Cell Biology Commons^™

The Role Of Elongin B In Drosophila Melanogaster Muscle Development, Madelyne Dayan

Student Theses and Dissertations

Muscle atrophy is a result of a number of muscle diseases, as well as aging, disuse, and infections. Muscles weakened in these ways exhibit a characteristic decrease in size, strength, and mobility. The similarities between muscle in humans and Drosophila allow for direct comparisons to be made in vertebrates from studying muscle in Drosophila. Differential gene expression has been shown to play an important role in embryonic muscle development in Drosophila melanogaster. A previous study identified Elongin B (EloB) to be involved in somatic muscle morphogenesis in Drosophila, with mutant embryos displaying severe muscle defects, including thin, mis-attached, and missing …

The Role Of Edc3 In Drosophila Melanogaster Neuronal Development, Keelan Zius

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Enhancer of mRNA-decay 3 (Edc3) is a component of multiple decapping complexes that regulates the transcriptome by targeting a subset of transcripts for decapping for 5’-to-3’ messenger RNA (mRNA) decay. A missense mutation in the conserved Lsm domain of Edc3 has been reported in two siblings presenting with mild, non-syndromic intellectual disability (ID), however, the role of Edc3 is neuronal development has never been evaluated. Here, we use the Drosophila melanogaster model system to investigate the effects of Edc3 disruption on neuronal development. We found Edc3 reduction leads to significant hyperplasia at the larval neuromuscular junction (NMJ), providing the first …

Morphological Remodeling Of The Endoplasmic Reticulum During Mitosis And Its Influence On The Integrity Of The Spindle Apparatus, Katie R. Rollins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER) is the largest organelle in the cell by surface area and forms contacts with other organelles throughout the cell. In recent work, the ER has been implicated in numerous processes within the cell beyond its canonical roles of protein synthesis and calcium storage. The ER also undergoes a remarkable transition in morphology during cell division, with mitotic divisions requiring a massive remodeling of various membranous organelles such as the nuclear envelope and Golgi. However, whether changes in ER behaviors modulate mitotic events is less clear. The rapid cleavage divisions in the early Drosophila embryo are a …

Neuronal Lrp4 Directs The Development, Maturation And Cytoskeletal Organization Of Drosophila Peripheral Synapses, Alison Depew, Joseph Bruckner, Kate O'Connor-Giles, Timothy Mosca

Student Papers, Posters & Projects

Synaptic development requires multiple signaling pathways to ensure successful connections. Transmembrane receptors are optimally positioned to connect the synapse and the rest of the neuron, often acting as synaptic organizers to synchronize downstream events. One such organizer, the LDL receptor-related protein LRP4, is a cell surface receptor that has been most well-studied postsynaptically at mammalian neuromuscular junctions. Recent work, however, identified emerging roles, but how LRP4 acts as a presynaptic organizer and the downstream mechanisms of LRP4 are not well understood. Here, we show that LRP4 functions presynaptically at Drosophila neuromuscular synapses, acting in motoneurons to instruct pre- and postsynaptic …

Examining Transcriptional Regulators During Muscle Development In Drosophila Melanogaster, Chaamy Yapa

Student Theses and Dissertations

In Drosophila melanogaster embryos, a distinct approach to study the transcriptional regulation is to examine the larval somatic muscle development. Transcription factors are essential regulatory proteins that help to control gene expression and respond to signaling pathways and various cues. Today, there are at least twenty transcription factors that have been discovered to contribute to the development of the 30 distinct larval somatic muscles in each abdominal hemisegment of Drosophila melanogaster. Several studies have already been conducted on muscle regulatory transcription factors including midline and apterous. These transcription factors were shown to control the development of muscles through mutant …

A Neuromuscular Look Into Genetics Of Muscle Aging, Christina Talley

Master of Science in Integrative Biology Theses

As individuals age throughout their life, they experience muscle tissue loss that impacts their quality of life such as a decrease in their physical capabilities and sometimes even their mental capacity. The process of muscle aging is the key point of this study. This involves the individual’s muscles and the motor neurons that control them. Skeletal muscles are used daily to maintain posture, stand, walk, etc. Throughout a lifetime these muscles undergo damage and need to be repaired. When the muscles are repaired, they express physical changes. The tissue shrinks in size and eventually the composition of the tissue is …

