IMMUNOMODULATORY SMALL MOLECULES
Eggs contain a variety of bioactive compounds that can impact inflammatory pathways, integral to human health and disease risk. Egg-derived compounds include lipid species (e.g. phospholipids, sphingolipids, cholesterol, fatty acids), proteins and peptides, carotenoids (e.g. lutein and zeaxanthin). Many of these food components are highly bioavailable, particularly when consumed within the whole food matrix of eggs. Viewing eggs as immunomodulators is a compelling idea, considering previous studies which show blood lipoproteins are effective predictors of clinical blood cell counts.
The long-term goal of this USDA-funded project – in collaboration with Prof. Catherine Andersen (Biology) – is to elucidate bioactive small molecules in eggs and their immunomodulatory effects.
CHEMICAL EDUCATION: ADVANCING DIGITAL LITERACY
Study of Undergraduate Students and Information Technology, 2018; EDUCAUSE Center for Analysis and Research: Louisville, CO, 2018.
The majority of undergraduates own a mobile device, yet fewer than half view it as a valuable learning technology. Consequently, my group is particularly interested in chemical education initiatives targeted towards digital literacy. Through these initiatives we aim to cultivate students' cognitive abilities and technical skills so they can use technology to find, evaluate, organize, create and communicate information.
Towards this end, we have:
​
1) Developed a freely available digital laboratory notebook (DLN) that operates on any mobile device (as well as desktop computer) and employed it in the undergraduate chemistry curriculum at Fairfield University.
Van Dyke, A. R. Practical Considerations for Advancing Undergraduate Digital Literacy through Digital Laboratory Notebooks. In Technology Integration in Chemistry Education and Research (TICER); Gupta, T., Belford, R. Eds; American Chemical Society: Washington DC, 2019; pp. 107–118.
​
Van Dyke, A. R.; Smith-Carpenter, J. Bring Your Own Device: A Digital Notebook for Undergraduate Biochemistry Laboratory. J. Chem. Educ. 2017, 94, 656–661.
2) Created a cloud-based scavenger hunt for students' mobile devices that orients undergraduates to American Chemical Society (ACS) National meetings.
Van Dyke, A. R; Gatazka, D. H.; Hanania, M. M. Innovations in Undergraduate Chemical Biology Education. ACS Chem. Biol. 2018, 13, 26–35.
​
Kubasik, M.; Van Dyke, A. R.; Harper-Leatherman, A.; Miecznikowski, J.; Steffen, L.; Smith-Carpenter, J. A Cloud-Based Scavenger Hunt: Orienting Undergraduates to ACS National Meetings. J. Chem. Educ. 2016, 93, 1957–1960.
CUSTOM SYNTHESIS for RESEARCH COLLABORATORS
With over 15 years experience in synthetic organic chemistry, Professor Van Dyke's lab has prepared mg and multi-gram quantities of biological probes enabling research collaborations with:
​
• Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
• Harvard Medical School
• University of Copenhagen
• Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Send inquiries to Aaron Van Dyke (avandyke@fairfield.edu).
