My project for this fall semester is a
continuation of my last semester OSCAR project. The overall theme of my
research is a disease known as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). IPF is a
fatal lung disease that is characterized with scarring of the lung overtime due
to over activation of fibroblasts and increased collagen deposition. My
interest in IPF began when I was able to join Dr. Geraldine Grant’s lab during
the Biology Research Semester. My project last semester was to determine the
effect of exposure of a metabolite of acetaminophen, known as N- acetyl
benzoquinone imine (NAPQI) on the expression of certain IPF gene markers: alpha
smooth muscle actin (ASMA) and collagen-1-alpha (COL1A). I found that direct
NAPQI exposure had no significant increase in ASMA or COL1A in both normal and
IPF fibroblasts. However, there was an increase in the expression of Procollagen-Lysine,2-Oxoglutarate 5-Dioxygenase 1 and
2 (PLOD1/2) in the IPF fibroblasts. My experiment this semester is to expose
epithelial cells to acetaminophen so that the epithelial cells can metabolize
acetaminophen into NAPQI and transfer the NAPQI to the fibroblasts. My goal is
to verify my data from the summer, regarding changes in expression of PLOD1/2.
This finding would begin to provide an explanation linking IPF with
acetaminophen consumption because direct cause of IPF is still unknown.
On a daily basis, I
culture the fibroblasts and also run q-PCRs to determine expression of ASMA,
PLOD1 and PLOD2. I discovered a significant increase in PLOD1 in the IPF
fibroblasts as I did with direct exposure to NAPQI. This project is related to
my long term goal of going to medical school by that it is direct research on a
disease and also if I can link acetaminophen to IPF, I can warn my future
patients about the dangers of acetaminophen.
