Honors College | Scholars Week Theses Presentations
PAM-1 and autophagy pathways intersect to regulate gametogenesis in Caenorhabditis elegans
Academic Level at Time of Presentation
Senior
Major
Biology/Biomedical Science
Minor
Chemistry
List all Project Mentors & Advisor(s)
Chris Trzepacz, PhD
Presentation Format
Oral Presentation
Abstract/Description
Autophagy, the cell's recycling system, is a highly-conserved survival mechanism of the cell. Autophagy has been implicated in the mediation of the removal of cytotoxic aggregates, such as those linked to neurodegenerative disorders such as Huntington's and Alzheimer's disease. Studies in several model organisms have identified numerous genes involved in mediating autophagy, including the Puromycin sensitive aminopeptidase (Psa). The Caenorhabditis elegans orthologue of Psa, pam-1, also governs fertility. Along with apoptosis, a form of regulated cell death, autophagy has been found to be required for efficient C. elegans embryogenesis. We have examined the involvement of PAM-1 in the autophagic regulation of gametogenesis. Through suppression of C. elegans autophagy genes, we observed changes in pam-1 influenced fertility metrics and have examined expression patterns of PAM-1 under suppression of autophagy, stimulation of autophagy, and under normal physiological conditions. Our results can provide insight into autophagic regulation and C. elegans oogenesis, and by extension, these processes in higher eukaryotes such as ourselves.
Affiliations
Honors Thesis
PAM-1 and autophagy pathways intersect to regulate gametogenesis in Caenorhabditis elegans
Autophagy, the cell's recycling system, is a highly-conserved survival mechanism of the cell. Autophagy has been implicated in the mediation of the removal of cytotoxic aggregates, such as those linked to neurodegenerative disorders such as Huntington's and Alzheimer's disease. Studies in several model organisms have identified numerous genes involved in mediating autophagy, including the Puromycin sensitive aminopeptidase (Psa). The Caenorhabditis elegans orthologue of Psa, pam-1, also governs fertility. Along with apoptosis, a form of regulated cell death, autophagy has been found to be required for efficient C. elegans embryogenesis. We have examined the involvement of PAM-1 in the autophagic regulation of gametogenesis. Through suppression of C. elegans autophagy genes, we observed changes in pam-1 influenced fertility metrics and have examined expression patterns of PAM-1 under suppression of autophagy, stimulation of autophagy, and under normal physiological conditions. Our results can provide insight into autophagic regulation and C. elegans oogenesis, and by extension, these processes in higher eukaryotes such as ourselves.