Secondment to the University of Guelph
Dusan Mrdenovic participated in the secondment at the University of Guelph, Canada. Research at secondment institution was a continuation of studying the mechanism of interaction between amyloid β (Aβ) peptide and model cell membrane, an event relevant to understand pathology of Alzheimer’s disease. Main goal was to determine the change of the biomimetic membrane electrical and structural properties in the presence of amyloid β (Aβ) peptide. To accomplish this objective, electrochemical and IR spectroscopy measurements were used. It was discovered that Aβ oligomers (AβO), unlike Aβ monomers (AβM), possess ability to porate the membrane and alter its electrical properties significantly. Furthermore, interaction of Aβ with lipid molecules causes significant structural disordering of lipid molecules that consists of lipid acyl chain melting and reorientation. Structural changes of lipid molecules were more pronounced in the presence of AβO than that in the presence of AβM. It is in agreement with electrochemical results that showed that the membrane integrity is heavily compromised exclusively in the presence of AβO. These novel findings are in very well agreement with the previously published paper on the mechanism of AβO interaction with model cell membranes using atomic force microscopy (D. Mrdenovic et al. 2019, 35, 11940−11949). Additionally, Dusan Mrdenovic has participated in two international conferences in Canada, i.e. 102nd Canadian Chemistry Conference and Exhibition in Quebec City and 2nd Annual ECS Guelph young researcher symposium in Guelph.
Dates
1 Apr.2019 - 21 Feb., 2020
Location
University of Guelph, Canada
Participant
Dusan Mrdenovic
