Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Vimentin Takes A Hike – Emerging Roles Of Extracellular Vimentin In Cancer And Wound Healing, Sepideh Parvanian, Leila S. Coelho-Rato, Alison E. Patteson, John E. Eriksson

Physics - All Scholarship

Vimentin is a cytoskeletal protein important for many cellular processes, including proliferation, migration, invasion, stress resistance, signaling, and many more. The vimentin-deficient mouse has revealed many of these functions as it has numerous severe phenotypes, many of which are found only following a suitable challenge or stress. While these functions are usually related to vimentin as a major intracellular protein, vimentin is also emerging as an extracellular protein, exposed at the cell surface in an oligomeric form or secreted to the extracellular environment in soluble and vesicle-bound forms. Thus, this review explores the roles of the extracellular pool of vimentin …

The Molecular Biophysics Of Extracellular Vimentin And Its Role In Pathogen–Host Interactions, Sepideh Parvanian, Leila S. Coelho-Rato, John E. Eriksson, Alison E. Patteson

Physics - All Scholarship

Vimentin, an intermediate filament protein typically located in the cytoplasm of mesenchymal cells, can also be secreted as an extracellular protein. The organization of extracellular vimentin strongly determines its functions in physiological and pathological conditions, making it a promising target for future therapeutic interventions. The extracellular form of vimentin has been found to play a role in the interaction between host cells and pathogens. In this review, we first discuss the molecular biophysics of extracellular vimentin, including its structure, secretion, and adhesion properties. We then provide a general overview of the role of extracellular vimentin in mediating pathogen-host interactions, with …

Antibacterial And Cytocompatible Ph-Responsive Peptide Hydrogel, Dona I. Edirisinghe, Areetha D'Souza, Maryam Ramezani, Robert J. Carroll, Quenten Chicón, Cheyene L. Muenzel, Jonathan Soule, Mary B. Monroe, Alison E. Patteson, Olga V. Makhlynets

Physics - All Scholarship

A short peptide, FHHF-11, was designed to change stiffness as a function of pH due to changing degree of protonation of histidines. As pH changes in the physiologically relevant range, G′ was measured at 0 Pa (pH 6) and 50,000 Pa (pH 8). This peptide-based hydrogel is antimicrobial and cytocompatible with skin cells (fibroblasts). It was demonstrated that the incorporation of unnatural AzAla tryptophan analog residue improves the antimicrobial properties of the hydrogel. The material developed can have a practical application and be a paradigm shift in the approach to wound treatment, and it will improve healing outcomes for millions …

Mechanobiology As A Tool For Addressing The Genotype-To- Phenotype Problem In Microbiology, Merrill E. Asp, Minh-Tri Ho Thanh, Subarna Dutta, Jessica A. Comstock, Roy D. Welch, Alison E. Patteson

Physics - All Scholarship

The central hypothesis of the genotype–phenotype relationship is that the phenotype of a developing organism (i.e., its set of observable attributes) depends on its genome and the environment. However, as we learn more about the genetics and biochemistry of living systems, our understanding does not fully extend to the complex multiscale nature of how cells move, interact, and organize; this gap in understanding is referred to as the genotype-to-phenotype problem. The physics of soft matter sets the background on which living organisms evolved, and the cell environment is a strong determinant of cell phenotype. This inevitably leads to challenges as …

Evaluating Change In Representation And Coordination In Collaborative Governance Over Time: A Study Of Environmental Justice Councils, Saba Siddiki, Graham Ambrose, Davor Mondom

Center for Policy Design and Governance

The brief provides a summary of "Evaluating Change in Representation and Coordination in Collaborative Governance Over Time: A Study of

Environmental Justice Councils," co-authored by Saba Siddiki and Graham Ambrose and published in the journal Environmental Management.

