Minority Predoctoral Fellowship Program

描述（由申请人提供）：细胞通过触发第二信使（如钙）水平的变化而对细胞外刺激产生应答，所述第二信使随后激活生理应答的细胞内介质（如钙调蛋白）。了解钙调素相关蛋白的功能对于阐明生物体内的信号转导机制具有重要意义。本研究的目的是确定拟南芥钙调素相关蛋白TCH2的生理生化功能。TCH2 mRNA在触摸、风、创伤和黑暗中积累（Braam和Davis，1990）。TCH2蛋白与钙调蛋白具有44%的同一性（Khan et al.，1997），表明Ca 2+在TCH 2功能中的作用。有人提出，TCH2是由Ca2+激活，并参与调节信号通路，将外部刺激转化为生理反应。为了检验这一假设，将寻找并表征TCH2突变体以确定TCH2的生理功能。TCH2的生化作用将通过筛选编码以Ca2+依赖方式结合TCH2的蛋白质的基因来探索。这项研究将提供关于细胞如何使用Ca2+来感知和响应细胞外刺激的见解。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Cells mount responses to extracellular stimuli by triggering changes in levels of second messengers, such as calcium, which then activate intracellular mediators of physiological response, such as calmodulin. Understanding how calmodulin-related proteins function will be valuable for elucidating signal transduction mechanisms in organisms.The purpose of this research is to determine the physiological and biochemical functions of the Arabidopsis calmodulin-related protein, TCH2. TCH2 mRNA accumulates in response to touch, wind, wounding, and darkness (Braam and Davis, 1990). TCH2 protein is 44% identical to calmodulin (Khan et al., 1997), suggesting a role for Ca2+ in TCH2 function. It is proposed that TCH2 is activated by Ca2+ and is involved in regulating a signaling pathway that translates external stimuli into a physiological response. To test this hypothesis, TCH2 mutants will be sought and characterized to determine the physiological function of TCH2. The biochemical role of TCH2 will be explored by screening for genes that encode proteins that bind TCH2 in a Ca2+-dependent manner. This research will provide insight as to how cells use Ca2+ to sense and respond to extracellular stimuli.