Towards finding a solution to the unit's Grand Challenge Question about using nanoparticles to detect, treat and protect against skin cancer, students continue the research phase in order to answer the next research questions: What is the structure and function of skin? How does UV radiation affect the chemical reactions that go on within the skin? After seeing an ultraviolet-sensitive bead change color and learning how they work, students learn about skin anatomy and the effects of ultraviolet radiation on human skin, pollution's damaging effect on the ozone layer that can lead to increases in skin cancer, the UV index, types of skin cancer, ABCDEs of mole and lesion evaluation, and the sun protection factor (SPF) rating system for sunscreens. This prepares students to conduct the associated activity, in which they design quality-control experiments to test SPF substances.

This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview:

"The molecular mechanisms behind diseases and malignancies were once considered to follow a basic paradigm. Cells use a network of protein-protein interactions to detect environmental changes, signal the nucleus, and then trigger a response through changes in gene expression. Recent evidence, however, suggests the products of protein breakdown, rather than the proteins alone, could play an important role. A new review from the Kastritis Laboratory outlines how the fatty acid metabolites acetyl-CoA, α-ketoglutarate, and palmitic acid, in particular help orchestrate cell signaling and communication. These metabolites are regulated by large enzymatic complexes, or “metabolons”; acetyl-CoA by the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex, α-ketoglutarate by the 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase complex and palmitic acid by fatty acid synthase..."

The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.

This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview:

"Cancers are complex diseases largely characterized by rapid cellular proliferation. This can be slowed by regulated cell death mechanisms like ferroptosis. Ferroptosis is triggered by extensive peroxidation of cell membrane phospholipids by reactive oxygen species (ROS), but ferroptosis can be inhibited by enzymes that undo peroxidation like GPX4. Another enzyme, DHODH, supports GPX4 and is vital to the production of pyrimidine nucleotides, critical building blocks for rapidly proliferating cells. In theory, this would make inhibiting DHODH a valuable therapeutic target for cancer by freeing up ferroptosis and hampering proliferation. However, this is complicated by the “Warburg effect,” which is common in some cancer cells. The Warburg effect is a shift away from using mitochondria for energy to other metabolic processes, which has knock-on effects..."

The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.