Abstract

The long term goals are to use the tools of molecular biology to study a series of problems in evolution, in the specificity of the nervous system, and in early development. The exon structure of known genes will be analyzed in order to understand protein structure in terms of a simple set of primordial components that were used to assemble proteins. The alternative splicing of small exons in the immunoglobulin-like domains of the neural cell adhesion molecule, N-CAM, will be studied to determine if these alternative splices produce minor isotypes of novel specificities in rare cells, and if these specificities have to do with the patterning of the brain or the organism. The phylogeny of RNA editing will be studied to determine the origin of this novel biological process.

  Funding Agency

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01GM037997-08
Application #
2179085
Study Section
Molecular Biology Study Section (MBY)
Project Start
1987-03-01
Project End
1997-06-30
Budget Start
1995-07-01
Budget End
1996-06-30
Support Year
8
Fiscal Year
1995
Total Cost
Indirect Cost

  Institution

Name
Harvard University
Department
Biology
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
071723621
City
Cambridge
State
MA
Country
United States
Zip Code
02138

  Publications

Gilbert, W; de Souza, S J; Long, M (1997) Origin of genes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 94:7698-703
de Souza, S J; Long, M; Schoenbach, L et al. (1997) The correlation between introns and the three-dimensional structure of proteins. Gene 205:141-4
Alvarez, C E; Robison, K; Gilbert, W (1996) Novel Gq alpha isoform is a candidate transducer of rhodopsin signaling in a Drosophila testes-autonomous pacemaker. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 93:12278-82
Long, M; de Souza, S J; Rosenberg, C et al. (1996) Exon shuffling and the origin of the mitochondrial targeting function in plant cytochrome c1 precursor. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 93:7727-31
de Souza, S J; Long, M; Gilbert, W (1996) Introns and gene evolution. Genes Cells 1:493-505
de Souza, S J; Long, M; Schoenbach, L et al. (1996) Intron positions correlate with module boundaries in ancient proteins. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 93:14632-6
Long, M; de Souza, S J; Gilbert, W (1995) Evolution of the intron-exon structure of eukaryotic genes. Curr Opin Genet Dev 5:774-8
Long, M; Rosenberg, C; Gilbert, W (1995) Intron phase correlations and the evolution of the intron/exon structure of genes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 92:12495-9
Dorit, R L; Akashi, H; Gilbert, W (1995) Absence of polymorphism at the ZFY locus on the human Y chromosome. Science 268:1183-5
Strehlow, D; Heinrich, G; Gilbert, W (1994) The fates of the blastomeres of the 16-cell zebrafish embryo. Development 120:1791-8

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