Notice and Invitation
Oral Defense of Master’s Thesis
Bioengineering Department
The Volgenau School of Engineering, George Mason University
Luz Merlyn Vargas Restrepo
Bachelor of Science, Universidad de Antioquia, 2016
DNA Nanotechnology as a Tool to Study Membrane-binding Events:
The Role of RGD Peptide Spatial Organization on AVB3 Integrin binding
Monday, November 16, 2020, 2pm-4pm
via Zoom (link below)
All are invited to attend.
Committee
Dr. Parag Chitnis, Chair
Dr. Remi Veneziano, Thesis Director
Dr. Barney Bishop
Abstract
In this work, we address this problem by developing DNA origami presenting RGD peptide systems. These
multifunctional DNA origami nanoparticles were designed, folded and functionalized to explore the impact of spacing, and 1D
vs 2D organization of RGD peptide on binding to ávâ3 integrin at the single-protein level.
We show that binding affinity to ávâ3 membrane receptor can be modulated by controlling RGD inter-peptide
distance on DNA origami nanoparticles, using surface plasmon resonance (SPR). In conclusion, DNA origami-RGD peptide systems not only represent potential for helping elucidate the role of RGD and its organization in membrane binding interactions, but also
to assemble the new generation of nanocarriers for drug delivery and effective scaffold for cell-tissue engineering.
Parag Chitnis is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: MS Thesis Defense of Merlyn Vargas
Time: Nov 16, 2020 02:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
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