Mike Gogarty: Changing the ”Golden Standard” of Open Heart Surgery

Mike is currently a PhD student at Colorado State University working on developing the tools and methods to perform a minimally invasive heart surgery as well as producing a man-made replacement aortic pump. In the medical field today, the “golden standard” for performing any type of heart surgery involves cutting open the chest through the sternum and prying it open to expose the heart. With this procedure, the heart is also stopped for a time period while doctor’s perform the surgery. While this type of procedure has been performed for a long time, it is very invasive-patients that go through this type of procedure normally have very long recovery times, if their bodies can even overcome the shock of the chest bones and muscles being cut into. Many of the patients who go through an open heart surgery only survive for a few years after the surgery, due to this invasive nature. To combat this, Mike is currently trying to develop a more non-invasive way of performing the surgery. Through his method, doctors would make an incision just below the rib cage and access the heart from down below with specialized medical equipment. The heart will also not be stopped, but will ideally continue to beat while the procedure is being performed. This way, less shock is put on the body, increasing survival rate as well as decreasing the recovery time.

Mike is also trying to develop a new artificial aortic valve for patients who need a valve replacement. Currently, replacement heart valves are made of either animal or human tissues or man-made materials like plastic or metal. Unfortunately, these materials do not last forever, as tissue valves run the risk of hardening or calcifying in the body while mechanical/man made valves, while they do last longer than biological valves, run the risk of causing the blood to clot. Mike believes that in the short run, developing a completely man made replacement valve that does not require people to take blood thinners would be an ideal solution, before a more biologically based valve can be developed that could grow with the body and never have to be replaced.

Ben Gadomski

Ben Gadomski

Ben is researcher working on translational orthopedics. This means he investigates the mechanisms that control skeletal development and growth. The adverse microgravity environment encountered during spaceflight has numerous deleterious effects on the human body such as decreased bone mass due to mechanical unloading. These alterations in bone mass and skeletal strength are a large limitation of future space exploration. Due to the cost of long-duration space missions, it is critical to implement effective ground models that can simulate a low gravity environment. But how do you simulate zero gravity on Earth (a place with lots of gravity)? And what preventive measures can you take to fight zero gravity’s effects? Wait for the interview and find out.

Steve Malloney

Former Consul General Steve Maloney

On May 1st, Colorado State University hosted U.S. State Diplomat in Residence, Steve Maloney.

Though he is not a researcher, SOGHR loves to interview people involved in the political sciences. Mr. Maloney is the former Consul General to Islamabad, Diplomat in Residence, and current Consul General to Tokyo. He will be talking about his extensive experience in the Foreign Service.

Steve Albers: Genetic Engineering For a Better Fuel

This is the last interview in our Biofuel Mini Series.

As a high school teacher for the past 5 years, I was fortunate enough to learn about and understand the true value of building a strong and capable foundation for any endeavor. Our world population continues to rise, and mankind’s need for energy of every type continues to increase. Because of this, it is evident that we will have to find alternatives to our current methods of energy generation, and biofuels will play a large role in attaining this goal. My personal targets as a part of the MAS BioEnergy program here at CSU are to: 1. Organize and comprehend the main basic tenants of the biofuel field, 2. Contribute to a durable solution to the biofuel field through modification of microorganisms utilizing the processes of metabolic engineering and synthetic biology, and 3. Participate in generating a durable American biofuel industry focused on best-fit practices. As part of any emerging field like the biofuels industry, many hurdles must be passed to generate products that are truly sustainable. New and novel ways of thinking about the organisms we use as cropping systems, the types of energy molecules generated by these organisms, and the way these organisms utilize the resources around us must be focused on to tackle this extensive problem.

Featured Work:

The astaxanthin production culture is on the left, while the wild type (normal cells) culture is on the right

Utilizing microbes for the production of molecules like nutraceuticals, therapeutic drugs, feedstock intermediates like sucrose, and biofuels is a promising approach.   Heterologous gene expression within microbes has continued to mature, with advances being made in understanding the metabolic burden placed on cell systems (1, 2).  Heterologous gene expression can cause extensive metabolic burden and physiological changes that mimic responses to extreme temperatures, amino acid depletion, and starvation (1, 3).  Strategies like control of gene expression via promoter engineering, codon optimization, and heterologous gene insertion have shown to be vital in managing these cellular conditions (3-5).

While most engineering research focuses on heterotrophic systems, photosynthetic Eubacteria such as Synechocystis provide benefits over heterotrophic systems. Photosynthetic Eubacteria are capable of using solar energy and atmospheric carbon for growth and product production, exhibit rapid doubling times, and have high homology to the plastids of algae and plants (6-12). Because of this, research into engineering mechanisms within Synechocystis may provide insights into pathway control within plastids of green algae and plants.

There are several examples of engineering in Synechocystis species in the current literature (13-16).  To date, engineering these organisms has demonstrated modest gains in product production, similar to early E. coli engineering.  I argue that in order to utilize photosynthetic microbes as production platforms, molecular tools must be generated, tested, and quantified in various conditions.  Little work has focused on expression control of heterologous metabolic pathways in photosynthetic organisms.  I believe that tools optimized for Synechocystis can have a great impact in increasing molecules produced from gene pathways.