The Daily Patterns Of Emergency Medical Events, Mary E. Helander, Margaret K. Formica, Dessa K. Bergen-Cico

Social Science - All Scholarship

This study examines population level daily patterns of time-stamped emergency medical service (EMS) dispatches to establish their situational predictability. Using visualization, sinusoidal regression, and statistical tests to compare empirical cumulative distributions, we analyzed 311,848,450 emergency medical call records from the U.S. National Emergency Medical Services Information System (NEMSIS) for years 2010 through 2022. The analysis revealed a robust daily pattern in the hourly distribution of distress calls across 33 major categories of medical emergency dispatch types. Sinusoidal regression coefficients for all types were statistically significant, mostly at the p < 0.0001 level. The coefficient of determination ($R^2$) ranged from 0.84 and 0.99 for all models, with most falling in the 0.94 to 0.99 range. The common sinusoidal pattern, peaking in mid-afternoon, demonstrates that all major categories of medical emergency dispatch types appear to be influenced by an underlying daily rhythm that is aligned with daylight hours and common sleep/wake cycles. A comparison of results with previous landmark studies revealed new and contrasting EMS patterns for several long-established peak occurrence hours--specifically for chest pain, heart problems, stroke, convulsions and seizures, and sudden cardiac arrest/death. Upon closer examination, we also found that heart attacks, diagnosed by paramedics in the field via 12-lead cardiac monitoring, followed the identified common daily pattern of a mid-afternoon peak, departing from prior generally accepted morning tendencies. Extended analysis revealed that the normative pattern prevailed across the NEMSIS data when re-organized to consider monthly, seasonal, daylight-savings vs civil time, and pre-/post- COVID-19 periods. The predictable daily EMS patterns provide impetus for more research that links daily variation with causal risk and protective factors. Our methods are straightforward and presented with detail to provide accessible and replicable implementation for researchers and practitioners.

Extracellular Vimentin Is Sufficient To Promote Cell Attachment, Spreading, And Motility By A Mechanism Involving N-Acetyl Glucosamine-Containing Structures, Robert Bucki, Daniel V. Iwamoto, Xuechen Shi, Katherine E. Kerr, Fitzroy J. Byfield, Lukasz Suprewicz, Karol Sklodowski, Julian Sutaria, Pawel Misiak, Agnieszka Z. Wilczewska, Sekar Ramachandran, Aaron Wolfe, Minh H. Thanh, Eli Whalen, Alison E. Patteson, Paul A. Janmey

Physics - All Scholarship

Vimentin intermediate !laments form part of the cytoskeleton

of mesenchymal cells, but under pathological conditions often

associatedwith in"ammation, vimentin !laments depolymerize as

the result of phosphorylation or citrullination, and vimentin

oligomers are secreted or released into the extracellular environment.

In the extracellular space, vimentin can bind surfaces of cells

and the extracellular matrix, and the interaction between extracellular

vimentin and cells can trigger changes in cellular functions,

such as activation of !broblasts to a !brotic phenotype. The

mechanism by which extracellular vimentin binds external cell

membranes and whether vimentin alone can act as an adhesive

anchor for cells is largely …

A Torsion-Based Rheometer For Measuring Viscoelastic Material Properties, Merrill E. Asp, Elise Jutzeler, Jakub Kochanowski, Katherine Kerr, Dawei Song, Sarthak Gupta, Robert Carroll, Alison E. Patteson

Physics - All Scholarship

Rheology and the study of viscoelastic materials are an integral

part of engineering and the study of biophysical systems. Tissue rheology is even

used in the study of cancer and other diseases. However, the cost of a rheometer is

feasible only for colleges, universities, and research laboratories. Even if a rheometer

can be purchased, it is bulky and delicately calibrated, limiting its usefulness to the

laboratory itself. The design presented here is less than a tenth of the cost of a

professional rheometer. The design is also portable, making it the ideal solution to

introduce viscoelasticity to high school students …

Dynamic Remodeling Of Fiber Networks With Stiff Inclusions Under Compressive Loading, Robert J. Carroll, Minh H. Thanh, Alison E. Patteson

Physics - All Scholarship

The ability of tissues to sustain and withstand mechanical stress is critical to tissue development and healthy tissue maintenance. The mechanical properties of tissues are typically considered to be dominated by the fibrous extracellular matrix (ECM) component of tissues. Fiber network mechanics can capture certain mechanical features of tissues, such as shear strain stiffening, but is insufficient in describing the compressive response of certain tissues and blood clots that are rich in extracellular matrix. To understand the mechanical response of tissues, we employ a contemporary mechanical model, a fibrous network of fibrin embedded with inert bead inclusions that preserve the …

