The purpose of this study was to evaluate tight junction protein changes during different time points of cuprizone treatment in the corpus callosum and cortex of mice. Cuprizone is a copper chelator that causes demyelination and is used as an animal model of multiple sclerosis. Demyelination is the result of the breakdown of the myelin sheath that insulates neurons and can cause nerve impulses to slow down or even fail. It is important to study demyelination because it causes neurological problems associated with multiple sclerosis and current treatments are lacking. Studies in our lab have shown an early breakdown of the blood brain barrier during cuprizone treatment. Tight junction proteins are molecules that maintain the integrity of the blood brain barrier that protects cells in the brain. TJ proteins have barrier functions that hold cells together and facilitate signaling in the central and peripheral nervous system. Mice were given 0.3% cuprizone as a diet for two different time periods, three days and one week. The brains were extracted and sliced, and the tight junction proteins were immunolabeled and imaged using a confocal microscope. Cuprizone fed and control mice staining patterns were quantified and compared in the corpus callosum and cortex at three days and one-week of treatment.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disorder characterized by demyelination of the central nervous system (CNS). In addition to its role as a neurotransmitter, serotonin also plays a role in epigenetic modifications. Recent studies have found that serotonin levels are decreased in MS for reasons that are currently unknown. This is significant because serotonin plays a role in modifying histone 3. Because serotonin is decreased, we have hypothesized that serotonylation, a post-translational modification, is decreased which leads to subsequent aberrant gene expression in MS. Using the cuprizone mouse model of MS and the APP mouse model of AD, we isolated brain tissue and looked at changes in serotonylation. Methods used to view these changes were Western Blotting, confocal imaging, and densitometry.

At normal levels, ADAR editing contributes to transcriptome diversity and brain health, but ADAR editing can become dysregulated leading to neurological and psychological disorders. ADAR editing is observed in both mouse and human. This project aims to identify orthologous genes across mouse and human genomes using Ensembl and MGI to identify specific codons that correspond to human editing targets. Additionally, a literature review is done to evaluate the current state of knowledge about edited genes and the potential link to functions related to neurological and psychological health. The project focuses on 90+ human excitome genes that play a role in the excitatory pathways of the nervous system, e.g., GRIA2. Collected information can be utilized to better understand the evolution of genes with important functions in mammalian brains.

piRNAs are small regulatory RNAs required for maintaining genomic stability, in the form of single-stranded small RNAs capable of binding to other transcripts. We examine genes potentially regulated by the ping-pong (PP) specific class of piRNAs to determine whether specific groups of genes are regulated by these. We found that PPpiRNAs have great diversity in the number of their targets. Pathway enrichment analysis of the top 4 piRNAs (4 piRNAs with the maximum number of targets) and those piRNAs with a single gene target was only done to see if their targets are concentrated in specific pathways, or whether they exhibit diversity in their targets. Our results offer insights into molecular regulatory mechanisms behind genome regulation by pingpong piRNAs.

The world has progressed in many realms, yet bacterial infections are one of the biggest threats to global health contributing to the mortality of numerous humans per year. To the greater extent of the cruelty, it has been shown that antibioticresistant bacteria strains have been causing serious deadly consequences. This study aimed to assess the possibility of using γ-AlOOH nanoparticles incorporated in vitamin K3 composites as an antibacterial agent against Staphylococcus aureus and Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Herein, γ-AlOOH NPs were prepared using hydrothermal synthesis following by incorporating with Vitamin K3. After that, the composites were undergone antibacterial activity in vitro determination using Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) assay and Colony Forming Units (CFU) assay. The results showed that the newly synthesized composites exhibited a robust growth-inhibitory effect in both bacterial strains. In conclusion, the γ-AlOOH nanoparticles incorporated vitamin K3 composites possess the promising ability to develop new antibacterial therapeutics.

Oxytocin (Oxt) is a neuropeptide that regulates social behavior and is important for the proper functioning of social memory. In rodents, social memory is frequently tested using a social discrimination test. It was hypothesized that male and female mice with disruptions in either their Oxt (—/—) or their Oxt receptor (Oxtr —/—), genes would have differing social memory and unique patterns of neuronal activation. To date, behavioral testing and immunostaining for c-Fos (a protein used to measure neuronal activation) have been completed, but data not yet processed. No matter the findings, this work will lay the foundation for future work on the role of the Oxt system in forms of memory.