The Huber lab uses the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum as a model system for studying the functions of proteins linked to human disease and the structure and function of the extracellular matrix.
Dictyostelium is a fascinating eukaryotic soil microbe that has long served as a model organism for cell and developmental biology. Inexpensive, easy to culture, and genetically tractable, Dictyostelium undergoes a 24h life cycle comprised of both single-cell and multicellular phases.
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The life cycle of Dictyostelium. During growth, single cells feed on bacteria. Upon starvation, cells undergo chemotactic aggregation towards cAMP to form a multicellular mound. The mound then forms a finger, which falls on the surface to generate a motile pseudoplasmodium, also known as a slug. During culmination, terminal differentiation of pre-stalk and pre-spore cells forms a fruiting body composed of a mass of viable spores supported atop a slender stalk. When a food source becomes available, the spores germinate allowing the cells to restart the life cycle. Figure on left taken from Mathavarajah et al., 2017. Figure on right Copyright M.J. Grimson & R.L. Blanton, Biological Sciences Electron Microscopy Laboratory, Texas Tech University.
The Dictyostelium genome is haploid and encodes many homologs of genes linked to human disease. The genetic tractability of the organism allows researchers to introduce one or multiple gene deletions with relative ease using homologous recombination or CRISPR/Cas9-mediated targeting. Development occurs in a much shorter time frame in Dictyostelium compared to other organisms, which allows researchers to rapidly screen Dictyostelium mutant cell lines for developmental phenotypes.
Current research in the Huber lab uses Dictyostelium to (1) reveal the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses (NCLs), commonly known as Batten disease, and (2) study proteins within the extracellular matrix that modulate cell motility and differentiation during Dictyostelium development.
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Undergraduate and graduate students interested in contributing to this work are encouraged to contact Dr. Huber with a statement of interest, updated CV, and recent unofficial transcript. Full funding may be available for students who qualify.
The Huber Lab would like to thank the following agencies (past and present) for funding this work
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