How Green Lakes State Park Got Its Name: The Optics And Appearance Of Fayetteville Green Lakes, Eric A. Schiff

Physics - All Scholarship

The extraordinary and variable appearance of the Fayetteville Green Lakes in the spring, summer, and fall has been the subject of journalistic and scientific attention for more than 150 years. This article addresses the subject in two sections for differing readerships. The first section is a description of the essential science for a general readership. The second section is an abstract of the science for technically knowledgeable readers. The layout of the article is designed for a folded paper flier suitable for distribution to visitors to the lakes.

The article describes the three key properties of the lakes’ waters that …

Unique Role Of Vimentin Networks In Compression Stiffening Of Cells And Protection Of Nuclei From Compressive Stress, Katarzyna Pogoda, Fitzroy Byfield, Piotr Deptuła, Mateusz Cieśluk, Łukasz Suprewicz, Karol Skłodowski, Jordan L. Shivers, Anne Van Oosten, Katrina Cruz, Ekaterina Tarasovetc, Ekaterina L. Grishchuk, Fred C. Mackintosh, Robert Bucki, Alison E. Patteson, Paul A. Janmey

Physics - All Scholarship

In this work, we investigate whether stiffening in compression is a feature of single cells and whether the intracellular polymer networks that comprise the cytoskeleton (all of which stiffen with increasing shear strain) stiffen or soften when subjected to compressive strains. We find that individual cells, such as fibroblasts, stiffen at physiologically relevant compressive strains, but genetic ablation of vimentin diminishes this effect. Further, we show that unlike networks of purified F-actin or microtubules, which soften in compression, vimentin intermediate filament networks stiffen in both compression and extension, and we present a theoretical model to explain this response based on …

Spreading Rates Of Bacterial Colonies Depend On Substrate Stiffness And Permeability, Alison Patteson, Merrill Asp, Minh H. Thanh, Danielle A. Germann, Robert J. Carroll, Alana Franceski, Roy D. Welch, Arvind Gopinath

Physics - All Scholarship

The ability of bacteria to colonize and grow on different surfaces is an essential process for biofilm development. Here, we report the use of synthetic hydrogels with tunable stiffness and porosity to assess physical effects of the substrate on biofilm development. Using time-lapse microscopy to track the growth of expanding Serratia marcescens colonies, we find that biofilm colony growth can increase with increasing substrate stiffness, unlike what is found on traditional agar substrates. Using traction force microscopy-based techniques, we find that biofilms exert transient stresses correlated over length scales much larger than a single bacterium, and that the magnitude of …

Materials Science And Mechanosensitivity Of Living Matter, Alison E. Patteson, Merrill E. Asp, Paul A. Janmey

Physics - All Scholarship

Living systems are composed of molecules that are synthesized by cells that use energy sources within their surroundings to create fascinating materials that have mechanical properties optimized for their biological function. Their functionality is a ubiquitous aspect of our lives. We use wood to construct furniture, bacterial colonies to modify the texture of dairy products and other foods, intestines as violin strings, bladders in bagpipes, and so on. The mechanical properties of these biological materials differ from those of other simpler synthetic elastomers, glasses, and crystals. Reproducing their mechanical properties synthetically or from first principles is still often unattainable. The …

Rab11 Endosomes And Pericentrin Coordinate Centrosome Movement During Pre-Abscission In Vivo, Nikhila Krishnan, Maxx Swoger, Lindsay I. Rathbun, Peter J. Fioramonti, Judy Freshour, Michael Bates, Alison E. Patteson, Heidi Hehnly

