Re-wiring of gene expression in the meiotic state

概述：本项目探讨了当细胞进入减数分裂状态时，它会经历基因表达程序的彻底重新连接。一个更保守的观点是，减数分裂细胞与营养细胞大致相似，但表达额外的减数分裂特异性基因。我们探索了一个更激进的观点，即即使是在营养细胞和减数分裂细胞中表达的基因也以不同的方式表达，由减数分裂细胞中不同的转录因子调节。此外，减数分裂细胞可能比营养细胞使用更多的机制来控制基因表达。简而言之，当细胞从植物状态分化到减数分裂状态时，它们的基因表达程序被广泛地重新连接。我们将研究这种重新布线和新颖的减数分裂特异性调节机制。前三个项目使用酿酒酵母，分别研究减数分裂早期、中期和晚期的调控机制。第四个项目利用pombe，重点研究新的减数分裂调控机制。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Overview - This Program Project explores the idea that when a cell enters the meiotic state, it undergoes a radical re-wiring of gene expression programs. A more conservative view was that meiotic cells are broadly similar to vegetative cells, but express additional, meiosis-specific genes. We explore a more radical view in which even genes that are expressed in both vegetative and meiotic cells are expressed in a different fashion, regulated by different transcription factors in meiotic cells. Furthermore meiotic cells may use a larger repertoire of mechanisms to control gene expression than vegetative cells. In short, when cells differentiate from the vegetative state into the meiotic state, their gene expression programs are extensively re-wired. We will study this re-wiring, and novel, meiosis-specific regulatory mechanisms. The first three projects use S. cerevisiae, and focus on regulatory mechanisms in early, middle, and late meiosis, respectively. The fourth project uses S. pombe, and focuses on novel meiotic regulatory mechanisms. Projects. 1. Wiring of Gene Expression in the Early Meiotic Program (Dr. Futcher) 2. Meiotic Cdc7 switches and substrates, and the activation of Ndt80 (Dr. Hollingsworth) 3. Histone modification and Chromatin Switches in the Meiotic state (Drs. Neiman and Sternglanz) 4. Novel mechanisms of gene regulation in Meiosis: Antisense RNAs and RNA processing. (Dr. Leatherwood) The research Projects will be supported by a Microarray Core Facility, which will play a crucial role in all four projects.