Presentation Type
Paper
Abstract
Ciliates are small eukaryotic organisms that perform extensive genomic rearrangements during development, including recombination, inversion, and excision of certain genetic sequences. The mechanisms by which ciliates perform these extensive chromosomal recombination events are of great interest to both biologists and mathematicians. Understanding the sophisticated mechanisms performed in this model organism may provide insights into other epigenetic processes. Many ciliate genes have been sequenced, and it is now important to examine the possible pathways that result in correctly rearranged genes. Because ciliates perform extensive rearrangements under temporal and spatial constraints, it is likely that many recombination steps are performed simultaneously. So, it is essential to examine how often these simultaneous rearrangements occur. Scaled models of eleven ciliate chromosomes were created and used to examine the maximum number of simultaneous rearrangements possible, while providing for conformational constrains. Combinatorial models were then created to depict the conformational pathways. The models revealed that it is possible for a vast majority of rearrangement events to occur simultaneously through simple conformational patterns. These results demonstrate the efficiency of ciliates in genomic regulation, and with biological testing, may yield greater insights into the mechanisms of important epigenetic inheritance processes performed in higher eukaryotic organisms.
Categories
Engineering/Physical Science
Research Type
Thesis
Mentor Information
Dr. Natasha Jonoska
Included in
Applications of Mathematics to Biology: Using Combinatorial Models to Understand DNA Rearrangements in Ciliates
Ciliates are small eukaryotic organisms that perform extensive genomic rearrangements during development, including recombination, inversion, and excision of certain genetic sequences. The mechanisms by which ciliates perform these extensive chromosomal recombination events are of great interest to both biologists and mathematicians. Understanding the sophisticated mechanisms performed in this model organism may provide insights into other epigenetic processes. Many ciliate genes have been sequenced, and it is now important to examine the possible pathways that result in correctly rearranged genes. Because ciliates perform extensive rearrangements under temporal and spatial constraints, it is likely that many recombination steps are performed simultaneously. So, it is essential to examine how often these simultaneous rearrangements occur. Scaled models of eleven ciliate chromosomes were created and used to examine the maximum number of simultaneous rearrangements possible, while providing for conformational constrains. Combinatorial models were then created to depict the conformational pathways. The models revealed that it is possible for a vast majority of rearrangement events to occur simultaneously through simple conformational patterns. These results demonstrate the efficiency of ciliates in genomic regulation, and with biological testing, may yield greater insights into the mechanisms of important epigenetic inheritance processes performed in higher eukaryotic organisms.
