The Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s SEA-PHAGES program provides opportunities for college students in about 150 institutions around the world to participate in discovery-based science by isolating and characterizing new bacteriophages from the environment. Bacteriophages (phages) are highly abundant viruses that infect bacteria and play significant roles in ecology and health, with recent successes in helping […]
A32: Using On-Column Amide Reactions for Functional Group Identification by Gas Chromatography
Gas chromatography (GC) with flame ionization detection (FID) is still an important and relatively inexpensive problem solving analytical method despite the maturity of this technique. Although the FID is a sensitive and rugged detector, it does not provide qualitative identification of the separated components. We have initiated a dynamic GC stationary phase modification research program […]
A33: Foldamer Synthesis and Potential Applications
The general area our lab researches is organic chemistry. The purpose of our research is to create a foldamer capable of switching on in the presence of a chemical fuel. A foldamer is a discrete chain molecule that folds into a conformationally ordered state in solution. They are artificial molecules that mimic the ability of […]
A34: Determining the Function of Pentapeptide Repeat Proteins in Cyanobacteria During Diurnal Light Cycling and Nitrogen Starvation
Cyanobacteria, among the oldest organisms on Earth, played a crucial role in the development of complex life by oxygenating the Earth’s atmosphere. Cyanobacteria are promising candidates for use in biotechnology applications, including the production of biofuels, pharmaceuticals, and other valuable chemicals, so studying these organisms can result in new ways to harness their potential. By […]
A35: Investigating the Role Gut Microbes Play in Triggering Type 1 Diabetes
Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is an incurable autoimmune disease that drastically affects one’s life. People who have T1D do not make insulin or do not make enough of it. This is due to a deficiency in pancreatic ꞵ-cells. The gut microbiome contains many microbes within it. Some microbes such as Bacteriodetes and Firmicutes are hypothesized […]
A36: Antifungal Properties of Aloe spp. Exudates Against Dermatophytes
Author(s): Olivia Castor, Kaley Bloomer, Isabelle Reitz, Wenyuan Zhang, Microbiology Majors Advisor(s): Marcia Lee, Department of Microbiology
A37: What’s in the Water? Developing a Selective PFAS Sensing Platform Using Novel ssDNA Aptazymes
PFAS (per/polyfluoroalkyl substances) encompass a group of roughly 12,000 man-made chemicals that are incredibly stable. Because of its widespread use and the fact that it degrades very slowly, PFAS exists practically everywhere in the environment. Concerningly, consumption of PFAS compounds due to environmental contamination has been correlated with many illnesses, prompting research into detection methods […]
A38:Using Fluorinated Tryptophan to Observe Conformational Changes in Metallo-β-Lactamase
Author(s): Ian Weber, Biochemistry Major Advisor(s): Rick Page, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Surendra Silwal, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
A39: Do Charged Residues in Grp94 Facilitate Client Binding: Insights into Chaperone Function
The Hsp90 family of chaperones functions to target misfolded proteins, prevent aggregate formation and bind to specific substrates for proper folding. Paralogs of the Hsp90 family exist in the cytoplasm (Hsp90), in the mitochondria (TRAP1) and in the endoplasmic reticulum (Grp94). The ER paralog Grp94 is of particular interest to this investigation since it is […]
A40: Gut Microbes Affect the Onset of Type 1 Diabetes
The Type 1 Diabetes research group focuses on how bacteria in the intestines affect the onset of Diabetes in non-obese Diabetic Mice(NOD). Histology is the main focus of our research which is used to see in to these organs to visualize the bacteria and what is happening within tissue cells. Many stains and antibodies are […]