Mapping And Characterization Of Mutagen Sensitivity Genes In Drosophila Malanogaster, Alexis Nystrom

Graduate Theses

The information contained within DNA is vital to directing all biological processes. All organisms have repair mechanisms in place to repair DNA damage quickly and efficiently. Without these repair pathways, DNA can acquire harmful mutations that can compromise the survival of an organism. Studies of DNA repair in Drosophila melanogaster have focused on mutagen sensitive (mus) mutants, each of which contain a mutation that renders them incapable of performing DNA repair. Since a majority of these mus genes are unmapped, the goal of this project was to determine what genes in the Drosophila melanogaster genome are mus106 and mus108. Presence …

Regulation Of A Messenger: Raising Oskar, It Takes A Village, Livia V. Bayer

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

D. melanogaster oogenesis serves as an excellent system to study the life of an mRNA. Tremendous work has been done to understand the numerous complex mechanisms of mRNA regulation, still there is still so much that is yet to be discovered. In this thesis, I present studies I carried out to address several aspects of oskar mRNA post-transcriptional regulation. Leading me to extend our current understanding of the carefully controlled regulation of oskar mRNA life cycle via a myriad of proteins. I found that a specific NPC component, Nup154 is necessary not only for its export from the nucleus, but …

Quantification Of Dynamic Epithelial Sheet Architecture In Botryllus Schlosseri Using 2-D & 3-D Image Analysis, Roopa Madhu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Epithelial tubules form critical structures in various body tissues; how- ever, since they are difficult to access experimentally, their architecture and dynamics are not well understood. Here we examine the dynamic remodeling of epithelial tubes in vivo using a novel and uniquely accessible model system: the extracorporeal vasculature of Botryllus schlosseri (sea squirt). In Botryllus, massive retraction of blood vessels can be triggered without loss of barrier function, through (i) disrupting collagen crosslinking in the basement membrane using β-aminopropionitrile (BAPN); or (ii) disrupting the integrin pathway through inhibition of focal adhesion kinase (FAK). We performed stereographic projections of 3-dimensional …

Variations On A Theme: Intricacies Of Unanchored Poly-Ubiquitin Signaling And Toxicity, Jessica Renee Blount-Pacheco

Wayne State University Dissertations

Ubiquitin is an 8.5 kDa post-translational modifier involved in essentially all eukaryotic cellular processes. Through a process called ubiquitination, ubiquitinating enzymes chemically attach ubiquitin to substrate proteins to control their fates, resulting in anything from their recruitment into signaling pathways to their proteasomal degradation, with a plethora of possibilities in between. Ubiquitin molecules can also be attached to one another, resulting in poly-ubiquitin chains with various effects depending on the number of ubiquitin molecules and the specific amino acid residues used to link them together. While most poly-ubiquitin in the cell exists as conjugated species, there are also untethered poly-ubiquitin …

Launching The Next Generation : Transcriptional Regulation During Oogenesis, Alicia K. Mccarthy

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Germ cells give rise to gametes and link generations by passing genetic information from parent to offspring. Gametes arise from, in many sexually reproducing organisms, germline stem cells (GSCs) which are set aside early during development. GSCs have an amazing capacity to undergo self-renewal to give rise to a pool of undifferentiated cells, while also differentiating to generate specialized germ cells such as haploid gametes. Upon female GSC differentiation, mitotically dividing germ cells can initiate meiosis, and mature within a follicle. During maturation, the specified oocyte is provided with a trust fund of RNAs and proteins for the next generation …

Investigating The Role Of Free Radicals In Huntington's Disease Using Drosophila Melanogaster, Jennifer Libov

