Research Initiation Award: Determining the Role of Cytoskeletal Proteins in the Fibrillation of Amyloid-beta Peptides in the presence of Tryptamines and Flavones

研究启动奖为历史上黑人学院和大学的初级和中级职业教师提供支持，他们正在建立新的研究项目或重新定向和重建现有项目。预计该奖项将有助于进一步提高教师的研究能力和效率，改善家庭机构的研究和教学，并让本科生参与沉浸式研究体验。授予Tougaloo学院有可能在许多领域产生更广泛的影响。该项目将通过协助开发分子动力学模拟实验室来支持积极的研究型实验室计划，从而加强该机构的研究基础设施，并为学生提供更多的研究机会。本研究的目标是了解导致痴呆症的肽和蛋白质的结构和相互作用动力学。该项目整合了实验和计算研究，以了解细胞骨架蛋白微管蛋白和肌动蛋白对淀粉样β（Abeta）肽聚集的伴侣活性，淀粉样β（Abeta）肽是阿尔茨海默病（AD）神经退行性斑块的主要成分。这项研究将有两个不同的目的，一是确定细胞骨架蛋白质结构完整性之间的联系，（微管蛋白和肌动蛋白）和Abeta聚集，并了解全长Abeta（1-42）及其较小对应物在单黄酮和二羟黄酮以及色胺的羟基和甲氧基衍生物存在下的折叠过程该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Research Initiation Awards provide support for junior and mid-career faculty at Historically Black Colleges and Universities who are building new research programs or redirecting and rebuilding existing programs. It is expected that the award helps to further the faculty member's research capability and effectiveness, improves research and teaching at the home institution, and involves undergraduate students in immersive research experiences. The award to Tougaloo College has the potential to broader impacts in a number of areas. This project will support active research-based laboratory programs by assisting in the development a molecular dynamics simulation lab, thereby enhancing the research infrastructure of the institution and expanding research opportunities for students.The goal of this study is to understand the structure and interactive dynamics of peptides and proteins which are responsible for dementia. The project integrates experimental and computational studies to understand the chaperone activities of the cytoskeletal proteins tubulin and actin on the aggregation of amyloid beta (Abeta) peptides, which compose the main component of neurodegenerative plaques in Alzheimer disease (AD). The proposed research will be performed with two distinct aims, which are to determine the link between the structural integrity of cytoskeletal proteins (tubulin and actin) and Abeta aggregation, and understanding the folding processes of full-length Abeta (1-42) and its smaller counterparts in the presence of mono and dihydroxyflavones as well as hydroxyl and methoxyl derivatives of tryptamine (serotonin and melatonin, respectively).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.