 |
During this past year, Mr. Blackstone completed a screen looking for mutants in the worm C. elegans
that are unable to successfully enter into a state of suspended animation in response to anoxic
stress. Several mutants were identified and Mr. Blackstone spent much of this year pursuing them
via genetic means. Using both traditional genetics and snip-snp mapping Mr. Blackstone placed three
independently derived EMS mutants onto three separate chromosomes. Additionally he mapped one of
the mutants to a 2 map unit region. Rescue experiments performed by injecting cDNAs have narrowed
down the number of candidate genes. Sequencing of this mutant should be completed shortly and that
information will help identify which gene is mutant in this strain of worms.
Additionally several mutants in the dauer pathway are still under investigation and analysis of
lifespan of these worms after exposure to anoxia is being determined.
|
|
