The Master's Level Graduate Research Conference is supported by the Office of Graduate Studies.
Enhancer of rudimentary, e(r), is a gene located on the X chromosome in Drosophila melanogaster that encodes a protein of 104 amino acids. E(r) is thought to play a role in pyrimidine biosynthesis, the cell cycle, the Notch signaling pathway, and neurogenesis. Previous work has identified the presence of an enhancer of e(r) transcription, in the upstream control region. An analysis of this region revealed a Zeste-binding site (CACTC), presenting the possibility that this site is the enhancer and that Zeste is an activator of e(r) transcription. Zeste is a transcription factor that has been shown to activate other genes, among them white and Ubx genes. To test the hypothesis that the Zeste-binding site is an enhancer of the e(r) gene, PCR mutagenesis was used to create an e(r) gene that was missing this sequence. The mutant transgene was ligated into the Drosophila transformation vector, pCasper4, and used to transform Drosophila. The mutant transgene was then tested for its ability to rescue the mutant phenotypes of an e(r) null mutation, e(r)27-1. Initial experiments reveal that the mutant transgene rescues the mutant phenotypes. Thus, while a Zeste-binding site is present in the control region of e(r), it does not appear to be an enhancer of e(r).
| Presenter: | Hannah Cushman (College at Brockport) -- hcush1@brockport.edu |
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| Topic: | Biology - Panel |
| Location: | 122 Hartwell |
| Time: | 10:50 am (Session II) |