Physics - All Scholarship

The last stage of cell division involves two daughter cells remaining interconnected by a cytokinetic bridge that is cleaved during abscission. Conserved between the zebrafish embryo and human cells, we found that the oldest centrosome moves in a Rab11-dependent manner towards the cytokinetic bridge sometimes followed by the youngest. Rab11-endosomes are organized in a Rab11-GTP dependent manner at the mother centriole during pre-abscission, with Rab11 endosomes at the oldest centrosome being more mobile compared with the youngest. The GTPase activity of Rab11 is necessary for the centrosome protein, Pericentrin, to be enriched at the centrosome. Reduction in Pericentrin expression or …

Vimentin Intermediate Filaments Mediate Cell Morphology On Viscoelastic Substrates, Maxx Swoger, Sarthak Gupta, Elisabeth E. Charrier, Michael Bates, Heidi Hehnly, Alison E. Patteson

Physics - All Scholarship

The ability of cells to take and change shape is a fundamental feature underlying development, wound repair, and tissue maintenance. Central to this process is physical and signaling interactions between the three cytoskeletal polymeric networks: F-actin, microtubules, and intermediate filaments (IFs). Vimentin is an IF protein that is essential to the mechanical resilience of cells and regulates cross-talk among the cytoskeleton, but its role in how cells sense and respond to the surrounding extracellular matrix is largely unclear. To investigate vimentin’s role in substrate sensing, we designed polyacrylamide hydrogels that mimic the elastic and viscoelastic nature of in vivo tissues. …

Extracellular Vimentin As A Target Against Sars-Cov-2 Host Cell Invasion, Łukasz Suprewicz, Maxx Swoger, Sarthak Gupta, Ewelina Piktel, Fitzroy J. Byfield, Daniel V. Iwamoto, Danielle Germann, Joanna Reszeć, Natalia Marcińczyk, Robert J. Carroll, Paul A. Janmey, J. M. Schwarz, Robert Bucki, Alison E. Patteson

Physics - All Scholarship

Infection of human cells by pathogens, including SARS-CoV-2, typically proceeds by cell surface binding to a crucial receptor. The primary receptor for SARS-CoV-2 is the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), yet new studies reveal the importance of additional extracellular co-receptors that mediate binding and host cell invasion by SARS-CoV-2. Vimentin is an intermediate filament protein that is increasingly recognized as being present on the extracellular surface of a subset of cell types, where it can bind to and facilitate pathogens’ cellular uptake. Biophysical and cell infection studies are done to determine whether vimentin might bind SARS-CoV-2 and facilitate its uptake. Dynamic …

A Data-Driven Statistical Description For The Hydrodynamics Of Active Matter, Ahmad Borzou, Alison E. Patteson, J. M. Schwarz

Physics - All Scholarship

Modeling living systems at the collective scale can be very challenging because the individual constituents can themselves be complex and the respective interactions between the constituents may not be fully understood. With the advent of high throughput experiments and in the age of big data, data-driven methods are on the rise to overcome these challenges. Although machine-learning approaches can help quantify correlations between the various players, they do not directly shed light on the underlying physical principles of such systems. Here, we present a data-driven method for obtaining the phase-space density of active matter systems such that the solution to …

The Role Of Vimentin–Nuclear Interactions In Persistent Cell Motility Through Confined Spaces, Sarthak Gupta, Alison E. Patteson, J. M. Schwarz

Physics - All Scholarship

The ability of cells to move through small spaces depends on the mechanical properties of the cellular cytoskeleton and on nuclear deformability. In mammalian cells, the cytoskeleton is composed of three interacting, semi-flexible polymer networks: actin, microtubules, and intermediate filaments (IF). Recent experiments of mouse embryonic fibroblasts with and without vimentin have shown that the IF vimentin plays a role in confined cell motility. Here, we develop a minimal model of a cell moving through a microchannel that incorporates explicit effects of actin and vimentin and implicit effects of microtubules. Specifically, the model consists of a cell with an actomyosin …

Hybrid Power Generation System Through Vertical Axis Wind Turbine And Solar Pv, Zeeshan Memon

English Language Institute

The design of a hybrid electric power generation system utilizing both wind and solar energy for remote area is today’s need. The system has two basic components – one for generation of electricity through Solar Energy and another one for generation from Wind Energy. Even in the case of absence of either of the two sources, the other remaining source could be used to supplement the absence of the former. The power from wind current can be extracted using a vertical axis turbine. Vertical axis turbine is capable of extracting power form wind regardless of the direction of flow. The …

The Impacts Of Tropical Cyclones In Zimbabwe, Emmerson Chivhenge

English Language Institute

No abstract provided.

