Detailed functional analysis of gamete recognition protein interactions

描述(由申请人提供)：鉴定相互作用的雄性和雌性生殖蛋白对于理解受精的分子是必不可少的。通常，分子描述依赖于对雄性生殖蛋白的研究。这项研究计划的目的是描述鲍鱼中相互作用的雄性和雌性生殖蛋白，这是一个系统，在这个系统中，许多受精的分子细节已经被很好地建立起来，并作为研究生殖分子和物种特有受精进化的模型。提出了与鲍鱼相关的三个特定目标：目的1.配子识别蛋白之间相互作用的生化分析。目的2.通过分析ZP糖蛋白相互作用对VE超分子结构的分子描述。目的3.鲍鱼精子蛋白质组学及新发现的配子识别蛋白的功能分析。提出的这项研究具有创新性，因为它是高度集成的，利用了基因组、蛋白质组、生化和计算方法。这项工作将测试精子和卵子分子之间直接功能相互作用的证据。精子-卵子相互作用的功能特异性有待进一步研究。总之，这些研究目的代表着我们在理解精子和卵子之间的分子相互作用、编码精子/卵子蛋白的基因的进化动力学方面取得了重大进展，并将有助于更广泛地理解生殖基因的功能和进化。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The identification of interacting male-female reproductive proteins is imperative for a molecular understanding of fertilization. Generally, the molecular descriptions have relied upon studies of male reproductive proteins. This research proposal is aimed at characterizing interacting male- female reproductive proteins in abalone, a system with for which many of the molecular details of fertilization are well established and one that serves as a model for the study of reproductive molecules and evolution of species-specific fertilization. Three specific aims relating to abalone are proposed: Aim 1. Biochemical analysis of interactions among gamete recognition proteins. Aim 2. Molecular description of VE supramolecular structure through analysis of ZP glycoprotein interactions. Aim 3. Abalone sperm proteome and functional analysis of a newly discovered novel gamete recognition protein. The research proposed is innovative in that it is highly integrative, utilizing genomic, proteomic, biochemical, and computational methods. This work will test for evidence of direct functional interactions between sperm and egg molecules. The functional specificity sperm-egg interaction will be further investigated. Together these research aims represent a significant advancement in our understanding of the molecular interactions between sperm and egg, the evolutionary dynamics of genes encoding sperm/egg proteins, and will contribute to a broader understanding of the function and evolution of reproductive genes.