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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Photodynamic Therapy Agents: The Power Of Mjöllnir To Eradicate Cancer, Sidney M. Hopper
Photodynamic Therapy Agents: The Power Of Mjöllnir To Eradicate Cancer, Sidney M. Hopper
Honors College Theses
After its discovery back in the 1900s, photosensitizers became a critical study for potential treatments and cures for medical issues, including cancer. It was discovered that porphyrins appeared to target and accumulate in proliferating cells, and to reach the cells, a certain wavelength of light with maximum absorbance associated with the porphyrin was necessary to achieve cell death. Photodynamic therapy involves making use of porphyrins or metalloporphyrins as activators when exposed to such light. When activated, these compounds generate reactive oxygen species (ROS), such as HO- or O2-, which can react with nucleic acids found in DNA and RNA. In …
The Use Of Hallucinogens In The Treatment Of Mental Health Disorders, Brianna Gagen
The Use Of Hallucinogens In The Treatment Of Mental Health Disorders, Brianna Gagen
Honors College Theses
The percent of people with mental health disorders in the United States have skyrocketed over the past decade. With stigma surrounding the discussion of mental health and the symptoms associated with it, often those that are suffering do not receive sufficient treatment, as they might with a physical illness. The current, common treatment options for common psychological disorders, like depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder, are sometimes not effective in patients, due to resistance or poor response outcomes. Consequently, in order to research alternative therapeutic approaches for mental health disorders, scientists are researching the effects of several hallucinogenic drugs in …
Designing Peptides To Bind Kappa B Dna And Mimic Nf-Kappa B Protein Complexes, Nicholas A. Markowich
Designing Peptides To Bind Kappa B Dna And Mimic Nf-Kappa B Protein Complexes, Nicholas A. Markowich
Honors College Theses
Transcription factors are important proteins that regulate gene expression and protein synthesis. Transcription factors can either boost the gene’s transcription rate by helping RNA polymerase activate transcription or restrict it by interfering with RNA polymerase, thereby repressing transcription. Nuclear factor-kappa-B (NF-κB) transcription factors are a family of proteins that control the synthesis of proteins involved in many cellular processes such as inflammatory and immune responses, cell growth, and apoptosis. However, the overexpression and activation of these transcription factors is linked to deadly conditions such as cancer and neurodegenerative diseases which currently have few safe cures. The goal of this research …
Caspases And Cancer: Connections Through Circular Dichroism Spectroscopy, Sarah M. Hethcox
Caspases And Cancer: Connections Through Circular Dichroism Spectroscopy, Sarah M. Hethcox
Honors College Theses
While excessive cell death inevitably leads to negative effects, the endurance of damaged cells in the presence of death signals can be equally detrimental to health. Apoptosis, or programmed cell death, is a highly regulated process in which cues from within or from outside a cell can trigger an irreversible sequence of signals that carry out cell destruction known as the apoptotic cascade. A group of enzymes called caspases play a vital role in this cascade with some participating as initiators and others acting as effectors of protein cleavage and intracellular breakdown. Although it is normal for the activity of …
Synthesis Of Multifunctional Polyacrylates And A Binding Group To Hemoglobin For The Treatment Of Traumatic Brain Injuries, Marina Michaud
Synthesis Of Multifunctional Polyacrylates And A Binding Group To Hemoglobin For The Treatment Of Traumatic Brain Injuries, Marina Michaud
Honors College Theses
Hemoglobin based oxygen carriers (HBOCs) hold promise as an effective emergency treatment of severe traumatic brain injuries (TBI). In the latest generation of HBOCs, polynitroxyl-pegylated hemoglobin (PNPH), cell-free hemoglobin is modified with TEMPO and PEG which reduce the toxicities associated with earlier generations of HBOCs. In our efforts to optimize the economic and therapeutic impacts of PNPH’s we have synthesized polydimethylaminoethyl methacrylate (poly-DMAEMA) under controlled living conditions via reverse addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. The poly-DMAEMA was then successfully functionalized via quaternization of its NMe2 groups using chloroacetate derivatives of the TEMPO and PEG. This process was quantitative and …
Polyethylene Glycol Containing Rompolymers For The Modification Of Neuro-Protective Hemoglobin, Andrea L. Mccollum
Polyethylene Glycol Containing Rompolymers For The Modification Of Neuro-Protective Hemoglobin, Andrea L. Mccollum
Honors College Theses
Polyethylene glycol (PEG) has shown the ability to improve compatibility when used in combination with cell-free hemoglobin in the treatment of traumatic brain injuries. It has been demonstrated that the covalently bonded PEG increases the hydrodynamic radius of the hemoglobin and hence generates a physical barrier while slowing down the oxygen delivery of the strongly oxidative hemoglobin. In this context, I have been working on the development of synthetic pathways to incorporate PEG into monomers and polymers through both direct modification of (7-oxa)norbornene derivatives and post polymerization modification. Starting from the (7-oxa)norbornene anhydride derivatives, we have developed pathways to cationic …