Conceptual Model For Spillover Rain Formation In Lima, Peru, Piero Rivas

English Language Institute

A composite analysis determined that spillover rain formation in Lima is driven mainly by systems in high levels which in turn fortify easterly winds that also bring moisture from the Amazon basin.

Paleomagnetism Of The Karoo Large Igneous Province In The Sani Pass Area, South Africa-Lesotho Border, Batobeleng Monareng

English Language Institute

Large Igneous Province have been linked to rapid climate change and mass extinction. In this study we report paleomagnetic results from 52 sites of the Karoo Large Igneous Province in the Sani Pass area. 29 sites shows reverse polarity, 12 sites with normal polarity and 11 sites with excursional polarity. A polarity sequence of R-N-R-N is observed from the bottom to the top of the Sani Pass section.

Social And Environmental Issue Of Deforestation In Papua, Indonesia, Briantama Asmara

English Language Institute

This poster aims to cover social and environmental impacts of deforestation in Papua. This research was based on literature review from various authors.

Environment Protection And Public Policies: The Case Of The Brazilian System Of Protected Areas (Snuc), Wainesten Da Silva

English Language Institute

This poster aims to present the Brazilian System of Protected Areas (SNUC), which is the result of the enforcement of the Brazilian society in promoting public policies to reduce the impact of human activity in nature. It has presented the concept of a public policy, a short history of public policies regarding the environment in Brazil, the main points of the Brazilian System of Protected Areas (SNUC), and a map exposing the protected areas in Brazil. The main finding is that the SNUC is a strong instrument to promote public policies to protect the environment, not only excluding the use …

Topology Optimization Of 2d Structures With Multiple Displacement Constraints, Patricio Uarac Pinto

English Language Institute

The use of topology optimization in the design process in Civil Engineering can lead to innovative building shapes that not only fulfill structural requirements but also open new opportunities for arquitectonics.

Gases Concept Inventory (Gci): An Instrument Test To Analyze Students’ Mental Models Of The Kinetic Theory Of Gases, Muhammad Guntur Purwanto

English Language Institute

This poster is to promote a Gases Concept Inventory (GCI) as an instrument test to evaluate students’ mental models on kinetic theory of gases. By evaluating mental models using GCI, teachers can assess students’ initial perception and understanding in kinetic theory of gases, so they can prepare the best method to deliver kinetic theory of gases concept to students. THE GCI is analyzed by evaluating its validity, reliability, and difficulty level to prove that GCI is valid and reliable to be used.

Solar Thermal Cooling System: A Feasible Option For The Maldives, Ahmed Fathhee

English Language Institute

This poster presents the potentiality of utilizing solar and converting thermal energy to cool buildings in the Maldives. A thermal model of a typical building showing the annual cooling load is presented which was used to run a simulation model of a solar thermal cooling system. Simulation data shows that it is possible to use a solar thermal cooling system to cool the buildings effectively.

Impact Of Weak Gravitational Force In Sri Lanka, Periyandy Thunendran

English Language Institute

Gravity studies explain about the sub surface features and shape of the earth, and show gravitational force is weak in the Sri Lanka region, which has positive and negative impacts. This poster argues further studies on gravity are needed to revise the global gravitational model of the region.

Types Of Oil Recovery Methods To Increase Oil Productions, Astrid Rodriguez

English Language Institute

In the oil industry, different recovery methods are applied to produce a percentage of the hydrocarbon storage in a reservoir. These methods are classified into three principal categories: primary, secondary, and tertiary recovery. Their selection and implementation depend on the reservoir and fluids properties. According to the recovery method selected, it is possible to recover different quantities of hydrocarbon.

Impact Of Invasive Species, Diego Fernando Osorio Castiblanco

English Language Institute

No abstract provided.