Laboratory Technician

• Oct 2020 - Present

Research Technician

• Sep 2018 - Sep 2020

Research Technician

• Jul 2018 - Sep 2018

Research Assistant

• May 2017 - Feb 2018

Graduate Research Student

• Aug 2015 - Jul 2017

In this study, gram positive Staphylococcus aureus cell wall components such as lipoteichoic acid (LTA) and peptidoglycan (PGN) were used to study the potential inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokine response, cytoskeletal arrangement and cell viability on RAW264.7 murine macrophages over 24 hours. The effect of S.aureus LTA and PGN (5 µg/mL) on RAW 264.7 macrophages was evaluated every six hours for twenty-four hours. Inflammatory cytokine (TNF-α) production peaked at 6… Show more In this study, gram positive Staphylococcus aureus cell wall components such as lipoteichoic acid (LTA) and peptidoglycan (PGN) were used to study the potential inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokine response, cytoskeletal arrangement and cell viability on RAW264.7 murine macrophages over 24 hours. The effect of S.aureus LTA and PGN (5 µg/mL) on RAW 264.7 macrophages was evaluated every six hours for twenty-four hours. Inflammatory cytokine (TNF-α) production peaked at 6 hours before decreasing over time. Anti-inflammatory cytokine (IL-10) production peaked between 12 and 18 hours. During the first twenty-four hours, cytotoxicity of treated macrophages, as defined as the release of lactate dehydrogenase, did not increase suggesting the drop in inflammatory cytokine production was not due to cell death. As exposure to S.aureus cell wall components increased over twenty-four hours, cells transformed from a circular-profile M1 phenotype to a more elongated M2 phenotype. The results of this study indicate that the inflammatory response to S.aureus peaks early at 6 hours before being modulated by production of anti-inflammatory IL-10 later at 12 to 18 hours.

Graduate Assistant

• May 2016 - Apr 2017

The Effect of Antibiotics on Planarian Regneration

• Jan 2015 - Apr 2015

Planarians are different from other bilaterians in that they possess a large pool of adult stem cells that is responsible for regenerating any part of their body, including the brain. Using planarians we test the following hypotheses to investigate the effect of penicillin on aquatic habitat: 1) higher concentration of penicillin is toxic to worms, 2) penicillin inhibits wound healing capacity in planaria resulting in delay forming blastema, 3) rate of regeneration is affected by penicillin, 4)… Show more Planarians are different from other bilaterians in that they possess a large pool of adult stem cells that is responsible for regenerating any part of their body, including the brain. Using planarians we test the following hypotheses to investigate the effect of penicillin on aquatic habitat: 1) higher concentration of penicillin is toxic to worms, 2) penicillin inhibits wound healing capacity in planaria resulting in delay forming blastema, 3) rate of regeneration is affected by penicillin, 4) differential response to antibiotic can be observed in stem cells residing in different regions of body, 5) low concentration of penicillin is not toxic to worm cells, this may promote growth and regeneration of explants cultured preventing bacterial infection, and 6) worms which were sensitive for antibiotics during the initial period of treatment later becomes resistant to penicillin and can grow normally proving the antibiotic resistance accumulated over period. These are determined through culturing explants cut from different part of the planarian body and growing them in different concentrations of penicillin diluted in the spring water. Cultures are be maintained for about 4-5 weeks, the size of the body measured every week to analyze the regeneration rate periodically.

Undergraduate Capstone research

• Aug 2014 - Dec 2014

The effect of Nitrogen and Phosphorous concentration on the growth of Microcystis aeruginosa and isolation of M.aeruginosa from Lake Neatahwanta in Fulton, New York