Functional Analysis of an Enzymatic Protein Acyltransferase Protein palmitoylation, a reversible protein modification carried out by cells, is important because palmitoylated proteins are involved in cell signaling roles in growth, proliferation, vesicle trafficking and many other important cell functions. Dictyostelium discoideum is a suitable model organism because it contains a family of protein acyltransferases, the enzymes that carry out palmitoylation. Previous work in Dr. Gundersen’s lab has created a knock-out of one of the protein acyltransferase genes (PAZ5) in D. discoideum, which resulted in a discernible phenotype, and when the wild-type gene is reinserted, the phenotype is rescued. Site-directed mutagenesis of this D. discoideum acyltransferase PAZ5 gene is being performed to explore the functionality of the highly conserved, DHHC-CRD of the acyltransferases. Although the results of this experiment are currently in progress, it is hypothesized that the mutations created will hinder the growth of the D. discoideum.

Faculty Mentor: Robert Gundersen