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Artist Kukuli Velarde in Conversation with Jennifer Zwilling, Curator and Director of Artistic Programs, The Clay Studio
No full textThe Clay Studio’s Jennifer Zwilling joins artist Kukuli Velarde to discuss the works of the exhibition Free, Total, Faithful, and Fruitful. The exhibition brings together works from various series over the course of Velarde’s career to celebrate the dynamics and fluidity of identity, womanhood, ritual, history, and adoration. The exhibition’s title references the components of “perfect” marital love, according to teachings of the Catholic Church. Velarde reinterprets these concepts to convey an expansive and inclusive connotation of perfect love.
In her practice, Kukuli Velarde blends indigenous Peruvian culture, philosophy, and religion with European Catholic iconography to confront enduring cultural legacies of colonization. Drawing from visual languages of both indigenous and colonial cultures, the resulting imagery synthesizes and reclaims complexities of mestizo identities. By incorporating portraiture and self-portraiture, Velarde contemplates and reflects on the personal consequences of such histories and how multiple identities and realities can live on, together, in one person. Through her work, Velarde investigates an evolving sense of female identity, while simultaneously exploring the artist’s role as witness, critic, and agent of change.https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/berman_conversations/1011/thumbnail.jp
Investigating Interactions Between Neurodegenerative Disease Proteins and DnaJB Chaperones
No full textNeurodegenerative diseases affect millions of people worldwide and result from damage to neuronal cells in the brain essential for cognition, coordination, mobility, and strength. Prominent examples include Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and Parkinson\u27s Disease (PD), whose precise origins remain unknown. However, they are associated with the accumulation of specific proteins in neurons, FUS and alpha synuclein aggregates, respectively. Recent findings highlight DnaJB, a class of proteins with significant disaggregation capabilities, as a promising avenue for therapy. With many diverse J-protein isoforms, identifying which DnaJB variants effectively bind and interact with disease-associated proteins remains a critical pursuit. This study aims to elucidate these interactions using the Yeast Two Hybrid method, which could direct the design of targeted chaperone-based treatments that combat neurodegenerative diseases more effectively
Synthesis of Fluorescent Rhodols from Fluorescein Derivatives via Smiles Rearrangement
No full textThe xanthene family of fluorophores, such as fluorescein and rhodamines, is commonly used as a scaffold in many different chemical tools because of the tunability of their photophysical properties and reactivity. Hybrid fluoresceins in which the xanthene hydroxyl group is replaced with an amino group result in a subclass of xanthene fluorophores named rhodols. Rhodols retain many strengths of fluoresceins while possessing red-shifted absorbance and emission, less pH sensitivity, and broader tunability. Despite these improved properties, rhodols remain underutilized when developing chemical tools due to current synthetic routes requiring multiple steps, precious metals, and high temperatures often resulting in limited substrate scopes. The present work describes a new method to produce rhodols from available fluorescein derivatives. The process proceeds via a tandem alkylation, Smiles rearrangement, hydrolysis sequence to effect a direct amination of widely available fluoresceins with an amine source under metal-free, mild conditions
Determining Functional Interactions Between Ribosomal Co-translational Chaperone Complexes RAC and NAC (Btt1) in Saccharomyces cerevisiae
No full textProteins are essential, functionally diverse macromolecules found in all living cells. Their structure is integral to their function, and they can fold in a variety of different conformations, which results in a change or loss of function. A specific class of misfolded proteins, known as prions, can transmit their structure onto natively folded proteins of the same type. While they are not known to cause disease in Saccharomyces cerevisiae (yeast), prions and similar aggregation patterns have been linked to neurodegenerative diseases in other organisms. Prion disease-causing proteins, like mammalian PrPSC causing transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), and proteins underlying prion-like disease states, like α-synuclein (Parkinson’s disease), amyloid-β (Alzheimer’s disease), and Huntingtin (Huntington’s disease) are some of the most well-known cases. Cells have developed machinery to promote correct protein folding, consisting primary of molecular chaperones. These proteins are varied throughout the cell in location and function. Some exist on the nascent polypeptide exit tunnel of ribosomes to ensure proteins fold correctly during synthesis. Two of these complexes are known as the ribosome-associated complex (RAC) and nascent chain-associated complex (NAC), have been shown in previous studies from the Cameron lab to individually play important roles in reducing prion formation and promoting survival in yeast experiencing stress. This study seeks to better understand the functional relationship between the RAC and NAC components in yeast by comparing prion formation and stressed cell survival between pairwise deletion strains lacking combinations of RAC and NAC subunits
Which Justices are Just? An Investigation of the Factors That Influence College Student Perceptions of Judicial Impartiality
No full textThe Supreme Court has a reciprocal relationship with the public, as its influence depends on the willingness of the public to adhere to its rulings. Recent polling data reveals that public support for the Court is at an all-time low, specifically among young, college-educated adults. Some scholars argue that evaluations of judicial impropriety are driven by partisan preferences, whereas other scholars contend that the public is less informed about the political preferences of justices therefore they are more likely to use a justice’s ascriptive characteristics as informational shortcuts to inform their evaluations of judicial impropriety. To investigate this issue, I created a survey experiment using a paired-profiles design with forced choice to observe how college students assess justices differently when their ascriptive characteristics are manipulated. The results suggest that the age, gender, race, and partisanship of a justice can have strong influence on college student perceptions of judicial impropriety. Despite limitations with the population samples, this study raises interesting questions regarding perceived sources of bias and dissatisfaction with the Supreme Court
