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Full-Text Articles in Cell Biology

Investigating The Role Of Bs21 In Vancomycin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus, Daniel Floyd May 2022

Investigating The Role Of Bs21 In Vancomycin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus, Daniel Floyd

Senior Honors Projects

Staphylococcus aureus is a Gram-positive pathogenic bacterium commonly known for being the causative organism of staph infections in clinical settings. In previous literature, it has been observed that mutations in certain genes in S. aureus can result in resistance to commonly used antibiotics. Specifically, mutations in the gene rpsU, encoding the ribosomal protein bS21, have been present in strains of S. aureus resistant to the antibiotic vancomycin. The aim of my project is to validate these findings by creating a strain of S. aureus without bS21 and performing an antibiotic assay to determine the level of resistance to vancomycin …


Identifying The Cell Composition And Clonal Diversity Of Supratentorial Ependymoma Using Single Cell Rna-Sequencing, James He May 2021

Identifying The Cell Composition And Clonal Diversity Of Supratentorial Ependymoma Using Single Cell Rna-Sequencing, James He

University Scholar Projects

Ependymoma is a primary solid tumor of the central nervous system. Supratentorial ependymoma (ST-EPN), a subtype of ependymomas, is driven by an oncogenic fusion between the ZFTA and RELA genes in 70% of cases. We introduced this fusion into neural progenitor cells of mice embryos via in utero electroporation of a non-viral binary piggyBac transposon system containing ZFTA-RELA. From preliminary data in the LoTurco lab, inducing the expression of ZFTA-RELA into different neural progenitor cells produces tumors of varying lethality and cellular composition. To define the cellular composition and subclonal diversity of ST-EPN tumors, we used single cell RNA-sequencing to …


Identifying The Cell Composition And Clonal Diversity Of Supratentorial Ependymoma Using Single Cell Rna-Sequencing, James He May 2021

Identifying The Cell Composition And Clonal Diversity Of Supratentorial Ependymoma Using Single Cell Rna-Sequencing, James He

Honors Scholar Theses

Ependymoma is a primary solid tumor of the central nervous system. Supratentorial ependymoma (ST-EPN), a subtype of ependymomas, is driven by an oncogenic fusion between the ZFTA and RELA genes in 70% of cases. We introduced this fusion into neural progenitor cells of mice embryos via in utero electroporation of a non-viral binary piggyBac transposon system containing ZFTA-RELA. From preliminary data in the LoTurco lab, inducing the expression of ZFTA-RELA into different neural progenitor cells produces tumors of varying lethality and cellular composition. To define the cellular composition and subclonal diversity of ST-EPN tumors, we used single cell RNA-sequencing …


Sonic Hedgehog Is Expressed By Hilar Mossy Cells And Regulates Cellular Survival And Neurogenesis In The Adult Hippocampus, Luis E. Gonzalez-Reyes, Chia-Chu Chiang, Mingming Zhang, Joshua Johnson, Manuel Arrillaga-Tamez, Nicholas H. Couturier, Neha Reddy, Lev Starikov, Jeffrey R. Capadona, Andreas H. Kottmann, Dominique M. Durand Jan 2019

Sonic Hedgehog Is Expressed By Hilar Mossy Cells And Regulates Cellular Survival And Neurogenesis In The Adult Hippocampus, Luis E. Gonzalez-Reyes, Chia-Chu Chiang, Mingming Zhang, Joshua Johnson, Manuel Arrillaga-Tamez, Nicholas H. Couturier, Neha Reddy, Lev Starikov, Jeffrey R. Capadona, Andreas H. Kottmann, Dominique M. Durand

Publications and Research

Sonic hedgehog (Shh) is a multifunctional signaling protein governing pattern formation, proliferation and cell survival during embryogenesis. In the adult brain, Shh has neurotrophic function and is implicated in hippocampal neurogenesis but the cellular source of Shh in the hippocampus remains ill defined. Here, we utilize a gene expression tracer allele of Shh (Shh-nlacZ) which allowed the identification of a subpopulation of hilar neurons known as mossy cells (MCs) as a prominent and dynamic source of Shh within the dentate gyrus. AAV-Cre mediated ablation of Shh in the adult dentate gyrus led to a marked degeneration …