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

During normal cell metabolism, reactive oxygen species (ROS) are produced as a byproduct of oxidative phosphorylation. ROS are utilized in the cell as a signaling molecule and can be maintained at healthy levels by cellular antioxidants. However, when the cell experiences oxidative stress due to environmental or genetic conditions, levels of ROS can exceed healthy levels and inhibit necessary life functions by damaging biomolecules and cellular structures. This loss of function can lead to physiological decline and neurodegeneration, such as in diseases like Alzheimer’s, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and, potentially, Huntington’s disease. The following experiments use the model genetic organism …

Fatty Acid Amides And Their Biosynthetic Enzymes Found In Insect Model Systems, Ryan L. Anderson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A fatty acid amide is precisely as the name suggests: A fatty acid (CHn-COOH), in which the hydroxyl group of the carboxylic acid is displaced by an amine functional group from a biogenic amine (R-NH2), ultimately forming an amide bond. Furthermore, these fatty acid amides can be composed of a variety of different acyl chain lengths donated by the fatty acid and a myriad of different biogenic amines. Thus, these molecules can be subdivided in a number of different ways including the separation of short chain (acetyl to heptanoyl) and long chain (palmitoyl to arachidonoyl) and also based off the …

Regulated Transcriptional Silencing Promotes Germline Stem Cell Differentiation In Drosophila Melanogaster, Pooja Flora

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Germ cells are the only cell in an organism that have the capacity to give rise to a new organism and are passed from one generation to the next. Therefore, to maintain this unique ability of totipotency and immortality, germ cells execute specific functions, such as, repression of a somatic program and contour a germ line-specific pre- and post-transcriptional gene regulatory landscape. In many sexually reproducing organisms, germ cells are formed during the earliest stages of embryogenesis and undergoes several stages of development to eventually get encapsulated by the somatic cells of the gonad. Once, in the gonad, the germ …

Chromatin-Signaling Axis Orchestrates The Formation Of Germline Stem Cell Differentiation Niche In Drosophila, Maitreyi Upadhyay

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Stem cells have the unique capability of self-renewing into stem cells and differentiating into several terminal cell types. Loss of either of these processes can lead to aging, progression towards degenerative diseases and cancers. Insight into how self-renewal and differentiation are regulated will have tremendous therapeutic impact. Drosophila is an excellent model system for stem cell study due to the availability of various mutants, markers and RNAi technology. In order to study stem cell biology, we use female Drosophila gonads, whose stem cell population – the germline stem cells (GSCs) gives rise to gametes.

An Undergraduate Cell Biology Lab: Western Blotting To Detect Proteins From Drosophila Eye, Neha Gogia, Ankita Sarkar, Amit Singh

Biology Faculty Publications

We have developed an undergraduate laboratory to allow detection and localization of proteins in the compound eye of Drosophila melanogaster, a.k.a fruit fly. This lab was a part of the undergraduate curriculum of the cell biology laboratory course aimed to demonstrate the use of Western Blotting technique to study protein localization in the adult eye of Drosophila. Western blotting, a two-day laboratory exercise, can be used to detect the presence of proteins of interests from total protein isolated from a tissue. The first day involves isolation of proteins from the tissue and SDS-PAGE (sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide) gel …

Real-Time Quantitative Pcr To Demonstrate Gene Expression In An Undergraduate Lab, Abijeet Singh Mehta, Amit Singh

Biology Faculty Publications

The objective of this teaching note is to develop a laboratory exercise, which allows students to get a hands-on experience of a molecular biology technique to analyze gene expression. The short duration of the biology laboratory for an undergraduate curriculum is the biggest challenge with the development of new labs. An important part of cell biology or molecular biology undergraduate curriculum is to study gene expression. There are many labs to study gene expression in qualitative manner. The commonly used reporter gene expression studies are primarily qualitative. However, there is no hands-on experience exercise to quantitatively determine gene expression. Therefore, …

Physiology And Genetics Of Starvation-Selected Drosophila Melanogaster, Christopher Michael Hardy

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In nature, organisms have evolved to survive in stressful environments. This has driven organisms to adopt a wide range of unique adaptations. Investigating the mechanistic basis of these adaptations is an important tool for discovery that has led to major advances in science and medicine.

