Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology Commons^™

Open Neuroscience Initiative, Austin Lim

College of Science and Health Full Text Publications

The Open Neuroscience Initiative is a free-to-use textbook

This project began as a means to overcoming the financial burden that face undergraduate neuroscience students when buying textbooks. By compiling and writing a completely free-to-access textbook that covers the foundations of a typical college introduction to neuroscience course, students would have one less obstacle to overcome in their educational career, allowing them to focus their valuable time and attention on learning rather than finances. To make this project a reality, I began with a humble tweet in May 2019 that managed to gain a tiny bit of traction among the neuroscience …

Organic Chemistry With A Biological Emphasis Volume I

Chemistry Faculty

The traditional approach to teaching Organic Chemistry, taken by most of the textbooks that are currently available, is to focus primarily on the reactions of laboratory synthesis, with much less discussion - in the central chapters, at least - of biological molecules and reactions. This is despite the fact that, in many classrooms, a majority of students are majoring in Biology or Health Sciences rather than in Chemistry, and are presumably taking the course in order to learn about the chemistry that takes place in living things.

In an effort to address this disconnect, I have developed a textbook for …

Multiple Isotope Effects On Enzyme-Catalyzed Reactions

Biochemistry -- Faculty Publications

Isotope effects have long been popular as a method for studying mechanisms of chemical reactions (1, 2). Application of this method to enzymatic reac­tions has come slowly, in part because of the difficulty of making measurements of the necessary precision, and in part because of the difficulty of interpreting the variations in rate that occur in multistep reactions. The theory and practice of isotope effects has now reached the stage where a variety of interesting mechanistic studies are possible (3-9), including use of heavy­ atom isotope effects (5), application to multireactant enzymes (9a, 10), pH dependence of isotope effects (11, …

Nature, Nurture, And Serial Murder: A Biocriminological Analysis Of Jeffrey Dahmer And Aileen Wuornos, Dori Jal

Honors Thesis

In recent years, there has been an increase in public fascination with serial killers, however current criminological explanations continue to focus on social and psychological factors, lacking commentary on potential biological implications. This thesis addresses a gap in the literature by examining how biological processes, specifically epigenetic, neurobiological, and endocrinological mechanisms, interact with environmental stressors to shape serial homicidal behavior. The goal is to determine whether serial murder can be more effectively understood through a biosocial framework that integrates biological vulnerability with lived experience, rather than relying on singular explanatory models.

Using a qualitative multiple-case study methodology, this research analyzes …

Anatomy And Physiology Preparatory Course Textbook (2nd Edition), Carlos Liachovitzky

Open Educational Resources

The goal of this preparatory textbook is to give students a chance to become familiar with some terms and some basic concepts they will find later on in the Anatomy and Physiology course, especially during the first few weeks of the course.

Organization and functioning of the human organism are generally presented starting from the simplest building blocks, and then moving into levels of increasing complexity. This textbook follows the same presentation. It begins introducing the concept of homeostasis, then covers the chemical level, and later on a basic introduction to cellular level, organ level, and organ system level. This …

Organic Chemistry With A Biological Emphasis Volume Ii

Chemistry Faculty

No abstract provided.

Joe Rogan And The Manosphere In The Age Of Modern Misogyny

CSB and SJU Distinguished Thesis

Much scholarly research analyzes extreme misogynistic language in “manosphere” forums, due to their connections to radicalization and violence. However, less attention has been given to the prevalence of such content in mainstream media, such as podcasts. The Joe Rogan Experience (JRE) podcast, a prominent and influential platform, has been praised for its wide-ranging discussions but critiqued for fostering and amplifying harmful ideologies, including misogyny. Despite its controversy, limited research has explored how pre-existing misogynistic rhetoric in online communities might shape or influence the content of JRE episodes. This study examines how misogynistic language and themes proliferate in JRE episodes through …

Combining Simulations And Single Molecule Spectroscopy To Understand Sars-Cov-2 Nucleocapsid Protein-Rna Interactions, Jhullian Alston

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Disordered protein regions play crucial roles in various cellular functions, exhibiting high heterogeneity and sampling an ensemble of conformations distinct from folded domains. However, our understanding of their behavior and contributions to protein-protein and protein-nucleic acid interactions remains limited. This dissertation focuses on investigating the interactions between disordered regions and RNA, as well as folded regions of proteins, utilizing computational modeling and single-molecule fluorescence spectroscopy. The SARS-CoV-2 Nucleocapsid (N) protein serves as a model system to address broader questions concerning disordered protein behavior and N protein-mediated RNA genome packaging. I employed coarse-grained molecular dynamic simulations to characterize the cooperative binding …

Science, Physiology, And Nutrition For The Nonscientist, Judi Morrill

Open Educational Resources

A wonderful blend of physiology, nutrition, biochemistry, genetics, biology, evolution, chemistry--what we all need to know as informed citizens. A basic knowledge of the life sciences and how our bodies work--to promote our own good health, especially as we're bombarded with misleading advertisements, soundbites, and the like. DNA fingerprinting, calorie requirements, dietary advice, genetic engineering (including gene editing with CRISPR cas9)--all in an easy-to understand book.

Modulation Of The Heme Electronic Structure And Cystathionine Β-Synthase Activity By Second Coordination Sphere Ligands: The Role Of Heme Ligand Switching In Redox Regulation, Donald Becker, Peter Madzelan

Biochemistry -- Faculty Publications

In humans, cystathionine β-synthase (CBS) is a hemeprotein, which catalyzes a pyridoxal phosphate (PLP)-dependent condensation reaction. Changes in the heme environment are communicated to the active site, which is ~20 Å away. In this study, we have examined the role of H67 and R266, which are in the second coordination sphere of the heme ligands, H65 and C52 respectively, in modulating the heme's electronic properties and in transmitting information between the heme and active sites. While the H67A mutation is comparable to wild-type CBS, interesting differences are revealed by mutations at the R266 site. The pathogenic mutant, R266K, is moderately …