Carol L. Dieckmann

Professor

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Research Interests

The general focus in this lab is on understanding the coordination of organelle/host cell interactions. Two different systems under study are:

-nuclear control of mitochondrial mRNA expression in yeast mitochondria, and,
-eyespot assembly in Chlamydomonas.

-Mitochondrial tRNA processing is inhibited in yeast strains defective in fatty acid biosynthesis in the organelle. We are trying to understand why gene expression and fatty acid metabolism intersect. Mitochondrial fatty acid synthesis precedes the synthesis of lipoic acid, the swinging arm cofactor of pyruvate dehydrogenase and two other enzyme complexes. We are studying how lipoic acid is synthesized and attached to target proteins in mitochondria, and how this process is controlled.

-The eyespot in Chlamydomonas is made up of components in the chloroplast and in the plasma membrane of the cell. We are interested in how the cell controls the assembly of these components into a functional light-sensing structure. Originally isolated as part of a collection of 168 phototaxis-defective mutants, 28 mutants define four genes required for eyespot assembly. eye2 and eye3 mutants are eyeless. min1 mutants have small eyespots and mlt1 mutants have multiple eyespots. We are trying to understand how these mutations affect eyespot assembly and placement relative to the cytoskeleton through a combination of molecular genetics and light, fluorescence and electron microscopy.

Selected Publications

Schonauer MS, Kastaniotis AJ, Kursu VA, Hiltunen JK, Dieckmann CL. Aug 2009. Lipoic Acid synthesis and attachment in yeast mitochondria. J Biol Chem, 284:23234-42

Hiltunen JK, Schonauer MS, Autio KJ, Mittelmeier TM, Kastaniotis AJ, Dieckmann CL. Apr 2009. Mitochondrial fatty acid synthesis type II: more than just fatty acids. J Biol Chem, 284:9011-5

Mittelmeier TM, Berthold P, Danon A, Lamb MR, Levitan A, Rice ME, Dieckmann CL. Dec 2008. C2 domain protein MIN1 promotes eyespot organization in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Eukaryot Cell, 7:2100-12

Fekete Z, Ellis TP, Schonauer MS, Dieckmann CL. Dec 2007. Pet127 governs a 5'-3' exonuclease important in maturation of COB mRNA in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. J Biol Chem,2007 Dec 17;