Interstitial Cystitis: The Estrogen Connection

Interstitial cystitis (IC), or painful bladder syndrome, is an autoimmune condition with an unknown etiology. Common symptoms include urinary urgency, frequency, and bladder and urethral pain and burning. This condition, like many autoimmune disorders, disproportionately affects females; therefore, female sex hormones are hypothesized to play a role in the disorder. My hypothesis is that estrogen, both endogenous and synthetic, affects the severity of IC symptoms. Through surveying the available literature on interstitial cystitis, I have found that IC symptoms often correlate with low estrogen. My hope is that by understanding more about how hormones affect IC, we can come up with better treatment plans for IC sufferers

A Ciliary Sensation: Mapping Components of the GTP Signaling Pathway

GTP is a chemorepellent in Tetrahymena thermophila, causing cells to exhibit avoidance behavior, characterized by ciliary reversal. Recent work in our laboratory has shown that tyrosine kinase activity is required in order for GTP signaling to take place (Bartholomew et al., submitted for publication). Second messengers which we have found to be important for GTP signaling in Tetrahymena include nitric oxide and cGMP. Previous studies by Kim et al., 1999, have shown that a calcium-based depolarization is elicited by the application of extracellular GTP. Currently, our lab is addressing the question of where intracellular calcium is involved in the GTP chemoresponse. Addition of the membrane-permeable calcium chelator, BAPTA-AM, to the extracellular medium abolishes the GTP chemoresponse in Tetrahymena. However, addition of this chelator to the extracellular medium does not affect the level of GTP-induced tyrosine phosphorylation, as detected by indirect immunofluorescence. As we continue to pursue the question of where calcium is involved in GTP signaling, we will look at calcium involvement in the nitric oxide/cGMP pathway

Is Bioethics Relevant?

We live in a broken, unjust, and often dangerous world. Technology promises hope; hope for new cures, broader access to information, and a better quality of life for humankind. Technologies such as gene editing and artificial intelligence continue to progress at a pace we have never seen before, running far ahead of the ethical discussions surrounding their stewardship. In a technology-driven culture like ours, one might be tempted to ask whether the ethical discussion is still relevant

CRISPR: Race to the Cure

On November 15th, the scientific world was taken by storm when Chinese researchers announced that the gene editing technique, CRISPR, was being used for the first time in a clinical trial.i CRISPR, which stands for clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats, allows scientists to target specific genes for knockout, or even for replacement by other genes. The technique has showed promising results in both in vitro and animal models, and researchers foresee myriad medical uses for it. The aforementioned Chinese study involves genetically engineering T-cells to make them better able to fight cancer. Another CRISPR study involving reprogramming T-cells was approved by US ethics panels on June 21.ii In what is clearly shaping up to be a biomedical “race to the cure”, scientists are eager to determine whether CRISPR is a safe, effective means of treating cancer. If this proves to be the case, CRISPR could soon be used to wage war on genetic disorders such as cystic fibrosis, or perhaps even autoimmune diseases such as Type I diabetes or multiple sclerosis

Autonomy and Patient Care: To What Extent Should Children Make Their Own Decisions?

On June 14, 2016, 5-year old Julianna Snow died at home, in accordance with her stated wishes not to return to the hospital. Julianna suffered from a severe form of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, an inherited neurodegenerative disorder which, while not always lethal,1 had weakened her body to the extent that even a cold could be fatal. Julianna’s case raises important questions about patient autonomy and end-of-life care for children. The child did not wish to return to the hospital, and was willing to go to heaven instead.6 Though her parents respected her autonomy and honored her decision, the question remains: did Julianna have the decision-making capacity to make a life-or-death decision at such a young age? Are there cases where autonomy may have to be sacrificed in favor of other important ethical determinants, such as beneficence or non-maleficence

A Call to Forward-Thinking Bioethics

It is said that hindsight is always 20/20. However, a reasoned approach to practical bioethics requires an awareness of developing technologies and their potential applications to clinical practice