Trevor Ellison and Dr. Laura C. Bridgewater, Zoology An enhancer is a DNA sequence that regulates a gene’s expression. It is the binding of proteins to a gene’s enhancer region (at its protein-binding sites) that regulates that gene’s expression in the cell. The Col11a2 gene is activated almost solely in chondrocytes (cartilage cells) (Lui et […]
Analysis of Microvesicles to Determine Susceptibility to the Enzyme Phospholipase A2
Brent Brimhall and Joseph Callister with Dr. John Bell, Zoology Microvesicles are small membrane-bound spheres released from certain cells undergoing the decay process. Little is known today about their properties and function at the cellular level. It is hypothesized that microvesicles play a role in cancer metastasis through the action of metalloproteinases enclosed within these […]
The Specific Binding of Protein’s to the ABC, FG, and DE Enhancer Elements of the Col11a2 Gene
Kristopher Bennion and Dr. Laura Bridgewater, Zoology Gene therapy is extensively being studied in many labs for the potential treatment of such disorders as arthritis, cancer, diabetes, and other such disabling diseases. Researchers in Dr. Bridgewater’s lab have been studying the Col11a2 gene in hopes of future treatment of such disorders as cleft palate, dwarfism, […]
DPPG Susceptibility to Human Group X Phospholipase A2
Katrina Behling and Dr. John D. Bell, Zoology Introduction There are eight known isoforms of the mammalian secreted phospholipase A2 (sPLA2). One of these, the recently discovered human group X sPLA2 (hGX), when added to adherent cells, has the ability to cleave the second fatty acid side chain of phospholipids, thereby producing arachidonic acid. Other […]
Convergent HIV Evolution
Keith A. Crandall and Dr. Chris R. Kelsey, Zoology The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus with RNA as its genetic material. During the replication cycle, the enzyme reverse transcriptase uses the RNA template to transcribe a complementary DNA copy. Because of the significant infidelity of reverse transcriptase, mutations accumulate within the viral genome […]
Production of Cytokines Interleukin-6 and Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha in Human Adrenocortical H295R Cells
Joseph Johnson and Dr. Allan M. Judd, Zoology Difficulties associated with research into the physiology of the human adrenal gland have been alleviated due to the isolation of the human adrenocortical tumor cell-line, NCI-H295R, which retains the ability to produce adrenocortical steroids (e.g. aldosterone, cortisol, DHEA) when grown in culture (1). We investigated whether these […]
TreeSAAP: A Phylogenetic Approach to Identifying Selective Influences on Amino Acid Properties
Steven Woolley and Dr. David McClellan, Zoology The program TreeSAAP measures the selective influences on several structural and biochemical amino acid properties during phylogenesis (the history of genealogical development) and performs goodness-of-fit and categorical statistical tests. Calculating the above information by hand is a very laborious task which grows exponentially more difficult as the number […]
Molecular Mechanism of Neuronal Communication
Blake Simmons and Dr. Dixon Woodbury, Physiology and Developmental Biology Nerve Cells communicate with each other by synaptic transmission. Synaptic transmission is the release by one nerve cell of neurotransmitters packaged in synaptic vesicles. Proteins known as SNAREs, (e.g., synaptobrevin and syntaxin) are believed to drive neurotransmitter release by inducing fusion (exocytosis) within a presynaptic […]
The Role of Interleukin-6, C-Fos and C-Jun in Adrenal Secretion
D Craig Seager and Dr. Allan M Judd, Physiology and Developmental Biology The secretions of the adrenal gland are responsible for the body’s response to stress. One of the major mechanisms by which these secretions are regulated is by the way of the hypothalamuspituitary- adrenal axis (HPA axis). However, it was suspected that other mechanisms […]
Common Variable Immunodeficiency: Literature and Reality
Heather Janene Kearl and Dr. Richard R Tolman, Zoology Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) is one of the least understood primary immunodeficiencies. It is a disease where the body attacks its own antibodies, destroying all or most of them. Patients with CVID suffer from recurrent illnesses such as pneumonia, hepatitis, and other infections. While scientists know […]
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