Dr Chastain - Role,
Structure and Function of Plant Protein RP in Metabolism The
overall goal of this years project will be to elucidate how a novel
plant enzymes' protein structure is directly involved in the mechanism
of catalysis. Specifically, this research is part of my long-term
research program that concerns a plant metabolic enzyme called pyruvate
phosphate dikinase, or PPDK for short, and how PPDK is regulated or
controlled by another enzyme called PPDK Regulatory Protein, or
"RP". Your mission will be to decipher the mysterious RP
blueprint by to using an experimental approach called "molecular
dissection".
Dr Marry
- Plant
defense system – or how I changed the sugars on my cell wall-
The Plant Primary Cell Wall is critical to plant cell growth,
differentiation, and response to biotic and abiotic stress. It should
be remembered that the appearance of any induced change to the “basal”
biology of higher plants is ultimately manifested within the plant
Primary cell wall matrix.
Dr Provost
- Tumor
migration in Human Lung Cells – Does it need anchoring and acid pumping
by NHE?
Cell motility and the ability of tumors to invade and migrate have
recently been associated with the ion transporter, sodium hydrogen
exchanger isoform 1 (NHE). In addition to regulation of
intracellular and extracellular pH, NHE is found in the leading edge of
migrating cells where it acts as an anchoring focal point for
cytoskeleton proteins and recruiting proteins necessary for cell
invasion. There will be three or four goals for this
project. First is to identify an agonist/hormone involved in
non-small lung cancer and screen it for MMP9 activation in two cell
lines. Second, is to look at the impact of chemical inhibitors
against NHE on MMP activation, cell motility and or cell growth (using
an MMT assay) in the stimulated and resting lung cells. We also
will work with these inhibitors in nude mice (read that you will be
taking care of these animals) that have been injected with tumor
cells. Finally, the group will work to mutate and create NHE1 –
null cells to measure the metastatic potential NHE1 expression has on
human lung cancer.
Dr Provost
- Neurotransmitter
Transporter Regulation (DAT in Action!)
In the central nervous system, the neurotransmitter dopamine (DA)
controls numerous functions including motor activity, emotion, and
reward. The extracellular levels of DA available for initiating
these processes are precisely controlled by the dopamine transporter
(DAT), a plasma membrane protein that actively transports DA from the
synaptic space into the presynaptic cell. A lack of DAT results in,
hyperlocomotion, and neurological deficits. DATs are targets for
psychostimulant drugs such as amphetamine (AMPH), which is carried as a
substrate and stimulates transport reversal and efflux of intracellular
DA. This project will focus on the phosphorylation of DAT by
ERK. We will work with Dr. Roxanne Vaughn in the Biochemistry and
Molecular Biology Dept at UND School of Medicine and Health
Sciences. She will provide us with a peptide of the C-terminal
tail of DAT for our group to use to make antibodies with. We will
also be working with one or two new cell lines to learn how to culture
the cells in a manner to reduce ERK activity when cell are in the
resting state. Once accomplishes we will screen one or two
agonists to show ERK phosphorylation. Then we will use these two
tools to measure the ability of ERK to phosphorylate DAT and look at
DAT activity based on a radioactive transport assay. Some travel
to UND will be required for this group.
Dr.
Rodenbaugh- Neural control
of the cardiovascular system and
gender differences-
Since 1900 cardiovascular disease (CVD) has been
the No. 1 killer in the United States every year but 1918. I am
interested in developing research examining changes in both estrogen
levels and autonomic control of the cardiovascular system following
spinal cord injury. The autonomic nervous system is comprised of two
components, the sympathetic (fight or flight) and parasympathetic (feed
or breed) nervous systems. These two systems
continuously modulate a variety of hemodynamic mechanisms to control
blood pressure including the electrical activity of the heart. In
humans the parasympathetic nervous system typically dominates.
However, most cardiovascular pathologies in humans are associated with
a shift in autonomic control towards enhanced sympathetic activity and
reduced parasympathetic activity.
I will be developing a model for studying SCI and the cardiovascular
system using female Sprague Dawley rats. Estrogen levels will be
monitored in both models and ovariectomized rats will be used as a
negative control. My goal is to expose research students to
a variety of recovery surgical techniques in order to study physiology
in a conscious rat. These students will also learn to use a data
acquisition system for monitoring the physiology of animals.
Competitive ELISA techniques and basic histology will be used to track
the estrous cycle as well. Lastly, students will learn basic
clinical and animal care skills necessary for caring for SCI
animals.
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