Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Improvement Of Ifng Elispot Performance Following Overnight Resting Of Frozen Pbmc Samples Confirmed Through Rigorous Statistical Analysis, Radleigh Santos, Alcinette Bunying, Nazila Sabri, John Yu, Anthony Gringeri, James Bender, Sylvia Janetzki, Clemencia Pinilla, Valeria A. Judkowski

Mathematics Faculty Articles

Immune monitoring of functional responses is a fundamental parameter to establish correlates of protection in clinical trials evaluating vaccines and therapies to boost antigen-specific responses. The IFNg ELISPOT assay is a well-standardized and validated method for the determination of functional IFNg-producing T-cells in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC); however, its performance greatly depends on the quality and integrity of the cryopreserved PBMC. Here, we investigate the effect of overnight (ON) resting of the PBMC on the detection of CD8-restricted peptide-specific responses by IFNg ELISPOT. The study used PBMC from healthy donors to evaluate the CD8 T-cell response to five pooled …

Gwatch: A Web Platform For Automated Gene Association Discovery Analysis, Anton Svitin, Sergey Malov, Nikolay Cherkasov, Paul Geerts, Mikhail Rotkevich, Pavel Dobrynin, Andrey Shevchenko, Li Guan, Jennifer L. Troyer, Sher L. Hendrickson, Holli Hutcheson Dilks, T. K. Oleksyk, Sharyne Donfield, Edward Gomperts, Douglas A. Jabs, Efe Sezgin, Mark Van Natta, P. Richard Harrigan, Zabrina L. Brumme, Stephen J. O'Brien

Biology Faculty Articles

Background: As genome-wide sequence analyses for complex human disease determinants are expanding, it is increasingly necessary to develop strategies to promote discovery and validation of potential disease-gene associations.

Findings: Here we present a dynamic web-based platform – GWATCH – that automates and facilitates four steps in genetic epidemiological discovery: 1) Rapid gene association search and discovery analysis of large genome-wide datasets; 2) Expanded visual display of gene associations for genome-wide variants (SNPs, indels, CNVs), including Manhattan plots, 2D and 3D snapshots of any gene region, and a dynamic genome browser illustrating gene association chromosomal regions; 3) Real-time validation/replication …

Cytokine Production But Lack Of Proliferation In Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells From Chronic Chagas' Disease Cardiomyopathy Patients In Response To T. Cruzi Ribosomal P Proteins, Silvia A. Longhi, Augusto Atienza, Graciela Perez Prados, Alcinette Buying, Virginia Balouz, Carlos A. Buscaglia, Radleigh Santos, Laura M. Tasso, Ricardo Bonato, Pablo Chiale, Clemencia Pinilla, Valeria A. Judkowski, Karina A. Gomez

Mathematics Faculty Articles

Background

Trypanosoma cruzi ribosomal P proteins, P2β and P0, induce high levels of antibodies in patients with chronic Chagas' disease Cardiomyopathy (CCC). It is well known that these antibodies alter the beating rate of cardiomyocytes and provoke apoptosis by their interaction with β1-adrenergic and M2-muscarinic cardiac receptors. Based on these findings, we decided to study the cellular immune response to these proteins in CCC patients compared to non-infected individuals.

Methodology/Principal findings

We evaluated proliferation, presence of surface activation markers and cytokine production in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) stimulated with P2β, the C-terminal portion of P0 (CP0) proteins and T. …

13th Annual Undergraduate Student Symposium, Farquhar Honors College

Undergraduate Student Symposium

The Undergraduate Student Symposium, sponsored by the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences, presents student projects through presentations, papers, and poster displays. The event serves as a “showcase” demonstrating the outstanding scholarship of undergraduate students at NSU. The Symposium is open to undergraduate students from all disciplines. Projects cover areas of student scholarship ranging from the experimental and the applied to the computational, theoretical, artistic, and literary. They are taken from class assignments as well as from independent projects. The projects do not have to be complete; presentations can represent any stage in the concept’s evolution, from proposal and literature …

Identification Of Tetrapeptides From A Mixture Based Positional Scanning Library That Can Restore Nm Full Agonist Function Of The L106p, I69t, I102s, A219v, C271y, And C271r Human Melanocortin-4 Polymorphic Receptors (Hmc4rs), Erica M. Haslach, Huisuo Huang, Marvin Dirain, Ginamarie Debevec, Phaedra Geer, Radleigh Santos, Marc Giulianotti, Clemencia Pinilla, Jon R. Appel, Skye R. Doering, Michael A. Walters, Richard A. Houghten, Carrie Haskell-Luevano

Mathematics Faculty Articles

Human obesity has been linked to genetic factors and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R) SNPs have been associated with up to 6% frequency in morbidly obese children and adults. A potential therapy for individuals possessing such genetic modifications is the identification of molecules that can restore proper receptor signaling and function. These compounds could serve as personalized medications improving quality of life issues as well as alleviating diseases symptoms associated with obesity including type 2 diabetes. Several hMC4 SNP receptors have been pharmacologically characterized in vitro to have a decreased, or a lack of response, to endogenous agonists …

Enzyme Entrapment In Polyaniline Films Observed Via Florescence Anisotropy And Antiquenching, Louis R. Nemzer, Marissa Mccaffrey, Arthur J. Epstein

Louis R Nemzer

The facile entrapment of oxidoreductase enzymes within polyaniline polymer films by inducing hydrophobic collapse using phosphate buffered saline (PBS) has been shown to be a cost-effective method for fabricating organic biosensors. Here, we use fluorescence anisotropy measurements to verify enzyme immobilization and subsequent electron donation to the polymer matrix, both prerequisites for an effective biosensor. Specifically, we measure a three order of magnitude decrease in the ratio of the fluorescence to rotational lifetimes. In addition, the observed fluorescence antiquenching supports the previously proposed model that the polymer chain assumes a severely coiled conformation when exposed to PBS. These results help …