Hofmann 9723063 This project will examine the ecological significance of heat shock proteins (hsps) in marine fish. The hsps are a family of highly-evolutionarily conserved proteins that are expressed in cells in response to stressful conditions such heat stress or exposure to chemicals. Physiologically, the hsps are an emergency response to stress but, they are also present in cells to perform normal cellular duties such as folding newly synthesized proteins. At the basic biochemical level, the function of the hsps is very well described and the PI's know how the hsps perform their protein folding tasks. However, very little is known about how these proteins have evolved in organisms that are adapted to different temperatures and, whether there are differences in the hsp protein folding abilities at ecologically relevant temperatures. Since all organisms must by necessity fold proteins, hsps in the natural world, fold proteins over a wide range of temperatures; literally that over which life occurs. This range is estimated to be approximately 115 C, from the -2 C encountered by Antarctic fish to 1 1 3 C for hot springs bacteria. The research will use biochemical techniques to address an ecological and evolutionary question: is there diversity of function in the highly evolutionarily conserved hsps in marine fish adapted to different temperatures?
