Mariela Oyola
¡Hola! My name is Mariela Oyola and I am a graduate
student in the Department of Chemistry. I hail from the
Island of Enchantment, Puerto Rico, where I finished my
Bachelor of Science in Chemistry at U.P.R., Mayagüez.
As a second year graduate researcher, I am currently working
on developing a system that will allow me to understand
the surface interactions of organic molecules with clays.
As clay particulates are abundant in the soil, their interactions
with organic molecules are of interest to scientists. Of
particular interest are the molecules that have been identified
as hazardous to human health. Currently, I am using Raman
spectroscopy to probe the interactions that are taking place
on the surface of clay mineral particulates. In the future,
our goal is to incorporate what we discover of these interactions
into a better overall model of the chemistry that is occurring
in soils. Hopefully, this enhanced understanding can, then,
be used to reduce the level of contaminants that are present
in the water stream.
Reyna I. Martínez
De Luna
My name is Reyna I. Martínez De Luna and I am a
native of Humacao, Puerto Rico. I came to Ohio State to
pursue my graduate studies in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental
Biology. Currently, I am in the third year of the Doctorate
program. My research focuses on the cardiac form of the
protein called Calsequestrin (CSQ). Along with other proteins,
CSQ plays a key role in maintaining the normal calcium levels
in a heart muscle cell. In order for the heart to beat,
calcium needs to act as a signal to all the proteins that
will be involved in muscle contraction. If CSQ is altered,
calcium cycling and muscle contraction are impaired. This
has terrible consequences in the beating of the heart.
The focus of my research is to try to understand how CSQ
accomplishes its function in heart muscle. By mutating CSQ
and expressing it in cultured heart muscle cells, I hope
to shed light on which parts of the molecule are sufficient
and necessary for its function. Also, by performing a different
array of calcium measurements, I will test the effect of
the different mutants in the heart muscle cells. The importance
of these studies is that the expression of mutant forms
of CSQ can help to shed light on the events that possibly
take place when the heart does not work properly. Poor functioning
of the heart eventually leads to a diseased state in which
heart failure can take place. Therefore, a better understanding
of proteins that orchestrate heart muscle function is key
to better understand heart failure.
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