The Role of MBK-2 and CDK-1 in Oocytes and Early Embryos of pam-1 Mutant C. elegans
No full textThe puromycin-sensitive aminopeptidase, PAM-1, is needed for meiotic exit and anteroposterior axis formation in early Caenorhabditis elegans embryos. PAM-1 is also involved in oocyte maturation and the oocyte-to-embryo transition. How PAM-1 regulates these activities remains unknown. In this study, two proteins, MBK-2 and CDK-1, are studied to investigate their relationship with PAM-1. MBK-2 is a protein kinase that regulates the degradation of MEI-1, a katanin-related protein, during meiotic exit, and transduces polarity signals that control asymmetric division. In oocytes and early embryos of wildtype C. elegans, MBK-2 is found along the perimeter of the late-stage oocytes. After activation, it breaks down and speckles throughout the embryos, with the amount of speckling decreasing before the first mitosis. CDK-1 is a cyclin-dependent kinase that has feedback loops with two proteins, WEE-1.3, which negatively regulates it, and CDC-25.1 which positively regulates it. This protein is activated in late-stage oocytes to allow them to mature. Since MBK-2 and CDK-1 are both involved in processes that PAM-1 regulates, we hope to uncover how they may work together. Through studying them in wildtype and pam-1 mutant C. elegans, we hope to gain insight into their roles in developmental processes and better understand PAM-1. C. elegans with the appropriate components tagged with GFP were imaged using a Nikon EZ-C3 Confocal Microscope. We saw that MBK-2 breaks down faster in pam-1 C. elegans when compared to wildtype and that MBK-2 breakdown begins immediately after protrusion of the first polar body. cdk-1(RNAi) was seen to affect wildtype and pam-1 C. elegans similarly during oocyte maturation, but additional study is needed to see if there is a potential interaction between PAM-1 and CDK -1. From the results of this study and others, there is a possibility that PAM-1 interacts with MBK-2 and CDK-1 by directly or indirectly activating these proteins or WEE-1.3 and CDC-25.1. We noted that mutant pam-1 leads MBK-2 to break down faster, showing that PAM-1 is likely working upstream of this kinase to lead to its defect
The Intersection of Grief and Religion: How Religious Beliefs Impact the Experience of Complicated Grief in College Students
Get PDFThis study evaluates how religious beliefs affect the experience of complicated grief. Students at Ursinus College were asked to complete a survey with questions relating to religious beliefs as well as symptoms of complicated grief and questions regarding the loss of a loved one. This information was utilized to evaluate the relationship between strength of religious beliefs and complicated grief. The research was unable to support the hypothesis that religion affected complicated grief however there was evidence that aspects of religion, such as believing in the afterlife, may affect experiences of complicated grief
Exploring the Movement and Behavior Patterns of Megaptera novaeangliae and Balaenoptera edeni in the Gulf of Chiriquí, Panama
No full textThe Gulf of Chiriquí in western Panama is a biologically diverse region characterized by shallow waters, significant island groups, and sea surface temperatures ranging from 25-29°C. The government of Panama has designated two protected areas within the gulf: Coiba National Park and the Gulf of Chiriquí National Marine Park. These areas are biodiversity hotspots and vital habitats for various marine species, including humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) and Bryde’s whales (Balaenoptera edeni). Humpback whales are known to migrate from both hemispheres to breed in the gulf, utilizing its warm waters, while Bryde’s whales remain in the area year-round. Both species face threats from anthropogenic noise, vessel collisions, fishery gear entanglement, and habitat changes due to climate change. While much is known about humpback whales, less is understood about the behavior and population dynamics of Bryde’s whales. To enhance our understanding of both species, fieldwork will be conducted using photo identification, drone photogrammetry, short-term suction cup tagging, and genetic sampling. These methods will aid in studying whale behavior and body condition. Additionally, genetic sampling will help clarify the species composition within the gulf. Pre-field preparations involved testing equipment such as drones, altimeters, tags, and tag recovery equipment. Our study aims to provide comprehensive insights into the marine biodiversity of the Gulf of Chiriquí and the behavior and ecology of humpback and Bryde’s whales, contributing to conservation efforts and management strategies in the region
Analysis of Fluorogenic Probes for the Detection of Chlorite in Drinking Water
No full textChlorite is a common water contaminant that results from the chlorination and purification of drinking water. The overconsumption of chlorite is associated with numerous birth defects and abnormal changes in red blood cells and its concentration in drinking water is therefore regulated. Currently established methods for the detection of chlorite include ion chromatography. However, this methodology requires the use of expensive instrumentation and offers less mobility. Activity-based fluorescent probes offer an alternative, inexpensive, and portable detection method. Our research group has designed a chemical probe that is converted from a dim molecule into a fluorescence one via a highly selective chemical reaction. Previous efforts focused on the synthesis of the probes. This project focuses on the characterization of a molecule and its ability to detect chlorite. Specifically, the probe and its response to various levels of chlorite will be measured via absorbance and fluorescence spectroscopies, and its selectivity compared to other competing water contaminants will be assessed. These experiments will determine the use of the probe for the accurate assessment of chlorite levels in water
Evaluating Manager Perspectives of Urban Foraging in Southeastern Pennsylvania and Assessing Implications for Food Insecurity
No full textUrban foraging is the harvesting and collecting of plant species located in urban greenspaces. People forage for many reasons, one of them being for edible purposes. Research about urban foraging is fairly underexamined, yet studies have already established parks and other urban greenspaces to hold a great potential to cause food security. Based on park regulations and enforcement, this research dives into how accessible food species are to people particularly in lower income areas in Southeastern Pennsylvania. This document highlights the general findings and preparation completed to continue this research into the fall