Category: SharkBytes

During April, a Halmos College faculty and student team was accepted to the National meeting of the American Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Originally the symposium was scheduled to be held in San Diego, but due to COVID-19, the event was moved to a virtual platform. The team prepared a video presentation and posted to YouTube to link to the nationwide event.

The team consisted of Halmos faculty members Arthur Sikora, Ph.D., Emily Schmitt Lavin, Ph.D. Halmos College undergraduate students: Feza Abbas, Matthew Hunt, Lyla Abbas, Helana Ghali, Alesa Chabbra, and Mina Ghali. The team modeled two well know inhibitors of HIV-1 protease called Darunavir and Ritonavir. They also used chemical elements of both inhibitors to design a hypothetical new inhibitor that they named “Sharkavir” in honor of the NSU Sharks. The group worked in conjunction with the Center for Biomolecular Modeling as part of their NSF funded project to develop protein modeling research through the CREST (Connecting Researchers, Educators, and STudents) Program.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) affects approximately 37 million people worldwide and results in over 1 million deaths annually. A class of drugs first developed in 1995 inhibits the enzyme HIV-1 protease, thus preventing the maturation of an HIV precursor protein. There are now over 10 protease inhibitors available to treat HIV. Multiple mutations in the protein have made this treatment less effective. Darunavir is currently one of the strongest competitive inhibitors, as it binds effectively to the substrate envelope and has yielded a lower resistance for patients. The most effective treatment is a combination of two of these inhibitors: Darunavir and Ritonavir. In order to explain how these drugs work, the active site of the non-mutated wild-type HIV-1 protease was depicted as a binding box model. The protease inhibitors Darunavir, Ritonavir, and our hypothetical drug, “Sharkavir” were 3D printed to show how they fit into the protease active site. Details of the wild-type HIV-1 protease, as well as the drugs Darunavir, and Ritonavir, were found in the Protein Data Bank files. The new protease inhibitor molecule, “Sharkavir”, was designed as a combination of Darunavir and Ritonavir using Marvin Sketch: a software used to manipulate molecular structures.

This spring, Halmos College Biology major Elaine Ognjanovski (minors in Psychology and Experiential Leadership) co-authored a publication with Richard H. Perry, Ph.D. entitled, “Identification of lipid biomarkers of metastatic potential and gene expression (HER2/p53) in human breast cancer cell cultures using ambient mass spectrometry”, which was published in the journal Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. Dr. Perry, a faculty member in the Department of Chemistry and Physics, worked with Elaine on developing a desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry method that enables the identification of lipid biomarkers of HER2/p53 expression, metastatic potential, and disease state in monolayer, suspension, and spheroid human breast cancer cell cultures.

The article’s abstract states: “In breast cancer, overexpression of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) correlates with overactivation of lipogenesis, mutation of tumor suppressor p53, and increased metastatic potential. The mechanisms through which lipids mediate p53, HER2, and metastatic potential are largely unknown. We have developed a desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (DESI-MS) method to identify lipid biomarkers of HER2/p53 expression, metastatic potential, and disease state (viz. cancer vs. non-cancerous) in monolayer and suspension breast cancer cell cultures (metastatic potential: MCF-7, T-47D, MDA-MB-231; HER2/p53: HCC2218 (HER2+++/p53+), HCC1599 (HER2−/p53−), HCC202 (HER2++/p53−), HCC1419 (HER2+++/p53−) HCC70 (HER2−/p53+++); non-cancerous: MCF-10A). Unsupervised principal component analysis (PCA) of DESI-MS spectra enabled identification of twelve lipid biomarkers of metastatic potential and disease state, as well as ten lipids that distinguish cell lines based on HER2/p53 expression levels (> 200 lipids were identified per cell line). In addition, we developed a DESI-MS imaging (DESI-MSI) method for mapping the spatial distribution of lipids in metastatic spheroids (MDA-MB-231). Of the twelve lipids that correlate with changes in the metastatic potential of monolayer cell cultures, three were localized to the necrotic core of spheroids, indicating a potential role in promoting cancer cell survival in nutrient-deficient environments. One lipid species, which was not detected in monolayer MDA-MB-231 cultures, was spatially localized to the periphery of the spheroid, suggesting a potential role in invasion and/or proliferation. These results demonstrate that combining DESI-MS/PCA of monolayer and suspension cell cultures with DESI-MSI of spheroids is a promising approach for identifying lipid biomarkers of specific genotypes and phenotypes, as well as elucidating the potential function of these biomarkers in breast cancer.”

Citation: Heather M. Robison, Corryn E. Chini, Troy J. Comi, Seung Woo Ryu, Elaine Ognjanovski and Richard H. Perry *, Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry, 2020, 412, 2949–2961. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-020-02537-4

Janessa Dominquez, Ph.D., doctoral graduate of the Department of Family Therapy (DFT) in NSU’s College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences (CAHSS) is collaborating on a research project with Pei-Fen Li, Ph.D., faculty and Director of Accreditation and Arlene Brett Gordon, Ph.D., Director of the Brief Therapy Institute in DFT. The project focuses on providing Solution-Focused Brief Group Therapy to parents and caregivers of individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in order to explore strengths and strategies. It received Quality of Life funding in 2018.

Dominguez is the founder and CEO of Shaping Change, LLC. in Weston. She is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA), Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT), Qualified Behavior Analyst (QBA), and Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC). Dr. Dominguez is also the Co-Coordinator of the Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD) South Broward/North Dade Chapter, and a Professional Crisis Management (PCM) instructor. She has worked in a variety of settings from schools, homes, clinics and community settings providing a multitude of services to address challenging behaviors. She supervises individuals seeking certification as Registered Behavior Technicians (RBT) and behavior analysts, and conducts trainings on a variety of topics. Dominguez has presented at national conferences, as well as international conferences, focusing on autism, behavior, and the family system. Dominguez is an adjunct instructor for DFT and for the College of Psychology at NSU.

In addition to her doctoral degree from NSU, Dominguez received her B.S. in Psychology with a miner in Business, and her M.S. in Counseling with an advanced concentration in Applied Behavior Analysis from NSU.

NSU’s Celebration of Excellence held on February 29, 2020, featured the fabulous musical performances of Canta Sempre, the Pistris Ensemble, and the NSU Drumline. Canta Sempre is a vocal ensemble established by Shark Talent Scholars. The Pistris Ensemble is a chamber music ensemble from the Department of Performing and Visual Arts (DPVA). NSU’s Drumline was established in August 2019. DPVA music majors, Razor’s Edge Shark Talent Scholars, and other Razor’s Edge Scholars are a part of this exciting group.