(1-3)-B-D-Glucan Synthase of Neurospora crassa

真菌的分化是碳水化合物聚合物从头合成及其随后组装形成细胞壁的直接结果。所有可用的信息清楚地表明，细胞壁组装是这些生物形态形成的关键决定因素。在丝状真菌中，细胞壁组装发生在每个菌丝顶端，导致极化生长和延伸。虽然细胞壁结构的一般特征是已知的，但只有细胞壁组装的一些细节已经阐明。这部分是由于缺乏适当的突变体进行基因解剖。（1-3）- β - d -葡聚糖合成酶活性催化线性(1-3)- β -葡聚糖的形成。葡聚糖合成酶活性对于正常细胞壁组装和大量不同酵母和丝状真菌的生长发育至关重要。Selitrennikoff博士提出了一种丝状子囊菌的葡聚糖合成酶的详细特征，神经孢子虫。这包括：i)溶解酶活性的纯化和表征。ii)分离酶合成葡聚糖的活性表征。iii)葡聚糖合成酶突变体分析。这种生物化学和遗传方法的结合将使我们对(1,3)- β -葡聚糖合成酶及其在发育和形态发生中的作用的理解取得重大进展。

Differentiation in fungi is a direct consequence of de novo synthesis of carbohydrate polymers and their subsequent assembly, forming a cell wall. All available information clearly shows that cell wall assembly is the key morphogenic determinant for these organisms. in filamentous fungi, cell wall assembly occurs at each hyphal apex resulting in polarized growth and extension. Although the general features of cell wall structure are known, only a few details of cell wall assembly have been elucidated. This is due, in part, to the lack of appropriate mutants for genetic dissection. (1-3)-beta-D-glucan synthase activity catalyzes the formation of a linear (1-3)-beta-glucan. Glucan synthase activity is essential for normal cell wall assembly and resulting growth and development of a large number of diverse yeasts and filamentous fungi. Dr. Selitrennikoff proposes the detailed characterization of glucan synthase of a filamentous Ascomycete, Neurospora crassa. This includes: i) The purification and characterization of solubilized enzyme activity. ii) The characterization of glucan synthesis of isolated enzyme activity. iii) The analysis of glucan synthase mutants. %%% This combination of biochemical and genetic approaches will lead to significant gains in our understanding of (1,3)-beta-glucan synthase and its role in development and morphogenesis.