Identifying New Genes Involved In Centromere Establishment, Megan Boyer May 2018

Identifying New Genes Involved In Centromere Establishment, Megan Boyer

Honors Scholar Theses

The centromere is a site on the chromosome that mediates accurate cell division by serving as a platform for kinetochore assembly, and microtubule attachment during cell division. Errors in the process of chromosome segregation can contribute to genetic irregularities, such as those seen in cancer and congenital defects. Our lab uses the ectopic centromere as a tool to discover what proteins may be involved in centromere establishment, defined as the deposition of CENP-A at the locus. We use the lacO/LacI system within Drosophila S2 cells that contain a CAL1-GFP- LacI transgene and an integrated lacO array to study the ectopic …


Polyq-Dependent Rna–Protein Assemblies Control Symmetry Breaking, Changhwan Lee, Patricia Occhipinti, Amy S. Gladfelter Jul 2015

Polyq-Dependent Rna–Protein Assemblies Control Symmetry Breaking, Changhwan Lee, Patricia Occhipinti, Amy S. Gladfelter

Dartmouth Scholarship

Dendritic growth in fungi and neurons requires that multiple axes of polarity are established and maintained within the same cytoplasm. We have discovered that transcripts encoding key polarity factors including a formin, Bni1, and a polarisome scaffold, Spa2, are nonrandomly clustered in the cytosol to initiate and maintain sites of polarized growth in the fungus Ashbya gossypii. This asymmetric distribution requires the mRNAs to interact with a polyQ-containing protein, Whi3, and a Pumilio protein with a low-complexity sequence, Puf2. Cells lacking Whi3 or Puf2 had severe defects in establishing new sites of polarity and failed to localize Bni1 protein. Interaction …


P53'S Choice Of Myocardial Death Or Survival: Oxygen Protects Infarct Myocardium By Recruiting P53 On Nos3 Promoter Through Regulation Of P53-Lys118 Acetylation, Rajan Gogna, Esha Madan, Mahmood Khan, Uttam Pati, Periannan Kuppusamy Aug 2013

P53'S Choice Of Myocardial Death Or Survival: Oxygen Protects Infarct Myocardium By Recruiting P53 On Nos3 Promoter Through Regulation Of P53-Lys118 Acetylation, Rajan Gogna, Esha Madan, Mahmood Khan, Uttam Pati, Periannan Kuppusamy

Dartmouth Scholarship

Myocardial infarction, an irreversible cardiac tissue damage, involves progressive loss of cardiomyocytes due to p53-mediated apoptosis. Oxygenation is known to promote cardiac survival through activation of NOS3 gene. We hypothesized a dual role for p53, which, depending on oxygenation, can elicit apoptotic death signals or NOS3-mediated survival signals in the infarct heart. p53 exhibited a differential DNA-binding, namely, BAX-p53RE in the infarct heart or NOS3-p53RE in the oxygenated heart, which was regulated by oxygen-induced, post- translational modification of p53. In the infarct heart, p53 was heavily acetylated at Lys118 residue, which was exclusively reversed in the oxygenated heart, apparently regulated …


Use Of Image Cytometry For Quantification Of Pathogenic Fungi In Association With Host Cells, Charlotte A. Berkes, Leo Li-Ying Chan, Alisha Wilkinson, Benjamin Paradis Jun 2013

Use Of Image Cytometry For Quantification Of Pathogenic Fungi In Association With Host Cells, Charlotte A. Berkes, Leo Li-Ying Chan, Alisha Wilkinson, Benjamin Paradis

Biology Faculty Publications

Studies of the cellular pathogenesis mechanisms of pathogenic yeasts such as Candida albicans, Histoplasma capsulatum, and Cryptococcus neoformans commonly employ infection of mammalian hosts or host cells (i.e. macrophages) followed by yeast quantification using colony forming unit analysis or flow cytometry. While colony forming unit enumeration has been the most commonly used method in the field, this technique has disadvantages and limitations, including slow growth of some fungal species on solid media and low and/or variable plating efficiencies, which is of particular concern when comparing growth of wild-type and mutant strains. Flow cytometry can provide rapid quantitative information regarding yeast …


