Access Type
Open Access Thesis
Date of Award
January 2012
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.S.
Department
Biological Sciences
First Advisor
Dr. Markus Friedrich
Abstract
Previous studies in holometabolous insects have shown that programmed and cell proliferation play important roles in insect metamorphosis. To elucidate the function of the newly identified Tribolium Prdm gene Apoptix (Apox) I performed a detailed analysis of Apox knockdown effects in the embryo, the pupa and the adult eye. My results revealed that Apox is required for the survival of retinal tissue after onset of differentiation and also generally in tissues which experience high amounts of proliferation and differentiation during pupal development. Further, combinatorial knockdown of Apox and initiator caspases produced evidence that Apox specifically protects from programmed cell death in Tribolium development. My results characterize a novel regulator of programmed cell death, which is highly conserved in arthropods but was lost during dipteran evolution.
Recommended Citation
Husain, Zahabiya, "The prdm gene apoptix antagonizes programmed cell death in tribolium" (2012). Wayne State University Theses. 194.
https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/oa_theses/194