Auburn Research Day 2022

Cl i n i ca l Case Repor t | Med i ca l St udent Multiple Benign Calcifying Pseudoneoplasms of Skull Base: A Case Report

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Allie R Bennett, OMS II; Abigail M Bogard, OMS II; David Stephen, DO Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine - Auburn Campus

Benign calcifying pseudoneoplasm is a rare, slow growing lesion found within the neuraxis. With only a handful of cases, this fibro- osseous nature has been seen more commonly as a solitary mass but on occasion multiple lesions have been identified. Its variable size and location has been found to cause local compressive effects resulting in a range of neurological deficits including seizures, headaches, and spinal pain. This pseudoneoplasm can be considered as a differential for neuraxis lesions found on radiology. A diagnosis of exclusion is important when assessing symptoms, imaging, immunoreactivity, and histology. Histopathological findings can be widely variable due to the lesions' possible multifactorial and multistage origin. The current choice of treatment involves surgical resection and debulking with no adjunctive therapy. In this case report, the patient

exhibited multiple abnormal intracranial lesions at the base of the skull during an anatomy dissection. After further evaluation of the unusual, ossified pattern, we suspect the patient had benign calcifying pseudoneoplasm with a possible spinal association. Currently, the pathogenesis is still poorly understood and exploration of this rare benign disease process continues today.

B i omed i ca l Resea rch | Gr adua te/Undergr adua te St udent Characterizing the Structure-To-Function Relationship of an Antisense Long Non-Coding RNA Associated with the Β -Myosin Heavy Chain Gene of Skeletal and Cardiac Muscle

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Nicole I. Anthony 1 , Devadatta Gosavi 1 , Joanna Sztuba-Solinska 1 , Clay E. Pandorf 2 1 Department of Biological Sciences, Auburn University; 2 Cell Biology and Physiology, VCOM-Auburn

Skeletal and heart muscle phenotype and metabolism are subject to physiological regulation. Inactivity of muscle induces abnormal changes in the expression of muscle genes, presenting a serious challenge to musculoskeletal health. At the center of this phenomenon is the motor protein β -myosin heavy chain ( β -MHC) encoded by the MYH7 gene. Diminished muscle activity results in a loss of β -MHC that is mediated by the transcriptional repression of MYH7 gene. The overall objective of this project is to characterize the MYH7- associated antisense long non-coding RNA (MYH7-AS lncRNA) that regulates MYH7 gene function. Structural analysis of MYH7- AS lncRNA was performed by the selective 2’-hydroxyl acylation analyzed by primer extension and mutational profiling (SHAPE-MaP) with single-nucleotide resolution. The MYH7-AS lncRNA was in vitro synthesized, purified, and qualitatively and quantitatively assessed. Folding conditions were developed to force the MYH7-AS lncRNA into the native and homogeneous conformation, optimal PCR conditions were determined, and obtained cDNA libraries were purified and assessed, all requirements for SHAPE-MaP structural probing.

SHAPE-MaP analysis and resolution of the MYH7-AS lncRNA has been performed in vitro, and one stem-loop structure predicted to interact with a muscle-specific microRNA (mir-208b) was confirmed at a highly favorable minimum free energy. We next examined MYH7-AS transfected and expressed in L6 myotubes. SHAPE-MaP structural probing analyses are currently underway to compare the in cellulo to the in vitro structure of MYH7-AS. This work is expected to provide comprehensive insight into the MYH7-AS lncRNA structure and interactome network, which will contribute to an underrepresented body of knowledge regarding lncRNA plasticity as a biological control mechanism.

31 2022 Via Research Recognit ion Day