February 28, 2011
Alkaline Phosphatase: Assessing Streptomyces griseus as a Model Organism
Leah Frenette ‘12 is a junior from Lancaster, New Hampshire. She is majoring in chemistry and minoring in biology and f...
Leah Frenette and Santina Bleil
Download PDF
Beyond Papers
Abstract
Hypophosphatasia is a disease resulting from decreased alkaline phosphatase activity which is controlled by zinc levels because of zinc’s catalytic effect upon binding to the enzyme. Streptomyces griseus was identified as a model organism based on a BLAST. Zinc 1 binding sites located at nucleotides 326, 330, and 412 were targeted as possible areas of mutation that would cause hypophosphatasia. Primers were designed around the binding sites and PCR was performed. Gel electrophoresis confirmed the primers accuracy, allowing for replication of this segment of DNA in future studies. Experimental mutations of these sights in S.griseus compared to known mutations causing hypophosphatasia in the human ALPL gene will lead to more knowledge of the disease and possible treatments.
