Research Presentations - 2006
John Deere Chapter of Sigma Xi

6:45 - 10:10 pm, Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Science Building Room 102, Augustana College, Rock Island, Illinois
Parking is available in Lot H, just north of the building.  You may enter on the ground floor at either the north or
 south entrance.  The lecture hall is at the south end of the building.  There is handicap parking at the north entrance.

Below is the list of talks and posters that will be presented by the new associate members of the chapter inducted in October.

The talks will all be in Room 102.  During the evening, the posters will be on display in the Atrium of the Science Building.  The students displaying posters will be introduced at 9:50 pm in Room 102.  At 9:55, in the Atrium, we will have refreshments, view the posters, and enjoy conversation with all of the presenters.

I have done a summer research project to survey the butterfly species in one of Augustana's three field stations, the Collinson Ecological Preserve. There has been extensive work done with the vascular plants in the preserve, but very little is known about vertebrates or invertebrates in the area. The project included the collection of butterflies twice a week, immediate pinning of the butterflies and the identification and cataloging of the resulting sixteen species. We seek to have a write-up of the project published in Transactions of the Illinois State Academy of Science. It is absolutely necessary that this data be gathered to serve as the groundwork for future study.

Baker's larkspur, Delphinium bakeri, is found in only one remaining population in Marin County, California and is listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. The population, at one time numbering around 100 plants, is located along a roadside and currently consists of an estimated 6 individuals after being mowed in 2002, followed by damages from wildfires, a mudslide, and road scraping in 2004. This dwindling population requires immediate attention to assess the diversity of the remaining individuals in order to plan future conservation efforts. We used 437 AFLP (amplified fragment length polymorphism) markers to assess levels and patterns of genetic diversity in D. bakeri on samples collected in 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004. These estimates will establish base-line genetic variation to assess the scale of the genetic bottleneck that this population has experienced and will be applied to continued conservation efforts.

The goal of this study was to develop methods of studying soil respiration using inexpensive, easily available, materials so that soil respiration could be more widely studied in high school and college biology labs. Soil respiration rates were studied using homemade lysimeters in two different locations and with three different treatments. On one location was the fertilizer addition study and comparing the soil structures and at the other location was the antibacterial soap addition. The study of the addition of fertilizer to the soil significantly increased the soil respiration rates. The comparison of soil structure was significant as well. The addition of soap tended to increase the respiration rates, but not significantly. Another interesting trend is that there was a difference of respiration rates at the different sites tested possibly due to temperature changes possibly due to that the sites were test approximately three months apart.

I was involved in research that was directed at analyzing corn rootworm pressure. Through locations comparative analysis was made between insect management strategies.

The McCaffrey lab at the University of Iowa has modified two molecular tools - microRNAs and Zinc-Finger nucleases - for gene therapy against the Hepatitis B virus. The ultimate goal of this therapy is to give cells infected with this virus the genetic ability to combat their own viral host. MicroRNAs target and degrade viral RNA and zinc-finger nucleases (ZFNs) target and cleave the virus' genomic DNA. However, because expressing exogenous DNA poses many potential risks, the ability to safely and effectively regulate the expression of this DNA is essential. The goal of my project was to regulate the expression of the microRNAs and ZFNs by using a molecular "riboswitch". I found that the Riboswitch system was ineffective at regulating the microRNA constructs. I also found that the ZFNs were not efficiently expressed in eukaryotic cells. My work will be a starting point for future investigations in the McCaffrey lab.

A novel approach to overcoming drug resistance in cancer cells is explored that involves restoring sensitivity to previously resistant ovarian cancer. The catalytic subunit of the 26S proteasome is defective in cisplatin resistant human ovarian cancer (2008) cells. When infected with Ad-mda7/IL-24, 2008C13 accumulates the mda-7 protein product at a greater concentration than cisplatin sensitive (2008S) cells. Small-interfering RNA (siRNA) was used to knockout b5, resulting in a decrease of ubiquitin-proteasome system activity. This is shown by screening for the endogenous JNK protein. Previous research indicates this is the cause of cisplatin resistance in human ovarian cancer. This offers an alternative to developing new drugs, as it may be possible to restore a defective pathway and hence restore sensitivity to classical cancer drugs.

