DCL: HBCU:EAGER- Study of Biological Interaction between Fungal Cells and Electrospun Nanofibrous Platform

DCL; HBCU EAGER：抗银纳米颗粒大肠杆菌相关蛋白的结构和功能表征近年来，静电纺丝纳米纤维在商业产品中的整合呈指数级增长。静电纺丝纳米纤维已经被发现在许多应用中，例如空气过滤、液体过滤、性能服装、药物递送、用于组织工程的支架、电池隔板等。静电纺丝纳米纤维已经通过纳米纤维垫形式的相应商业产品暴露于（并且将继续暴露于）我们的环境。不可避免地，它们将与环境中的微生物接触，包括真菌。 然而，很少有人知道静电纺丝纳米纤维垫和真菌细胞之间的生物相互作用。本研究项目中真菌细胞与静电纺丝纳米纤维垫之间的详细相互作用信息将使公众了解静电纺丝纳米纤维的用途及其对环境微生物的影响。本研究的目的是通过细胞形态、细胞数量和细胞代谢活性来探讨模式真菌细胞（酵母）在聚丙烯腈纳米纤维垫（以及其他静电纺纳米纤维垫）上的存活能力和生长行为。将结果与来自微纤维和膜对应物的结果进行比较。该项目将通过研究静电纺丝纳米纤维垫的化学结构，尺寸，表面粗糙度，层次结构的影响，提供有关真菌细胞和静电纺丝纳米纤维材料之间相互作用的新知识。研究结果有助于理解生物相互作用的机制，并揭示了一种全新的方式来实现抗真菌功能，通过简单的物理接触，而不整合任何抗真菌药物或功能基团。所获得的知识将填补在很大程度上未知的研究领域，并进一步转化为其他纳米材料，具有类似的结构，尺寸和/或形态的静电纺丝纳米纤维材料。

DCL; HBCU EAGER: Structural and functional characterization of proteins associated with silver nanoparticle resistant Escherichia coliIn recent years, integration of electrospun nanofibers in commercial products has been growing exponentially. Electrospun nanofibers have been found in a number of applications such as air filtration, liquid filtration, performance apparel, drug delivery, scaffold for tissue engineering, battery separators and etc. The electrospun nanofibers are already exposed (and will continue being exposed) to our environment through corresponding commercial products in the form of nano fibrous mat. Inevitably, they will be in contact with microorganisms in environment, including fungi. However, little is known about biological interaction between electrospun nanofibrous mat and fungal cells. Detailed interaction information between fungal cells and electrospun nanofibrous mat from this research project will create public awareness about electrospun nanofibers' uses and their impact on environmental microorganism. Policy makers can also make use of the information to regulate the integration of electrospun nanofibers in consumer products.The objective of this research is to explore viability and growth behavior of a model fungal cell (yeast) on electrospun polyacrylonitrile nano fibrous mat (as well as other electrospun nano fibrous mats) by cell morphology, cell number, and cell metabolic activity. The results will be compared with those from microfibrous and film counterparts. The project will provide new knowledge regarding interaction between fungal cells and electrospun nanofibrous materials by investigating the effect of chemical structure, size, surface roughness, hierarchical structure of the electrospun nanofibrous mats. The research outcomes can aid in understanding the mechanism of the biological interaction and disclose a brand-new way to realize antifungal functionality by simple physical contact without integrating any antifungal drugs or functional groups. The acquired knowledge will fill in a largely unknown research field and further translate to other nano materials that have similar structure, dimension, and/or morphology as electrospun nanofibrous materials.