Investigating Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cell Internalization of Doxorubicin-Loaded Glycogen Nanoparticles and Corresponding DNA Repair Expression

Breast cancer is the leading cause of death of women, worldwide. Triple negative breast cancer is an aggressive subtype characterized by the lack of 3 essential cell receptors: estrogen, progesterone, and human epidermal growth factor 2. Due to the lack of receptors, targeted therapies are often unsuccessful. Doxorubicin is a common anthracycline chemotherapy drug that is a topoisomerase II inhibitor. It causes double strand breaks in the DNA, which causes the cells to induce apoptosis. Unfortunately, the off-target cardiotoxicity from doxorubicin treatment leaves patients with a poor quality of life. The Sun and Senejani research groups at the university of New Haven have been working on a targeted, integration-free doxorubicin-loaded nanocarrier for pH triggered release in acidic tumor microenvironments. This study aimed to compare the cellular uptake of doxorubicin versus doxorubicin loaded glycogen nanoparticles (DLG) and to evaluate the mRNA levels of DNA repair genes (ERCC1, ERCC4, MSH2, MLH1) in treated MDA-MB-231 and MCF-10A cells. This is to determine the time-dependent kinetics of repair by monitoring the gene expression levels with the drug uptake profiles. The results showed that DLG does have a pH-dependent release of doxorubicin, and that it also has a much higher and efficient cellular uptake than free doxorubicin in both cell lines. Baseline gene expression of the DNA repair genes was also elevated in MDA-MB-231 cells. For treated cells, MDA-MB-231 had a sustained upregulation of MSH2 even after 24 hours of recovery after treatment which suggests tolerance. MCF-10A cells only had repair responses when they were almost fully saturated with the treatments and went back to normal expression levels after recovery. These findings suggest that MDA-MB-231 cells have the ability to tolerate and recognize damage without repair, leading to drug resistance regardless of formulation. This research highlights the importance of optimizing existing treatments for better delivery and efficacy and shows the potential of integration-free delivery systems for not just cancer cells, but for wide applications in the body

Susurros de Borinken

Title translated to, Whispers of Puerto Rico. Created 2025. This work of art is acrylic on canvas, 36” by 24”.https://digitalcommons.newhaven.edu/digital-exhibits/1059/thumbnail.jp

Fruto de Borínken (Vase Close-Up)

This piece is a heartfelt homage to the incredible women in my family and the rich culture of Puerto Rico. It captures my deep love for the natural beauty, vibrant music, and passionate spirit that flows through their veins—expressed in our delicious food, lively attitudes, and the immense love they have shared with me. It also evokes the powerful warmth of the midday sun in Puerto Rico, reflecting the essence of our cherished heritage. This work of art is acrylic on canvas.https://digitalcommons.newhaven.edu/digital-exhibits/1014/thumbnail.jp

Religiosity and the Use of Performance-Based Compensation

This study examines how a firm’s religious culture affects the structure of CEO compensation. I consider two characteristics of religious cultures that are likely to have implications on executive compensation structure – the sensitivity of economic agents to financial rewards (extrinsic motivation) and the extent to which agents’ actions can affect future outcomes (locus of control). I hypothesize that religious cultures’ attitudes toward both characteristics will lead to less use of performance-based compensation in religious cultures and show evidence consistent with the hypothesis. Further tests show that the relationship is primarily driven by religious cultures’ perception of extrinsic motivation. Using corporate headquarters relocations as a shock to a firm’s culture, I show that the relationship is causal

Detection of Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals at the North Haven Water Pollution Control Facility on the Quinnipiac River

The presence of estrogenic endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) was detected using vacuum filtration and solid-phase extraction (SPE) followed by methods measured through chemical analysis. This research aims to quantify the presence of estrogenic EDCs in the Quinnipiac River located in Connecticut. Samples from influent, effluent, and downstream river locations from a Water Pollution Control Facility (WPCF) in North Haven, Connecticut are tested for the presence of estrone and 17α-ethinylestradiol. Findings from the study will provide insight to improve treatment efficiency of EDCs in WPCFs

