Location
Innovation Lab Atrium
Start Date
4-2-2025 2:00 PM
End Date
4-2-2025 3:30 PM
Presentation Date
2 April 2025, 2:00pm - 3:30pm
Biography
Katharine is a junior from Saint Louis, pursuing a degree in Chemistry with an emphasis in Biochemistry, and a degree in Biological Sciences. She is interested in pursuing academic research after graduation, ideally in drug target discovery and cancer research. She enjoys spending time in the lab, and learning new techniques, and drawing and writing outside of school and research. She was drawn to this project due to its real-world implications in human health.
Meeting Name
2025 - Miners Solving for Tomorrow Research Conference
Department(s)
Biological Sciences
Document Type
Poster
Document Version
Final Version
File Type
event
Language(s)
English
Rights
© 2025 The Authors, All rights reserved
Included in
Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology Commons, Cell and Developmental Biology Commons
Cytokinesis & DBF2
Innovation Lab Atrium
Comments
Advisor: Katie Shannon
Abstract:
The Mitotic Exit Network (MEN) is a pathway that allows dividing cells to complete cytokinesis. DBF2 is a MEN kinase in budding yeast, which provides a simplified model for studying this pathway that is conserved in humans. By altering DBF2s’ activity through phosphorylation mutants, the effect on cytokinesis can be studied. A new mutant cell line was developed using a degron strain, which has a functional DBF2 allele, with a degradation marker. When exposed to 5-Ph-IAA, DBF2 protein with this marker will be destroyed. These lines can then be transformed with bacterial plasmids containing DBF2 mutations. After the mutant lines are exposed to 5-Ph-IAA, only mutant DBF2 will remain. Analysis of mutants will show how cytokinesis is affected. DBF2’s human homologue is in the Hippo tumor suppressor pathway. When mutated, it can lead to cancer. Studying phosphorylation mutants in a simplified system can help reveal the nature of this mechanism.