Decoding the Rules for Biopolymer Mutualism Öffentlichkeit

Abstract

The interaction between nucleic-acid and amino-acid-based biopolymers is essential for the development of modern cellular life. However, despite decades of investigation, it remains unclear how life originated and how this mutualistic interaction came to exist. Biomolecular condensates are an exciting avenue for exploring this question due to their commonality in biology, but their widely varied composition means new models must be developed. Building on decades of work with peptide models of aggregation, we investigated the co-assembly of peptides and nucleic acids to study how electrostatic interactions underpin their ability of peptides and nucleic acids to assemble. Following this, comparisons between different nucleic acid conformations revealed a bias towards structures with a higher density of negative charges. To confirm this, a cyclic polyanion was used to discover new rules for how the selection of different assembly structures functions. 

Table of Contents

Introduction                                                                                                                        1

Methods                                                                                                                               8

Results and Discussion                                                                                                         14

Conclusion                                                                                                                            27

References                                                                                                                            29

About this Honors Thesis

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School	Emory College
Department	Chemistry
Degree	B.S.
Submission	Honors Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Chemistry, Biochemistry Chemistry, Molecular Chemistry, Polymer
Stichwort	Origin of Life
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Dr. David Lynn, Emory University
Committee Members	Dr. Arri Eisen, Emory University Dr. Brian Dyer, Emory University

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