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Full-Text Articles in Molecular Biology
Biophysical And Computational Investigations Into G-Quadruplex Structural Polymorphism And Interaction With Small Molecules., Huy Tuan Le
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
In the cell, guanine-rich nucleic acids can self-assemble into unique four stranded tertiary structures known as G-quadruplexes. G-quadruplex formation in the telomere leads inhibits telomerase, an enzyme activated in cancer cells to maintain the telomere and allowing for cancer cells to achieve immortality. G-quadruplex formation in the promoters and 5’-untranslated regions regulates the expression of many oncogenes. Furthermore, G-quadruplex formation during cellular replication promotes genomic instability, a characteristic which enables tumor development. Because of their implication in cancer, G-quadruplex structures have emerged as attractive drug targets for anti-tumor therapeutics. In the current dissertation work, we present three experimental approaches to …
Genetic And Mechanistic Analysis Of Rat Mammary Cancer Susceptibility., Jennifer Sanders
Genetic And Mechanistic Analysis Of Rat Mammary Cancer Susceptibility., Jennifer Sanders
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Breast cancer is a complex disease, which is influenced by genetic, epigenetic and environmental components. Genetic susceptibility to breast cancer is made up of high, moderate and low penetrance alleles. High and moderate penetrance alleles are rare and constitute only a small percentage of the genetic susceptibility. Most variation in genetic susceptibility is controlled by low- penetrance, common polymorphisms. Comparative genetics uses model organisms to study human disease. Rat strains exhibit different susceptibility phenotypes to chemical induced carcinogenesis. The Wistar-Furth (WF) rat strain is susceptible to chemically induced mammary carcinogenesis, while the Wistar-Kyoto (WKy) and Copenhagen (COP) rat strains are …
Augmentation Of Ras-Induced Cell Transformation : A New Role For Mir-200a In Malignancy., Lindsey Erin Becker
Augmentation Of Ras-Induced Cell Transformation : A New Role For Mir-200a In Malignancy., Lindsey Erin Becker
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Cancer is a multistep disease that begins with malignant cell transformation and frequently culminates in metastasis and death. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small regulatory 21-25-nt RNA molecules and are frequently deregulated in cancer. The majority of miRNAs are estimated to be co-expressed with neighboring miRNAs as clusters. Many miRNA clusters coordinately regulate multiple members of cellular signaling pathways or protein interaction networks. miR-200a is a member of the miR-200 family, which are known to be strong inhibitors of the epithelial to mesenchymal transition. As such, the tumor suppressive role of miR-200a in oncogenesis has been well studied; however, recent studies have …
Mechanisms Of Action And Co-Optive Evolution For Hypervariable Courtship Pheromones In Plethodontid Salamanders., Wilburn Beau Wilburn
Mechanisms Of Action And Co-Optive Evolution For Hypervariable Courtship Pheromones In Plethodontid Salamanders., Wilburn Beau Wilburn
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Pheromones are an important type of chemical cue used by most animals to convey information between individuals. For more than 100 million years, male plethodontid salamanders have utilized a system of non-volatile, proteinaceous pheromones to regulate female mating behavior and receptivity. One of these pheromone components, Plethodontid Modulating Factor (PMF), is a hypervariable protein related to the three-finger protein (TFP) superfamily. Previous studies revealed that PMF persists as a rapidly evolving multi-isoform mixture. However, many characteristics of PMF as a pheromone remained undetermined, including gene structure and transcriptional regulation, translational regulation, protein structure, evolutionary mechanisms, and the isoform effects on …