Molecular Biology Commons^™

Sirt1 Regulation Of The Heat Shock Response In An Hsf1-Dependent Manner And The Impact Of Caloric Restriction, Rachel Rene Raynes

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The heat shock response (HSR) is the cell's molecular reaction to protein damaging stress and is critical in the management of denatured proteins. Activation of HSF1, the master transcriptional regulator of the HSR, results in the induction of molecular chaperones called heat shock proteins (HSPs). Transcription of hsp genes is promoted by the hyperphosphorylation of HSF1, while the attenuation of the HSR is regulated by a dual mechanism involving negative feedback inhibition from HSPs and acetylation at a critical lysine residue within the DNA binding domain of HSF1, which results in a loss of affinity for DNA. SIRT1 is a …

Regulation Of The Tumor Suppresser P53 And Survivin By Ras And Ral Gtpases:Implications For Malignant Transformation, Awet G. Tecleab

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Although the critical role of the small GTPases Ras and Ral in oncogenesis has been well documented, much remains to be investigated about the molecular mechanism by which these GTPases regulate malignant transformation. The work under this thesis made two major contributions to this field. The first is the discovery that K-Ras, RalA and/or RalB are required for the maintenance of the high levels of the anti-apoptotic protein survivin in some human cancer cells, and the second is the demonstration that down regulation of K-Ras, RalA and/or RalB, but not Raf-1 or Akt1/2, stabilizes the tumor suppressor p53 and …

Epigenetic Modifiers To Augment The Immunogenicity Of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia, Jason A. Dubovsky

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cancer cells employ a litany of immunosuppressive and immunevasive strategies to avoid detection and elimination by the various arms of the innate and adaptive immune system. Many hematologic and solid tumors progressively develop a specialized microenvironment which promotes tissue restructuring inflammation while masking the immune signature of the tumor cells themselves. Chronic lymphocytic leukemia, a malignancy of mature B lymphocytes must constantly balance on the precipice of immune recognition. A mature antigen presenting cell themselves, CLL clonal growth is dependent on the very interactions which, if effective, could potentially lead to their demise. To circumvent this, CLL clones set up …