Neptune and Company, Inc.

(720) 746-1803, ext 4#

Rebecca Shircliff is an analytical chemist with over 7 years of laboratory and research experience. In 2003, she earned her BS in Chemistry from Ball State University in Muncie, IN. Her undergraduate research focus was in Biochemistry. She studied the effect of glucose starvation on Vacuolar ATPases (V-ATPases) in yeast cells. V-ATPases are proton pumps within plasma membranes of cells that are important for pH homeostasis. V-ATPases can influence the metastatic behavior of malignant tumors and can contribute to drug resistance.

After Ball State University, Rebecca continued on to graduate school at the Colorado School of Mines where she earned her MS in Chemistry in 2007 and is currently a PhD candidate. During her graduate studies, Rebecca worked for the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). In collaborative efforts between the USGS and EPA, Rebecca studied copper complexation with organic matter via HPLC coupled to ICP-MS. Complexation of copper by organic matter has to the potential to lower the bioavailability of copper in a stream, thus lowering its toxicity. To observe how copper complexation could theoretically affect the bioavailability and toxicity of copper, Rebecca employed the Biotic Ligand Model to predict parameters such as the LC50 for Ceriodaphnia dubia. At the USGS, Rebecca also worked in the Methods Research and Development Program (MRDP), where she helped to develop methodology for the detection and analysis of pharmaceuticals in water samples. For this method, pharmaceuticals were extracted from water samples via solid phase extraction (SPE) then analyzed via HPLC-MS.

After she completed her work at the USGS and EPA, Rebecca began research at NREL in the Basic Sciences and Photovoltaic Centers. Her research project focused on thin film devices, such as DNA microarrays. Rebecca developed DNA microarray devices for applications involving gene expression analysis of hydrogen production in algae for alternative fuel sources. She devised a protocol for generating reproducible DNA surface attachment to solid substrates using thin-film technology based on silanization. She thoroughly characterized the modified substrates using techniques that included XPS, AFM, UV-Vis, radiometric assays, TGA, TPD-MS and TEM.

After completion of her research project at NREL, Rebecca went on to work for the Renewable Energy Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (REMRSEC) at the Colorado School of Mines where she assisted in the assembly and characterization of silicon-nanocrystal photovoltaic devices for improved solar cell efficiency. At REMRSEC, Rebecca developed two methods for surface modification of silicon nanocrystals with organic ligands and assisted in method development for purification of surface-modified nanocrystals. Rebecca also used techniques that included PL, TEM, FTIR and NMR, to characterize the modified nanocrystals.

At Neptune & Co., Inc., Rebecca provides technical expertise for environmental risk assessment, quality assurance planning and assessment. She has performed document and data reviews and has audited environmental research projects for the USEPA National Risk Management Research Laboratory (NRMRL) and the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP).

Ms. Shircliff's C.V.

Publications

Shircliff, R.A.; Martin, I.; Fennell, J.; Mouthino, H.; Stradins, P.; Ghirardi, M.; Cowley, S.; Branz, H. Demonstration of silane film structure effects on DNA surface density and attachment reproducibility on silica surfaces. 2011, manuscript in preparation.

Anderson, I.E.; Shircliff, R.A.; Macauley, C.; Smith, D.K.; Lee, B.G.; Agarwal, S.; Stradins, P.; Collins, R.T. Silanization of low-temperature-plasma synthesized silicon quantum dots for production of a tunable, stable, colloidal solution. The Journal of Physical Chemistry C. 2011, In Press.

Shircliff, R.A.; Martin, I.T.; Pankow, J.W.; Fennell, J.; Stradins, P.; Ghirardi, M.L.; Cowley, S.W.; Branz, H.M. High-Resolution X-ray Photolectron Spectroscopy of Mixed Silane Monolayers for DNA Attachment. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. 2011, 3, 3285-3292.

Owegi, M.; Carenbauer, A.; Wick, N.; Brown, J.; Terhune, K.; Bilbo, S.; Weaver, R.; Shircliff, R.; Newcomb, N.; Parra-Belky, K. Mutational analysis of the stator subunit E of the yeast V-APTase. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 2005, 280(18), 18393-18402.

Parra-Belky, K.; McCulloch, K.; Wick, N.; Shircliff, R.; Croft, N.; Margalef, K.; Brown, J.; Crabill, T.; Jankord, R.; Waldo, E. Immunoprecipitation and characterization of membrane protein complexes from yeast. Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education. 2005, 33(4), 289-292.

Presentations

AVS 55th International Symposium and Exhibition, Boston, MA, October 23, 2008, “Characterization of Functionalized Layers on Silica Surfaces for DNA Attachment.”

Indiana Academy of Science 118th Annual Meeting, Butler University, Indianapolis, October 11, 2002, “The Role of Subunit E for V-ATPase Function During Starvation.”