Department of Biochemistry, University of Otago

Journal Club – Fri 13 Sep, 12pm, Rm BIG13
Emily Schulpen: TBC
Sankalita Ray: Building Functional Bile Ducts in Liver Organoids: Integration of Blood Vessels from Human iPSCs.

Generation of human iPSC-derived 3D bile duct within liver organoid by incorporating human iPSC-derived blood vessel - Nature Communications The interplay between blood vessel (BV) and epithelial tissue is crucial for organogenesis. Here, the authors co-culture hiPSC-derived liver progenitors on artificial BV to establish functional human bile ducts for modeling congenital biliary disease.

Latest publication with a contribution from Otago Biochemistry
The genetic basis of the kākāpō structural color polymorphism suggests balancing selection by an extinct apex predator

The genetic basis of the kākāpō structural color polymorphism suggests balancing selection by an extinct apex predator The kākāpō is an endangered and culturally significant parrot endemic to Aotearoa New Zealand. This genomic, phenotypic and simulation study of most living kākāpō explores the evolution of green and olive feather coloration, concluding that this polymorphism is likely a remnant of past predati...

Latest publication from Otago Biochemistry.
Characterization of acquired β-lactamases in Pseudomonas aeruginosa and quantification of their contributions to resistance

Characterization of acquired β-lactamases in Pseudomonas aeruginosa and quantification of their contributions to resistance | Microbiology Spectrum Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an extremely problematic pathogen, with isolates that are resistant to the carbapenem class of β-lactam antibiotics being in critical need of new therapies. Genes encoding β-lactamase enzymes that degrade β-lactam antibiotics can ...

Emeritus Professor Warren Tate has been at the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Otago nearly continuously since 1968. He recently gave a talk about his research history at the Department of Biochemistry's weekly seminar.
Watch it here: https://youtu.be/a4zqJjF8xgE

The Royal Society Te Apārangi recently published this obituary for Otago Biochemist and Royal Society Fellow Diana Hill who passed away a few months ago

Diana Florence Hill (1943 - 2024)

This week, the University of Otago's Department of Biochemistry is celebrating a significant achievement as Peter Mace marks his promotion to Professor at his Inaugural Professorial Lecture...
Otago University biochemist Peter Mace promoted to professor

Otago University biochemist Peter Mace promoted to professor | University of Otago This week the Otago University’s Department of Biochemistry is proud to be celebrating Peter Mace’s well-deserved promotion to Professor at his Inaugural Professorial Lecture.

Latest publication with a contribution from Otago Biochemistry.
Pseudouridine guides germline small RNA transport and epigenetic inheritance

Pseudouridine guides germline small RNA transport and epigenetic inheritance - Nature Structural & Molecular Biology Germline small RNAs in plants and mammals are marked by pseudouridine. In plants, Exportin-t is required for pseudouridylation, transport and localization of small RNAs in pollen, as well as for epigenetic inheritance in the form the triploid block.

Well done Claire Concannon for shining a light on X-ray crystallography & NZ research at the Melbourne synchrotron on
And kia ora to our structural biology friends from Auckland who helped explain the science so well.

Our Changing World podcast Stories of NZ science and nature from out in the field and inside the labs.

Members of the Department came together last week for the annual Biochemistry Research Society Meeting, keen to hear what the 400-level students have been busy doing in research labs across the building this year...
48th Meeting of the Biochemistry Department Research Society

48th Meeting of the Biochemistry Department Research Society | University of Otago Members of the Department came together last week for the annual Biochemistry Research Society Meeting, keen to hear what the 400-level students have been busy doing in research labs across the building this year.

Latest publication with a contribution from Otago Biochemistry
High-throughput transposon mutagenesis in the family Enterobacteriaceae reveals core essential genes and rapid turnover of essentiality

High-throughput transposon mutagenesis in the family Enterobacteriaceae reveals core essential genes and rapid turnover of essentiality | mBio The essential genome, that is the set of genes absolutely required to sustain life, is a core concept in genetics. Essential genes in bacteria serve as drug targets, put constraints on the engineering of biological chassis for technological or industrial ...

Latest publication with a contribution from Otago Biochemistry
Investigation of Antioxidant Activity of Protein Hydrolysates from New Zealand Commercial Low-Grade Fish Roes

Investigation of Antioxidant Activity of Protein Hydrolysates from New Zealand Commercial Low-Grade Fish Roes The objective of this study was to investigate the nutrient composition of low-grade New Zealand commercial fish (Gemfish and Hoki) roe and to investigate the effects of delipidation and freeze-drying processes on roe hydrolysis and antioxidant activities of their protein hydrolysates. Enzymatic hyd...

Latest publication with a contribution from Otago Biochemistry
Enhancing Photosynthesis and Plant Productivity through Genetic Modification

Enhancing Photosynthesis and Plant Productivity through Genetic Modification Enhancing crop photosynthesis through genetic engineering technologies offers numerous opportunities to increase plant productivity. Key approaches include optimizing light utilization, increasing cytochrome b6f complex levels, and improving carbon fixation. Modifications to Rubisco and the photosyn...

