Abstract

Arginine kinase (AK) and creatine kinase (CK) both share common ancestors of phosphagen kinase (PK) and are responsible for maintaining energy homeostasis. Naturally secreted hormone in pineal gland, melatonin is also important for sustaining bodily homeostasis by regulating the circadian rhythm. Although the past studies show that exogenous melatonin decreases locomotion, it is still unknown how it affects C. elegans with AK genes deleted. Thus, two genetically modified C. elegans, W10 and F44, were conducted in the study and compared to the control groups with regarding the number of body bends. Along with the thrashing assay, their burst activities and physiological responses on high/low dosages were also examined together. The physiological analysis shows that there was an inhibition of locomotion in both of the treated strains; however, there were no significant effect in their burst activities. Interestingly, among the experimental groups, the group treated with the highest amount had the least average number of thrashes while the rest of the groups had similar thrashes.

Advisor

Fraga, Dean

Second Advisor

Strand, Stephanie

Department

Biology

Disciplines

Biology | Chemicals and Drugs

Publication Date

2022

Degree Granted

Bachelor of Arts

Document Type

Senior Independent Study Thesis

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© Copyright 2022 Gun Ju Hwang