Abstract

The effect of Astragalus membranaceus on Caenorhabditis elegans was assessed in this experiment. Parkinson’s Disease directly causes dopamine depletion and other related symptoms. Astragalus contains complex carbohydrates linked to dopamine neuron protection, which could be used to treat Parkinson’s. In this experiment, C.elegans inflicted with Parkinson’s were treated with different concentrations of Astragalus. C.elegans are free-living nematodes that can be genetically engineered to model or stimulate various diseases caused by genetics, Parkinson’s being one of them. The concentrations of astragalus solution were 2 mg/mL, 4 mg/mL, and 8 mg/mL, which were added to the agar that the C.elegans inhabited. Mechanosensory tests included tap reflex and gentle and harsh touch assessment. M9 Buffer was used to inhibit the egg-laying behaviors of C.elegans, and the thrashing rate was assessed for each group. The results indicate that 4 mg/mL is the optimal concentration to treat disease-inflicted C.elegans and had the best results out of the 3 trials. The 4 mg/mL group constantly had the highest tap reflex, gentle, and harsh touch scores that were similar or greater than the wild-type control group. Additionally, the 2 mg/mL also had high scores in trials 2 and 3 in both the gentle and harsh touch assessments. No definite conclusions can be determined from thrashing rate data. The results imply that lower and intermediate concentrations of Astragalus may treat the symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease.

Abstract

There exists a great demand to utilize renewable energy sources instead of burning fossil fuels. Currently, power conversion efficiency of domestic solar cells is 23.6%, and further improvements are necessary. Furthermore, real-world domestic solar panels show an efficiency of just about 15 percent. Combining piezoelectric strips (harnessing vibrational energy) and solar cells can potentially enhance power generation and efficiency. Solar cells and piezoelectric strips were exposed to simulated sun, rain, and wind, and tilting angles (0o-75o), to determine optimal power output. Solar cells were tested within an enclosed testing chamber with a 100W Halogen bulb as a light source simulating the sun (30.48cm from the cells). Power generation remained constant during the trials with and without piezoelectric strips, producing 10.0 mW and 10.2 mW, respectively. To simulate wind, a fan was utilized at 8.9m/s, 8.0m/s, and 7.2m/s. When assessing wind, 8.9m/s (0o) produced the highest power (0.36mW) in comparison to 7.2m/s (0.3mW). To simulate rain, a peristaltic-pump (10mL/min and 25mL/min) dispersed water droplets onto piezoelectric strips for testing. High water droplet (diameter=1.0 cm) speed produced the highest power in comparison to low speeds, 0.058mW and 0.053mW respectively. Mixed condition testing produced 10.3 mW, an 8.3% increase in comparison to solar alone, showcasing that piezoelectric strips can effectively be implemented in conjunction with solar cells. In order to maximize power output with this combined setup, areas with higher annual rainfall and wind speeds could benefit the most.

Abstract

Multiple myeloma (MM) is a clonal cell cancer characterized by excessive cell division of plasma cells in the bone marrow, which can then overcrowd healthy cells. As a result, end organ damage to kidneys, bones, and the liver occurs. The worldwide incidence of MM amounted to 160,000 cases in 2018 and 106,000 patients have succumbed to the disease. MM is diagnosed relatively well by detecting M monoclonal protein produced from cancerous cells, yet mortality rates remain high because there is a lack of a specific treatment. By identifying upregulated genes found in malignant plasma cells, scientists can develop new and stronger therapies tailored to potential driver genes. This study takes a novel machine learning approach to identify driver genes of MM. A single-cell RNA sequencing dataset obtained from Gene Expression Omnibus containing data from 29,367 plasma cells and 22,088 genes was utilized in this study. This study evaluated the performance of three machine learning models: Random Forest (RF), Support Vector Machine (SVM) and K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN), with RF achieving the highest accuracy of 95.61%.To name a few genes, the models identified ANKRD28 and HLA-DPA1 as potential driver genes that have been cross-validated with previous literature. Notably, the models identified RP5-1171I10.5–a gene not yet established to be associated with multiple myeloma which shows potential to be further studied for research. These genes show potential to be further studied for specific targeted genetic therapy.

