CAREER: The Role of Vesicular Transport on the Function and Biogenesis of the Contractile Vacuole in Dictyostelium Discoideum

摘要作为哺乳动物肾脏的亚细胞模型，可收缩液泡已被研究了很长时间。在原生动物和其他原始动物中，它是维持生物体内水和离子平衡的重要细胞器。据推测，对其结构和功能的研究将有助于了解更复杂的系统是如何进化到在高等动物中执行相同功能的。本研究利用盘状盘齿龙的遗传学研究了一种特殊的GTPase （Rab11）在收缩液泡生物发生中的作用。先前的研究表明，这种蛋白定位于可收缩的液泡，并且根据对Rab在其他系统中的功能的研究，可能在调节进出该室的囊泡交通中很重要。这些研究将利用许多遗传方法来研究正常和突变版本的Rab11如何影响液泡的生物发生。进一步的研究将评估其他Rab相关蛋白在Rab控制液泡生物发生和功能中的重要可能性。* * *

9734093 Bush Abstract The contractile vacuole has long been studied as a subcellular model for the mammalian kidney. In Protozoans and other primitive animals where it is found, it is an essential organelle that maintains water and ion homeostasis within the organism. Presumably, study of its structure and function will provide insights into how more complex systems have evolved to perform these same functions in higher animals. This proposal exploits the genetics of Dictyostelium discoideum to study the role of a particular GTPase (Rab11) in the biogenesis of the contractile vacuole. Previous studies have shown that this protein is localized to the contractile vacuole and, arguing from studies of Rab function in other systems, is probably important in the regulation of vesicle traffic to and from this compartment. The studies will utilize a number of genetic approaches to study how normal and mutant versions of Rab11 influence the biogenesis of the vacuole. Additional studies will evaluate the possibility that other Rab-associated proteins are important in Rab control of vacuole biogenesis and function. ***