Functional characterization and regulation of pumilio proteins

转录后基因调控通过影响mRNA的稳定性和翻译来决定蛋白质的产生量。这个过程对于细胞在不断变化的环境中适应和生存是必不可少的。Pumilio （Puf）蛋白家族是直接与mrna亚群相互作用以诱导其周转并抑制其翻译的关键调节因子。然而，我们对这些蛋白质功能的理解仍然有限。我们的目标是在裂变酵母模型系统中应用遗传学、细胞生物学、生物化学和功能基因组学的强大组合，通过确定其mRNA靶点、转录后控制模式和蛋白质伴侣来阐明Puf蛋白在特定环境条件下的功能。我们的观点是，这项研究将为细胞对环境的反应中基因的转录后调控提供新的机制见解。因为基因的功能从酵母到人类是高度保守的，这些研究应该在方法和内容上与人类生物学相关。

Posttranscriptional gene regulation determines the amount of protein produced by affecting mRNA stability and translation. This process is essential for cells to adapt and survive in changing environments. The Pumilio (Puf) protein family are key regulators that interact directly with a subset of mRNAs to induce their turnover and repress their translation. However, our understanding of how these proteins function remains limited. Our goal is to apply a powerful combination of genetics, cell biology, biochemistry and functional genomics in the fission yeast model system to elucidate Puf protein function in specific environmental conditions by the determination of their mRNA targets, mode of posttranscriptional control and protein partners. Our view is that this research will lead to novel mechanistic insights in the posttranscriptional regulation of genes in the cell's response to the environment. Because the function of genes is highly conserved from yeast to humans, these studies should be relevant in approach and content to human biology.