Anastasija Baryshnikova
1. Improvement of SGA data processing a. check the controls and verify their consistency: single mutants as preys and baits should be comparable; double mutants ab and ba should be comparable. b. analyze the natural barriers to double mutant production: linkage between bait and prey, linkage between selection markers and prey c. identify groups of mutants which phenotype might be confusing: single (and double) mutants with mating and/or segregation problems; single (and double) mutants with increase in spontaneous mutagenesis d. other 2. Genetic interactions in yeast a. What is genetic interaction? b. Analyze the situation: in how many ways mutant phenotypes combine (aggravating, alleviating, epistatic, etc.)? Choose one of the existing classifications (from literature) or create a new one. c. Is it possible to connect a particular type of interaction with a specific functional relationship between the two genes involved? Other relationships (positional, temporal)? d. Knowing the relationship between two genes, is it possible to predict the double mutant phenotype from the phenotypes of the single mutants? e. Knowing the phenotype of two single mutants and of the double, is it possible to predict the relation between the genes? 3. A gene’s function can be abolished not only by gene deletion, but also by pharmacological inhibition of its product. a. What is known about drugs and the effect of combined somministrations, compared to their separate effect? b. How many drugs have known targets in yeast? Can the effect of these drugs be compared to the deletion of the target gene? c. Is it possible to obtain information about the functional relation between genes from the effect of a combined somministration of drugs that inhibit both their functions? 4. Genetic interactions in humans a. trait inheritance b. genetic diseases