BUFFALO, NY, January 22, 2020 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Dr. Donald Edward Sykes has been included in Marquis Who's Who. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.
Backed by many years of practiced expertise in biological research, Dr. Sykes retired in September of 2019. Dr. Sykes excelled as a research associate with the division of Allergy, Immunology and Rheumatology in the Department of Medicine at the University at Buffalo, a part of the State University of New York. In that capacity, he participated in an active research program in the areas of immunology and cancer biology and maintained his responsibility for the design and execution of research experiments involving the transformed cell line THP-1 and the HIV-1 virus, the causative agent of AIDS. He supervised the organization and supervision of laboratory procedures and operations for technicians, medical fellows and graduate students. In addition, Dr. Sykes was involved in the design and development of nanoparticle carriers for drug and siRNA delivery.
Prior to obtaining his current role, Dr. Sykes worked for the University at Buffalo as a research associate with the division of Gastroenterology in the Department of Medicine. During the early years of his career, he served as a research affiliate and a postdoctoral researcher with Roswell Park Memorial Institute, a graduate researcher with Michigan State University and a teacher for Port Huron Area Schools. In pursuit of his career in education, Dr. Sykes earned a Bachelor of Science in secondary biology education from Edinboro State University in 1968 and a Doctor of Philosophy in zoology and cell biology from Michigan State University in 1980.
With a plethora of knowledge at his disposal, Dr. Sykes has authored and co-authored more than 70 peer-reviewed publications between 1977 and 2019. Studies with protozoans resulted in the discovery of a polyphenol oxidase that is critical for the dormant cyst formation of Acanthamoeba. Further enzymes studies with the protozoan parasite Entamoeba histolytic, showed they have a unique cytoplasmic SOD that contains manganese rather than copper. Studies with cancer cells Showed that extracts from normal cells favored the NH2-terminal region of histone H1 while extracts from transformed cells favored the COOH-terminal region. Using the A2 histone as substrate, he has shown that isopeptidase has strict specificity for the chromatin protein A 24 (uH2A), a conjugate of Histone and Ubiquitin. Studies with histones continued to be important in studies with the differentiation of the rat intestine. In confirmation of a villus to Crypt gradient in the rat intestine, mRNA for histone H2B was shown to be present as a decreasing gradient from crypt to villus, the crypt fraction containing the mitotically active enterocytes being most enriched for this transcript. His studies on intestinal cell differentiated lead to the development of a subtraction library which contained mRNA enriched for the crypt/stem cell of the intestine. Studies with this enriched library resulted in the isolation of several unique mRNAs. Studies with four of these mRNAs resulted in publications that characterize the identified genes. Gene sequence data was submitted to the NCBI genbank. His latest research involved the neuropathogenesis of HIV infection. One particular study showed that morphine and Galectin 1 modulate HIV infection in macrophage. Dr. Sykes is presently reading and writing on the subject of the beauty of evolution by Natural Selection.
About Marquis Who's Who®
Since 1899, when A. N. Marquis printed the First Edition of Who's Who in America®, Marquis Who's Who® has chronicled the lives of the most accomplished individuals and innovators from every significant field of endeavor, including politics, business, medicine, law, education, art, religion and entertainment. Today, Who's Who in America® remains an essential biographical source for thousands of researchers, journalists, librarians and executive search firms around the world. Marquis® now publishes many Who's Who titles, including Who's Who in America®, Who's Who in the World®, Who's Who in American Law®, Who's Who in Medicine and Healthcare®, Who's Who in Science and Engineering®, and Who's Who in Asia®. Marquis® publications may be visited at the official Marquis Who's Who® website at www.marquiswhoswho.com.
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