Condensin Ii Promotes The Formation Of Chromosome Territories By Inducing Axial Compaction Of Polyploid Interphase Chromosomes, Christopher R. R. Bauer, Tom A. Hartl, Giovanni Bosco Aug 2012

Condensin Ii Promotes The Formation Of Chromosome Territories By Inducing Axial Compaction Of Polyploid Interphase Chromosomes, Christopher R. R. Bauer, Tom A. Hartl, Giovanni Bosco

Dartmouth Scholarship

The eukaryotic nucleus is both spatially and functionally partitioned. This organization contributes to the maintenance, expression, and transmission of genetic information. Though our ability to probe the physical structure of the genome within the nucleus has improved substantially in recent years, relatively little is known about the factors that regulate its organization or the mechanisms through which specific organizational states are achieved. Here, we show that Drosophila melanogaster Condensin II induces axial compaction of interphase chromosomes, globally disrupts interchromosomal interactions, and promotes the dispersal of peri-centric heterochromatin. These Condensin II activities compartmentalize the nucleus into discrete chromosome territories and indicate …


Heterogeneity In Mitochondrial Morphology And Membrane Potential Is Independent Of The Nuclear Division Cycle In Multinucleate Fungal Cells, John P. Gerstenberger, Patricia Occhipinti, Amy S. Gladfelter Jan 2012

Heterogeneity In Mitochondrial Morphology And Membrane Potential Is Independent Of The Nuclear Division Cycle In Multinucleate Fungal Cells, John P. Gerstenberger, Patricia Occhipinti, Amy S. Gladfelter

Dartmouth Scholarship

In the multinucleate filamentous fungus Ashbya gossypii, nuclei divide asynchronously in a common cytoplasm. We hypothesize that the division cycle machinery has a limited zone of influence in the cytoplasm to promote nuclear autonomy. Mitochondria in cultured mammalian cells undergo cell cycle-specific changes in morphology and membrane potential and therefore can serve as a reporter of the cell cycle state of the cytoplasm. To evaluate if the cell cycle state of nuclei in A. gossypii can influ


Axl2 Integrates Polarity Establishment, Maintenance, And Environmental Stress Response In The Filamentous Fungus Ashbya Gossypii, Jonathan F. Anker, Amy S. Gladfelter Oct 2011

Axl2 Integrates Polarity Establishment, Maintenance, And Environmental Stress Response In The Filamentous Fungus Ashbya Gossypii, Jonathan F. Anker, Amy S. Gladfelter

Dartmouth Scholarship

In budding yeast, new sites of polarity are chosen with each cell cycle and polarization is transient. In filamentous fungi, sites of polarity persist for extended periods of growth and new polarity sites can be established while existing sites are maintained. How the polarity establishment machinery functions in these distinct growth forms found in fungi is still not well understood. We have examined the function of Axl2, a transmembrane bud site selection protein discovered in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, in the filamentous fungus Ashbya gossypii. A. gossypii does not divide by budding and instead exhibits persistent highly polarized growth, and multiple axes …


Roles Of Ras1 Membrane Localization During Candida Albicans Hyphal Growth And Farnesol Response, Amy E. Piispanen, Ophelie Bonnefoi, Sarah Carden, Aurelie Deveau Sep 2011

Roles Of Ras1 Membrane Localization During Candida Albicans Hyphal Growth And Farnesol Response, Amy E. Piispanen, Ophelie Bonnefoi, Sarah Carden, Aurelie Deveau

Dartmouth Scholarship

Many Ras GTPases localize to membranes via C-terminal farnesylation and palmitoylation, and localization regulates function. In Candida albicans, a fungal pathogen of humans, Ras1 links environmental cues to morphogenesis. Here, we report the localization and membrane dynamics of Ras1, and we characterize the roles of conserved C-terminal cysteine residues, C287 and C288, which are predicted sites of palmitoylation and farnesylation, respectively. GFP-Ras1 is localized uniformly to plasma membranes in both yeast and hyphae, yet Ras1 plasma membrane mobility was reduced in hyphae compared to that in yeast. Ras1-C288S was mislocalized to the cytoplasm and could not support hyphal development. …


