Page 5 - Eureka! Spring 2007

Research news Air winging it dent Katharina Schnackenburg from the University of Applied Research news
His research attracted the interest of undergraduate stu-
Sciences Bremen, Germany, which offers a unique program
in biomimetics. Required to study abroad for a semester,
other Nature is the ultimate engineer—her blueprints
Supply
Mare all around us. Take the hook and loop fastener
Schnackenburg already had her eye on Canada, the native
(trademarked as Velcro) invented by a Swiss engineer who
country of her great-grandmother, when she found Dawson’s
took a close look at the thistle seeds stuck to his clothes and
interdisciplinary lab.
“It was coincidence that I read about Jeff’s research
location system of bats. But fl ight, with the effi ciency, maneu-
mediately,” says Schnackenburg. “He’s doing research in an
ituations as diverse as being at his dog’s fur. Sonar and ultrasound imaging imitate the echo- projects on the internet, but I was interested in them im-
verability and payload carrying capacity of fl ying insects, has
S a high altitude, having anemia, proved tricky. interdisciplinary fi eld considering engineering and biological
sleep apnea, cardiac arrest, or a “According to conventional aerodynamics theory, bumble- aspects, which is exactly what my fi eld of studies in Germany
stroke deprive the human body or its bees can’t fl y,” says Dr. Jeff Dawson, Assistant Professor of is about: biologically inspired engineering.”
organs of oxygen, a condition known Biology. “Fortunately for insects, they don’t know this. After Armed with knowledge of propulsion, materials, sensors,
as hypoxia. Understanding how the Bill Willmore’s research into the effects of low oxygen on proteins has implications for endurance athletes 350 million years of evolution, they are the best fl iers fl uid dynamics and experience using a wind tunnel and water
body adapts to hypoxia could lead as well as clinical conditions such as anemia, neurocognitive defi cits and cerebrovascular disease. on the planet.” channel, Schnackenburg joined Dawson for a semester—and
to new therapies for patient recovery Unlike a helicopter that gets lift from the constant motion plans to return for the summer—to delve into the complexity
from cardiovascular disease. in surviving hypoxia, or add genes the cell before it degrades,” he says. of its propellers, insects fl ap their wings at rapidly changing of wing-wing interactions.
That’s why Dr. Bill Willmore, PhD/97, using recombinant DNA technology to “When students harvest cells, I stand speeds and directions. Beating wings create vortices of air, “We invent things on the fl y in the aerodynamics work, and
Associate Professor of Biochemistry, is increase protein production. behind them with a stopwatch.” and the resulting low pressure helps lift the wing. To under- Katharina’s ideas and approaches were a big benefi t to the
searching for the alterations in protein “It gives us insight into which Willmore’s focus is currently on stand the neuroethology and biomechanics of four-winged project,” says Dawson. “She was able to confi rm that the
structure and function that enable proteins are involved in responding to erythroid-specifi c 5-aminolevulinate insect fl ight, Dawson combines traditional biology and engi- presence of the fore wing alters airfl ow over the hind wing,
cells to survive hypoxia. and surviving low oxygen conditions. synthase, the fi rst and most critical neering in his research on African migratory locusts. enhancing its lift.”
“When oxygen is present it can The majority of proteins may not protein in the pathway that leads On the biology side, graduate student Scott Whitehead is “I’m still evaluating the data,” says Schnackenburg, “but
be combined with hydrogen and change, so we go after the ones that to heme synthesis—heme that is examining the organization of locust neural circuits, test- while the fl ow on the fore wing wasn’t infl uenced by the pres-
be added to a protein, in a process do,” Willmore says. incorporated into hemoglobin for ing how locusts change wing kinematics in response to high ence of the hind wing at all, the hind wing changed dramati-
known as hydroxylation,” says After treating the cells with 1 per maturing red blood cells. frequency sounds, like those emitted by a predatory bat. cally depending on the speed and angle of attack of both
Willmore. “Hydroxylation modifi es cent oxygen—a substantial decrease “I’m interested in how well the “The way a locust avoids predators and maintains stabil- wing models.”