My research has two main aims.  I plan to utilize Synechocystis as a production platform for the 1) generation of the nutraceutical, astaxanthin, and 2) the generation of the biofuel molecule, bisabolene.  To attain these goals, my current work has focused on understanding gene expression at the transcriptional level. I have engineered over 10 promoter constructs that control gene expression in unique ways in Synechocystis. I have generated a chemically inducible construct within Synechocystis capable of repression as well as induction.  I have modified this inducible construct to produce new constructs with varying levels of expression strength. My work also includes modifications to a commonly used photosynthetic promoter, P_psbAII.  My nucleotide modifications have been able to increase basil expression by three fold of this commonly utilized promoter. Manuscripts of this work are currently being modified for publication.  My work has allowed several projects in the Peebles lab to increase gene expression of heterologous genes within Synechocystis and I plan to generate high titers of product through use of my synthesized promoter constructs.

In addition to my research objectives of my Ph.D. candidacy, I also develop outreach modules for the high school classroom.  As a former high school biology classroom teacher, I strive to develop modules that are capable of bringing cutting edge science topics to the high school classroom.  I also work as a licensing assistant at CSU Ventures, the technology transfer office at CSU.  We manage all the intellectual property generated at CSU and help researchers more effectively perform their work in research labs at CSU.

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Interview with Steve Albers

Barbara Fricks: Soil Enzymes and Fuel

Barbara Fricks

This is the third interview in our Biofuel Mini Series.

Barbara got a Bachelors of Arts degree in Botany and Anthropology from the University of Texas at Austin.  After graduating she worked at an organic nursery, which led her to getting her Masters in Soil Science at Pennsylvania State University.  Upon completion of her masters, she spent one year in Washington DC as the science policy intern for the Soil Science Society of America. She then worked as a government contractor with the EPA and decided to return back to school for her PhD.  At Colorado State University she received a fellowship to study biofuels.  She is currently a PhD candidate in Ecology and the Program Director for the Global Soil Biodiversity Initiative.

Featured Work:

“Working in he hood”

Biofuels offer a unique opportunity to move towards a sustainable fuel source; however under the current processing it is not an economically viable option. One type of biofuel (ethanol) uses microorganisms to ferment sugars into alcohols.  Currently we use crops rich in sugar – corn grain, sugarcane, and sugar beet- to feed the microorganisms.  Using food crops pits biofuel production against food production.  There are sugars available in complex forms (cellulose) but we can’t currently use non-sugar parts of the plant efficiently.  My research examines ways to increase efficiency of biofuel production through improving the breakdown of non-food parts of plants.

The breakdown of non-food parts of the plant occurs all the time in natural systems (decomposition). Decomposition is the process where complex substances break down into smaller compounds and nutrients. Special proteins called enzymes help bonds in complex compounds easier to break apart. In biofuels production just a few (1-3) types of enzymes are used to convert cellulose into sugar; these enzymes don’t work efficiently because of other complex compounds inhibit enzyme access to the cellulose.

Protein pellet from soil

In natural systems, microorganisms use lots of different types of enzymes to convert all parts of the plant, not just cellulose, into sugars. As an ecologist interested in studying how carbon (stuff that makes up plants and sugars) cycles in the environment, I am interested in the enzymes soil microorganisms use to breakdown plant biomass into the nutrients they need for survival.  By examining the enzymes in natural systems. I hope to identify new enzymes that could be used in biofuel production to make it more efficient and economically viable. Specifically I am interested in the enzymes involved in the breakdown of complex plant structures that prevents access to cellulose.  To look for new enzymes I am using a technique called proteomics to identify proteins (enzymes) produced during decomposition.  By looking at all the enzymes in the system I am hoping to discover new proteins/enzymes involved in biomass breakdown.

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Interview with Barbara Fricks

Scott Fullbright: Algae as an Alternative Fuel

This is the second interview in our Biofuel Mini Series.

Phoenix Mourning-Star: From Narcotics to Peace

This is the first interview in our Biofuel Mini Series.

Phoenix is a skilled consultant, fundraiser and opportunity/relationship developer with more than 10 years of experience in interdisciplinary research, event planning and cross-marketing with nationally and internationally recognized governmental and non-governmental agencies. He has direct experience in programmatic, fiscal, strategic and operational planning.  He has a proven ability to inspire and develop cutting-edge research and courses, including investigating waste from narcotic production for use as a biofuel in rural Afghanistan and consulting for the Afghanistan Ministry of Agriculture following a 2011-2012 expedition in country, designing multiple courses and founding/operating a student/young researcher focused non-profit, Society of Global Health Researchers in Action, to encourage future researchers to break barriers in global environmental and health issues.

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Interview with Phoenix Mourning-Star

Welcome to The Point of Science!

Mission Statement:

Hi! This is the blog for the radio show, To the Point of Science. We are a radio program that interviews graduate and PhD students about their cutting-edge research. We try to take these complicated and complex ideas and make them accessible to a public audience.

Our Process:

We broadcast every Sunday during the academic year at KCSU 90.5 FM. The first step is the interview itself. We record the interview a couple of days before the show airs. Then, we edit the interview. We edit for time and to make you sound the best you can! The final step is running the show itself. The interview will air the Sunday of the week we record the interview with you. Interviews are the main segment featured on the show. Generally, interviews are 30-45 minutes long.

How to Contact Us:

We’ll always be looking for people to interview so if you’re interested in being on the show contact us at tyler@globalhealthresearchsociety.org . We interview people regardless of area of research so we would love to have you on the show!

To the Point of Science is generously given air time by KCSU 90.5 FM Fort Collins.