Pcdp1 Is A Central Apparatus Protein That Binds Ca2+-Calmodulin And Regulates Ciliary Motility, Christen G. Dipetrillo, Elizabeth F. Smith Apr 2010

Pcdp1 Is A Central Apparatus Protein That Binds Ca2+-Calmodulin And Regulates Ciliary Motility, Christen G. Dipetrillo, Elizabeth F. Smith

Dartmouth Scholarship

For all motile eukaryotic cilia and flagella, beating is regulated by changes in intraciliary calcium concentration. Although the mechanism for calcium regulation is not understood, numerous studies have shown that calmodulin (CaM) is a key axonemal calcium sensor. Using anti-CaM antibodies and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii axonemal extracts, we precipitated a complex that includes four polypeptides and that specifically interacts with CaM in high [Ca2+]. One of the complex members, FAP221, is an orthologue of mammalian Pcdp1 (primary ciliary dyskinesia protein 1). Both FAP221 and mammalian Pcdp1 specifically bind CaM in high [Ca2+]. Reduced expression of Pcdp1 complex …


Integral Membrane Proteins Brr6 And Apq12 Link Assembly Of The Nuclear Pore Complex To Lipid Homeostasis In The Endoplasmic Reticulum, Christine A. Hodge, Vineet Choudhary, Michael J. Wolyniak, John J. Scarcelli, Roger Schneiter, Charles N. Cole Oct 2009

Integral Membrane Proteins Brr6 And Apq12 Link Assembly Of The Nuclear Pore Complex To Lipid Homeostasis In The Endoplasmic Reticulum, Christine A. Hodge, Vineet Choudhary, Michael J. Wolyniak, John J. Scarcelli, Roger Schneiter, Charles N. Cole

Dartmouth Scholarship

Cells of Saccharomyces cerevisiae lacking Apq12, a nuclear envelope (NE)-endoplasmic reticulum (ER) integral membrane protein, are defective in assembly of nuclear pore complexes (NPCs), possibly because of defects in regulating membrane fluidity. We identified BRR6, which encodes an essential integral membrane protein of the NE-ER, as a dosage suppressor of apq12 Delta. Cells carrying the temperature-sensitive brr6-1 allele have been shown to have defects in nucleoporin localization, mRNA metabolism and nuclear transport. Electron microscopy revealed that brr6-1 cells have gross NE abnormalities and proliferation of the ER. brr6-1 cells were hypersensitive to compounds that affect membrane biophysical properties and to …


Different Requirements Of The Swi/Snf Complex For Robust Nucleosome Displacement At Promoters Of Heat Shock Factor And Msn2- And Msn4-Regulated Heat Shock Genes, Tamara Y. Erkina, P. A. Tschetter, Alexander M. Erkine Jan 2008

Different Requirements Of The Swi/Snf Complex For Robust Nucleosome Displacement At Promoters Of Heat Shock Factor And Msn2- And Msn4-Regulated Heat Shock Genes, Tamara Y. Erkina, P. A. Tschetter, Alexander M. Erkine

Scholarship and Professional Work – COPHS

The stress response in yeast cells is regulated by at least two classes of transcription activators—HSF and Msn2/4, which differentially affect promoter chromatin remodeling. We demonstrate that the deletion of SNF2, an ATPase activity-containing subunit of the chromatin remodeling SWI/SNF complex, eliminates histone displacement, RNA polymerase II recruitment, and heat shock factor (HSF) binding at the HSP12 promoter while delaying these processes at the HSP82 and SSA4 promoters. Out of the three promoters, the double deletion of MSN2 and MSN4 eliminates both chromatin remodeling and HSF binding only at the HSP12 promoter, suggesting that Msn2/4 activators are primary determinants of …


