Date of Award

2011

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Kirchman, Paul A.

Thesis/Dissertation Co-Chair

Chandrasekhar, Chitra

Abstract

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are molecular oxygen-derived molecules that are exceedingly reactive, often generated as free radical bi-products of mitochondrial respiration, which cause oxidative stress that leads to aging. To avoid the generation of ROS, aerobic organisms have antioxidant defense mechanisms that use enzymes such as Superoxide Dismutase (SOD) to convert the superoxide radicals into hydrogen peroxide and oxygen. Manganesecontaining SOD (Mn-SOD), a product of the SOD2 gene is found in all eukaryotic organisms in the mitochondrial matrix, including T. scripta (red-eared slider turtle). Extraordinarily, T. scripta can live without oxygen for long periods of time without experiencing adverse effects when oxygen is again available. The purpose of our experiment is to clone the T. scripta SOD2 gene, and test its activity. A partial fragment of the gene has been isolated by screening the cDNA library, and we are currently working on finding the remaining sequence.

Comments

Includes bibliography.

Extent

31 p.

Identifier

FA00003605

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