30th Annual Student Research Conference
Effects of deletion of the ptl-1 gene in the developing epidermis of Caenorhabditis elegans.
Sonam A. Wangyal* and Jain Bushra
Dr. Stephanie Maiden, Faculty Mentor
The ptl-1 gene encodes a microtubule binding protein that has tau-like repeats and is therefore a part of the tau subfamily, which has been implicated in Alzheimer’s disease. ptl-1 maintains microtubule stability and assembly and affects neuronal integrity and axonal transport, but not much is understood in other cell types. Expression studies have hinted that tau is present in the epithelial cells of C. elegans. The RB809 strain of C. elegans contains a 1900 base pair deletion in the ptl-1 gene, which is being used to investigate if tau has a novel role in development of the outer epithelium in C. elegans. Using a feeding RNAi approach, other microtubule-associated protein genes are being knocked down in this strain to identify novel genetic interactions.
Keywords: C. elegans, microtubule , ptl-1/tau, RNAi
Topic(s):Biology
Presentation Type: Poster
Session: 6-
Location: GEO - SUB
Time: