Genetic and Molecular Dissection of Meiotic Silencing by Unpaired DNA

不配对 DNA 减数分裂沉默的遗传和分子解析

• 批准号: 1157942
• 负责人: Patrick Shiu
• 金额: $ 59.97万
• 依托单位: University of Missouri-Columbia
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2012
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2012-06-01 至 2017-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1157942&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Genetic; Molecular; Dissection; Meiotic; Silencing

In many organisms, genome surveillance systems are present to control the gene expression and spread of viruses and other selfish DNA elements. The goal of this project is to elucidate the underlying mechanism of a phenomenon termed Meiotic Silencing by Unpaired DNA (MSUD), a gene silencing system in the orange bread mold Neurospora crassa. In this system, the cell examines the pairing of genes with their partners during reproduction; any gene that is present in one parental chromosome but not the other is inactivated. As the fungus behind the Nobel Prize-winning "one gene-one enzyme hypothesis", N. crassa is an ideal organism for studying MSUD due to its wide mutant selections, the availability of its full genome sequence, and its long history of gene silencing research. As with fungi, DNA lacking a pairing partner in worms, mice, and humans are also targeted for silencing during development. The study of MSUD will provide valuable insights into the role of unpaired DNA in gene silencing in fungi and higher organisms. The objectives of this research are to characterize mutants defective in MSUD and examine genes that are important for this process.Broader impact: To broaden the participation of underrepresented groups, the investigators of this project will recruit and train undergraduate students from their own university as well as from other non-Ph.D.-granting and minority-serving institutions (through a variety of campus and NSF diversity programs). Research activities from this work will be used to develop lesson plans for various outreach projects. Efforts will also be made to promote scientific literacy and interdisciplinary partnership.

在许多生物体中，存在基因组监视系统来控制病毒和其他自私 DNA 元件的基因表达和传播。 该项目的目标是阐明不配对 DNA 减数分裂沉默 (MSUD) 现象的根本机制，这是橙色面包霉菌粗糙脉孢菌中的一种基因沉默系统。 在这个系统中，细胞在繁殖过程中检查基因与其伴侣的配对；存在于一条亲代染色体中但不存在于另一条染色体中的任何基因都会失活。 作为诺贝尔奖获得者“一基因一酶假说”背后的真菌，粗糙脉孢菌因其广泛的突变体选择、完整的基因组序列的可用性以及其悠久的基因沉默研究历史而成为研究MSUD的理想生物。 与真菌一样，蠕虫、小鼠和人类中缺乏配对伴侣的 DNA 也在发育过程中成为沉默的目标。 MSUD 的研究将为真菌和高等生物中不配对 DNA 在基因沉默中的作用提供有价值的见解。 这项研究的目的是确定 MSUD 缺陷突变体的特征，并检查对该过程重要的基因。 更广泛的影响：为了扩大代表性不足的群体的参与，该项目的研究人员将从他们自己的大学以及其他非博士学位授予机构和少数族裔服务机构（通过各种校园和 NSF 多样性计划）招募和培训本科生。 这项工作的研究活动将用于制定各种外展项目的课程计划。 还将努力提高科学素养和跨学科伙伴关系。