Unlike humans, many organisms such as fish, aquatic plants, and insects may be entirely, as well as constantly, exposed to contaminants in their habitat (1). This fact led to the collaboration between chemists and biologists this summer. Water samples were taken from Augustana's two field stations, Beiling and Green Wing, as well as Richardson Wildlife Foundation (located a few miles from Green Wing, in Amboy, Illinois). The goal was to see if there was a correlation between water pollutants in vernal ponds to the species diversity. Methods were developed to extract herbicides from water samples such as metolachlor, 2, 4-D and dicamba from water samples using solid-phase extraction (SPE) and liquid-liquid extraction (LLE), using analysis methods of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS), and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The limit of detection for metolachlor using the GC/MS was estimated to be 9.178 x 10^-7 g/mL.

Note:  Melissa was not able to make this presentation because of a sore throat.

My research project involved testing fast-food hamburger patties for carcinogenic material. The amount of carcinogens present is based on the amount of time the meat is cooked and the intensity of the temperature at which the meat is prepared. The temperature is the most important factor. In many studies of this kind, the meat is prepared in a home setting on the grill, broiler, stove, oven, etc (Sinha 1997). This way, the doneness of the meat can be closely monitored, but with fast-food restaurants the customer does not get to choose the doneness of their burgers. Fast-food chains use a variety of methods to prepare their hamburger meat.

Nanocrystalline MgO and Al₂O₃ have been reported to be very reactive reagents in decomposition reactions of surrogate chemical warfare agents. NC-AP MgO has also been reported as catalysts in organic synthesis reactions involving the Claisen-Schmidt type condensation reactions. NC-AP Al₂O₃ as catalyst for condensation reactions, such as Claisen-Schmidt and Robinson Annulations, as well as, the catalytic properties of NC-TiO₂ under the same conditions as NC-Al₂O₃were investigated. Preliminary results indicate that these nancrystalline metal oxides form condensation products when reacted with various aldehydes.

DDB1 is already known to degrade the Cdt1 protein in conjunction with CUL4 and PCNA within the egg extract from previous experiments. The DDB1 acts as an E3 by binding to CUL4 and binding to the protein and helps to ubiquinate this protein. It is hypothesized that DDB1 may also act in the same way when the p27Xic1 inhibitor is degraded within the Xenopus laevis egg extract. Xic1 is the Xenopus inhibitor of the CDK and cyclins in the egg extract and during the phase change from G1 to S phase. The understanding of the mechanisms used to degrade the Xic1 inhibitor will contribute to the overall understanding of the mechanisms that regulate the cell cycle and could be a great benefit when studying cancer in the future.

The current study is a follow up to research done in 1995 and 2000 collecting information about sapling regeneration after the 1993 flood.. The forest inventory is a collection of sapling, tree, and canopy information from 45 randomly selected plots. Due to extensive flooding in 1993, a significant portion of the sapling population was killed off and the canopy opened up as larger trees died. This allowed for rapid growth among many areas in the bottomland forest. The study of pool 17 will analyze the current forest composition and amount of regeneration since the flood. Through this a better understanding of the effects of the 93 flood can be attained, as well as predictions for the future effects on the forest.

Quartz fibers were exposed to strong neutron and photon radiation and tested for optical degradation. After 17.6 Mrad of neutron and 73.5 Mrad of gamma radiation, damage to the fibers was determined. The level of damage was wavelength specific. The exposure was analyzed and the results compared to previous radiation damage tests.

This experiment served to study the efficiency and attenuation length of high energy physics particle detectors. Several scintillating counters were set up to record cosmic rays passing through, and the attenuation length of one of them was then studied. The attenuation length was determined by studying the shift of the Landau distribution - and thus energy loss - created by the cosmic rays at different locations throughout the detector. From this analysis, an attenuation length of 204.1 ± 14.4 cm was determined, which is a reasonable result for our 45 cm detector.

