![]() |
Catherine
F. Clarke Professor of Biochemistry B.S. and Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles |
| Phone:
(310) 825-0771 Fax: (310) 206-5213 E-mail:cathy@chem.ucla.edu |
UCLA Department
of Chemistry & Biochemistry |
|
| |
|
Research Overview Elucidating Q biosynthesis Q and aging These results suggest that clk-1 is essential for Q biosynthesis, and that the aging and developmental phenotypes previously described may be attributed to Q levels. Our recent studies indicate that both mean and maximum life span of wild-type nematodes fed Q-less diets is extended 60%. This life span extension is quite robust and is observed in all Age mutants tested so far, when transferred to the Q-less diet as adults. Our current studies are aimed towards defining the metabolic alterations resulting from dietary Q, and should help determine how diet/environment and genotype interact to change longevity. Based on the strong conservation of Q biosynthesis and function, our findings should be very relevant to aging in other organisms.
From my Group 2001-Present 44. Jonassen, T., Larsen, P. L. and Clarke, C. F. (2001) "A dietary source of coenzyme Q is essential for growth of long-lived Caenorhabditis elegans clk-1 mutants." Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 98, 421-426. 45. Do, T. Q., Hsu, A. Y., Jonassen, T., Lee, P. T., and Clarke, C. F. (2001) "A defect in coenzyme Q biosynthesis is responsible for the respiratory deficiency in Saccharomyces cerevisiae abc1 mutants." J. Biol. Chem. 276, 18161-18168. 46. Belogrudov,
G. I., Lee, P. T., Jonassen, T., Hsu, A. Y., Gin, P., and Clarke,
C. F. (2001) "Yeast COQ4 encodes a mitochondrial protein required
for coenzyme Q biosynthesis." Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 392, 48-58. 49. Jonassen, T., Marbois, B. N., Faull, K. F., Clarke, C. F. and Larsen, P. L. (2002) "Development and fertility in C. elegans clk-1 mutants depends upon transport of dietary coenzyme Q8 to mitochondria. " J. Biol. Chem. 277, 45020-45027. 50. Gin, P. Hsu, A.Y., Rothman, S., Jonassen, T., Lee, P.T., Tzagoloff, A. and Clarke, C.F. (2003) "The Saccharomyces cerevisiae COQ6 gene encodes a flavin dependent monooxygenase required for coenzyme Q biosynthesis." J. Biol. Chem. 278, 25308-25316. 51. Jonassen, T., Davis, D. E., Larsen, P. L., and Clarke, C. F. (2003) "Reproductive fitness and quinonecontent of C. elegans clk-1 mutants fed coenzyme Q isoforms of varying length." J. Biol. Chem. 278, 51735-51742. 52. Baba, S.W., Belogrudov,
G.I., Lee, J.C., Lee, P.T., Strahan, J., Shepherd, J.N., Clarke,
C.F. (2004) "Yeast coq5 C-methyltransferase is required
for stability of other polypeptides involved in coenzyme q biosynthesis."
