A grant has been awarded to Bates College under the direction of Dr. Thomas G. Lawson that will allow Bates College to purchase a Multifunctional Imaging System. The goal of this project is to enhance the ability of Bates College faculty members to more effectively perform molecular life science research and teaching with undergraduate students. The instrumentation will be used in research projects being directed by six principle investigators in three departments and two interdisciplinary programs. It will be incorporated into the teaching laboratories of at least four courses in two departments. The imaging system will be used for the detection and quantification of radiolabeled and fluorescently tagged biological molecules under study via a wide array of experimental approaches.
The major research projects in which this instrument will be used include studies of the mechanism by which proteins are specifically selected for destruction by the ubiquitin/26S proteasome system. An experimental system based upon cultured mammalian cells that carry inducible genes of picornaviral proteins will be developed in order to determine the role the degradation of these proteins plays in picornavirus replication. The response of bacterial cells to environmental stress conditions will be examined through experiments to determine precisely how the translation of the RNA polymerase subunit-encoding rpoS mRNA is regulated. The influence of environmental conditions on rpoS mRNA higher order structure and regulatory protein binding will be examined. The relationship between mRNA structure and translation initiation rates will be elucidated. In another set of projects, the imaging system will be used to uncover information about the complex signaling cascade involved in mammalian spermatogenesis. A major focus of these studies will be to determine the role of inositol polyphosphate 5-phosphatase in the signaling cascade by comparing wild type and sterile mouse mRNA populations, evaluating the effects of mouse gene knockout mutants, and comparing specific protein levels in wild type and mutated mouse cells. Other projects that will be carried out include studies of the mechanism by which dioxin exposure induces cardiomyopathy, evaluations of the activation characteristics of N-methyl-D-aspartate and glutamate receptors in neurons, and analyses of the mechanisms by which the mammalian hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis responds to stress conditions. The instrumentation will be used in teaching laboratory projects in biological chemistry, immunology, environmental toxicology, and introductory chemistry courses.
The acquisition of the imaging system by Bates College will have a broad impact upon undergraduate science education and the local and national science research infrastructure. Original research experiences are an integral component of the science curriculum at Bates, and these include senior thesis research projects. The instrumentation will be used by nine to twelve undergraduate researchers each year and potentially by dozens of students in teaching laboratories. The opportunity to use state of the art equipment in real and significant research projects will help maintain students' interest in science and will contribute to keeping undergraduates in the pipeline that provides the trained scientists who are crucial to the technological and economic well being of the United States. Bates is an isolated institution located in a state which receives a disproportionately low fraction of available federal research funds. The purchase of this imaging system will provide an important pillar of support for the ongoing research programs of Bates scientists, will allow them to remain active and competitive in their disciplines, and will help them continue to effectively prepare and encourage new generations of young scientists. The on-site presence of key instrumentation will also increase the likelihood that Bates scientists will be able to participate in meaningful collaborations with researchers at larger institutions. Such collaborations play an important role in maintaining a healthy research environment at Bates and provide the students there with expanded training opportunities.
