School of Science Division of Life Science 32 Investigating Synaptic Transmission in Alzheimer's Disease Supervisor: PARK Hyo Keun / LIFS Student: WONG Meng Hwei / BCB Course: UROP 1100, Spring Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by impaired communication between neurons, potentially caused by abnormal tau protein. This study investigates how phosphorylation at tau’s threonine-217 (T217) affects synaptic integrity using phospho-mimic (T217E) and non-phospho-mimic (T217A) tau variants by using PSD95 and VGLUT1 as markers. The quantification of presynaptic (VGLUT1) and postsynaptic (PSD95) markers in hippocampal neurons will use to measure puncta size, intensity, and synapse density across wild-type, T217E, and T217A groups (n=20 each). These results provide insights into how phosphorylated tau affect synaptic transmission in AD. Investigating the Effects of Nanoplastics on Neurotransmission Supervisor: PARK Hyo Keun / LIFS Student: KAUR Palakjot / BCB Course: UROP 1000, Summer Nanoplastics are plastics with a size smaller than 0.1 µm, which have been degraded from a larger plastic component. Their small size leads to bioaccumulation into the biological specimen, which in turn raises concerns about their effect on cellular functions. Nanoplastics are an emerging environmental concern given their widespread and indisputable presence in ecosystems. This progress report outlines the impact of polystyrene nanoplastic (PSPN) on synaptic transmission in neurons. We treated coverslips containing rat hippocampal neurons with PSPN and employed the FM1-43 assay to visualise the effects of PSPN on synaptic transmission. The findings contribute to the understanding of the neurotoxic potential of nanoplastics and their implications for neural health. Investigating the Effects of Nanoplastics on Neurotransmission Supervisor: PARK Hyo Keun / LIFS Student: SO Yan Kiu / BCB Course: UROP 1100, Fall Nano-plastics are plastic particles that have a size under 1 μm, and the particles are formed by degradation or synthesized for industrial application. Studies have shown that nano-plastic can pass through blood-brain barriers to cause neurotoxicity. However, the mechanism of the nano plastics to affect the neurons is still unknown. Thus, western blot experiments are performed to check how can the nano-plastic affect the expression level of the protein synapsin 1 in the hippocampus neurons.
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