminal erythroid differentiation, which featured elevated cellular zinc content by development. Restriction of zinc import compromised the rate of heme and -globin production and, thus, the hemoglobinization …

The Effects Of Exogenously Applied Antioxidants On Plant Growth And Resilience, Aline Rodrigues De Queiroz, Connor Hines, Jeremy Brown, Seema Sahay, Jithesh Vijayan, Julie M. Stone, Nate Bickford, Melissa Wuellner, Katarzyna Glowacka, Nicole R. Buan, Rebecca Roston

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Plant growth and resilience require balancing an inherently oxidative metabolism with powerful antioxidant systems that help maintain homeostasis. When the environment changes, reactive oxygen species are potent indicators of that change, allowing adaptation through re-balancing metabolism and antioxidant systems. A large body of evidence supports the use of exogenously applied antioxidants to improve both plant growth and their resilience to stress. Notably, some phenotypic effects are similar upon the application of chemically diverse antioxidants, while others are distinct. In this review, we analyze research from antioxidant treatment experiments and highlight the similarities in their practical applications and their effects on …

Plastic Recognition And Electrogenic Uniport Translocation Of 1st-, 2nd-, And 3rd-Row Transition And Post-Transition Metals By Primary-Active Transmembrane P1b-2-Type Atpase Pumps, Sameera S. Abeyrathna, Nisansala S. Abeyrathna, Priyanka Basak, Gordon W. Irvine, Limei Zhang, Gabriele Meloni

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Transmembrane P-type ATPase pumps catalyze the extrusion of transition metal ions across cellular lipid membranes to maintain essential cellular metal homeostasis and detoxify toxic metals. Zn()-pumps of the P-type subclass, in addition to Zn , select diverse metals (Pb, Cdand Hg) at their transmembrane binding site and feature promiscuous metal-dependent ATP hydrolysis in the presence of these metals. Yet, a comprehensive understanding of the transport of these metals, their relative translocation rates, and transport mechanism remain elusive. We developed a platform for the characterization of primary-active Zn()-pumps in proteoliposomes to study metal selectivity, translocation events and transport mechanism in real-time, …

Presumptive Hepatogenous Photosensitization In Beef Cattle Winter Grazing A Cover Crop Containing Brassica Spp. Turnips, Matthew M. Hille, Scott A. Fritz, Breanna C. Brown

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Over a period of ~2 wk, 5 adult beef cows developed severe necrotizing skin lesions on the face and neck shortly after being moved to a field with a cover crop of Brassica spp. turnips. We describe here the clinical signs, hematology, and serum chemistry results, as well as gross and histopathologic findings, from this outbreak. We made a presumptive diagnosis of Brassica-associated liver disease (BALD) based on the similarities in the history and diagnostic findings observed with previously reported cases of BALD from elsewhere in the world. BALD has not been reported previously in cattle in North America, …