Collaborative Projects

Distribution and Regulation of the Amyloid Procursor Protein of Alzheimer's (AD) (2011 - Present)

Investigator:  Joseph DeGiorgis, Providence College
Collaborator/Mentor:  Thomas Reese, National Institutes of Health

Abstract:  Alzheimer's disease (AD) afflicts an estimated 26.6 million individuals worldwide, and the prevalence is predicted to increase to 100 million by 2050 at an estimated cost of 20 trillion dollars over the next 40 years to the US alone. Many familial forms of AD are caused by mutations in the Amyloid Precursor Protein.  More

Bacterial Glycome as Antibacterial Targets (2011 - Present)

Investigator:  Christopher Reid, Bryant University
Co-Investigator:  Kirsten Hokeness, Bryant University Collaborator/Mentor:  Amit Basu, Brown University

Abstract:  The manifestation of multidrug resistance in bacteria over the past several decades has resulted in one of the foremost challenges in the management of infectious diseases. The question is, how do we address this growing problem?  More

Student Training Projects

Examination of UFD2a/UBE4B Function During Myogenesis In Vivo (2012 - Present)

Investigator:  Sarah Spinette, Rhode Island College
Mentor:  David Goldhamer, University of Connecticut  

Abstract:  Research over the past decade has succeeded in mapping the intricate network of transcriptional regulators that are critical to both the specification of the myogenic lineage and the process of de novo myogenesis in vivo, yet there are still no cures for the large and genetically heterogeneous group of muscle diseases. More

The Physiological Role of Plant Phenolics in Plant and Mammalian Cell Growth (2012 - Present)

Investigator:  JD Swanson, Salve Regina University
Mentor:  Marie Chow,University of Arkansas  

Abstract:  RPlant secondary metabolites provided many leads for new therapeutics that are currently on hand.  However, their mechanism of action is often not understood in either plants or animals.  Our preliminary data show that, in Rubus, phenolics (a class of secondary metabolites), produced in the head structure of the glandular trichomes, are transported to cellular nuclei in the underlying stalk tissue. More

Student Training Pilot Projects

Genetic Characterization of Bax Inhibitor (BXI1) Function in the Budding Yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae Programmed Cell Death (2012 - Present)

Investigator:  Nicanor Austriaco, Providence College

Abstract:  Apoptosis is both an important physiological process and a significant anti-tumor defense mechanism in multicellular organisms. Cells that bypass apoptosis in response to oncogenic stimuli can undergo malignant transformation. More

Experimental Test of the Myogenic Code Hypothesis (2012 - Present)

Investigator:  Thomas Meedel, Rhode Island College

Abstract:  The objective of this project is to determine whether the alanine-threonine (Ala-Thr) dipeptide found in all Myogenic Regulatory Factor (MRF) genes and known as the "Myogenic Code", is essential for their activity.  MRFs exist in animals ranging from worms to humans, and they are typically active only in muscle or muscle precursor cells where they play key roles in myogenesis. More

Identification of Differentially Expressed Genes Among Leishmania Species (2012 - Present)

Investigator:  Alison Shakarian, Salve Regina University

Abstract:  The long term goal of this project is to identify and characterize differentially expressed genes in Leishmania that may be used as potential novel targets for the development of new drug therapies for the treatment of leishmaiasis. More