Efficacy of Zero-Acquaintance Assessments of Dark Triad Personality Features

This thesis addresses the efficacy of Zero-acquaintance assessments of Dark Triad personality features (i.e., Machiavellianism, Narcissism, and Psychopathy as measured by the SD3 instrument). The methodology involved two phases. In Phase One, 1,345 participants completed online personality assessments, including measures of the SD3. In Phase Two, 386 participants engaged in three videotaped laboratory tasks: a rapport-building interview, a mapping task, and a decision-making role-playing scenario. 60 of these videos were randomly selected for analysis. Each was rated by four operational psychologists and four undergraduate students who were not studying psychology. The accuracy of their ratings was determined by comparing their assessments to the ground truth scores derived from the participants’ SD3 selfreport questionnaires. Both groups of raters performed slightly better than chance at assessing Machiavellianism and Psychopathy, but not Narcissism. Non-professional raters were slightly more accurate than professional raters in assessing Psychopathy and Machiavellianism, with nearly identical accuracy for Narcissism. Across all traits, the most common error was that of undercorrection (rating a trait as low when the ground truth for a trait was high). The thesis concludes that human raters with limited specific training can achieve some level of accuracy in identifying Dark Triad traits under Zero-acquaintance conditions. Nonprofessional raters may outperform trained professionals in certain areas. This thesis suggests that assessments of SD3 traits may be successfully performed by analysts who are not psychologists. Future research is recommended to further explore these findings with more targeted tasks, diverse samples, and comparisons with artificial intelligence models

Investigating Odor Signatures of Electronic Storage Devices

Dogs have a long history of being used as scent trackers. They\u27ve tracked game for hunters, sniffed out hidden drugs, and even found hidden criminals and missing victims. More recently, police K-9 dogs have demonstrated the ability to locate individual electronic storage devices (ESDs) - such as laptops, cell phones, and USB drives - by scent. This ability, which gained mass media attention when a dog found a hidden USB drive during the raid on Jared Fogle\u27s residence, is possible due to a dog\u27s significantly heightened sense of smell when compared to that of a human. Knowledge regarding the detection of ESDs is still rudimentary and being researched. Current K-9 training programs train the dogs on either the target material, or, if the target material is unavailable, chemical surrogates that mimic the scent profile of their targets. The former approach is used for K-9 training programs that include detection of ESDs. If surrogate chemicals can be used to produce odor profiles consistent with the ESD odor profiles, these manufactured odor profiles can then be incorporated into future K-9 training programs, avoiding the need to purchase expensive ESDs solely for scent training. In order to develop the optimal method for ESD odor profile analysis, a method must first be developed to identify the odor profile ofESDs. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC­ MS) is a valuable method for the analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) anticipated to be present in the odor profiles of ESDs. However, determination of an optimal sampling method to perform this type of analysis is needed. In cooperation with the Connecticut State Police and NOBLE, two different sampling methods were evaluated for identifying a specific target odor using GC-MS: Direct headspace and solid phase microextraction (SPME). After determining the best sample method, this optimized method was then used to evaluate the odor profile of an ESD sample using GC-MS, to determine whether the target odor in question was present in the odor profile

Effect of Antibiotics in Preventing Borrelia burgdorferi Biofilm Formation

Lyme disease, caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, is the most prevalent tick-borne illness in the United States, with approximately 500,000 annual diagnoses. Despite antibiotic treatment, B. burgdorferi can persist in the host, often leading to relapses. Its treatment is further complicated by this pathogen’s ability to form biofilms, a morphological form that enhances antibiotic resistance and serves as a defense mechanism. Previous studies have shown that established biofilms are highly resistant to eradication, even at high antibiotic concentrations. While recent therapeutic strategies advocate administering antibiotics after a tick bite to prevent B. burgdorferi biofilm formation, supporting research data remain lacking. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of various antibiotics (doxycycline, dapsone, azithromycin, and hygromycin A) in inhibiting biofilm formation in vitro using crystal violet biofilm assays, LIVE/DEAD staining, and subculture assays. The results showed that doxycycline, the most commonly prescribed antibiotic for Lyme disease, and azithromycin, widely used in Europe, demonstrated limited efficacy both against established biofilms and in preventing biofilm formation. Hygromycin A, a B. burgdorferi-specific antibiotic, showed moderate efficacy as a monotherapy but achieved significant results in dual therapy, particularly when combined with dapsone. The combination of hygromycin A and dapsone reduced biofilm mass by nearly 50% and prevented biofilm recovery in subculture assays. These findings suggest that antibiotics used for Lyme disease treatment may be inadequate for addressing B. burgdorferi biofilm formation. This research underscores the importance of early, targeted interventions and highlights the potential of non-standard antibiotics and combination therapies as innovative strategies to combat B. burgdorferi biofilm formation. This study adds to the expanding body of research on Lyme disease treatment, highlighting the urgent need for innovative strategies to address the challenges presented by the bacteria’s adaptive defense mechanisms

