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Thursday, January 29, 2015
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CsgC protein in
bacteria could help
treat degenerative
disorders
By ALAINA WYGANT
For the Daily
University researchers have
discovered CsgC, a protein made
by the gut bacteria E. coli, which
may one day play a role in treat-
ing dieses such as Parkinson’s or
Alzheimer’s.
Molecular Biology Prof. Mat-
thew Chapman was a principal
investigator on the project and
Rackham student Margery Evans
served as the study’s lead author,
acting as a research assistant and
conducted her doctorate thesis
on the study. A number of under-
graduate students both from the
University and abroad collabo-
rated on the research.
Chapman explained how the
CsgC is able to prevent the forma-
tion of amyloids — inappropriate-
ly folded proteins that have been
known to cause neurodegenera-
tive disorders such as Parkinson’s
disease and Alzheimer’s disease.
“For decades it was thought
that
amyloid
formation
was
always a cellular mistake,” he
said. “We realized that cells
sometimes build amyloid fibers
on purpose. That is why we were
looking for factors in E. coli that
prevented intracellular amyloid
formation.”
After working on the study
for two to three years, Chapman
and his colleagues discovered
that CsgC, native to E. coli bac-
teria cells, guards the cells and
prevents amyloids from forming
inside them.
Evans emphasized the role of
amyloid formation in diseases like
Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, and
said isolating CsgC is a positive
step in treating these ailments.
“Our discoveries have moved
the field closer to understanding
and preventing the very wide-
spread biological process of amy-
HEALTH
See BACTERIA, Page 3A
EPA plans to cut
carbon by 30 percent
of 2005 levels by 2030
By EMMA KINERY
Daily Staff Reporter
According to a University sur-
vey released earlier this month,
67 percent of Americans sup-
port the Environmental Protec-
tion Agency’s Clean Power Plan,
a framework for curbing carbon
emissions.
The Center for Local, State
and Urban Policy at the Uni-
versity’s Ford School of Public
Policy and the Institute of Public
Opinion at Muhlenberg College
conducted the telephone survey
from Oct. 6, 2014 through Nov.
6, 2014.
Pollsters spoke with a random
sample of 942 Americans, and
report a 3.5 percent margin of
error.
The Obama Administration
created the Clean Power Plan in
June 2014 to increase efforts to
combat climate change. By 2030,
the EPA hopes the plan will have
cut emissions from electricity-
generating facilities by 30 per-
cent below the 2005 output
levels.
Additionally,
the
survey
showed 73 percent of Americans
support proposed requirements
that would require new power
plants to significantly reduce
their greenhouse gas emissions.
See SURVEY, Page 3A
HOCKEY
‘M’ freshman spent
his childhood in
East Lansing
By JEREMY SUMMITT
Daily Sports Editor
It’s rivalry week for the Michi-
gan hockey team, and that means
this week cuts a little deeper for
freshman
defenseman
Cutler
Martin.
He spent his entire childhood
in East Lansing and admits to
rooting for the Spartans, though
his parents were never adamant
about supporting any particular
school.
Michigan State has been a
part of Martin’s life in one way or
another for 20 years. He grew up a
short drive from Spartan Stadium
and attended East Lansing High
School, a building that essentially
rests on Michigan State’s cam-
pus, directly next to one of its
sorority houses. Martin attended
games at Munn Ice Arena, home
of the Spartans’ hockey program,
and soaked in the splendor of the
heated Michigan-Michigan State
matchups of the 2000s.
Martin watched Ryan Miller
line up against Josh Blackburn
and witnessed offensive duels
between Justin Abdelkader and
Kevin Porter. Now he’s on the
other side of the glass, immersed
inside all he knew as a young
hockey fan.
For nearly a year now, Martin
has been a part of the Michigan
family, but his first game against
the Spartans still brought back a
flurry of memories.
“I think it was strange the first
time I played against them in the
(Great Lakes Invitational),” Mar-
tin said. “But now I think I’ve
come to grips with it a little bit,
and I’m ready to play them hard
and play them tough.”
The first opportunity to line
up against his hometown team
might turn out to be the most
memorable, too, as the Wolver-
ines eked out a 2-1 victory to
claim the GLI championship at
Joe Louis Arena on Dec. 29. But
there’s more to be desired. Mar-
tin hopes there are even better
days ahead for one of college
hockey’s premier rivalries, one
he’ll never cease to treasure.
Friday, another chapter will
See RIVALRY, Page 3A
ANDREW COHEN/Daily
Dr. Ruth Browne, CEO of the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health, discusses how the health care delivery sys-
tem can work with community partners to address issues regarding health equity.
Dr. Ruth Browne
stresses role
of expertise in
medical inequity
By JACKIE MILLER
For the Daily
Inside several Brooklyn bar-
bershops and salons, stylists
are beginning to talk not only
about hair, but also health.
Wednesday
afternoon,
Ruth Browne, CEO of the
Arthur Ashe Institute of Urban
Health, lectured on the Com-
munity Health Empowerment
model, of which the Institute’s
barbershop programs are just
one example.
“I think that the process of
community engagement with
the academic medical center
and with government allows us
to really affect change at a level
that we couldn’t each indi-
vidually, as organizations, do,”
she said. “The power of that, I
think, is very profound.”
Salons
and
barbershops,
Browne said, are examples of
community assets or key plac-
es to foster conversations on
health and wellness.
Within salons, the program
Heart of a Woman works to
train stylists to engage their
clientele in discussions about
heart health for women. Bar-
bers are similarly trained to
talk about HIV/AIDS among
the heterosexual Black, male
community through a program
called Barbershop Talk With
Brothers.
For many, this environment
may be more favorable than
the traditional medical facil-
See URBAN HEALTH, Page 3A
RESEARCH
Kevlar found to
block buildup of
electrical currents,
prevent short circuit
By CARLY NOAH
Daily Staff Reporter
In 2013, the lithium-ion battery
on a Japan Airlines Boeing 787
Dreamliner caused a fire.
Though no one was harmed in
the accident, the issues still need-
ed a solution.
Lithium batteries work by mov-
ing the ions in the element lithium
from one electrode to another. The
motion creates a charge imbal-
ance, ultimately causing electrons
to move through a circuit and
power systems.
To prevent future accidents
like the Japan Airlines battery
fire, University researchers devel-
oped an advanced type of barrier
between the electrodes in a lithi-
um-ion battery.
University researchers used
Kevlar, the tough material in bul-
letproof vests, to create the bar-
See BATTERY, Page 3A
University
lab makes
new E. Coli
discovery
Survey finds support for
federal emission limits
Rivalry week
cuts deeper for
Cliff Martin
Urban health expert talks
community partnerships
Safer lithium
battery shell
developed in
‘U’ program
INDEX
Vol. CXXIV, No. 57
©2015 The Michigan Daily
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