“Biomarker Discovery and Platform Development for Translational Research: From Lab Bench to Amazonia Forest” will be presented by Dr. Jiri Adamec, associate professor of Biochemistry at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln on Tuesday, January 12, 2016 at 4:00 PM in N172 Beadle Center.

Epilepsy affects ~ 1% of the human population and despite extensive study, the precise nature of epilepsy is poorly understood. Recently we have evaluated the levels and types of post-translational modifications (PTMs) of proteins in surgically removed epileptic brain tissue, which includes seizure onset, irritative and silent zones. The overall goal of this study was to identify enzymes and metabolites responsible for asynchronization of energy metabolism. In addition, the development of the new “point-of-care devices will be presented. The Gates foundation and many others have recognized and attempted to deal with the fact that in much of the world clinical testing is done in a primitive setting. The luxury of having a phlebotomist to draw blood with a laboratory to prepare serum or plasma for analysis is not universal at many points-of-care. Therefore the development of an effective device to collect and process samples is critical to the success of any studies as well as diagnostic screening technology. Recently we have developed a new, simple membrane based fractionation technology (NoviPlex card) that can be adapted for use to both collect plasma (or any other type of homogenized samples) and to pre-process these samples for analysis using the mass spectrometry based detection methods. The application of the separation device, derivatization chemistry and LC-MS analysis for absolute quantification of metabolites involved in energy metabolism as well as Vitamin D determination will be presented.