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Articles 1 - 7 of 7
Full-Text Articles in Neuroscience and Neurobiology
Recovery From Social Isolation In Drosophila: The Role Of Dopamine And The Autism-Related Gene Nlg3., Ryley T. Yost
Recovery From Social Isolation In Drosophila: The Role Of Dopamine And The Autism-Related Gene Nlg3., Ryley T. Yost
Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository
Within a group, individuals establish their preferred distance from each other, or social space, a form of social behaviour. The resulting distance depends on the exchange of social cues from others that needs to be perceived and integrated within the organism’s neural circuitry. In humans, social spacing can be impaired in neuropsychiatric disorders such as autism and schizophrenia. When organisms are subject to social isolation, profound changes in social behaviour are observed in a variety of species from insects to mammals, including social space. However, the genetic and molecular mechanisms modulating a behavioural response to isolation and possible recovery remain …
Deciphering The Role Of Hsp110 Chaperones In Diseases Of Protein Misfolding, Unekwu M. Yakubu
Deciphering The Role Of Hsp110 Chaperones In Diseases Of Protein Misfolding, Unekwu M. Yakubu
Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)
Molecular chaperones maintain protein homeostasis (proteostasis) by ensuring the proper folding of polypeptides. Loss of proteostasis has been linked to the onset of numerous neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s disease. Hsp110 is a member of the Hsp70 class of molecular chaperones and acts as a nucleotide exchange factor (NEF) for Hsp70, the preeminent Hsp70-family protein folding chaperone. Hsp110 promotes rapid cycling of ADP for ATP, allowing Hsp70 to properly fold nascent or unfolded polypeptides in iterative cycles. In addition to its NEF activity, Hsp110 possesses an Hsp70-like substrate binding domain (SBD) whose biological roles are undefined. Previous work …
Mechanisms Of How Diet And Light Interact To Influence Drosophila Longevity Through The Eye, Charles H. Lau
Mechanisms Of How Diet And Light Interact To Influence Drosophila Longevity Through The Eye, Charles H. Lau
Natural Sciences and Mathematics | Biological Sciences Master's Theses
Previous studies in Drosophila melanogaster have established that overexposure to light damages photoreceptors and that photoreceptor degeneration contributes to shortened lifespans. However, the role of diet and circadian rhythms in the eye has not yet been elucidated. Many vital processes in the eye are regulated by circadian rhythms, and circadian misalignment has been proven as a driver of aging. In the eye, one of the most enriched circadian functions is phototransduction. Phototransduction plays a major role in the organism’s ability to detect light. Our lab has previously proven that Dietary Restrictions (DR) can play a role in amplifying circadian rhythms …
Detecting The Cold: Do Innexins Function In Cold Nociception?, Rachel Barborek
Detecting The Cold: Do Innexins Function In Cold Nociception?, Rachel Barborek
Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019
Nociception is the perception of and response to harmful stimuli. Nociception is essential for minimizing tissue damage, but aberrant nociceptive pathways can result in chronic pain. Chronic pain in the U.S. is commonly managed with wide-acting opioids, and precisely defining the components of nociceptive pathways could uncover novel targets for pain therapies. I hypothesize that the vitally quick process of nociception would utilize electrical synapses because they transmit signals between neurons more quickly than chemical synapses do. This study, therefore, aims to uncover the potential role of the eight Drosophila melanogaster gap junction proteins, the Innexins, in cold nociception. Wild …
The Role Of H3k4 Methyltransferases In Drosophila Memory, Nicholas Raun
The Role Of H3k4 Methyltransferases In Drosophila Memory, Nicholas Raun
Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository
Gene transcription required for long-term memory requires the modification of histones. However, there are still many uncertainties about the identity and spatial expression of genes regulated by histone modifications during memory related processes. In this project I examined the role of Drosophila melanogaster methyltransferases Set1 and trx in courtship memory. Genetic knockdown of Set1 and trx in the mushroom body (MB) revealed that Set1 was necessary for short- and long-term memory, while trx was only required for long-term memory. Transcriptional profiling of MBs following trx-knockdown revealed expression changes in MB-enriched genes and genes involved in RNA processing. Among the …
Large-Scale Identification Of Chemically Induced Mutations In Drosophila Melanogaster., Nele A Haelterman, Lichun Jiang, Yumei Li, Vafa Bayat, Hector Sandoval, Berrak Ugur, Kai Li Tan, Ke Zhang, Danqing Bei, Bo Xiong, Wu-Lin Charng, Theodore Busby, Adeel Jawaid, Gabriela David, Manish Jaiswal, Koen J T Venken, Shinya Yamamoto, Rui Chen, Hugo J Bellen
Large-Scale Identification Of Chemically Induced Mutations In Drosophila Melanogaster., Nele A Haelterman, Lichun Jiang, Yumei Li, Vafa Bayat, Hector Sandoval, Berrak Ugur, Kai Li Tan, Ke Zhang, Danqing Bei, Bo Xiong, Wu-Lin Charng, Theodore Busby, Adeel Jawaid, Gabriela David, Manish Jaiswal, Koen J T Venken, Shinya Yamamoto, Rui Chen, Hugo J Bellen
Faculty Publications
Forward genetic screens using chemical mutagens have been successful in defining the function of thousands of genes in eukaryotic model organisms. The main drawback of this strategy is the time-consuming identification of the molecular lesions causative of the phenotypes of interest. With whole-genome sequencing (WGS), it is now possible to sequence hundreds of strains, but determining which mutations are causative among thousands of polymorphisms remains challenging. We have sequenced 394 mutant strains, generated in a chemical mutagenesis screen, for essential genes on the Drosophila X chromosome and describe strategies to reduce the number of candidate mutations from an average of …
Nuclear Receptors In Ecdysone-Mediated Programmed Cell Death In Drosophila Melanogaster, Ritika Sehgal
Nuclear Receptors In Ecdysone-Mediated Programmed Cell Death In Drosophila Melanogaster, Ritika Sehgal
Masters Theses
The steroid hormone ecdysone plays vital roles during Drosophila development. Pulses of 20E during Drosophila life cycle function as temporal cues, signaling the onset of metamorphic processes, including the stage specific programmed cell death of larval tissues. Ecdysone is the critical developmental cue orchestrating the metamorphic reformation of CNS, resulting in the formation of adult-specific neural circuitry. Ecdysone signaling is transduced by a heterodimeric receptor complex formed between two nuclear receptors: EcR and Ultraspiracle (USP). There are 18 nuclear receptors known in Drosophila and EcR is the only receptor whose functions in neuronal PCD have been well recognized. Therefore, the …