My project focuses on using a chemistry-based approach to improve the delivery of an insoluble compound, gambogic acid (GA). GA is a natural product that has great potential as an anti-inflammatory drug. However, its clinical application has been limited due to the poor aqueous solubility and significant toxicity against red blood cells. I am currently […]

Lionfish have become the poster child for marine invasive species since their introduction to Floridian waters in the 1980s. While considerable efforts have attempted to quantify their impacts on native communities, research on lionfish and their feeding ecology remains in its infancy, as does knowledge about their competition with and impact on native predators. This […]

It is fairly common knowledge that we should not drive while drowsy. Yet often in high risk professions, people grow tired throughout the day and begin to make mistakes. How do we know when that person needs a rest? Recent advancements now allow us to read peoples’ brain activity as they go about their day-to-day […]

The Black Queen Hypothesis is a novel theory in reductive evolution that suggests while some metabolic functions must remain in the cell, others can be outsourced to the surrounding community. Phytoplankton are important members of marine ecosystems, and many exist in symbiotic relationships with co-occurring bacteria. Phytoplankton produce reactive oxygen species (ROS) as a by-product […]

Yeast is arguably the most important industrial microorganism in the world, playing a critical role in the fermentation of food and beverage products, as well as cellular factory for production of biofuels, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals. In order to produce such a range of products efficiently and economically, specialized yeast must be optimized for each task. […]

In recent years, significant scientific breakthroughs have opened the door to harnessing the immune system to fight cancer. For the first time in history, this brings a cure within reach. However, there are still some scientific and business hurdles to overcome, especially for a group of well-known proteins called G protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). GPCRs […]

Agriculture and food production heavily rely on the use of pesticides to kill weeds and bugs. To ensure the food is safe, we need to test the concentration of pesticide residues in food products. The standard pesticide analysis in laboratories is complex, slow, expensive, and requires expertise. This project aims to design and make a […]

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic condition of the digestive system. Symptoms can include abdominal pain, persistent diarrhea, rectal bleeding, bloody stools, weight loss and fatigue. IBD is caused by a combination of genetics, environmental factors and irregular immune responses to normal gut bacteria. As the incidence of IBD is increasing in Asia, more […]

Disorders, such as diabetes and Alzheimer’s, have metabolic profiles that are detrimentally affected by the course of the disease. Both diet and exercise have demonstrated an ability to slow the progression of neurodegenerative illnesses and their symptoms. We hypothesize that this benefit is a direct result of an increase in the brains ability to efficiently […]

The heart is an electrically driven pump. A major cause of death world-wide is a disturbance of the heart’s electrical activity (arrhythmias) due to a reduced blood supply (ischemia). We have shown that stretch of the heart during ischemia triggers deadly arrhythmias, which may be caused by changes in cellular processes. This project will discover […]

Stents are tubes placed between the kidney and the bladder which prevent blockages which might otherwise damage the kidney. Introducing foreign material into this system allows a platform for bacteria to exist and which will potentially cause infections. These are very common. We propose modifying the surfaces of the materials used in stents to make […]

Antipsychotic medication is associated with a constellation of metabolic abnormalities, including weight gain, an imbalance between glucose and insulin actions, and higher than normal lipid content. In particular, adolescent psychiatric patients are at increased risk for Type II Diabetes and cardiovascular disease when undergoing therapeutic treatment. Current analysis indicates that antipsychotic drugs have differing effects […]