proteins in a way that can change from air’s 21 per cent—proteins enzyme performs under low oxygen ity in fl ight can teach us about fl ight control,” says Dawson. The next step in the project is to visualize the mechanisms
their structure and function. Without are extracted for in vitro studies because it will provide insight “There might be spin offs for plague and swarm control too.” of interaction. As the research team continues to discover the
oxygen, hydroxylation does not measured against proteins extracted into some diseases with anemia Understanding fl ight itself veers into engineering. Dawson secrets of four-winged fl ight, their fi ndings will enable the de-
occur, and we can see which proteins from cells in normal atmospheric as a symptom,” says Willmore. “It builds models of insect wings—varying the shape, surface velopment of better propeller blades, improved fl ight control
function differently without it.” oxygen: are they hydroxylated? Does is expected that the enzyme will and angle of motion—to study aerodynamics. By dotting systems and micro-mechanical devices for search and rescue,
Willmore’s research is being the wings with dye and rotating them underwater, Dawson surveillance, and even space exploration.
assisted by a $150,000 Early Air is 21 per cent oxygen. Mammals can’t live with can control the elements and record the dye streams that In the near future, we may be able to say a micro-vehicle
Researcher Award from the Ontario reveal the vortices. collecting samples on Mars was inspired by a locust.
government, matched by the Ontario less than fi ve per cent, but their cells can survive at
Ministry of Research and Innovation, one per cent in the lab. Lab DIY
Carleton and other sources.
“The Early Researcher Award will their function—catalytic activity, perform better under hypoxia when In studying locust fl ight, Jeff Dawson
provide secure funding for incoming DNA-binding, ligand binding or the body is actively making more red combines low- and high-tech equipment.
graduate students,” says Willmore. protein-protein interactions—change? blood cells.” he uses bikini wax to affi x a removable
“The increase in funding will help One such protein, a transcription Willmore hopes his research will harness made from pop can strips to a lo-
to attract highly qualifi ed students factor known as Hypoxia-Inducible lead to the development of a chemical cust so the test subject can be suspended
who can help to accelerate the pace Factor-1 (HIF-1), controls the therapy that would precondition in front of a fan to prompt fl ight. A high-
of research.” expression of genes responsible cells to respond to low oxygen. By speed camera and multi-channel amplifi er
After taking leads from for hypoxia survival, such as those tricking the cell to respond as if allows recording of activity in 16 muscles
bioinformatics—the mathematical involved in increasing blood fl ow to it was receiving less oxygen, the to capture motor output.
extraction of information from tissues and switching from aerobic therapy would trigger the production In fact, Dawson knows enough about
data—and screening yeast genes for to anaerobic biochemical pathways. of adaptive (hypoxia-inducible) locust fl ight muscles controlling steering
low-oxygen tolerance with colleague HIF-1 is not present in cells under genes and proteins. If the cell is later that he can insert electrodes into the mus-
Dr. Ashkan Golshani, Assistant normal atmospheric conditions as deprived of oxygen, such as during a cles to enable a suspended locust to drive
Professor in the Department of hydroxylation causes it to be rapidly heart attack or stroke, it will be better a “car”. the mini-vehicle, which contains
Biology, Willmore identifi ed human broken down. protected from damage than if it lego pieces, has an onboard computer
proteins on which to focus. Using Willmore, who began working with hadn’t been preconditioned. that translates the muscle movements and
human cell lines, he examines changes HIF-1 as a post-doctoral fellow at “The ultimate goal is to benefi t turns the car as the locust fl ies.
in protein expression, function and Harvard Medical School, describes it people,” says Willmore. “We’re fi nding he hopes a future student will explore
stability under varying oxygen as a diffi cult protein to work with. leads that will help others develop Jeff Dawson, who worked in Germany as a graduate student, found the opportunity invaluable. In the whether locusts can learn by using stimuli
fall, he welcomed German undergraduate student Katharina Schnackenburg to his lab. “Jeff is always
conditions. He can knock genes out of “We have a window of about fi ve treatments.” excited about his research and you can feel that he loves what he is doing,” says Schnackenburg. “He avoidance to improve their driving.
commission to see what role they play minutes to get the protein out of was always concerned about my well being in Canada. I couldn’t have wished for a better supervisor for
my semester abroad.”

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