Deciphering the role of plant mitochondrial alternative oxidase (mtAOX) isoforms by protein carbonylation profiling

Plant cells naturally express enzymes that remove the reactive oxygen species (ROS) or prevent their production to a detrimental level under stress conditions. One such protective enzyme is the alternative oxidase enzyme (AOX) that is unique to plants among all other eukaryotes. There exist five AOX enzyme isoforms, AOX1a, AOX1b, AOX1c, AOX1d and AOX2, in […]

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Bacterial genome integrity under growth-limiting conditions

Many bacteria live in environments where food and energy are scare. When this happens, they may start copying their DNA and then run out of resources mid-way, puuting their genetic material at risk of damage. This project will study how Escherichia coli protects its DNA under sudden nutrient starvation. We will track whether cells finish […]

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Biophysical analysis of ABCG sterol transporters

Our research concerns a group of lipid trafficking proteins, scientifically known as ABC transporters, that only work when submerged in the sea of lipids, which we call membranes. These proteins can “pick up” lipid molecules, especially sterols, and move the lipids out or into the cells. We know that different members of these lipid trafficking […]

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Modification of Lactococcus lactis Xaa-Pro dipeptidase based on X-ray crystallographic studies using directed evolution approaches

Dairy fermented products receive a lot of attention from consumers. An issue of dairy fermented foods, especially cheese, is a potential development of bitter taste. A main protein in milk is casein proteins. This family of proteins contains much higher contents of proline, which shows very bitter taste in its peptide forms. During fermentation, casein […]

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Development of an innovative, portable running analysis “toolbox”

Studying a person’s running biomechanics has been limited to a laboratory setting due to the complex, expensive equipment needed to capture their motion and forces. Recent developments in wearable technologies may allow these measurements to be captured outside of the lab, which is not only a cost effective alternative, but may allow for the collection […]

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Assessing and improving the performance of quantum annealing processors

Quantum computers are believed to offer significant advantages over classical computers, specifically in solving non-deterministic polynomially hard problems. One of the known schemes of quantum computation is quantum annealing, which is suitable for solving many types of hard optimization problems with a wide range of applications including machine learning, finance, security, and healthcare. D-Wave Systems […]

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3-D imaging of plants and vegetables

The agriculture industry is a labour intensive industry. Using a reliable method of plant monitoring can greatly help farmers to reduce their labours and consequently their production costs. Creating an accurate 3-D model of each plant or vegetable provides farmers with more information about the growth stage of the plant which helps them to make […]

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Novel membrane mimetics in HT antibody screening and structural biology

Many therapeutic targets are proteins embedded in the membrane that surrounds the cell. Traditionally, such targets present major challenges, because they required the use of detergents to extract them from the membrane and to purify them. Such detergents can cause artefacts, hampering the development of novel therapeutics. Here we will test new methods that get […]

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Whales and ships within a British Columbia fjord system: assessing behavioral response and risk of strikes

As whales recover from the past centuries of whaling and as global trade compels shipping traffic to increase, we expect negative whale-ship interactions such as fatal strikes and noise disturbance to become an increasingly serious issue. To develop cost-effective and broadly applicable methods of assessing the risks of ships to whale feeding grounds, I propose […]

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The role of serpin-producing B. longum as an inhibitor of gluten/ATI-related innate immuneactivation

Gluten-related disorders include a variety of clinical entities triggered by the ingestion of gluten containing cereals. The best characterized condition is celiac disease, an autoimmune enteropathy occurring in genetically susceptible individuals. Non-celiac gluten sensitivity or non-coeliac wheat sensitivity (NCGS/ NCWS) is a clinical descriptor of patients, in whom celiac disease and wheat allergy have been […]

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Community dynamics in restored salt marshes

Salt marshes are important coastal ecosystems because they provide many services to surrounding areas. Due to the high fertility of salt marsh soil, they have a long history of being converted to farmland in Maritime Canada. In recent years, there has been growing interest in restoring salt marshes to protect against coastal erosion, mitigate sea […]

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