J. Biol Chem. Mar 12;279(11):10052-9.
54. Hsieh, E. J., Dinoso, J. B., and Clarke, C. F. (2004) "A tRNA-TRP gene mediates the suppression of cbs2-223 previously attributed to ABC1/COQ8." Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 317, 648-653. 55. Padilla, S., Jonassen, T., Jimenez-Hidalgo, M. J., Fernandez-Ayala, D. J. M., Lopez-Lluch, G. M., Marbois, B., Navas, P., Clarke, C. F. and Santos-Ocana, C. (2004) "Demethoxy-Q, an intermediate of coenzyme Q biosynthesis, fails to support respiration in Saccharomyces cervisiase and lacks antioxidant activity". J. Biol. Chem. 279, 25995-26004. 56. Dyall, S.D., Yan, W., Delgadillo-Correa, M.G., Lunceford, A., Loo, J.A., Clarke, C.F., Johnson, P.J. (2004) "Non-mitochondrial complex I proteins in a hydrogenosomal oxidoreductase complex." Nature. Oct 28;431(7012):1103-7. 57. Gin, P., Clarke, C.F. (2004) "Genetic evidence for a multi-subunit complex in coenzyme Q biosynthesis in yeast and the role of the Coq1 hexaprenyl diphosphate synthase." J Biol Chem. Jan 28;280(4):2676-81. 58. Marbois, B., Gin, P., Faull, K.F., Poon, W.W., Lee, P.T., Strahan, J., Shepherd, J.N., Clarke, C.F. (2005) "Coq3 and Coq4 define a polypeptide complex in yeast mitochondria for the biosynthesis of coenzyme Q." J Biol Chem. May 27;280(21):20231-8. 59. Johnson, A., Gin, P., Marbois, B.N., Hsieh, E.J., Wu, M., Barros, M.H., Clarke, C.F., Tzagoloff, A. (2005) "COQ9, a New Gene Required for the Biosynthesis of Coenzyme Q in Saccharomyces cerevisiae." J Biol Chem. Sep 9;280(36):31397-404. 60. Barros, M. H., Johnson, A., Gin, P., Marbois, B. N., Clarke, C. F. and Tzagoloff, A. (2005) “The Saccharomyces cerevisiae COQ10 gene encodes a START domain protein required for function of coenzyme Q in respiration.” J. Biol. Chem. 280, 42627-42635. 61. Tran, U. C., Marbois, B., Gin, P., Gulmezian, M., Jonassen, T., and Clarke, C. F. (2006) “Complementation of Saccharomyces cerevisiae coq7 mutants by mitochondrial targeting of the Escherichia coli UbiF polypeptide: two functions of yeast Coq7 polypeptide in coenzyme Q biosynthesis.” J. Biol. Chem. 281, 16401-16409. 62. Gulmezian, M., Zhang, H., Javor, G. T., and Clarke, C. F. (2006) “Genetic Evidence for an interaction of the UbiG O-methyltransferase with UbiX in Escherichia coli coenzyme Q biosynthesis.” J. Bacteriol. 188, 6435-6439. 63. Hsieh, E. J., Gin, P., Gulmezian, M., Tran, U. C., Saiki, R., Marbois, B. N. and Clarke, C. F. (2007) “Saccharomyces cerevisiae Coq9 polypeptide is a subunit of the mitochondrial coenzyme Q
biosynthetic complex.” Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 463, 19 -26. |
| Current Members of Clarke Lab |
|
||
![]() |
Research
Associate |
|
|
||
![]() |
||
|
||
![]() |
||
![]() |
B.S., University of California, Los Angeles |
|
|
||
![]() |
||
![]() |
||
![]() |
||
![]() |
||
![]() |
||
|
Former
Lab Members
|
Updates?
We'd like to know! E-mail cathy@mbi.ucla.edu
|
|
Researchers
|
|
| Dr. Grigory Belogrudov | Department of Physiology, UCLA School of Medicine |
Research Associate, University of Illinois Champagne-Urbana |
|
Research Associate, University of Rutgers |
|
| Dr. Pam Larsen | University of Texas Health Sciences Center at San Antonio, Dept. of Cellular and Structural Biology |
Postdoctoral Fellows |
|
B.A., M.S., & Ph.D. University of Shimane |
|
|
Ph.D Students
|
|
| B.S., Brigham Young University, Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles 2008 | |
| Dr. UyenPhuong C. Tran | B.S., University of California, Los Angeles, Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles 2007 |
| Dr. Melissa Gulmezian | B.A., University of California, Irvine, Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles 2006 |
| Dr.
Thai Do |
B.S., Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles |
| Dr. Peter Gin | B.S., Ph.D. 2005, University of California, Los Angeles - Postdoctoral Researcher with Dr. Stephen Young, Dept. of Med. UCLA |
| Dr. Edward Hsieh | Ph.D. 2006, University of California, Los Angeles - Postdoctoral Fellow with Mike MacCoss at Univ. of Washington, Seattle |
| Dr. Tanya Jonassen | B.S., Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles - Researcher - Ceres (Malibu, CA) |
| Dr. Wayne
Poon |
B.S., Ph.D. University of California, Los Angeles - Postdoctoral Fellow, University of California, Irvine |
| Master Students | |
| Suzie Ward Baba | |
| Diana Davis | B.S., North Carolina State University |
| Undergraduate Students | |
| Class of 2001, Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles | |
| B.S., M.S., Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles | |
| Class of 2001 - Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles | |
| Dang, Peter | Class of 2006 - Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles - Masters student UCLA School of Dentistry |
| Under Construction...... |
|
Updated 07/21/08