Developing a Method for the Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of Heavy Metals In Topical CBD Pain Relief Products

In 2018, the United States passed the Farm Bill, which removed cannabidiol (CBD) from the list of controlled substances, where it was previously considered a schedule 1 drug, and legalized any cannabis-derived products containing less than 0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). As a result of this bill, there has been an increase in sales and an influx of matrices for cannabis-based products. One subsection of cannabis products that has gained interest in recent years is the topical use of CBD. Research has shown that topical CBD products may be useful to stimulate wound healing, treat non-melanoma skin cancer, and reduce inflammation, itching, and pain. However, since CBD has no accepted medical or recreational use, with the expectation of Epidiolex to treat epilepsy, any cannabis-based products on the market are largely unregulated by The Food and Drng Administration (FDA). Due to the lack of regulations and limited analysis of CBD products before they enter the market, there are concerns about label accuracy and potential product contamination. Heavy metal contamination in CBD products is an area of concern, partially due to processing cross-contamination and post-processing adulteration, but also due to the natural bioaccumulative capacity of the cannabis plant, which removes heavy metals from substrate soils and deposits them in the plant tissues. Heavy metals are classified as carcinogens and have been shown to aid cancer progression or reduce sensitivity to treatment. Topical exposure to heavy metals was previously thought to only have local effects on the body, however recent studies have shown that they are capable of penetrating deep into the skin, reaching the blood circulatory system, and causing exposure to internal organs. An extraction method and a digestion method using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS) were evaluated for their use in analyzing lotions for the presence of heavy metals, specifically lead and cadmium. Eight (8) topical CBD products sold online were analyzed for the potential presence of lead and cadmium. The extraction method analyzed was not successful in extracting heavy metals from lotion samples. The digestion method was found to be successful for use in analyzing lotions with relatively high levels of lead or cadmium. Lead and cadmium were unable to be detected in any of the eight CBD lotions analyzed

Comprehensive Profiling of Cancer Testis Genes In Glioblastoma: A Bioinformatics and Expression-Based Approach

ancer/Testis Antigens (CTAs) represent a class of tumor-associated genes characterized by a highly restricted expression pattern in testis and aberrant reactivation in various malignancies including Glioblastoma (GBM). Glioblastoma is the most common and aggressive malignant primary brain tumor, with an overall median survival of approximately 13 months. Despite advancements in standard treatments such as surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, GBM\u27s high heterogeneity and resistance mechanisms significantly limit therapeutic success. In this study, we analyzed RNA-seq data from 29 different tissue types, comprising over 3,000 samples, to perform a comprehensive screening of Cancer/Testis Antigens (CTAs) in glioblastoma (GBM), implementing a multi-level filtering strategy. Although GBM has traditionally been considered a “CTApoor” tumor, by leveraging the most recent genome annotation (GENCODE v47), we expanded the repertoire of testis-specific genes (TSGs)—and consequently of CTA candidates—particularly within the long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) landscape. Subsequently we investigated the expression of TSGs in GBM using transcriptomic data from 191 TCGA samples. We identified 23 candidate CTAs expressed in GBM, of which 19 were lncRNAs. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis revealed that several of these genes were significantly associated with patient prognosis, particularly the lncRNA NOVA1-DT shown to be strongly related to good prognosis if highly expressed. Our findings underscore the value of updated genomic annotations and multi-metric strategies in refining CTA discovery, and they highlight lncRNA-derived CTAs as a promising but underexplored avenue for biomarker development and potential immunotherapeutic targeting in GBM