Date Approved
2019
Degree Type
Open Access Senior Honors Thesis
Department or School
Chemistry
First Advisor
Dr. Steven K. Backues
Second Advisor
Dr. Hedeel Evans
Third Advisor
Dr. Deborah Heyl-Clegg
Abstract
Autophagy is the process by which cytosolic components are trafficked to and degraded by the vacuole or lysosome. It plays a critical role in cellular health, aging, cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases. Atg7 and Atgl4 are enzymes required for the autophagic process in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In this study, we hypothesized that Atg7 controls the size while Atg 14 controls the number of autophagosomes. Using western blotting, Pho8D.60 assay and transmission electron microscopy analysis, we found that Atg7 affects both the size and number of autophagosomes. In addition, we have created cells expressing various levels of Atgl4 using non-native promoters. In addition, we applied the significance of these results to better understand the therapeutic application of mammalian autophagy.
Recommended Citation
Chakraborty, Ronith, "Understanding the role of Atg7 and Atg14 in autophagy" (2019). Senior Honors Theses and Projects. 650.
https://commons.emich.edu/honors/650