Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 3 of 3
Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Disruption Of Rna Metabolism By Zika Virus, Maggie Lea Dickerson
Disruption Of Rna Metabolism By Zika Virus, Maggie Lea Dickerson
Honors Theses
Flaviviruses are positive, single-stranded, enveloped RNA viruses that are a part of the family, Flaviviridae. West Nile virus, Dengue, Zika virus and more are a part of this family. Mosquitoes are the vectors for these viruses. In order for the virus to infect mosquitoes, it must evade the RNA interference (RNAi), which is the major antiviral immune mechanism of insects. One study found the 3’ untranslated region (UTR) of the West Nile virus that inhibited the RNAi (GP et al. 2016). The goal of this study is to investigate if the 3’ and 5’ UTR region of the Zika virus …
Functional Significance Of Branch Points In Mirtrons, Britton A. Strickland
Functional Significance Of Branch Points In Mirtrons, Britton A. Strickland
Honors Theses
MicroRNAs are a heterogeneous group of small regulatory RNAs generated by many pathways. Mirtrons (miR) are a class of microRNAs produced by splicing, and some mirtrons contain a 3’ tail located downstream from the self-complementary hairpin. During RNA splicing, a loop-like “lariat” intermediate structure is created when the 5’ end of the RNA is attached to an adenine called the branch point. The goal of this project is to uncover the contribution of branch point location to the processing of tailed mirtrons into functional gene regulators. This project approaches this issue from two directions. First, branch points were identified by …
Drosophila T-Box Transcription Factor Midline Functions In The Notch-Delta Signaling Pathway To Regulate Sensory Organ Precursor Cell Fate And Cell Survival And Embryonic Development Profile Of Midline, Senseless, And Achaete In The Cns And Pns, Joseph D. Saucier
Honors Theses
The gene mid of Drosophila is a highly conserved gene that codes for a T-box transcription factor with similar functionality to its vertebrate homolog Tbx20. Mid and Tbx20 are important for their roles in heart and CNS development. Additionally, these transcription factors aid in proper eye development but this area of research is vastly understudied. This study uses the eye of Drosophila to report that mid and its paralog H15 expression aid in the specification of sensory organ precursor (SOP) cell fates and cell survival in the pupal eye imaginal disc. Using RNAi interference to reduce mid expression resulted in …