Project 4: Optical monitoring of post-translational modification of proteins in vivo (Thorn)(#27)We developed tools to study protein modification and interactions using fluorescence resonance energytransfer (FRET) microscopy. The main effort was to detect protein-protein interactions in wVo12 and use thesedata to predict the structure of large protein complexes. We developed methods to produce precise andreproducible FRET data from yeast, and used them to derive a low-resolution structure for the septin complex(which is required for cell division from yeast to mammals). With Michael Laub (project 7) we found interactionsbetween two-component signaling proteins, the predominant participants in post-translational regulation inbacteria, and collaborated with Daugherty and his colleagues to develop high throughput, quantitative, FRETbasedmethods to identify protein interactions13. Kurt Thorn, the PI, was a Bauer Fellow and is now Director ofthe Nikon Imaging Center at UCSF.New project 4: Tandem repeats in genes: hyper-variable modules for adaptation? (Verstrepen) (#28-30)We tested the hypothesis35 that in budding yeast, tandemly repeated sequences are hyper-variable geneticmodules, whose variability helps organisms adapt to changing environments. Most sequenced genomescontain tandem repeats; some of these occur in coding sequences, where recombination can alter the numberof peptide repeats in translated proteins. We have, 1) developed an algorithm36(http://hulsweb1.cgr.harvard.edu/SERV/) to find and annotate repeats, predict whether they vary in number,associate them with other information (expression level, overlap with transcription factor binding sites,nucleosome sites etc.), and deposit this data in a publicly accessible database(http://hulsweb1.cgr.harvard.edu/TandemRepeat/) that allows rapid and automated comparison to existingdatabases; 2) generated yeast strains with different numbers of repeats in the promoters and open readingframes of selected genes, and studied the phenotypic consequences of this variation (ongoing); 3) studiedtandem repeats in Arabidopsis thaliana and Oryza sativa (with C. Queitsch, new project 7). We have used twosequenced genomes to find all ORFs containing variable numbers of repeats, selected 150 genes,characterized their variation across twelve A. thaliana isolates from different locations, and found more than 70genes that show variation in repeat number between different isolates. Kevin Verstrepen became a BauerFellow in 2005 and joined the CMB in 2006.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
Type
Specialized Center (P50)
Project #
2P50GM068763-06
Application #
7695404
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZGM1-CBCB-4 (SB))
Project Start
2008-09-01
Project End
2013-08-31
Budget Start
2008-09-01
Budget End
2009-08-31
Support Year
6
Fiscal Year
2008
Total Cost
$126,803
Indirect Cost
Name
Harvard University
Department
Type
DUNS #
082359691
City
Cambridge
State
MA
Country
United States
Zip Code
02138
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