38th Annual Student Research Conference
Phosphorylation of ZIPT-7.1 on Caenorhabditis elegans sperm activation
Trace N. Ackley
Dr. Stephanie Maiden, Faculty Mentor
Sperm maturation is important for proper fertilization during sexual reproduction. A large influx of zinc ions into the spermatids is essential for this maturation process. Our lab uses the Caenorhabditis elegans ZIPT-7.1 zinc transporter as a model to understand this process. The present project focuses on how ZIPT-7.1 may be activated via phosphorylation. We first determined the possible phosphorylation sites by using the NetPhos program, which gave the mathematical probability of an amino acid becoming phosphorylated. Sequences of orthologous proteins were then compared to C. elegans through a multiple sequence alignment. The amino acids with the highest probability of phosphorylation and high conservation between orthologs were chosen for targeted gene editing using the CRISPR-Cas9 system to prevent phosphorylation at the site. As of now, we have successfully completed control trials, for both edits and sperm activation assays, and are actively seeking positive experimental edits.
Keywords: Sperm
Topic(s):Biology
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation
Session: 400-23
Location: SUB Activities Room
Time: 8:00