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Biochemistry

2020

College of Natual Science and Mathematics

Articles 1 - 3 of 3

Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Characterization Of The Dimerization And Salt Dependent Aggregation Of The Als-Linked Protein Tdp-43, Elizabeth Ehrhardt Jan 2020

Characterization Of The Dimerization And Salt Dependent Aggregation Of The Als-Linked Protein Tdp-43, Elizabeth Ehrhardt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Trans-active response (TAR) DNA-binding protein 43 (TDP-43) is essential for RNA processing but can also form toxic cytoplasmic inclusions in neurons of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD). RNA-binding has been shown to have the potential to decrease or inhibit the aggregation of TDP-43, indicating that supplying RNA therapeutics may be a solution to treat these neurodegenerative disorders. However, the mechanism of aggregation, transitioning from TDP-43’s native dimeric state to small oligomers to toxic aggregates, is still relatively unknown. This needs to be established before determining how to target and disrupt this aggregation. Using GFP-TDP-43, …


Quantification Of Mitochondrial Zinc Homeostasis And Analysis Of Zinc And Polyamine-Mediated Axonal Trafficking, Dylan Hunt Fudge Jan 2020

Quantification Of Mitochondrial Zinc Homeostasis And Analysis Of Zinc And Polyamine-Mediated Axonal Trafficking, Dylan Hunt Fudge

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The zinc ion is an important emerging signaling molecule for biological processes. In this work we engineered improved zinc sensors based on our previously developed fluorescent sensor GZnP1 to provide sensors with a higher fluorescent readout, faster kinetics, and a superior sensitivity to zinc. We utilized these zinc sensors and further developed the sensors to answer questions pertaining to biological zinc. We showed the labile zinc concentration in the mitochondrial matrix was less than 1 pM while the labile zinc concentration in the cytosol and mitochondrial IMS were comparable (~100 pM) across four different cell lines. Using these zinc sensors …


Sorting Of Cargo Proteins Within The Regulated Secretory Pathway: The Peripheral Membrane Protein Hid-1 As A Sorting And Vesicle Biogenesis Factor, Blake H. Hummer Jan 2020

Sorting Of Cargo Proteins Within The Regulated Secretory Pathway: The Peripheral Membrane Protein Hid-1 As A Sorting And Vesicle Biogenesis Factor, Blake H. Hummer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Large dense core vesicles (LDCVs) form at the trans-Golgi network (TGN) and mediate the regulated release of neuropeptides and peptide hormones. Despite their central role to physiology, the mechanisms controlling biogenesis and sorting to LDCVs is not well understood. Optimizing the retention using selective hooks (RUSH) method in neuroendocrine cells, we show it is possible to visualize sorting to the constitutive and regulated secretory pathways in real-time and that the bulk of transmembrane LDCV cargoes do not sort directly onto LDCVs, but exit the TGN into non-regulated vesicles to be incorporated to LDCVs at a later step. Additionally, we characterize …