Back in the lab

Now that I'm back in the lab, I have two primary goals: 1) Finish the experiements required for our Sxy manuscript, 2) Conduct a few more experiments to beef up our CRP-DNA binding manuscript. For #1, I will again assay the translatability of various sxy gene mutants. This is a replication of an earlier experiment so it should go smoothly. Preliminary results support our model in which strong sxy 2º structure reduces translation; if I confirm these results, the manuscript is done. I may include an experiment to test whether a short DNA oligo can compete with formation of sxy 2º strucutre and thus facilitate translation of sxy mRNA. I attempted this experiment before, but found that the short mRNAs I was using encode a half size Sxy protein that is not detected by our anti-Sxy antibodies. I can now repeat this experiment using my new clones that generate full-length sxy mRNA.
For goal #2, Rosie and I may decide to resubmit the CRP-DNA binding manuscript as is, or I can conduct a few more experiments to improve it. Today I will write a draft of the proposed experiments so that we can weigh our options.