Research Presentations - 2008-9
John Deere Chapter of Sigma Xi

6:30 - 8:30 pm, Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Science Building, 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 on Nov. 20.  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 8:00 pm in Room 102.  At 8:05, in the Atrium, we will have refreshments, view the posters, and enjoy conversation with all of the presenters.

Delphinium carolinianum is restricted to three non-contiguous counties in Illinois. Populations encountered during surveys in 2008 were marked using GPS. Leaf samples were collected, DNA was extracted, and genetic analysis was performed to assess levels and patterns of diversity in the Illinois populations. At one study site, Bald Bluff, heavy grazing occurs. In addition to the detrimental presence of cattle, invasive cedars encroach upon the hill-prairie boundaries. Even with this grazing pressure, several key prairie species are present on the hill prairie. With cedar removal and cattle exclusion, this hill prairie may be restored and protected. A solar-powered electric fence was installed on the perimeter of the hill prairie to prevent cattle grazing the area around the larkspurs. An initial survey was taken, to be followed by subsequent surveys over the next two years to monitor the effectiveness of cattle exclusion on this hill prairie's restoration.

We have characterized the progression of autoimmune diabetes and beta-cell regeneration in MIP-GFP/NOD transgenic mice. The pancreatic beta-cells of these mice express a mouse insulin I promoter (MIP) green fluorescent protein (GFP) transgene that has allowed us to study islet loss and regeneration throughout the pancreas. The results show that islets in the dorsal pancreas are lost first, and that hypertrophic islets appear localized to the ventral pancreas in mice with long standing diabetes (>30-wk of age). We observed the same process in non-diabetic NOD littermates. We also quantified beta-cell loss with age, starting at two weeks of age, through 40-wk. The alpha-cell vs. beta-cell ratio increased from 2-wk until 8-wk. There was little change in the ratio from 8-wk to 40-wk. Further investigation of the role of alpha-cells showed persistent PC1/3 expression in the alpha cells of mature adult NOD mice, indicating a possible mechanism of beta-cell compensation. Recurrent PC1/3 expression was also present in the alpha-cells of pregnant wild-type non-diabetic CD-1 mice, a physiological condition of beta-cell compensation. This could indicate a possible common mechanism underlying beta-cell regeneration in the adult.

Tumor antigens are molecules, usually proteins, which are overexpressed in tumors. I studied six antigens: Prostate Specific Antigen, Prostate Specific Membrane Antigen, Prostatic Acid Phosphatase, Mucin 1, Prostate Stem Cell Antigen, Six-Transmembrane Epithelial Antigen of the Prostate, and Carcino-Embryonic Antigen expression in ten prostate carcinoma tissue sections. The purpose of this study was to compare the expression of these antigens between cancerous and non-cancerous prostate tissues and to determine the correlations between the antigens in these tissue sections. I found expression of multiple antigens in all the patient samples, and most had three or more antigens expressing. The data here shows that prostate tumors do express multiple antigens, many of which are expressed more strongly in tumor cells than in normal cells. This suggests that treatments that lead to the targeting of multiple antigens should be able to kill more of these cells and better treat prostate cancer.

Genetic silencing is a process in eukaryotic organisms that can "knock-out" the expression of a gene or phenotype. The St. Ambrose University Arabidopsis thaliana library contains green fluorescent protein (GFP) transgenic plant lines that may be used for investigation into this phenomenon. A limited number of the transgenic lines have demonstrated a total loss of the green phenotype indicative of the expression of the GFP gene. The loss of the green phenotype has been in contrast to expected Mendelian inheritance patterns. This result suggests the possibility of a phenotypical "knock-out" due to genetic silencing.

Artificial night lighting may have wide ranging ecological effects. Some of these effects include, but are not limited to, mammalian night vision changes, increased visual awareness of bats and their prey, migration routes for night migrating birds, decreased protection of sea turtles at night, behavioral changes in nocturnal salamanders, plant responses to the night lighting changes, and increased mortality of nocturnal insects. If the skies are abnormally bright, such as by artificial lighting; twilight fireflies would be unsure if night has truly fallen or not. This confusion may result in the males becoming active much later than normal; causing overlap with other species, decreasing mating, and possibly resulting in death. Many have noticed an apparent decrease in firefly numbers, over the past twenty years, outside during the summer months in areas when they would normally be prominent. This decrease has made many wonder what is causing it and what this decrease could mean for the fireflies. Not to mention what can be done to repair the damage.

This project evaluated the ability of T-oligo to induce apoptosis and senescence in lung cancer cells. T-oligo is an oligonucleotide homologous to the 3' overhang of telomeres. In our experiments, T-oligo treatment inhibited the clonogenicity of lung cancer cell lines H358 and SW1573 versus control. In order to elucidate the mechanism by which T-oligo activates anti-cancer activity, proteins that bind specifically to T-oligo were immunoprecipitated and then identified through mass spectrometry. The experiment yielded a number of promising candidates for further study. Finally, the direct therapeutic potential of T-oligo was tested on pre-established tumors of H358 and SW1573 cancer cells injected into the flanks of nude mice. After six weeks of treatment, H358 and SW1573 tumors in T-oligo-treated mice were eleven times and ten times smaller in volume, respectively, as compared with the control. These results provide evidence for the potential of T-oligo as a novel therapy for lung cancer.

