Date of Graduation

Spring 2014

Degree

Master of Science in Biology

Department

Biology

Committee Chair

Kyoungtae Kim

Abstract

The elucidation of the organization and maintenance of the plasma membrane has been sought due to its numerous roles in cellular function. In the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a novel paradigm has begun to emerge in the understanding of the distribution of plasma membrane microdomains and how they are regulated. I aimed to investigate the dynamic interdependence between the protein complexes eisosome and TORC2, representing microdomains MCC and MCT, respectively. In this study, I reveal that the eisosome organizer Pil1 colocalizes with the MCT marker Avo2. Furthermore, I provide evidence that the formation of MCT is dependent on both eisosome integrity and adequate levels of the plasma membrane phosphoinositide PI(4,5)P2. Taken together, my findings indicate that TORC2, eisosomes, and PI(4,5)P2 exist in an interconnected relationship, which supports the emerging model of the plasma membrane.

Keywords

Tor2, TORC2, eisosome, MCC, microdomains

Subject Categories

Biology

Copyright

© Katelyn Rae Bartlett

Campus Only

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