Genome-Wide Transcriptional Profiling Of The Cyclic Amp-Dependent Signaling Pathway During Morphogenic Transitions Of Candida Albicans, Yong-Sun Bahn, Matthew Molenda, Janet F. Staab, Courtney A. Lyman, Laura J. Gordon, Paula Sundstrom Dec 2007

Genome-Wide Transcriptional Profiling Of The Cyclic Amp-Dependent Signaling Pathway During Morphogenic Transitions Of Candida Albicans, Yong-Sun Bahn, Matthew Molenda, Janet F. Staab, Courtney A. Lyman, Laura J. Gordon, Paula Sundstrom

Dartmouth Scholarship

Candida albicans is an opportunistic human fungal pathogen that causes systemic candidiasis as well as superficial mucosal candidiasis. In response to the host environment, C. albicans transitions between yeast and hyphal forms. In particular, hyphal growth is important in facilitating adhesion and invasion of host tissues, concomitant with the expression of various hypha-specific virulence factors. In previous work, we showed that the cyclic AMP (cAMP) signaling pathway plays a crucial role in morphogenic transitions and virulence of C. albicans by studying genes encoding adenylate cyclase-associated protein (CAP1) and high-affinity phosphodiesterase (PDE2) (Y. S. Bahn, J. Staab, and P. Sundstrom, Mol. …


Role Of Actin Cytoskeletal Dynamics In Activation Of The Cyclic Amp Pathway And Hwp1 Gene Expression In Candida Albicans, Michael J. Wolyniak, Paula Sundstrom Oct 2007

Role Of Actin Cytoskeletal Dynamics In Activation Of The Cyclic Amp Pathway And Hwp1 Gene Expression In Candida Albicans, Michael J. Wolyniak, Paula Sundstrom

Dartmouth Scholarship

Changes in gene expression during reversible bud-hypha transitions of the opportunistic fungal pathogen Candida albicans permit adaptation to environmental conditions that are critical for proliferation in host tissues. Our previous work has shown that the hypha-specific adhesin gene HWP1 is up-regulated by the cyclic AMP (cAMP) signaling pathway. However, little is known about the potential influences of determinants of cell morphology on HWP1 gene expression. We found that blocking hypha formation with cytochalasin A, which destabilizes actin filaments, and with latrunculin A, which sequesters actin monomers, led to a loss of HWP1 gene expression. In contrast, high levels of HWP1 …


The Yeast Integral Membrane Protein Apq12 Potentially Links Membrane Dynamics To Assembly Of Nuclear Pore Complexes, John J. Scarcelli, Christin A. Hodge, Charles N. Cole Aug 2007

The Yeast Integral Membrane Protein Apq12 Potentially Links Membrane Dynamics To Assembly Of Nuclear Pore Complexes, John J. Scarcelli, Christin A. Hodge, Charles N. Cole

Dartmouth Scholarship

Although the structure and function of components of the nuclear pore complex (NPC) have been the focus of many studies, relatively little is known about NPC biogenesis. In this study, we report that Apq12 is required for efficient NPC biogenesis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Apq12 is an integral membrane protein of the nuclear envelope (NE) and endoplasmic reticulum. Cells lacking Apq12 are cold sensitive for growth, and a subset of their nucleoporins (Nups), those that are primarily components of the cytoplasmic fibrils of the NPC, mislocalize to the cytoplasm. APQ12 deletion also causes defects in NE morphology. In the absence of …


Regulation Of Meiotic Cohesion And Chromosome Core Morphogenesis During Pachytene In Drosophila Oocytes, Radhika S. Khetani, Sharon E. Bickel Jul 2007

Regulation Of Meiotic Cohesion And Chromosome Core Morphogenesis During Pachytene In Drosophila Oocytes, Radhika S. Khetani, Sharon E. Bickel

Dartmouth Scholarship

During meiosis, cohesion between sister chromatids is required for normal levels of homologous recombination, maintenance of chiasmata and accurate chromosome segregation during both divisions. In Drosophila, null mutations in the ord gene abolish meiotic cohesion, although how ORD protein promotes cohesion has remained elusive. We show that SMC subunits of the cohesin complex colocalize with ORD at centromeres of ovarian germ-line cells. In addition, cohesin SMCs and ORD are visible along the length of meiotic chromosomes during pachytene and remain associated with chromosome cores following DNase I digestion. In flies lacking ORD activity, cohesin SMCs fail to accumulate at oocyte …


