In many organisms, genome surveillance systems are present to control the gene expression and spread of viruses and other selfish DNA elements. The goal of this project is to elucidate the underlying mechanism of a phenomenon termed Meiotic Silencing by Unpaired DNA (MSUD), a gene silencing system in the orange bread mold Neurospora crassa. In this system, the cell examines the pairing of genes with their partners during reproduction; any gene that is present in one parental chromosome but not the other is inactivated. As the fungus behind the Nobel Prize-winning "one gene-one enzyme hypothesis", N. crassa is an ideal organism for studying MSUD due to its wide mutant selections, the availability of its full genome sequence, and its long history of gene silencing research. As with fungi, DNA lacking a pairing partner in worms, mice, and humans are also targeted for silencing during development. The study of MSUD will provide valuable insights into the role of unpaired DNA in gene silencing in fungi and higher organisms. The objectives of this research are to characterize mutants defective in MSUD and examine genes that are important for this process.
Broader impact: To broaden the participation of underrepresented groups, the investigators of this project will recruit and train undergraduate students from their own university as well as from other non-Ph.D.-granting and minority-serving institutions (through a variety of campus and NSF diversity programs). Research activities from this work will be used to develop lesson plans for various outreach projects. Efforts will also be made to promote scientific literacy and interdisciplinary partnership.
