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Thomas Research Group at UNK

Thomas Research Group at UNKThomas Research Group at UNKThomas Research Group at UNK

Mackinzi, Nicole, Jake and Alexis Presented at 2024 ACS Meeting in Denver

Mackinzi, Nicole, Jake and Makenna Presented at 2023 ACS MWRM in St. Louis

NIH Funding (2022-2025)

Serotonin N-Acetyl-Transferase Inhibitors for Circadian Rhythm Disorders

 Despite strong evidence for the association of melatonin with circadian rhythm and mental health, its function is poorly understood. We seek to develop inhibitors of the key enzyme involved in making melatonin, serotonin N-acetyl-transferase (SNAT, AANAT), to better understand its function and for use as drug candidates for treating disorders in which it is abnormally high, such as seasonal affective disorder (SAD). Our team includes UNK professors Allen Thomas (PI), Michael Moxley, Evan Hill and Surabhi Chandra in addition to external collaborators Profs. Philip Cole (Harvard), Ryan Wong (UNO) and Mark Wilson (UNL). We will apply computational and experimental approaches including medicinal chemistry and zebrafish models of sleep to discover and optimize inhibitors to overcome weaknesses of earlier attempts at blocking melatonin synthesis. This project is funded by a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Academic Research Enhancement Award (AREA; R15 HL165700) through the National  Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI).  


UNK News Story HERE

Mackinzi Hill and Katie Lytle presented at ncur 2023

Mackenzie Hagemeister gave commencement address at fall 2022 graduation

Josh, Katie and Mackinzi presented at the 2022 acs midwest meeting (Iowa city, IA)

The two Joshes, Mackenzie and chase presented at the 2021 acs midwest meeting (Springfield, MO)

Hannah way presented on cnt2 inhibitors at virtual posters on the hill

Hannah Way was accepted into the prestigious Posters on the Hill, usually held in Washington, D.C.

    Brooklynn, Hannah, Kasey, JT and JOe presented at the 2019 acs midwest meeting in Wichita, KS

    Brooklynn presented our work in both poster and oral format at an undergraduate symposium at St Jude in June 2019

    Allen was featured in UNK's New Frontiers magazine (2018)

    Link to Magazine Article

    Nine undeRgrads Presented at the 2018 Midwest ACS Meeting in Ames, Iowa

    Alex Duncan

      ACS National Meeting in New Orleans, Spring 2018

      Oral Presentation: LAT1 membrane transporter: reevaluating the meaning of L and A

      Poster: Synthesis and SAR of alpha-quaternary phenylalanine analogs as LAT1 substrates

      Oral Presentation: LAT1 membrane transporter: reevaluating the meaning of L and A

       Thomas, A. A.; Chien, H.-C.; Zur, A. A.; Giacomini, K. M.; Colas, C.; Schlessinger, A.; Lin, L.; Finke, K.; Augustyn, E.; Springer, S.; Stoner, L.; Flint, A.; Heeren, N.; Hansen, L.; Anthony, A.; Hernandez, C.; Venteicher, B.; Campbell, J.; Hall, C. 

      Poster: Optimization of LAT1 affinity for meta-substituted phenylalanine analogs

      Poster: Synthesis and SAR of alpha-quaternary phenylalanine analogs as LAT1 substrates

      Oral Presentation: LAT1 membrane transporter: reevaluating the meaning of L and A

      Springer, S.; Stoner, L.; Finke, K.; Anthony, A.; Flint, A.; Bauer, J.; Hernandez, C.; Chien, H.-C.; Giacomini, K. M.; Colas, C.; Schlessinger, A.; Thomas, A. A. 

      Poster: Synthesis and SAR of alpha-quaternary phenylalanine analogs as LAT1 substrates

      Poster: Synthesis and SAR of alpha-quaternary phenylalanine analogs as LAT1 substrates

      Poster: Synthesis and SAR of alpha-quaternary phenylalanine analogs as LAT1 substrates

      Venteicher, B.; Hall, C.; Campbell, J.; Hernandez, C.; Flint, A.; Chien, H.-C.; Giacomini, K. M.; Colas, C.; Schlessinger, A.; Thomas, A. A. 

      Poster: LAT1 selectivity for L and D amino acids

      Poster: LAT1 selectivity for L and D amino acids

      Poster: Synthesis and SAR of alpha-quaternary phenylalanine analogs as LAT1 substrates

      Hall, C.; Venteicher, B.; Chien, H.-C.; Giacomini, K. M.; Colas, C.; Schlessinger, A.; Thomas, A. A. 

      Visiting Historic Sites

      Poster: LAT1 selectivity for L and D amino acids

      Enjoying New Orleans Cuisine

      Brooklynn, Colton, Dr. Thomas, Seth

      Enjoying New Orleans Cuisine

      Poster: LAT1 selectivity for L and D amino acids

      Enjoying New Orleans Cuisine

      Brooklynn, Seth, Colton, Dr. Thomas

      NIH Funding (2017-2021)

      Identification of new LAT-1 transporter substrates for drug delivery

       In 2017, Dr. Thomas received a National Institutes of Health (NIH)  Academic Research Enhancement Award (AREA) through the National  Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) for a project  entitled “Identification of new LAT-1 transporter substrates for drug  delivery” (R15 NS099981). His research group seeks to exploit one of the  body’s natural mechanisms for transporting amino acids, the LAT-1  protein, for targeted drug delivery across the blood-brain barrier (BBB)  and cancer cells that express this transporter. Guided by computational  models developed in collaboration with Prof. Avner Schlessinger at  Icahn School of Medicine at Mt. Sinai, students in the Thomas lab apply  organic chemistry techniques to synthesize amino acid mimetics and  drug-amino acid conjugates, which are then tested in cells engineered to  express LAT-1 by his collaborator, Dr. Kathleen Giacomini at University  California San Francisco. This research project has broad applications  for treating many different diseases both in the brain and other tissues  where LAT-1 is heavily expressed, including cancer.

      NIH-R15 Funding - Dr. Thomas receives 399K award!


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