DNA methylation

Kuchta’s lab at CU Boulder, I had the opportunity to work on two wholly different projects. The Kuchta Lab is broadly interested in the mechanisms of DNA replication as well as unnatural building blocks of DNA, such as nucleotide analogues. Under Dr. Kuchta’s guidance, I investigated the incorporation of novel fluorescent nucleotide analogues by DNA polymerases. Previous work in the Kuchta Lab identified several cytosine-derived analogues with a tricyclic framework that were inserted more…

mitochondrial pathway*5. At Low concentrations lead has been shown to activate cellular growth mechanisms. In theory lead mobilizes free calcium ions and activates protein kinase C. This movement triggers a cascading event leading to the end product of DNA synthesis. In animal models, lead has been shown to increase cell proliferation at low cytotoxic concentrations adding to leads carcinogenicity.9* A diagram of Major mechanisms of metal induced carcinogenicity is outlined below 9* Proposed…

STIMULATORY AND INHIBITORY KILLER IMMUNOGLOBULIN-LIKE RECEPTORS IN NATURAL KILLER T (NKT) CELLS IN PATIENTS WITH SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHROMATOSIS: RELATION TO DISEASE ACTIVITY By Aya Mohammed Ibrahim Askar INTRODUCTION Systemic lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease with a wide variable manifestations that affect almost any organ systems (i.e. skin, joints, kidney, and nervous system) . The diagnosis of SLE is depend on a combination of laboratory evidences and clinical…

risks for childhood cancer. “A 1987 study by the University of Southern California found children exposed to home and lawn pesticide use had 6.5 times increased the risk of developing leukemia.” Having been exposed to pesticide causes damage to the DNA and the genetic structures, also causing a much weakened immune system which helps fight off cancer cells (Sinclair/Board Certified Immunology, 1997, p.…

opposed to a choice (Swanson 2015). There is certainly a long way to go before any generally accepted understanding is made recent studies comparing the genes of both gay and straight siblings have found a promising link between sexuality and a patch of DNA Xq28. The study, conducted by Dean Hammer examined the genes of 76 pairs of brothers. Hammer said that there does not appear to be one gene that determines whether a person is gay or straight, but that there do seem to be patterns that imply…

the inner nuclear lamina involved in maintenance of the nuclear shape and structure, DNA replication and gene expression (Burtner, Gruenbaum, 2009; Rodriguez et al., 2009). Lamin A is a key factor of a matrix of proteins that are located in the cell’s nuclear membrane (Travis,…

FTO belongs to a member of Fe(II)- and α-ketoglutarate-dependent AlkB dioxygenase family and was originally recognized as an enzyme involved in the excision of N1- or N3-modified purine or primidine in both DNA and RNA substrates. Jia et al. for the first time demonstrated that human FTO could also demethylate m6A on nuclear RNAs in vitro, and increase and decrease in m6A was manifested in FTO-depleted and overexpressed-HeLa cell, respectively. FTO function has shown to link to the regulation of…

A twenty-two-year-old single parent, L.A., is referred for genetic counseling by her pediatric nurse practitioner. The patient's three-year-old son was diagnosed with fragile-X-associated mental retardation syndrome. L.A. is currently at fourteen weeks’ gestation with her second pregnancy. The following paper will discuss the gene mutation responsible for fragile-S associated mental retardation and describe how it causes the clinical syndrome of developmental delay, joint hyperextensibility,…

INTRODUCTION ` Human Sexual dimorphism as its basic element of identity is genetically determined and determines the natural path of social development and cultural heritage. Complementarity of the morphological phenotype characteristics and behavioral of the men and women is part of the genetic program of human nature-oriented implementation of the basic tasks to fulfill in life, which is to have offspring, which in turn is, related to its fertility. This consists of the ability to produce…

dysfunctions in DS. Higher levels of gene expression on chromosome 21 tissues are reported in several studies, where increased copy number do not always correspond with increased gene expression level or gene function. DS presents altered pattern of DNA methylation in genes in two or three copies with functional differences in gene expression. Studies show trisomy 21 results in altered expression of microRNAs (noncoding RNA involved in post-transcriptional gene regulation, possibly result in…