Department of Biochemistry Seminar
Fri 30 Aug, 10am, Room 2.31
Professor Archa Fox, Australian Centre for RNA Therapeutics in Cancer, University of Western Australia
Challenges and Opportunities in RNA Therapeutics: Spotlight on Cancer

Otago Biochemistry graduations August 2024
Congratulations to all Department of Biochemistry students graduating this month. Tino pai rawa atu!
Photos, a list of graduands, & a little about our PhD graduand projects...

Otago Biochemistry graduations August 2024 | University of Otago Congratulations to all Department of Biochemistry students graduating this month. Tino pai rawa atu!

On a mission for Pacific gout sufferers
Having witnessed first-hand the physical and financial pain of conventional gout medications in Samoa, Dr Keresoma Leaupepe is determined to find alternative treatments...

On a mission for Pacific gout sufferers | University of Otago A PhD graduate is on a mission for Pacific gout sufferers. Having witnessed first-hand the physical and financial pain of conventional gout medications in Samoa, Dr Keresoma Leaupepe is determined to find alternative treatments.

Department of Biochemistry *SPECIAL* Seminar
Wed 28 Aug 12pm, Room G.13 (BIG13)
Emeritus Professor Warren Tate, Dept of Biochemistry
The Central Dogma: Inspiring 57 years of study on DNA, RNA and Protein

Department of Biochemistry Seminar
Tues 27 Aug 12pm Room G.13 (BIG13)
Dr Hamish McMillan, Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute
Investigating ER+ breast cancer metastasis and the importance of FOXA1 in metastatic dissemination and progression

Journal Club – Friday 23 August, 12pm, BIG13
Kimberley Dainty: How Human Odor Influences Mosquito Behaviour
Giraldo D, et al. (2023). Human scent guides mosquito thermotaxis and host selection under naturalistic conditions. Current biology : CB, 33(12), 2367–2382.e7.

Human scent guides mosquito thermotaxis and host selection under naturalistic conditions The African malaria mosquito Anopheles gambiae exhibits a strong innate drive to seek out humans in its sensory environment, classically entering home…

At the Genemappers conference in Christchurch this week: Assoc Prof Paul Gardner's student, Daniela Schiavinato, won the runner-up Best Student Poster prize (from a tough pool of largely Australian students) for her "Predicting Functional Human Genic Features" presentation.
Congratulations!

Latest publication from Otago Biochemistry.
Megakaryocyte maturation involves activation of the adaptive unfolded protein response

Megakaryocyte maturation involves activation of the adaptive unfolded protein response Here, we show that the adaptive unfolded protein response is a feature of megakaryocyte differentiation, independent of induction of apoptosis, with the IRE1α pathway of particular importance.

Latest publication with a contribution from Otago Biochemistry.
Association of rare and common genetic variants in MOCOS with inadequate response to allopurinol

Association of rare and common genetic variants in MOCOS with inadequate response to allopurinol AbstractObjectives. The minor allele of the common rs2231142 ABCG2 variant predicts inadequate response to allopurinol urate lowering therapy. We hypothesi

Congratulations to Associate Professor Louise Bicknell who has won a grant in the latest funding round from the Neurological Foundation. She will use advanced molecular sequencing to study specific genetic processes that affect both neurodevelopment and neurological ageing diseases. This research will improve understanding of their roles in brain functioning and pave the way for potential therapeutic strategies for common ageing conditions such as Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s disease.
https://neurological.org.nz/research/funded-projects/

Journal Club – Friday 16 August, 12pm, BIG13
Jordon Lima: A People's as Unique and Diverse as their Continent
Reis, A. L. M., et al. (2023). The landscape of genomic structural variation in Indigenous Australians. Nature, 624, 602–610. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06842-7
Paul Gardner: A Prickly Subject
Satterlee, J. W., et al. (2024). Convergent evolution of plant prickles by repeated gene co-option over deep time. Science, 385, 6708. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.ado1663

The landscape of genomic structural variation in Indigenous Australians - Nature Population-scale whole-genome sequencing across four remote Indigenous Australian communities reveals a large fraction of structural variants that are unique to these populations, emphasizing the genetic distinctiveness of and diversity among Indigenous Australians.

How to create a science experiment video Get inspired to create captivating science videos in wet labs, fieldwork, or computational settings. This post will encourage you to plan, film, and edit for impactful communication of your research topic!

Latest publication from Otago Biochemistry.
Dual transcriptional inhibition of glutamate and alanine racemase is synergistic in Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Dual transcriptional inhibition of glutamate and alanine racemase is synergistic in Mycobacterium tuberculosis Synergistic interactions between chemical inhibitors, whilst informative, can be difficult to interpret, as chemical inhibitors can often have multiple targets, many of which can be unknown. Here, using multiplexed transcriptional repression, we have validated that the simultaneous repression of glu...