Project Identifying the role of N-terminal methyltransferase in controlling cellular pathways Program Pharmacy Term Academic Year 2023 Status Accepted Research Area Genetics, Microbiology, Biology and Biochemistry Description Protein methylation is a well-established post-translational modification which can occur on various sites in a protein, but the role n-terminal methylation is relatively underexplored. The N-terminal methyltransferase enzymes responsible for N-terminal methylation appear to molecularly regulate proteins involved in ribosomal biogenesis and DNA association. This project aims to rectify the knowledge insufficiency in the role of n-terminal methylation by using a global approach to examine n-terminal protein methylation in yeast. This project will use an N-terminal yeast mutant strain library that results in altered methylation levels of potential substrates. The library will be subjected to various cellular stresses to identify how methylation controls these stress responses. Followup experiments will be conducted to assist in elucidating the function of methylation in the context of stress pathways. Supervisor Tony R Hazbun Mentor Type of work required Student will be utilizing basic microbiological and molecular biology techniques including working with microbial cultures, cloning, plasmid manipulations and PCR. Websites https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34382793/
https://www.mcmp.purdue.edu/faculty/thazbun
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1367593121000399
Qualifications GPA 3.5+, completed general biology and biochemistry courses, strong interest in research. Previous laboratory experience proffered but not required. Credit Hours 1 Weekly Hours 3 (estimated)