Author: BUGSS

Brain connectivity represents the functional organization of the brain, which is an important indicator for evaluating neuropsychiatric disorders and treatment effects. Schizophrenia is associated with impaired functional connectivity, but characterizing the complex abnormality patterns has been challenging. A common symptom of schizophrenia is auditory hallucinations, which involve false perceptions in the absence of external stimuli.

Cognitive models suggest that a combination of cognitive processes contribute to auditory hallucinations. Janerra Allen, a graduate researcher at UMBC, joined us to discuss her work using resting-state and task-based functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data to measure functional connectivity in the brain in schizophrenia patients and healthy controls to extract disease-related connectivity patterns. This work demonstrates the promise of identifying brain features related to specific clinical aspects of schizophrenia. This will not only support future treatment development for modifying connectivity, but also offer perspectives for understanding neuroscience mechanisms.

In the 30 years between the discovery of microRNAs and their recognition with the Nobel Prize in 2024, a great deal has been learned about how these molecules function in the cytoplasm of cells and their primary role in silencing genes. However, more recent findings suggest that microRNAs might have important functions in another location: the mitochondria, the amazing organelles in our cells that possess their own DNA and synthesize their own proteins. This seminar teaches us about new tools for studying microRNAs now allow for their functions to be more clearly understood, such as what roles they play in the mitochondria and how they might be contributing to diseases such as cancer. Our speaker, Dr. William (Billy) Mills is the principal investigator of the Mills Lab at Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, MD where he studies the roles of microRNAs in differentiation, development, and disease.

The 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded for the discovery of microRNA, the 2023 prize for pioneering mRNA vaccines, the 2020 prize for making precise genome editing possible using CRISPR-Cas9, and the 2006 prize for the discovery of RNA interference. These discoveries revolutionized modern medicine and opened a new avenue for treating diseases by correcting errors at the gene level. But do you know what is the common theme between these 4 disruptive technologies??? The answer is that the application of these breakthrough technologies in human health is only possible with the use of nanotechnology. Nanomedicine, or the use of nanotechnology to treat or diagnose diseases, is a multidisciplinary science that combines engineering, chemistry, and biomedical concepts all together. In this seminar, Dr Saed Abbasi talked about the pivotal role nanomedicine has played in enabling RNA drugs and vaccines for human use.

Our speaker Saed Abbasi is a research scientist at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He obtained his PhD degree in Nanomedicine from Japan. He is trained as a pharmacist and completed his bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy from Jordan. Saed is interested in innovating new technologies that overcome biological barriers and deliver genomic medicines effectively to target organs and tissues. He previously discovered new nanoparticles for delivering mRNA, siRNA, microRNA, and CRISPR-Cas9 to treat cancer, brain diseases, COVID-19, and liver disorders.

Our spring 2024 interns gave a fantastic update to their work with the Open Insulin and Barcoding the Harbor Projects. Thank you to the funders who made this work possible: The Chesapeake Bay Trust and the Baltimore City Department of Public Works.

Ulisses Santamaria is President of DMV Petri Dish, a nonprofit organization based in the DC area that aims to serve people working on the next big thing in their basements, living rooms, and garages through our helpful, innovative, and exciting science and tech community. He is an experienced researcher in neurological diseases, infectious disease, and immunology.

In this seminar, he provided some brief basics of genetic engineering and neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), and more. Then he took an in-depth look at clinical trials that attempted to use genetic engineering techniques to treat or cure these diseases.

2024 Winter Internship Presentations

On January 19, 2024, our winter interns delivered their presentations about the two research projects they worked on: Barcoding the Harbor and Open Insulin. Thanks to our interns for their fabulous talks:

Naomi Candado-Amador, University of Maryland College Park
Manal Ibrahim, UMBC
Joi Dixson, Notre Dame of Maryland University
Pearly, Gal-edd, University of Maryland College Park
Chiwe Iku, Bowie State University
Sarah Bishop, George Washington University
Joy Njuguna, UMBC

Nora E Jameson MPH MS is a transgender-nonbinary scientist, educator, DJ, and stand-up comedian who has worked at the bench for over 10 years doing biology and chemistry. After dropping out of a chemistry phd program with a MS thesis, and then a biomedical sciences PhD program, they decided to pursue their volunteer work and social justice work towards a profession in Public Health. They worked during the COVID19 Omicron wave as a COVID epidemiologist in Portland Oregon and they are now studying for their PhD in social epidemiology at the University of Maryland College Park-School of Public Health.

Their talk provided an introduction to the field of public health and CDC’s 10 essential public health services. They talked about their training in Public Health Practice and their time as a COVID epidemiologist in Portland OR and introduced the “People’s CDC” resource. They also talked about their current PhD field of study: epidemiology and their subspecialties including social epidemiology, non-cisgendered populations, violence prevention and gun violence.

Structural color occurs when light interacts with ordered nanostructures to generate bright, stable and angle-dependent colors. Structural coloration can be found throughout the tree of life, from butterflies to bacteria. Dr. Colin Ingham, CEO and founder of Hoekmine (Utrecht, Netherlands) discussed this fascinating topic and his efforts to use bacterial structural color to create sustainably colored biomaterials as sustainable replacements for bulk dyes and for artistic expression.

Bacteriophages (or phages) are arguably the oldest and most abundant entities on earth, yet their remarkable antibacterial activity has historically been fairly unexplored in the scientific community. However, interest in phages has rapidly increased in recent years, being prompted by both the emergence of antibiotic resistance and an increased demand for natural, non-chemical approaches to managing bacteria. This talk provided a brief history of phages, an overview of their mechanisms of action, and a discussion of the many ways the power of phages is being harnessed and used today, from human therapy to biodefense to food safety and beyond.

Our speaker, Joelle Woolston, is the VP of Lab Operations at Intralytix, Inc., a Maryland biotechnology company focused on the discovery, production and marketing of bacteriophage-based products to control bacterial pathogens in environmental, agricultural, food processing, and medical settings.