An Investigation towards a Selective and Sustainable Separation of Rare Earth Elements through Liquid-Liquid Extraction

Rare earth elements (REEs) are used in a variety of applications such as solid state lasers, magnets, MRI contrast agents, and electric motors. The U.S. currently imports its REEs from foreign countries which puts our REE supply chain at risk. One way for the U.S. to achieve REE independence is through recycling. However, there is much difficulty in separating REEs after recycling due to their similar chemical and physical properties. We investigated liquid-liquid extraction as a method of REE separation. Computational analysis was used to predict possible ligands which could selectively bind individual REEs. The synthesis and optimization of our liquid-liquid extraction method will be discussed. Furthermore, mass spectroscopy was used to study the coordination of the ligand with REEs

Digital Literacy Programs for Coburg Neighborhood Houses

Our team worked with the Moreland City Council in Australia to create approachable learning programs for two neighborhood houses that target the older population in Coburg. The goal of these learning programs was to teach basic computer and technology skills that will assist people in communicating with family or friends, shopping and managing finances efficiently, or competing in the job market. From interviews with professionals, we concluded how to best develop learning programs appropriate for this group. Our team created several programs that teach communication through the use of the Internet and computers. We also developed tools for employees to further expand the neighborhood houses’ library of learning programs

Antibody blockade of IL-15 signaling has the potential to durably reverse vitiligo

Vitiligo is an autoimmune disease of the skin mediated by CD8(+) T cells that kill melanocytes and create white spots. Skin lesions in vitiligo frequently return after discontinuing conventional treatments, supporting the hypothesis that autoimmune memory is formed at these locations. We found that lesional T cells in mice and humans with vitiligo display a resident memory (TRM) phenotype, similar to those that provide rapid, localized protection against reinfection from skin and mucosal-tropic viruses. Interleukin-15 (IL-15)-deficient mice reportedly have impaired TRM formation, and IL-15 promotes TRM function ex vivo. We found that both human and mouse TRM express the CD122 subunit of the IL-15 receptor and that keratinocytes up-regulate CD215, the subunit required to display the cytokine on their surface to promote activation of T cells. Targeting IL-15 signaling with an anti-CD122 antibody reverses disease in mice with established vitiligo. Short-term treatment with anti-CD122 inhibits TRM production of interferon-gamma (IFNgamma), and long-term treatment depletes TRM from skin lesions. Short-term treatment with anti-CD122 can provide durable repigmentation when administered either systemically or locally in the skin. On the basis of these data, we propose that targeting CD122 may be a highly effective and even durable treatment strategy for vitiligo and other tissue-specific autoimmune diseases involving TRM