Abstract

Increases in the world’s population and subsequent urbanization has driven consumption levels of building materials higher. In order to meet this need, and maintain the sustainability of resources, novel, ecofriendly insulation materials must be developed. These types of insulation materials should possess excellent thermal, acoustic and electrical insulating properties. In this study, four bio-based mycelium-substrate composites were developed by creating combinations of two mushroom species (T. versicolor and P. ostreatus) and two different growth substrates derived from waste stream sources (paper and bagasse). To test these mycelium-substrate composites for thermal, acoustic and electrical insulating properties, three low-cost novel testing systems were developed. The test materials included paper, bagasse, T. versicolor-paper composite (TP), T. versicolor-bagasse composite (TB), P. ostreatus-paper composite (PP), and P. ostreatus-bagasse composite (PB). The ability of commercial insulation, TP, PP and PB to reduce heat flow across a temperature gradient over 40 minutes was found to be significantly better, as compared to no insulation, with thermal conductivity values of 0.0407, 0.0461, 0.0356, and 0.0336 W/(mK), respectively. These mycelium-substrate composites performed similarly to commercial insulation. The average percent reductions in sound were 0%, 22.97%, 7.97%, 11.08%, 25.24%, 16.08%, 28.76%, and 32.36% for no insulation, commercial insulation, paper, bagasse, TP, TB, PP and PB respectively. The average amperage for each test material was 0 amps in response to 50 V. These results warrant further investigation of these bio-based mycelium-substrate composites in order to determine their potential applications. 

Abstract

In today’s world, the rate of urbanization is increasingly getting faster and faster. Large cities that are heavily populated produce noise that is not only harmful to one’s hearing, but also for concentration and productivity. If constantly exposed to an environment such as the ones existing in heavily populated cities, long-term effects will take place in the health of citizens such as damage to the cochlea membrane, increased progression of hearing loss, and long-term nerve damage within the ear canal. Furthermore, there is an average of 292.4 million tons of waste being produced on average since the year 2018. Approximately 50% of materials being thrown out are materials that can be recycled or repurposed. Using recyclable materials to create an effective yet affordable soundproofing composite would be important from a health, economic and environmental standpoint. Composites created from recyclable materials (foam, cardboard, binder, soundproofing material) were constructed and their soundproofing capabilities were measured using a self-constructed low-cost impedance tube. A bluetooth speaker was used to produce a consistent frequency of sound (400 Hz) for 5 seconds into a composite. A Vernier SoundProbe was utilized to measure the sound after passing through the composite in decibels. The average amplitude (decibels) without any composite was 2.5 while with composite materials (<1.5). Percent reductions were calculated for each material (all reduced more than 15% of sound). The data supported the hypothesis in that the recyclable composites were able to reduce noise levels by 15% or more.

Abstract

Greater focus on sustainability across numerous industries has led to an uptick in the demand for increasingly environmentally-friendly materials. Biochar has recently come into the arena as a material that is created from biomass that has undergone pyrolysis. The benefits of this material include inputs easily found in nature (ie. pine wood), high biodegradability, and high relative strength. When combined with epoxy resin, it was hypothesized that this composite would create a stronger, more environmentally-friendly material than either component by itself. Through the use of ABAQUS, a finite element analysis software, representative volume elements (RVEs) were created in order to test several configurations, load magnitudes & types, variations of biochar, and mass percentages to determine the most stress-resistant material. Through analysis of the maximum and minimum von Mises Stress percentages experienced by each RVE, 4 assignable sections of spruce-fir and pine sawdust biochar collectively produced the smallest von Mises Stress percentages, indicating a low likelihood of plastic characteristics after applied stress. Across all RVEs, the median number of assignable sections (4) for biochar had the lowest von Mises Stress percentages, indicating that maintaining elastic properties is best done through a hybrid of epoxy resin and biochar. In terms of the best type of stress, hydrostatic stress gave more favorable results (decreased von Mises percentages). Differences between the reaction force from varying pressures was proportional, indicating similar behavior at different stress values. Future applications include interdisciplinary applications of epoxy resin in green-transportation, green-construction, or crack prevention across other environmentally conscious disciplines.

Abstract

Clove oil, Eugenia caryophyllata, has been implemented as home therapeutic medicine for its anesthetic effects. The active ingredient, eugenol inhibits voltage gated sodium channels, hence sedating as an anesthetic. Clove oil provides an alternative for synthetic analgesics including morphine. The typical application of clove oil consists of topical application through liquid immersion. In addition to liquid, emulsification gel application allows for another form of controlled penetrative topical drug delivery. Moreover epicutaneous application through microneedles allowed for a non-invasive administrative method of delivering clove oil between the cuticle and epidermis.  Earthworms Lumbricus terrestris were the specimens tested due to their complex neurological functionalities. Mobility, convulsions, stimuli response, regeneration, and mortality were evaluated with concentrations of 0%, 1%, 2%, 3% with gel/immersion, and additional 0.5% with epicutaneous application. Different components of the experiment were conducted within a time-span of three years. 1% epicutaneous was shown to sedate the stimuli response of earthworms at an extremely fast rate. Furthermore 1% clove oil of all administration methods were the most effective as compared to lower concentrations 0.5% and higher concentrations 2%-3%. None of the administrative methods or concentrations of clove oil application caused limitations in regeneration, convulsive movements, or increased rate in mortality.  The limitations of this experiment consist of not consistently regulating the temperature of the medium. Future implications consist of more trials for validation and evaluating vaporization as another potential application. 1% epicutaneous showed an efficient form of sedation without severe behavioral and physiological complications.