Abstract

The chemical compound glycerol was first discovered in 1779 by the Swedish chemist Carl Wilhelm Scheele when he washed out glycerol from heating a mixture of lead oxide and olive oil. Many industries have found glycerol to be useful in the manufacturing of a variety of products due to its unique chemical properties. One such industry, pharmaceuticals, has found glycerol to be useful in the preparation of many medications. However, glycerol administration alone has been proven to treat medical conditions such as trigeminal neuralgia. Trigeminal Neuralgia (TN) is a unilateral electric shock-like facial pain often triggered by non-painful stimuli such as washing, shaving the face or talking. In some patients with TN, administration of glycerol into the trigeminal ganglion can alleviate the pain but the exact mechanism of pain relief is not understood. Additionally, glycerol administration in patients suffering from oral or thyroid cancer has been shown to reduce the spread and growth of these cancers. In this study, experiments utilizing various concentrations of glycerol administration were conducted on various glial cell cultures to determine glycerol's effects. Morphology studies were conducted on the glial cell culture types to determine the effects of various glycerol concentrations on overall cell structure. Additionally, traction force microscopy studies were performed on each glial cell culture type to determine the effects the various glycerol concentrations had on the forces each cell culture type applied to their respective underlying substrates. This study shows administration of moderate concentrations of glycerol to glial cell culture leads to shrinking of the astrocytes and changes in their traction forces.

Notes

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Graduation Date

2020

Semester

Summer

Advisor

Samsam, Mohtashem

Degree

Master of Science (M.S.)

College

College of Graduate Studies

Department

Nanoscience Technology Center

Degree Program

Nanotechnology

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

CFE0008233; DP0023587

URL

https://purls.library.ucf.edu/go/DP0023587

Language

English

Release Date

August 2025

Length of Campus-only Access

5 years

Access Status

Masters Thesis (Campus-only Access)

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