In this work computational electrodynamics is used to calculate extinction, scattering, and local electric fields around the transition metal nanoparticles. Rhodium and ruthenium exhibit plasmon peak shifts as a function of local refractive index comparable to particles of silver and gold. In addition the local fields calculated indicate that Rh and Ru are viable surface enhanced Raman scattering substrates.

The goal of this project was to synthesize dendritic compounds. It was desired to synthesize several of these dendrimers, beginning with the first generation alkylated compound and then continuing to branch out from there. Alkylations were to range from six to ten carbon chains. But as with many research projects, several obstacles were faced that limited the project's advancement and success. After effectively synthesizing the desired alkylations, a silyl group was added in hopes of protecting the hydroxy group of the mono alkyls. With that completed a hydrolysis was attempted to convert the ester to the acid. However, the hydrolysis did not work, which still needs to be overcome and are currently working on a solution. Still, progress was made and a new foundation has been created for the next segment in the synthesis of dendritic compounds.

My work centered around synchronizing the aquisition system of an MRI Imager with the vital motions of the animal being imaged. Because detailed MRI images take several minutes to aquire, the breathing and cardiac patterns of the animal had to be monitored and output gates sent to the MRI system. The purpose of this work was to allow for further study of very small tumors in mouse livers.

9-Hydroxyphenalenone is a planar multicyclic B-keto-enol that demonstrates C_2V symmetry on the NMR timescale. Off-axis substitution breaks the molecular symmetry and results in tautomers. ¹H and ¹³C NMR assignments were made for 9-hydroxyphenalenone and a series of substituted derivatives (bromo, methyl, nitro, and phenyl) and the solution-phase tautomers were determined. The derivatives of 9-hydroxyphenalenone were used to explore the trends in the chemical shifts based on substituents' interaction with the conjugated ring system.

Many studies have been conducted, showing that the use of certain medications on a regular basis significantly improves and maintains the health of individuals with Cystic Fibrosis (CF). Pulmozyme®, TOBI® and Zithromax® are three of these maintenance therapies endorsed by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF). Pulmozyme® acts to thin secretions in the lungs by degrading DNA. TOBI® is an inhaled antibiotic that acts to decrease the bacterial load in the lungs. Zithromax® acts to decrease the inflammatory response in the lungs. A retrospective study looked at the physician's practice patterns for prescribing these three drugs. The study also investigated the relationships of nutritional status, pulmonary function, frequency of pulmonary exacerbation, number of antibiotic prescriptions, and number of hospitalizations between prescribed and non-prescribed groups. For TOBI® and Zithromax®, the number of new bacterial colonizations was analyzed; bacterial mucoid status and antibiotic resistance was investigated for TOBI® alone.

In my research I worked with Saccharomyces cerevisiae (yeast) Glutamate Dehydrogenase mutants. The Glutamate Dehydrogenase enzyme converts alpha-ketoglutarate to glutamate. There are three genes that code for this enzyme, GDH1, GDH2, and GDH3. I used three GDH knockout mutants in my research: gdh1, gdh2, and gdh3. First, I confirmed mutation presence and identity using antibiotic infected growth plates and Polymerase Chain Reaction. Then, the strains were grown in different nonfermentable carbon sources as well as dextrose and growth curves were formulated over a 48 hour period. I also performed an enzyme assay to determine GDH activity in each type of mutant. My results showed that the gdh1 strain was unable to grow in anything but dextrose and this strain also had no GDH activity.

The biological processes behind parturition are not completely understood. Uterine contractions are believed to be initiated by the hormone, oxytocin. Oxytocin activates a biological pathway, initiating a cascade of enzymatic reactions, one of which converts products from the pathway into prostaglandins. Prostaglandins, in turn, are believed to induce uterine muscle contractions. Currently, we are using the known anti-prostaglandin, ibuprofen, to inhibit uterine contractions. Ibuprofen inhibits an essential enzyme, cyclo-oxygenase, which is believed to play a role in the oxytocin biological pathway. The magnitude of the role prostaglandins play in uterine contractions is not completely known. This is the focus of my current research project.