1. Group 4 - Gene Expression Teachable Unit: Transcription Teachable Tidbit: Gene expression in the time of cholera: what’s in the water?
Berenice Aguilar, Brian Couch, Michael Gustin, Kathleeen Matthews, Kate Mouzakis, Dereth Phillips, Les Sommerville, Terri Stoner

2. Vibrio cholerae
toxin protein
Microbiologists study this in culture.
Hook: The point we want to make here is that DNA-protein interactions matter.
----- Meeting Notes (7/25/13 10:56) -----
when human is exposed to them the toxin is released
organism infect a person and release toxin that is stored in the cells
b) cholera infects a human being which initiates events leadings to protein interaction with DNA that leads to toxin production
c) upon infection the human has an immune response to the infection d)
What are the molecular events leading to cholera toxin gene expression?

3. Cholera is caused by the expression of a toxic protein (toxin) produced by the Vibrio cholerae bacteria What is the first step in gene expression to produce the cholera toxin protein?
Talk about where transcription fits in with the central dogma
second main step is transcription
2 minute brainstorm

4. Learning Goal:
Students will understand how changes in the protein/DNA interface affect transcription
We need a better, simple figure on slide 3.
toxin mRNA 5’

5. Predict how changes in the protein/DNA interface affect transcription
Learning Outcomes:
Predict how changes in the protein/DNA interface affect transcription
Predict and explain how molecular changes contribute to cholera toxin production
We need a better, simple figure on slide 3.
toxin mRNA 5’

6. Predict and explain why this change in promoter can cause these results?
V. cholerae
strain
toxin
promoter sequence
transcription
of toxin mRNA
protein
production 1
GAACTTTCTCG ON + 2
GAACGTTCTCG
OFF -
Ask them which part of the lock/key analogy they see the promoter being? Which molecule is the key and which is the lock?
Think-pair-whole class share
(What are the relationships between promoter sequence, toxin transcription, and toxin production?)
----- Meeting Notes (7/25/13 18:26) -----
we would have students talk to them selves and think they would identify sigma or the promoter

7. Strain 1 Strain 2 Transcription initiation Sigma Factor Promoter
OFF
Strain 2
Mutant
Promoter

8. Predict and explain what other factor involved in transcription initiation could give strain 3’s results
V. cholerae
strain
toxin
promoter sequence
transcription
of toxin mRNA
protein
production 1
GAACTTTCTCG ON + 2
GAACGTTCTCG
OFF - 3
If they don’t get this-
Try relating this to the lock and key analogy, what other sequence would you want.
We have done other experiments that have no differences downstream of initiator are occurring in the different strains

9. Strain 1 Strain 2 Strain 3 Transcription initiation Sigma Factor
Promoter
Sigma Factor
Transcription
OFF
Strain 2
Mutant
Promoter
Mutant
Sigma Factor
Strain 3
Transcription
OFF
Promoter

10. Toxin promoter sequence Transcription of toxin mRNA
For your homework (summative assessment)
Vibrio cholerae strain 2 rapidly mutates to strain 2*. Propose a likely mechanism consistent with your knowledge of protein-DNA interactions (1/2 page, written or drawn, complete and clear)
Vibrio
cholerae
Strain
Toxin promoter sequence
Transcription of toxin mRNA
Toxin
protein
production 1
GAACTTTCTCG ON + 2
GAACGTTCTCG
OFF - 2*
If they don’t get this-
Related to the lock and key analogy, what other sequence would you want.
We have done other experiments that have no differences downstream of initiator are occurring in the different strains

11. Predict how changes in the protein/DNA interface affect transcription
Learning Goal:
Students will understand how changes in the protein/DNA interface affect transcription
Learning Outcomes:
Predict how changes in the protein/DNA interface affect transcription
Predict and explain how molecular changes contribute to cholera toxin production
We need a better, simple figure on slide 3.
----- Meeting Notes (7/25/13 14:55) -----
busy slide, make shorter bullet points
take out objectives, take out understand
affects...
Toxin mRNA 5’