Albrecht von Arnim, Ph.D.

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Research Statement

The past ten years have witnessed a renaissance in our appreciation for the role of RNA in gene regulation. Protein synthesis (translation) in particular remains poorly understood, although translational control affords a rapid means to amplify changes in gene activity that occur at the level of transcription.

We are using the reference plant Arabidopsis thaliana because of the excellent genetic resources available in this species. A reporter gene system was developed to monitor the translation status of specific genes in response to external signals, such as the light environment. We are combining this tool with mutations affecting individual translation initiation factors in an effort to assign specific functions to these proteins in translational control. Our data exemplify that generic initiation factors can contribute to the sequence-specific regulation of translational efficiency. Specifically, we implicated the H subunit of the largest initiation factor, eIF3, in the control of translation by upstream open reading frames, a type of regulatory device present in the 5’ leader of many mRNAs. Furthermore, we have learned how to use the toolkit of genomics, such as microarrays and bioinformatics, to survey the translation status of the entire set of cellular mRNAs. Experiments such as these are poised to reveal systematically which mRNAs are bundled together into regulons of translational control.

This work is helping us to understand how plants respond to their environment, has implications for the mechanisms of translational control in eukaryotes in general, and it may lead to novel ways to manipulate gene expression in the context of biotechnology.

Independently, we are engaged in developing biosensor technology for monitoring specific cellular events, in particular protein-protein interactions. To this end, we are harnessing a biophysical phenomenon, termed bioluminescence resonance energy transfer (BRET), which allows one to measure directly whether and when two proteins associate with each other in a living organism in real time. These and other related biosensors can yield direct and immediate insights into the mechanisms of life in plants and animals. Additional information can be found on the von Arnim lab page.

Selected Publications

Woo, JC, and von Arnim, AG (2008) Mutational optimization of the coelenterazine-dependent luciferase from Renilla. Plant Methods (in press).
 
Woo, JC, Howell, MH, and von Arnim, AG (2008) Structure function studies on the active site of the coelenterazine-dependent luciferase from Renilla.
Protein Science 17: 725-735.
 
Yahalom, A, Kim, TH, Roy, R, Zinger, R, von Arnim, AG, and Chamovitz, DA (2008) Arabidopsis eIF3e is regulated by the COP9 signalosome and impacts development and protein translation.  Plant Journal 53: 300-311.
 
Xu, X, Soutto, M, Xie, Q, Servick, S, Subramanian, C, von Arnim, AG, and Johnson, CH (2007) Imaging protein interactions with BRET in plant and mammalian cells and tissues. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 104: 10264-10269.

Kim, BH, Cai, X, Vaughn, JN, and von Arnim, AG (2007) On the functions of the h subunit of eukaryotic initiation factor 3 in late stages of translation initiation. Genome Biology 8: R60.

Subramanian C, Woo J-C, Cai, X, Xu, X, Servick, S, Johnson, CH, Nebenführ, A, and von Arnim, AG (2006) A suite of tools and application notes for in vivo protein interaction assays using Bioluminescence Resonance Energy Transfer (BRET). Plant Journal 48: 138-152.

von Arnim, A.G. and Schwechheimer, C. (2006). Meeting report: Life is degrading – thanks to some zomes. Molecular Cell 23, 621-629.

Kim, BH and von Arnim, AG (2006). The early dark-response in Arabidopsis thaliana revealed by cDNA microarray analysis. Plant Molecular Biology 60: 321-342.

Kim TH, Kim BH, Yahalom A, Chamovitz D A and von Arnim AG (2004) Developmental regulation via 5' mRNA leader sequences through the translation initiation factor subunit eIF3h in Arabidopsis. Plant Cell 16: 3341-3356.

von Arnim AG (2003) On again – off again: Cop9 signalosome turns the key on protein degradation. Curr Opin Plant Biol. 6: 520-529.

Qin H, Dong Y and von Arnim AG (2003) Epigenetic interactions between Arabidopsis transgenes: characterization in light of transgene integration sites. Plant Mol Biol. 52: 217-231.

Qin H and von Arnim AG (2002) Epigenetic history of an Arabidopsis trans-silencer locus and a test for relay of trans-silencing activity. BMC Plant Biology 2: 11-20.

von Arnim AG (2001) A hitchhiker's guide to the proteasome. STKE (August 28, 2001).

Yahalom A, Kim T-H, Winter E, Karniol B, von Arnim AG and Chamovitz DA (2001) Arabidopsis eIF3e (INT-6) Associates with Both eIF3c and the COP9 Signalosome Subunit CSN7. J Biol Chem. 276: 334-340.

Contact Information

Office:
Room 228
Hesler Biology
Phone: (865) 974-6206

Lab:
Room 230
Hesler Biology

Email: vonarnim@utk.edu