A 368-Base-Pair Cis-Acting Hwp1 Promoter Region, Hcr, Of Candida Albicans Confers Hypha-Specific Gene Regulation And Binds Architectural Transcription Factors Nhp6 And Gcf1p, Samin Kim, Michael J. Wolyniak, Janet F. Staab, Paula Sundstrom Apr 2007

A 368-Base-Pair Cis-Acting Hwp1 Promoter Region, Hcr, Of Candida Albicans Confers Hypha-Specific Gene Regulation And Binds Architectural Transcription Factors Nhp6 And Gcf1p, Samin Kim, Michael J. Wolyniak, Janet F. Staab, Paula Sundstrom

Dartmouth Scholarship

To elucidate the molecular mechanisms controlling the expression of the hypha-specific adhesin gene HWP1 of Candida albicans, its promoter was dissected and analyzed using a green fluorescent protein reporter gene. A 368-bp region, the HWP1 control region (HCR), was critical for activation under hypha-inducing conditions and conferred developmental regulation to a heterologous ENO1 promoter. A more distal region of the promoter served to amplify the level of promoter activation. Using gel mobility shift assays, a 249-bp subregion of HCR, HCRa, was found to bind at least four proteins from crude extracts of yeasts and hyphae with differing binding patterns dependent …


The Yeast Orthologue Of Grasp65 Forms A Complex With A Coiled-Coil Protein That Contributes To Er To Golgi Traffic, Rudy Behnia, Francis A. Barr, John J. Flanagan, Charles Barlowe, Sean Munro Jan 2007

The Yeast Orthologue Of Grasp65 Forms A Complex With A Coiled-Coil Protein That Contributes To Er To Golgi Traffic, Rudy Behnia, Francis A. Barr, John J. Flanagan, Charles Barlowe, Sean Munro

Dartmouth Scholarship

The mammalian Golgi protein GRASP65 is required in assays that reconstitute cisternal stacking and vesicle tethering. Attached to membranes by an N-terminal myristoyl group, it recruits the coiled-coil protein GM130. The relevance of this system to budding yeasts has been unclear, as they lack an obvious orthologue of GM130, and their only GRASP65 relative (Grh1) lacks a myristoylation site and has even been suggested to act in a mitotic checkpoint. In this study, we show that Grh1 has an N-terminal amphipathic helix that is N-terminally acetylated and mediates association with the cis-Golgi. We find that Grh1 forms a complex with …


Following Temperature Stress, Export Of Heat Shock Mrna Occurs Efficiently In Cells With Mutations In Genes Normally Important For Mrna Export, Christiane Rollenhagen, Christine A. Hodge, Charles N. Cole Jan 2007

Following Temperature Stress, Export Of Heat Shock Mrna Occurs Efficiently In Cells With Mutations In Genes Normally Important For Mrna Export, Christiane Rollenhagen, Christine A. Hodge, Charles N. Cole

Dartmouth Scholarship

Heat shock leads to accumulation of polyadenylated RNA in nuclei of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells, transcriptional induction of heat shock genes, and efficient export of polyadenylated heat shock mRNAs. These studies were conducted to examine the requirements for export of mRNA following heat shock. We used in situ hybridization to detect SSA4 mRNA (encoding Hsp70) and flow cytometry to measure the amount of Ssa4p-green fluorescent protein (GFP) produced following heat shock. Npl3p and Yra1p are mRNA-binding proteins recruited to nascent mRNAs and are essential for proper mRNA biogenesis and export. Heat shock mRNA was exported efficiently in temperature-sensitive npl3, yra1 …


Limited Functional Redundancy And Oscillation Of Cyclins In Multinucleated Ashbya Gossypii Fungal Cells, A. Katrin Hungerbuehler, Peter Philippsen, Amy S. Gladfelter Nov 2006

