Adenine methylation in Tetrahymena thermophila: a computational tool (360G-Wellcome-207686_Z_17_Z)

£98,187

Adenine methylation (6mA) is the main DNA modification in unicellular eukaryotes and despite being identified for some time, the biological functions of this modification are still poorly understood. As with many systems, computational modelling can provide important insights into molecular processes but efficacy is often restricted by the complex nature of multicellular organisms. In this project, we propose to investigate the role of 6mA during growth in the single-cell eukaryote Tetrahymena thermophila. We will produce the first genome-wide maps of 6mA in a single-cell model eukaryote, determine the relationship between 6mA and transcription and investigate whether 6mA is dynamic during growth. These studies will lay the foundation for Tetrahymena thermophila to be used as an effective computational model organism, exploiting its complexity, unicellularity and physiological responses, to further explore the biological functions of 6mA. Strikingly, organisms which have high levels of 6mA have low levels of 5-methylcytosine (5mC) while those with high levels of 5mC have low levels of 6mA. This suggests that there may be a common biological function for 6mA and 5mC and that understanding the biological function of 6mA may prove useful in understanding the biology of 5mC.

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Grant Details

Amount Awarded 98187
Applicant Surname Lowe
Approval Committee Science Seeds Advisory Panel
Award Date 2017-05-12T00:00:00+00:00
Financial Year 2016/17
Grant Programme: Title Seed Award in Science
Internal ID 207686/Z/17/Z
Lead Applicant Dr Robert Lowe
Partnership Value 98187
Planned Dates: End Date 2019-09-15T00:00:00+00:00
Planned Dates: Start Date 2017-09-15T00:00:00+00:00
Recipient Org: Country United Kingdom
Region Greater London