Difference between revisions of "Team:Washington/Aptamer"

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       <p align = "justify"> An aptamer is a single strand of RNA which folds into a structure that is able to bind to a variety of small molecules and proteins. Theophylline is commonly used target molecule for academic studies on aptamers due to its ability to permeate membranes.</p>
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       <p align = "justify"> An aptamer is a single strand of RNA which folds into a structure that is able to bind to a variety of small molecules and proteins. Ribozymes are in some contexts self-cleaving pieces of RNA. This can be utilized to destabilize RNA transcripts. Aptazymes are a combination of both aptamers and ribozymes. This allows for the selectivity of aptamers which in turn results in the activity of the ribozyme section of the RNA. Overall this is a reactive strand of RNA with selectivity. Additionally, this can control protein expression at the level of translation. This allows for quicker response times compared to the traditional method of modifying rates of transcription through interactions with promoters. Theophylline is commonly used target molecule for academic studies on aptamers due to its ability to permeate membranes.</p>
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      <p align = "justify"> Ribozymes are in some contexts they are self-cleaving pieces of RNA. This can be utilized to destabilize RNA transcripts.</p>
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<p align = "justify"> Aptazymes are a combination of both aptamers and ribozymes. This allows for the selectivity of aptamers which in turn results in the activity of the ribozyme section of the RNA. Overall this is a reactive strand of RNA with selectivity. Additionally, this can control protein expression at the level of translation. This allows for quicker response times.
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RNA allows for easy tenability so that the general system can be modified to fit several contexts. In this project, we use theophiline as a model small molecule due to its ability to permeate through membranes.</p>
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Revision as of 22:08, 18 September 2015



Aptamer Background

An aptamer is a single strand of RNA which folds into a structure that is able to bind to a variety of small molecules and proteins. Ribozymes are in some contexts self-cleaving pieces of RNA. This can be utilized to destabilize RNA transcripts. Aptazymes are a combination of both aptamers and ribozymes. This allows for the selectivity of aptamers which in turn results in the activity of the ribozyme section of the RNA. Overall this is a reactive strand of RNA with selectivity. Additionally, this can control protein expression at the level of translation. This allows for quicker response times compared to the traditional method of modifying rates of transcription through interactions with promoters. Theophylline is commonly used target molecule for academic studies on aptamers due to its ability to permeate membranes.

Design and Methods

Since we thought yeast would be a better implementation on paper, our original concept was to utilize an aptazyme sequence that was contributed by the Smolke lab that we found was highly functional in yeast. Utilizing Venus, an optimized form of a yellow fluorescent protein (YFP), a Yeast GPD Promoter, and two pieces of the pmod plasmid and terminator.

Results

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Conclusion

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Future Directions

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Biobricks

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