Limited Functional Redundancy And Oscillation Of Cyclins In Multinucleated Ashbya Gossypii Fungal Cells, A. Katrin Hungerbuehler, Peter Philippsen, Amy S. Gladfelter

Dartmouth Scholarship

Cyclin protein behavior has not been systematically investigated in multinucleated cells with asynchronous mitoses. Cyclins are canonical oscillating cell cycle proteins, but it is unclear how fluctuating protein gradients can be established in multinucleated cells where nuclei in different stages of the division cycle share the cytoplasm. Previous work in A. gossypii, a filamentous fungus in which nuclei divide asynchronously in a common cytoplasm, demonstrated that one G1 and one B-type cyclin do not fluctuate in abundance across the division cycle. We have undertaken a comprehensive analysis of all G1 and B-type cyclins in A. gossypii to determine whether …


Genetic And Molecular Analysis Of Phytochromes From The Filamentous Fungus Neurospora Crassa, Allan C. Froehlich, Bosl Noh, Richard D. Vierstra, Jennifer Loros, Jay C. Dunlap Dec 2005

Genetic And Molecular Analysis Of Phytochromes From The Filamentous Fungus Neurospora Crassa, Allan C. Froehlich, Bosl Noh, Richard D. Vierstra, Jennifer Loros, Jay C. Dunlap

Dartmouth Scholarship

Phytochromes (Phys) comprise a superfamily of red-/far-red-light-sensing proteins. Whereas higher-plant Phys that control numerous growth and developmental processes have been well described, the biochemical characteristics and functions of the microbial forms are largely unknown. Here, we describe analyses of the expression, regulation, and activities of two Phys in the filamentous fungus Neurospora crassa. In addition to containing the signature N-terminal domain predicted to covalently associate with a bilin chromophore, PHY-1 and PHY-2 contain C-terminal histidine kinase and response regulator motifs, implying that they function as hybrid two-component sensor kinases activated by light. A bacterially expressed N-terminal fragment of PHY-2 covalently …


Cell Cycle-Dependent Binding Of Yeast Heat Shock Factor To Nucleosomes, Christina Bourgeois Venturi, Alexander M. Erkine, David S. Gross Jan 2000

Cell Cycle-Dependent Binding Of Yeast Heat Shock Factor To Nucleosomes, Christina Bourgeois Venturi, Alexander M. Erkine, David S. Gross

Scholarship and Professional Work – COPHS

In the nucleus, transcription factors must contend with the presence of chromatin in order to gain access to their cognate regulatory sequences. As most nuclear DNA is assembled into nucleosomes, activators must either invade a stable, preassembled nucleosome or preempt the formation of nucleosomes on newly replicated DNA, which is transiently free of histones. We have investigated the mechanism by which heat shock factor (HSF) binds to target nucleosomal heat shock elements (HSEs), using as our model a dinucleosomal heat shock promoter (hsp82-ΔHSE1). We find that activated HSF cannot bind a stable, sequence-positioned nucleosome in G1-arrested …


Cooperative Binding Of Heat Shock Factor To The Yeast Hsp82 Promoter In Vivo And In Vitro, Alexander M. Erkine, Serena F. Magrogan, Edward A. Sekinger, David S. Gross Jan 1999

Cooperative Binding Of Heat Shock Factor To The Yeast Hsp82 Promoter In Vivo And In Vitro, Alexander M. Erkine, Serena F. Magrogan, Edward A. Sekinger, David S. Gross

Scholarship and Professional Work – COPHS

revious work has shown that heat shock factor (HSF) plays a central role in remodeling the chromatin structure of the yeastHSP82 promoter via constitutive interactions with its high-affinity binding site, heat shock element 1 (HSE1). The HSF-HSE1 interaction is also critical for stimulating both basal (noninduced) and induced transcription. By contrast, the function of the adjacent, inducibly occupied HSE2 and -3 is unknown. In this study, we examined the consequences of mutations in HSE1, HSE2, and HSE3 on HSF binding and transactivation. We provide evidence that in vivo, HSF binds to these three sites cooperatively. This cooperativity is seen …