Lunch and Learn: Fall 2017 Honors Contracts Part I

HonorsLogo-Flames-100pxHonors student, Jaden Shirkey, will be presenting on his Honors Contract at a Lunch and Learn on Tuesday, December 5th, entitled “Fall 2017 Honors Contracts Part I.” During this Lunch and Learn, Jaden will describe his project, explain what he got out of the Honors Contract process and answer any questions you may have. This is a great opportunity for students who are interested in completing a contract in the Fall to see what their fellow students have been working on. Below is information about Jaden’s topic.

“Reversible protein phosphorylation (the process of covalently linking a phosphate group to a protein) plays an essential role in regulating proper cellular progression through mitosis; errors in cell division can result in genetic defects that promote cancer. Thus, signaling enzymes, such as kinases and phosphatases (the enzymes involved in protein phosphorylation), play a key role in regulating proper mitotic entry and exit. Here, we report that the PH-Domain Leucine-rich repeat Protein Phosphatase 1 (PHLPP1), a tumor suppressor discovered for its ability to directly dephosphorylate and inactivate the pro-survival kinase Akt, is dynamically phosphorylated during the cell cycle. Malfunctions in PHLPP1 expression and regulation have been shown to be associated with various diseases, such as cancer and diabetes. Specifically, we show that PHLPP1 is hyper-phosphorylated in vivo during entry into mitosis, and that CDK1 (a major mitotic kinase) is capable of directly phosphorylating PHLPP1’s N-terminal domain in vitro. By understanding the regulation of PHLPP1 in mitosis ,we can begin to investigate its role as a tumor suppressor.”

To learn more, please join us for the Lunch and Learn on Tuesday, December 5th from 11:00am till 11:50am in Pickell’s Conference Room. As usual, pizza from Jets pizza will be provided for those who sign up beforehand. Please make sure to sign up before noon on Monday, December 4th by emailing .

 

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