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Judy Triplett will be presenting her exit seminar, titled Proteomics and Phosphoproteomics of Brain from the Oldest Living Rodent, the Naked Mole-Rat: Insights into Mechanisms of Salubrious Aging.  Immediately following the seminar, she will be defending her thesis in CP-114C.

Abstract: The naked mole-rat (NMR), which can live up to 32 years, is the world’s longest-lived rodent. NMRs are intriguing because they have exceptionally long healthspans, do not develop cancer, exhibit negligible loss of cognitive function, and show little other age-associated deterioration. The underlying mechanisms contributing to these extraordinary attributes may conceivably lead to an extended human lifespan and healthspan. Using a proteomic approach, changes in protein expression and phosphorylation levels were evaluated in brain of NMR in an age-dependent manner. The proteins identified in these studies play key roles in maintaining and regulating energy metabolism, cellular proteostasis, and neuroplasticity. Further, these identified proteins may provide therapeutic targets to promote sustained health and cognition.

Faculty Advisor: Dr. D. Allan Butterfield