| Affiliations: |
Texas A&M University-College of Medicine, Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics
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| Project Leader: | Dae Chung daehyukchung@tamu.edu Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics |
| Faculty Mentor: | Dr. Rajesh Miranda, Ph.D. |
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Meeting Times:
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TBD |
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Team Size:
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6 (Team Full) |
| Open Spots: | 0 |
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Special Opportunities:
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Members will have the opportunity to learn various methods: in-vitro neuro stem cell growth, immunoblot, PCR, protein and RNA and extracellular vesicle isolations, and more. Scientific contribution to a successful project will result in co-authorship of conference proposals, with significant scientific contribution resulting in co-authorship of journal publication.
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Team Needs:
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No prior research experience is required (Freshman and Sophomore are welcomed), but minimum one year commitment is expected. Motivated students with interests in biomedical research should apply. Members are expected to maintain good attendance at scheduled laboratory sessions. Members should be dependable and responsible, with a willingness to learn. Interested students should submit their class schedule for the semester. Our lab has an extensive history of undergraduates presenting at local and regional symposiums/conferences. During or after the first project year, members are encouraged to present.
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Description:
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Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) can result in craniofacial abnormalities, growth deficits, and is the leading cause of neurodevelopment disability worldwide. Neural stem cells (NSCs) are particularly vulnerable to alcohol (ethanol) exposure during the late first through the second trimester, when they are most extensively involved in neurogenesis. NSCs reside in a complex microenvironment rich in sub-200 nanometer-sized extracellular vesicles (EVs), which are shown to traffic protein, lipid, and RNA cargo between cells, that can serve as a mode of intercellular communication. Using fetal mouse derived cortical neuroepithelium, cultured ex-vivo as non-adherent neurosphere cultures, we previously found that ethanol exposure resulted in significant elevation of miRNA cargo like miR-140-3p in EVs, which direct NSCs towards an aberrant astroglial lineage. Subsequently, EVs may be amplifying PAE’s temporal and spatial effects in the stem cell niche to result in a neurogenic capacity decline. For this project, we will further investigate the impact of ethanol on the proteome of NSC-EVs across treatment groups of EV and its parent NSCs.
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