This web page was produced as an assignment for Genetics 564, an undergraduate capstone course at UW-Madison.
What is gene ontology?
Gene ontology is an effort by scientists to create a universal framework for biological language. It allows them to separate characteristics of a gene into three different categories: cellular component, molecular function, and biological process (1).
Cellular Component
The cellular component refers to the location within the cell that the gene products localize.
Molecular Function
Molecular function describes the molecular activities of gene products.
Biological Process
The biological process defines the recognized series of events, or pathways and processes that the protein participates in after translation.
Cellular Component
The cellular component refers to the location within the cell that the gene products localize.
Molecular Function
Molecular function describes the molecular activities of gene products.
Biological Process
The biological process defines the recognized series of events, or pathways and processes that the protein participates in after translation.
Biological process
Molecular Function
Cellular Component
Discussion
Gene ontology is necessary for efficient communication between researchers. Using the three categories of gene ontology, we can see that PINK1 plays an important role in phosphorylating another protein in the mitophagy pathway. A mutation in PINK1 disrupts the biological process mitophagy, which can cause insufficient energy in the cell, resulting in cell death. This disruption in mitophagy can be due to a diminished ability to perform the molecular function of protein kinase activity. This would make sense if the mutation is located on the Protein Kinase Domain (See Protein Domains page).
References
1. UniProt. (2014). "Gene Ontology (GO)". Retrieved From https://www.uniprot.org/help/gene_ontology
2. Pickrell, A. M., & Youle, R. J. (2015). The roles of PINK1, parkin, and mitochondrial fidelity in Parkinson's disease. Neuron, 85(2), 257-73.
3. MBL Life Science. (2017). "What is Mitophagy?" Retrieved from http://ruo.mbl.co.jp/bio/e/product/autophagy/article/mitophagy.html
2. Pickrell, A. M., & Youle, R. J. (2015). The roles of PINK1, parkin, and mitochondrial fidelity in Parkinson's disease. Neuron, 85(2), 257-73.
3. MBL Life Science. (2017). "What is Mitophagy?" Retrieved from http://ruo.mbl.co.jp/bio/e/product/autophagy/article/mitophagy.html