Exploring Secondary Metabolite Profiles of Sloth Algae

Author

Valerie Quach, University of Mississippi
Paige Smith, University of Mississippi

Date of Award

Spring 5-14-2021

Document Type

Undergraduate Thesis

Department

Biology

First Advisor

Erik Hom

Second Advisor

Cole Stevens

Third Advisor

Colin Jackson

Relational Format

Dissertation/Thesis

Abstract

In this experiment, we investigated the composition of the secondary metabolites in sloth algal cultures. Additionally, we investigated the effects of secondary metabolites in sloth algal cultures on insects. The three outlets of investigation include insect avoidance tests, sending samples to the Natural Center for Natural Products Research, and analyzing sequencing data with AntiSMASH to identify secondary metabolite biosynthetic gene clusters. While our data from the Drosophila fly tests were inconclusive, we found that our samples contain many different gene clusters for terpenes, NRPS, PKS, RiPPs, which are volatile compounds with a wide array of biosynthetic functions. This research can be used in the future to explore the effects of these volatile secondary metabolites on insects including the ones found in algal cultures located in the hair of Bradypus variegatus sloths.

Recommended Citation

Quach, Valerie and Smith, Paige, "Exploring Secondary Metabolite Profiles of Sloth Algae" (2021). Honors Theses. 1875.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/1875

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