A Genetic Screen for Mcm10: Interactions Between Mcm10 and Deficiency Regions on the Third Chromosome of Drosophila Melanogaster

Abstract

Mis-regulation of the Mcm10 gene has been linked with multiple forms of cancer, including many forms of breast cancer (Thu, Y. 2014). Despite this, the role of Mcm10 in cancer is not yet fully known. One way to study a gene is to see the effects when it is no longer functioning. When eukaryotic organisms are homozygous deficient for Mcm10 they are still able to function despite the complete loss of the Mcm10 protein (Christensen, T. 2003). This suggests that there are other genes that interact with Mcm10 which are able to make up for its’ loss, allowing the organism to continue to function. The hypothesis is that by studying the interactions between Mcm10 and other genes, Mcm10’s role, and its carcinogenic effects, can be more fully understood. Genetic screening will aid in this study of Mcm10 and its interacting genes, as well as their role in cancer. We propose an enhancer/suppressor screen of the third chromosome of Drosophila melanogaster, spanning roughly 7,619 genes, to determine Mcm10’s mechanisms of interaction.