Beta Mu Chapter Undergraduate Student Research Grant ($250)

Principal Investigator: Megan T. Brown

Title of Project: Responses of Endothelial Cells to Breast Cancer Cells: Mitosis and Age-Related Differences

Funding Period: April 28, 2004 -April 27, 2005

Abstract:
Breast cancer ( BR CA ), a common form of cancer in women, usually causes death by metastasis. Yet, little is known about the process of metastasis. Earlier work in Dr. Carrie Merkle’s lab has determined that the addition of BR CA cells to “young” endothelial cells causes transient gaps in the normally continuous sheets of endothelial cells, while the addition of BR CA cells to “old” endothelial cells causes large, persistent gaps. Because persistent gaps between endothelial cells may promote metastasis by facilitating cancer spread to distant organs, this project is continuing to test hypotheses proposed to explain these age-related differences to BR CA cell addition. Because young cells are known to proliferate in the responses of endothelial cells (via mitosis) at a more rapid rate than old cells, the young endothelial cells possibly close gaps having a faster rate of mitosis. The overarching hypothesis for the proposed study is that the more rapid proliferation rate of young endothelial cells, compared to old endothelial cells, closes BR CA-induced endothelial gaps by “filling in” the holes between endothelial cells induced by BR CA cell addition. Two sub hypotheses are:

• After BR CA cell addition, there will be more bromodeoxyuridine (integrates into the DNA of newly divided cells causing them to fluoresce) positive cells in samples of young endothelial cells, than in old endothelial cells.
• After BR CA cell addition, gap area will be larger in young endothelial cells that have been pre-treated with mitomicin (abrogates mitosis) in comparison to no pretreatment control endothelial cells.

This project involves cell culture and microscopy techniques. The long-term goal is to better understand BR CA metastasis so that improved interventions can be developed to prevent death from this cancer.

Beta Mu Chapter Research Conduct Grant ($1,000)

Principal Investigator: Cathleen Michaels, PhD, RN, FAAN

Title of Project: Evaluating Everyday Breathing Intensity Through Digital Recording: A Pilot

Funding Period: April 28, 2004 -April 27, 2005

Abstract:
A patient’s self-report is essential clinical information, especially for chronic conditions where symptom management, not cure, is the goal. This pilot will examine word selection as an indicator of changes in breathing intensity. Largely based on the work of Pennebaker who has demonstrated the sensitivity of language for psychological changes, this project extends research to language and its relationship to breathing intensity associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This project will evaluate the technical feasibility of a digital voice recorder to collect voice, breath and cough sounds that can be examined for shifts in language that correspond to shifts in breathing intensity. The research design is longitudinal and descriptive across three consecutive days. Five participants will wear the voice recorder for 10 hours each of three consecutive days. The voice, breath and cough sounds will then be extracted to: (1) evaluate their audibility, and (2) examine if and how natural language and breathing-related sounds can be used to evaluate breathing intensity. Quantitative and qualitative methods will be used. This project represents a first step in building knowledge about language. This knowledge has potential for forging new directions in symptom management.