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Full-Text Articles in Molecular Biology

Chromatin Insulators: Master Regulators Of The Eukaryotic Genome, Todd Andrew Schoborg Aug 2013

Chromatin Insulators: Master Regulators Of The Eukaryotic Genome, Todd Andrew Schoborg

Doctoral Dissertations

Proper organization of the chromatin fiber within the three dimensional space of the eukaryotic nucleus relies on a number of DNA elements and their interacting proteins whose structural and functional consequences exert significant influence on genome behavior. Chromatin insulators are one such example, where it is thought that these elements assist in the formation of higher order chromatin loop structures by mediating long-range contacts between distant sites scattered throughout the genome. Such looping serves a dual role, helping to satisfy both the physical constraints needed to package the linear DNA polymer within the small volume of the nucleus while simultaneously …


Functional Analysis Of Corazonin And Its Receptor In Drosophila Melanogaster, Kai Sha Aug 2013

Functional Analysis Of Corazonin And Its Receptor In Drosophila Melanogaster, Kai Sha

Doctoral Dissertations

Corazonin (Crz) is an amidated undecapeptide originally isolated from the American cockroach. It has been shown to affect diverse physiological functions in a species-specific manner. However, the functionality of Crz in Drosophila melanogaster has not yet been determined. To gain insight into the role of Crz signaling in vivo, Crz and CrzR null alleles were obtained by transposable element mobilization. Flies carrying a deficiency uncovering Crz and pr-set7 loci were generated via P-element excision, and the latter was rescued by wild-type pr-set7 transgene. A mutation of Crz receptor (CrzR) was generated by Minos-element mobilization from …


Single-Nucleotide Polymorphisms Associated With Performance Traits In Beef Cattle Grazing Endophyte-Infected Tall Fescue, Bryan Christopher Bastin Aug 2013

Single-Nucleotide Polymorphisms Associated With Performance Traits In Beef Cattle Grazing Endophyte-Infected Tall Fescue, Bryan Christopher Bastin

Masters Theses

Tall fescue (Lolium arundinaceum Schreb.) is the most prevalent forage in the Midsouth United States due in part to the presence of the endophytic fungus Neotyphodium coenophialum. The fungus, while conferring hardiness to tall fescue, contributes to decreased production efficiency in cow-calf operations. A previous genome-wide association study was performed using the Illumina 50k bovine SNP chip. Twenty-four SNP were found to be associated (P < 0.05) with adjusted birth weight and adjusted 205-day weights of calves from 48 beef cows at Ames Plantation. The first objective was to validate each SNP by testing associations with several additional phenotypes. Custom Taqman genotyping assays (Applied Biosystems, Foster City, CA) were subsequently designed to genotype each SNP in beef cattle located at Tennessee Tech University (n = 654), to validate associations in a large, independent herd. The results yielded 15 associations that were significant (P < 0.05) with 6 phenotypes linked to those affected by fescue toxicosis. The second objective investigated the link between fescue toxicosis and the XK, Kell blood group complex subunit-related, member 4 …


Development And Application Of Mass Spectrometry-Based Proteomics To Generate And Navigate The Proteomes Of The Genus Populus, Paul Edward Abraham May 2013

Development And Application Of Mass Spectrometry-Based Proteomics To Generate And Navigate The Proteomes Of The Genus Populus, Paul Edward Abraham

Doctoral Dissertations

Historically, there has been tremendous synergy between biology and analytical technology, such that one drives the development of the other. Over the past two decades, their interrelatedness has catalyzed entirely new experimental approaches and unlocked new types of biological questions, as exemplified by the advancements of the field of mass spectrometry (MS)-based proteomics. MS-based proteomics, which provides a more complete measurement of all the proteins in a cell, has revolutionized a variety of scientific fields, ranging from characterizing proteins expressed by a microorganism to tracking cancer-related biomarkers. Though MS technology has advanced significantly, the analysis of complicated proteomes, such as …