Impulsive behavior has been identified as a potential vulnerability factor in drug abuse. Because many behaviors can defined as impulsive, it is hard to determine which types of impulsivity are related to drug abuse. In order to further examine this relationship, two animal models of impulsivity were examined: a go/no-go task and a novel spatial reversal learning task. The go/no-go task measures the ability of the rat to withhold a response in order to obtain a reward. The spatial reversal learning task measures the ability of the rat to change a strategy for obtaining a reward when the strategy is no longer effective. The hypothesis for this project is that the same rats will be identified as "impulsive" by both models. Ultimately identifying individual animals that express high levels of impulsivity will provide scientists with as effective model to develop behavioral or pharmacological interventions that could reduce or control impulsive behaviors.

This presentation will be exploring the presence of animal fecal matter and the influence it has on invertebrate presence in the surrounding soil foliage. In this talk I will be presenting whether or not there will be a bigger or smaller population of invertebrates with the presence of fecal matter. This experiment was done through daily collections of soil samples from both areas with fecal matter and ones without. The results were a little vague and this experiment would need more research, but there was a conclusion that there were a very significant increase of Dung Beatles within the samples that were collected near fecal matter.

Poster Session
Introduction of the students who are presenting posters: Allison Retzer, Nicole Nelson, Emily Grossman, Krystal-Lyn Burger, Marie Ratliff, Matthew Hennes and Shaina Bengtson. (Room 102)

Recent genome-wide association studies have revealed that variants in a gene called FTO are strongly associated with obesity. A true pathway for this gene’s function has yet to be elucidated. Our investigation seeks to provide insight for determination of this pathway. Neuronal cells were chosen as the target for microarray studies involving treatment with siRNA against FTO. Analysis of the microarray data was performed using various software programs. Genes identified were further studied using databases to determine how they might interrelate and regulate obesity. We found that down regulation of FTO resulted in significant changes in genes that regulate obesity in different ways, such as decreased estrogen activity, increased glucose uptake, increased adipocyte differentiation, increased fatty acid synthesis, and elevated insulin levels. Knowledge of the mechanism of action of FTO is important, since key pathways regulated by FTO may provide information as to possible therapeutic techniques to combat obesity.

The protein, aminopeptidase N (PepN), was over-expressed from BL21(DE3) Escherichia coli containing the pET-26b plasmid and isolated via FPLC. Kinetic assays were performed on apo-PepN and PepN bound to zinc and iron ions, using L-alanine-4-nitroanilide hydrochloride as a reporter substrate, to determine whether E. coli PepN is a metalloenzyme. Viscosity and pH steady-state kinetic assays were also performed on apo-PepN to determine its optimal activity. The addition of zinc ions to PepN inhibits catalytic activity while the addition of iron ions causes no significant change in activity, demonstrating that E. coli PepN is not a metalloenzyme. Optimal activity, within an MTEN compound buffer, occurred at approximately pH 8.0 and a linear correlation was found between viscosity and optimal activity.

This study examined the possible effects of two man-made, structures on the surrounding habitat at Green Wing Environmental Laboratory in Amboy, IL. The study examined two buildings on the site - a cabin and a horse stable. Soil pH, soil respiration, and invertebrate diversity were measured in and around each of these two structures to examine possible impacts of these structures. The results from the cabin site showed a trend toward increased soil respiration and increased invertebrate diversity inside and directly outside the cabin. At the stable, soil respiration and invertebrate diversity tended to be higher farther away from the structure. These results suggested that the two buildings had different effects on the surrounding environments, potentially due to building materials or the actual physical structure of the buildings, but did not rule out the impact of other factors such as differences in vegetation, light, or temperature on the parameters measured.

The research study attempted to prove the existence of a free living protozoan virus, by inoculating the protozoan T. pyriformis with treated water samples from local water sources. Absorbance was measured daily to find a decrease in turbidity. Such decreases were detected. Some proposed factors that could have contributed to the decrease in cell growth were rejected. The existence of such a virus was found to be inconclusive.

Listeria monocytogenes is a gram-positive, intracellular pathogen that causes a significant percentage of food-borne related illnesses and deaths each year. To assist in the prevention of L. monocytogenes infection, the Federal Drug Administration has approved a bacteriophage "cocktail" that can be sprayed directly onto foods commonly associated with transmission of L. monocytogenes (e.g., ready-to-eat meats, fish, and poultry.) The proposed study is designed to determine the ability of these bacteriophage to infect and lyse bacterial strains that make up the normal flora of the human body. Proposed methods include isolation and purification of bacteriophage from store-bought, ready-to-eat meats. The bacteriophage will then be tested for lysis of pure bacterial cultures found in the mouth and throat. If the results from the proposed study demonstrate the ability of these bacteriophage to change receptor specificity, then the bacteriophage "cocktail" may present more of a hazard than a defense against L. monocytogenes infection.

Creation of exclusion barriers around turtle nesting sites may provide an attractive alternative to predator removal management strategies if it is shown to significantly reduce nest predation. My study tested the viability of such a system using artificial nests constructed with quail eggs (Marchand, Litvaitis, et al., 2002), and temporary electrified barriers at test sites. The project tested the null hypothesis that rates of artificial nest depredation will not be affected at the experiment site verses the untreated control.

My study examined the prey preference of Western Chorus Frogs. This study was conducted at Green Wing Environmental Laboratory in Amboy, Illinois, using frogs from the main prairie. After many trials, two different families of spiders were used for the prey. The frogs were separated in plastic living chambers and starved for a period. After introducing the two prey types at the same time, I observed and then counted the prey after 12 hours. The results were inconclusive, signifying that more trials and possibly more prey should be used.