We study how organisms survive life without food, or starvational stress. Environmental stressors have shaped the quantity and quality of food sources across the globe. This has led to vast differences in the ability of some organisms to tolerate starvation over others. Many researchers have used Drosophila melanogaster as a model to study global patterns …

Regulation Of Synaptogenesis By The Mirna Pathway And Fmr/P Bodies, Jacqueline Rochelle Furlong

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Post-transcriptional regulation of mRNA is facilitated by different mechanisms, such as microRNA (miRNA) induced gene silencing or fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP) mediated repression either independent of or acting through cytoplasmic RNA Processing bodies (P bodies). DPTP99A, Lar, and Wg have known functions during synaptogenesis and may be targets of miR-8. Here, we provide evidence that miR-8 regulates DPTP99A in vitro. Non-endogenous miR-8 expressed using an UAS driver regulates Lar. Endogenous miR-8 may regulate DPTP99A in vivo. Here we show that FMRP is capable of colocalizing with the P body components: DCP1, HPat, and Me31B, but not …

Investigation Of Nuclear And Cytoplasmic Functions Of The Dlipin Protein Of Drosophila Melanogaster, Qiuyu Chen

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Lipin family proteins are highly conserved proteins present in species ranging from mammals to yeast. Lipin 1, the first Lipin gene identified in fatty liver dystrophy (fld) mutant mice, encodes the bifunctional protein Lipin 1, which can serve as an Mg2+-dependent phosphatidic acid phosphatase (PAP) and transcriptional co-regulator. dLipin, the single Lipin ortholog of Drosophila melanogaster, is required in triglyceride synthesis and fat body development. To study the transcriptional co-regulator activity of dLipin, nuclear receptors were screened to find receptors that interact with dLipin. The genetic interaction data indicated that Drosophila hepatic nuclear receptor 4 (HNF4) was a promising candidate …

Dikar-Induced Synthetic Lethality In A Drosophila Model Of Cag Repeat Diseases Does Not Result From An Expression Feedback Loop, Daniel Camacho

Honors Scholar Theses

Human CAG repeat diseases manifest themselves through the common pathology of neurodeneration. This pathological link is attributed to the property shared by all nine of these diseases: an expanded polyglutamine (polyQ) tract. The most evident result of polyQ expansion is protein aggregation, and it is believed that this phenomenon is partly responsible for conferring cytotoxic properties on the mutated protein. Apart from sequestering the mutated protein, cellular aggregates are able to incorporate native proteins via polyQ-mediated aggregation, thus disrupting important cellular pathways. Using Drosophila melanogaster as a disease model, researchers have been able to compile collections of these so-called disease …

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 …

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 …

Modification Of Ontogenic Expression Due To Relocation Of The Ry+ Gene In Drosophila Melanogaster, Allen A. Badgett Jr.

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The ry⁺ gene of Drosophila melanogaster and its associated enzyme, xanthine dehydrogenase, were employed in an analysis of the relationship between regulation and the location of a gene in the genome. Enzyme assays as an indication of gene activity were performed on genotypes containing zero, one and two doses of ry⁺ genes. Xanthine dehydrogenase activity of rosy genes in normal and relocated positions was determined during development.

The results indicate: 1) the gene ry⁺ is differentially active during ontogeny; 2) the activity during ontogeny is proportional to the number of ry⁺ genes present in the genome; …

Spermiogenesis In Two Male-Sterile Third-Chromosome Mutants Of Drosophila Melanogaster, Richard F. Wilkinson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

An ultrastructural study of sperm differentiation was made on two male-sterile mutants of Drosophila melanogaster. The mutations were induced on the third chromosome with the monoalkylating agent ethyl methanesulfonate and were maintained in stock cultures over a balancer chromosome using a system of multiple inversions. The stages of sperm differentiation, a most dramatic form of cellular differentiation, were then studied at the electron microscope level to determine the effect of the mutations on sperm structure and to correlate those changes with normal sperm development.

Studies of the genetic control of cellular differentiation have been hampered by difficulties in devising …