Despite the significant progress made in resolving membrane protein structures, there are still obstacles to overcome, such as the use of detergent and the protein’s native environment and structure. The use of SMA nanoparticles to form nanodiscs eliminates the use of detergent and provides a native-like environment, providing the best alternative to liposomes and other […]
B25: Enzymatic and Chemical Models of Tannin Degradation
Tannins are a group of large polyphenolic compounds found in many plants. Studying how tannins break down could further the understanding of the importance of tannin in natural systems. This experiment focused on two distinct models of degradation: enzymatic and chemical. Polyphenol oxidase, an enzyme that will oxidize phenolic compounds, was used with both caffeic […]
C13: Using GC-MS to Identify Essential Oils: Improving instruction in Organic Chemistry Lab
The goal of this research was to enhance and improve upon an organic chemistry experiment done by second year students. Extraction of essential oils is a technique used in Organic Chemistry labs in order to teach the process of steam distillation in the purification of organic samples. Through the use of steam distillation essential oils […]
A18: Dynamic Chemistry Produces Functional Materials with Diverse Applications
Dynamic chemistry is characterized by the ability of a bond or adduct to break or reform either autonomously or in response to stimuli, and “click” chemistry refers to a subset of one-pot, water and oxygen resistant, high-yield reactions.1,2 Herein, we use principles from both such chemistries to develop a synthesis and use RAFT (reversible addition-fragmentation […]
B95: Analysis of Ubiquitin Bioconjugates Through Magnetic Resonance for Study of Protein-Polymer Interactions
Enzymes are frequently used in industrial settings and in applications such as pharmaceuticals and fuel production. However, many of these systems are not advantageous for proteins to flourish, with high temperatures and pH varying from that of most biological systems. Post-translational modifications are one method of improving characteristics of proteins such as thermal stability in […]
B23: Ecological Resource Sharing Between Deer Species Evaluated by Tannin Diets
Tannins are polyphenolic compounds which are plentiful in herbivore plants. The ability of tannins to precipitate proteins has been of interest to biochemists , ecologists, and animal physiologists for years. The impact of condensed tannin on protein digestibility is evaluated with in vivo digestion trials with White-Tailed Deer and Mule Deer. The digestion trials are […]
C20: Observing Polymer Wrapping in Bioconjugates by Paramagnetic Relaxation Enhancement
The properties of proteins can be improved by covalent conjugation with polymers. Rational design of these bioconjugates is obstructed by a lack of mechanistic understanding because of the absence of data on interactions between the protein and polymer. Does an attached polymer behave like a random coil or interact with the protein such that it […]
C25: The Study of the Structural Topology and Dynamic Properties of Pinholin S21 Using Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectroscopy
Membrane proteins are essential in biological process for the survival of living organisms. The bacteriophage infection cycle ends cell death through membrane lysis. The precise timing of infected host cell lysis is crucial for the phage life cycle. A small membrane protein called holin plays is crucial to define the time length of phage infection […]
B29: Copper-Catalyzed Deaminative Difluoromethylation
A difluoromethyl group (CF2H) is considered to be a lipophilic and metabolically stable bioisostere of an amino (NH2) group. Therefore, methods that can directly convert a NH2 group into a CF2H group would be of great value to medicinal chemistry. We report an efficient Cu-catalyzed approach for the conversion of alkyl pyridinium salts, which can […]
B18: A Look Behind the Vaccines: Current Strategies in Influenza Vaccine Design
Throughout the course of human civilization, Influenza Viruses A and B— the viruses responsible for causing the majority of cases of influenza— have negotiated a tenuous coexistence with the human population. Yearly, between January and March, 10 to 45 million people in the United States alone contract influenza, causing significant economic and social burdens. Occasionally, […]
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