Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 2 of 2
Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Structural Characterization Of Black Widow Spider Dragline Silk Proteins Crp1 And Crp4, Mikayla Shanafelt
Structural Characterization Of Black Widow Spider Dragline Silk Proteins Crp1 And Crp4, Mikayla Shanafelt
University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations
Spider dragline silk is a biomaterial with outstanding material properties, possessing high-tensile strength and toughness. In nature, dragline silk serves a central role during spider locomotion and web construction. Today, scientists are racing to elucidate the molecular machinery governing silk extrusion, attempting to translate this knowledge into a mimicry process in the laboratory to create synthetic fibers for a wide range of different applications. During extrusion, it has been established that biochemical and mechanical forces govern spidroin folding, aggregation, and assembly. In black widow spiders, at least 7 different proteins have been identified as constituents of dragline silk fibers. These …
Characterization Of The Roles Of Ppp1r15a (Gadd34) And Ppp1r15b (Crep) In Er Stress-Induced Apoptosis In Vivo, Danielle Hicks
Characterization Of The Roles Of Ppp1r15a (Gadd34) And Ppp1r15b (Crep) In Er Stress-Induced Apoptosis In Vivo, Danielle Hicks
University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations
Failure to balance synthesis, folding and degradation of secreted proteins results in the accumulation of unfolded proteins in the endoplasmic reticulum, termed ER stress. Cells respond to ER stress by activating a signaling pathway known as the unfolded protein response (UPR). The UPR induces phosphorylation of eIF2α to attenuate global protein translation, allowing the ER to clear misfolded proteins. Opposing this function, eIF2α phosphatases contain a catalytic subunit, Protein Phosphatase 1, and either of two homologous scaffolding subunits, GADD34 and CReP. Inhibition of eIF2α phosphatases has been shown to prolong UPR signaling and promote survival in many cells types and …