Presentation Type
Poster
Full Name of Faculty Mentor
Fang Ju Lin, Biology
Major
Biology
Presentation Abstract
The common fruit fly (Drosophila) was used as a model organism to investigate the function of lactate dehydrogenase gene (LDH) in Alzheimer’s disease. Human Alzheimer’s genes were implemented into fruit flies to examine the neurodegenerative properties of the disease since humans and fruit flies share a similar genetic makeup. When human Alzheimer’s gene is given to the fruit flies, they exhibit similar intellectual and physical defects as seen in humans. In previous experiments, it was found that down regulating certain genes allowed the transgenic flies to live longer and reduced their locomotor deficiencies. Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) is one of the genes that could be downregulated to rescue transgenic flies. LDH is an enzyme that is involved in cellular metabolism. Research shows that Alzheimer’s patients show an increased level of LDH activity. The behavioral analysis data indicates that the knockdown of LDH gene in the flies containing human Alzheimer’s disease does rescue the flies. We would like to further explore the role of LDH in Alzheimer’s disease by using chemical inhibitors to downregulate LDH while concurrently looking at the amyloid plaques. If we successfully use chemical inhibitors to achieve the same outcome as gene therapy, this would be a more feasible approach to treatment in humans.
Start Date
12-4-2023 4:00 PM
End Date
12-4-2023 6:00 PM
Disciplines
Biology
Recommended Citation
McCutcheon, Hannah and McCrea, Elizabeth, "Effect of lactate dehydrogenase in Alzheimer's disease using fruit fly model" (2023). Undergraduate Research Competition. 80.
https://digitalcommons.coastal.edu/ugrc/2023/fullconference/80
Included in
Effect of lactate dehydrogenase in Alzheimer's disease using fruit fly model
The common fruit fly (Drosophila) was used as a model organism to investigate the function of lactate dehydrogenase gene (LDH) in Alzheimer’s disease. Human Alzheimer’s genes were implemented into fruit flies to examine the neurodegenerative properties of the disease since humans and fruit flies share a similar genetic makeup. When human Alzheimer’s gene is given to the fruit flies, they exhibit similar intellectual and physical defects as seen in humans. In previous experiments, it was found that down regulating certain genes allowed the transgenic flies to live longer and reduced their locomotor deficiencies. Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) is one of the genes that could be downregulated to rescue transgenic flies. LDH is an enzyme that is involved in cellular metabolism. Research shows that Alzheimer’s patients show an increased level of LDH activity. The behavioral analysis data indicates that the knockdown of LDH gene in the flies containing human Alzheimer’s disease does rescue the flies. We would like to further explore the role of LDH in Alzheimer’s disease by using chemical inhibitors to downregulate LDH while concurrently looking at the amyloid plaques. If we successfully use chemical inhibitors to achieve the same outcome as gene therapy, this would be a more feasible approach to treatment in humans.