Visualization of Internalized Viral Nanoparticles (VNPs) for Early Cancer Detection — Presentation Detail — Celebration of Scholars

Instructions

Student presentations must have a faculty sponsor.

Abstracts must include a title and a description of the research, scholarship, or creative work. The description should be 150-225 words in length and constructed in a format or style appropriate for the presenter’s discipline.

The following points should be addressed within the selected format or style for the abstract:

A clear statement of the problem or question you pursued, or the scholarly goal or creative theme achieved in your work.
A brief comment about the significance or uniqueness of the work.
A clear description of the methods used to achieve the purpose or goals for the work.
A statement of the conclusions, results, outcomes, or recommendations, or if the work is still in progress, the results you expect to report at the event.

Presenter photographs should be head and shoulder shots comparable to passport photos.

Additional Information

More information is available at carthage.edu/celebration-scholars/. The following are members of the Research, Scholarship, and Creativity Committee who are eager to listen to ideas and answer questions:

Jun Wang
Kim Instenes
John Kirk
Nora Nickels
Andrew Pustina
James Ripley

Visualization of Internalized Viral Nanoparticles (VNPs) for Early Cancer Detection

Name: Heidi Fenske
Major: Biology
Hometown: Milwaukee, WI
Faculty Sponsor:
Other Sponsors:
Type of research: Independent research

Name: Darien Jefferson
Major: Biology and Neuroscience
Hometown: Wauwatosa, WI
Faculty Sponsor:
Other Sponsors:
Type of research: Independent research

Name: Laura Krings
Major: Chemistry and Biology
Hometown: Nekoosa, Wisconsin
Faculty Sponsor:
Other Sponsors:
Type of research: Independent research

Abstract

According to the American Cancer Society, it is projected that over half a million Americans will die of cancer in 2014. Future projections could be reduced with earlier detection and treatment of cancer than current methods allow. Chemically modified viral nanoparticles (VNPs) have the potential to be used as an imaging device for the early detection of cancer through the addition of disease-specific targeting ligands to the viral capsid. We created Cowpea Mosaic (CPMV) VNPs equipped with fluorescein (FITC) succinimidyl ester fluorescent ligands to create an imaging device with a high signal to noise ratio for the efficient detection of cancer. UV-VIS spectrophotometry was used to determine that 175 FITC molecules were attached per CPMV. Native dot blot western demonstrated that FITC does not interfere with antibody detection of the virus. This is important for future studies because it will allow us to visualize unmodified viruses using antibodies post-internalization, rather than using the FITC dye during internalization. The use of unmodified capsids is beneficial because it shows that FITC would not mediate the targeting of cells. Fluorescent microscopy was then used to visualize CPMV after internalization in HeLa cells, a human cancer line. We have found that when compared to antibody detection of VNPs post-internalization, the presence of FITC does not disturb the internalization process of the virus. Future studies will explore the use of transferrin as a targeting ligand for a potential drug delivery vehicle for cancer.

Poster file