The In Vitro Animal Cell Sciences section was pleased to sponsor a student poster competition at this year’s annual meeting in Tucson, Arizona. There were a number of participants covering a wide range of topics. Each student was asked to give a five-minute overview of their poster followed by questions from the judges and other conveners. Judges for this competition included SIVB members Cindy Goodman, Bill Smith and Lia Campbell. Our first place winner was Sumaira Zumarrad, currently a senior undergraduate biochemistry major at Stony Brook interested in pursuing a career in research. In second place was Shaneen Baxter, who recently earned her Masters degree from Midwestern University and is in the process of applying to Ph.D. programs. Each winner received a cash award and certificate generously made possible by donations from Kitchen Culture Kits, Inc. (Carol Stiff) and Caisson Laboratories LLC (Mike Hanson and Gordon Reese).
Sumaria Zumarrad
First Place – Sumaria Zumurrad
Sumaria is a Biochemistry major, senior (class of 2009). She is doing research at the Department of Pathology at Stony Brook and working on creating reproducible human ECM model, which can be used to study inflammation and cell migration more intimately. She will be applying to graduate school next year, and till then she hopes to continue doing research in an academic or industrial setting.
In Vitro Investigation of Antioxidant and Antiproteolytic Properties of Clove Extracts, Tellimagrandin I and Casuarictin
Neutrophils secrete a variety of substances including Reactive Oxygen species (ROS), Matrix Metalloproteinases (MMP) and Human Neutrophil Elastase (HNE) during inflammation. MMP’s and HNE are proteases which degrade elastin, cartilage proteoglycans, several collagens, and fibronectin, as well as foreign materials ingested during phagocytosis. Proteinase inhibitors normally inhibit damage to connective tissue caused by leakage of these enzymes. Insufficient levels of these inhibitors can lead to prolonged inflammation, which is disastrous to human health. Prolonged inflammation can be a major contributor to age related damage, heart disease, diabetes, dental caries, eye disease, arthritis and dementia to name a few. Our lab frequently tests compounds for their antioxidant and antiproteolytic activity so that they can be used as anti-inflammatory agents in topical creams and drugs. Antioxidants and proteinase inhibitors are important to overcome the actions of ROS in vivo. Among the most important dietary antioxidants are plant phenols such as those which can be isolated from tea, rosemary, and spices such as sage, turmeric and clove. We tested the clove extracts: Tellimagrandin I and Casuarictin (Nacalai Tesque Inc, Japan) and both showed significant antioxidant and antiproteolytic activity. Tellimagrandin and Casuarictin are Gallic acid glycosides which are esters of Gallic acid bound to hydroxyl of sugars. Gallic acid is a subclass of polyphenol responsible for the antioxidant activity in many plants. Both extracts were diluted to varying concentrations as low as 0.01ug/mL and assayed separately for antioxidant, anti MMP-8, and anti HNE activity in 96 well plates. Both extracts showed antioxidant and antiproteolytic activity and are readily available, makes them promising compounds for potential applications in chronic wound therapy, skin care, and oral hygiene.
Sumaria Zumarrad, c/o E. Roemer, Department of Pathology, SUNY Stony Brook, Stony Brook, NY 11794-8691. In Vitro Cellular and Developmental Biology, 44:S47, 2008
Shaneen Baxter
Second Place – Shaneen Baxter
Shaneen has graduated from the Biomedical Sciences Masters Program at Midwestern University (Downers Grove, IL) and has earned her M.S. degree. She currently is working part-time in a Dental Office and continues to volunteer in Michael Fay’s lab in the Pharmacology Department at Midwestern University. She is working on additional studies related to the research she presented at the SIVB meeting to publish her Masters research. Shaneen is in the process of applying to PhD Programs for next year and would like to continue in the field of Cell Biology and Cancer.
Granulocytic Differentiation of HL-60 Promyelocytic Leukemia Cells is Associated with Increased mRNA Expression for Components of the Cullin-5 Containing E3 Ubiquitin Ligase.
The human HL-60 promyelocytic leukemia cell line has been widely used as a model for studying granulocytic differentiation. All-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) treatment of HL-60 cells promotes granulocytic differentiation and is effective as differentiation therapy for patients with acute promyelocytic leukemia. The identification of genes that are transcriptionally regulated by ATRA has provided insight into granulocytic differentiation and differentiation therapy. The Asb-2 gene has previously been identified as a transcriptional target in ATRA-treated HL-60 cells. The ASB-2 protein forms an E3 ubiquitin ligase complex with the proteins Cullin 5, ROC2 and Elongin B and C. The purpose of this study was to determine if there is increased expression of mRNAs for the other components of this E3 ubiquitin ligase complex. To induce granulocytic differentiation, HL-60 cells were treated for five days with ATRA, and differentiation was confirmed by examining superoxide anion production, nuclear morphology, and changes in the expression of CD11b, CD13, and CD15. Quantitative real-time PCR was used to measure ASB-2, Cullin 5, ROC2, and Elongin B and C mRNA expression. Granulocytic differentiation of HL-60 cells was associated with a 23-fold, 1.6-fold, and 1.7-fold statistically significant (t test; p<0.05) increase in mRNA expression for ASB-2, Cullin 5, and ROC2, respectively. No significant change was found in Elongin B and C mRNA expression. Increased expression of multiple components of the Cullin 5-containing E3 ubiquitin ligase complex with ATRA treatment of HL-60 cells indicates that this complex may play an important role in granulocytic differentiation. This research was supported in part by NIH CA122003-01 and Midwestern University.
Shaneen S. Baxter, Department of Pharmacology and 2Department of Biomedical Sciences, Midwestern University, 555 31st Street, Downers Grove, IL 60515. In Vitro Cellular and Developmental Biology, 44:S43, 2008
Submitted by Lia Campbell and the SIVB Business Office
