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Degree Name

MS (Master of Science)

Program

Biology

Date of Award

5-2017

Committee Chair or Co-Chairs

Aruna Kilaru

Committee Members

Bill Stone, Dhirendra Kumar, Stacy Brown

Abstract

N-acylethanolamines (NAEs) including anandamide are lipid derivative molecules, which play vital roles in physiological and developmental processes in plants and animals and mediate stress responses. In mammals, NAEs are synthesized from hydrolysis of their precursor molecule N-acylphosphatidylethanolamine (NAPE) by NAPE-specific phospholipaseD (NAPE-PLD). All NAEs including anandamide (NAE20:4) are hydrolyzed by fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) into free fatty acid and ethanolamine. To date, different NAEs including anandamide have been identified in Physcomitrella patens but its metabolic pathway remains undiscovered. It is hypothesized that NAE metabolic pathway in P. patens is conserved and is similar to that of other eukaryotic systems. To this extent, putative PpNAPE-PLD and PpFAAH were identified and cloned for heterologous expression and characterization. Expression of PpFAAH was further verified by Western blot analysis. Future studies will involve biochemical characterization of putative PpNAPE-PLD and PpFAAH, to establish the evolutionarily conserved nature of NAE functions in early land plants.

Document Type

Thesis - restricted

Copyright

Copyright by the authors.

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