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Critical Amino Acids Of The Gα2 Subunit Helical Domain In Dictyostelium Discoideum, Steven Martin Rauch

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In Dictyostelium discoideum organism, the Gα2 subunit of the heterotrimeric G-protein signaling complex plays a pivotal role during the aggregation stage in the Dictyostelium life cycle. The biochemical functions of the G-protein complex include separation of the G-protein coupled receptor from the G-protein subunits, GDP displacement by GTP in the Gα subunit, separation of the Gα monomer from the βγ complex, GTP hydrolysis to GDP, activation of adenylyl cyclase as a downstream effector, and activation of guanylyl cyclase as a separate downstream effector. Upon release from the heterotrimer, the βγ subunits lead to downstream activation of the membrane bound adenylyl …