FINAL PROJECT: Abstract and Reader's Reponse > Identifying the concensus sequence at the transcription start site in Bacillus subtilis
A -- when you are ready to write the final thesis, you can keep these questions from "D. L." in mind as you write this up. Both in the Intro and the Analysis-Discussion sections, you may can anticipate these questions and devote some time and text. See how other microbiologists and geneticists address such questions.
What about the applications challenge? We do have a long tradition of basic biomedical research -- mechanisms and structures, as well as energy transfer -- that is supported. Later, we sometimes find applications. Knowledge construction is an important line of inquiry, too.
What about the applications challenge? We do have a long tradition of basic biomedical research -- mechanisms and structures, as well as energy transfer -- that is supported. Later, we sometimes find applications. Knowledge construction is an important line of inquiry, too.
May 7, 2015 |
Marybeth Shea
Marybeth Shea
Bacillus subtilis, a gram positive bacterial organism, is an ideal candidate for studying transcription initiation and regulation. The quick doubling time, single chromosome, and ease of genetic manipulation make B. subtilis an easy model in which to study prokaryotic genetics. Transcription initiation is a wide field, involving many mechanisms that can include the use of activators and repressors to recruit or block RNA polymerase. Basic transcription initiation, however, is much simpler. It begins with the recruitment of a sigma factor to the promotor region, which then binds the remainder of the RNA polymerase enzyme. The enzyme then opens up the transcription start site, which then allows transcription to begin. The sequence of the promotors to which the sigma factor binds has been known for years, but the ideal sequence around the transcription start site is still unsure. My project for the Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics Departmental Honors Program is to investigate the ideal sequence at the start site of transcription. Through the use of randomization techniques, plasmid library creation via transformation, and Ilumina sequencing, I hope to find that there is a sequence at the transcription start site that will allow for higher levels of transcription than others.
Reader’s Response:
I imagine a difficult reader to be someone like my parents, who doesn’t understand my research.
I also imagine a difficult reader to be a professor, like Dr. Liu, the director of the CBMGH program.
1) I don’t understand this article! All the science seems sound, but why are you doing the research? If we already know so much about transcription initiation, why do we need to know more? Is there a specific application for this knowledge?
2) Good description of the background of your project, but you may need to go into more detail on the parts of transcription initiation that apply to your project. Also, more methods are needed. Protocols are unnecessary, but you should at least discuss the steps you took to make the library and how you ran experiments to determine a final sequence.