Individual Listing

1234B GENOMICS BUILDING
University of California
Riverside, CA 92521

Borkovich, Katherine A

Professor & Plant Pathologist

College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences

Plant Pathology


Biography

 

Former Institution

University of Texas-Houston Medical School

Degrees

PhD Biochemistry 1985

University of California, Los Angeles

B.S. Biochemistry 1979

University of California, Davis

Awards

2006 American Association for the Advancement of Science, Agriculture,Food & Renewable Resources
Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence, U.T.-Houston Medical School, 2001
Dean's Award for Excellence, U.T.-Houston Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences 1995, 1999, 2000
American Cancer Society Junior Faculty Research Award, 1994-1997
Post-doctoral National Research Service Award (NIH), 1986-1989
Genetics and Regulatory Mechanisms Pre-doctoral Training Grant (NIH), 1981-1984
Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award, Chemistry Department, UCLA, 1980
Phi Kappa Phi, U.C. Davis Chapter, 1979
B.S. With Highest Honors, U.C. Davis, 1979


Research Area

My research is focused on the signal transduction pathways used by fungi to respond to their environment, using the filamentous fungus Neurospora crassa as a model system. One project is investigation of processes regulated by heterotrimeric (abg) G proteins. We have characterized three Ga, one Gb and one Gg subunits in N. crassa. Our data demonstrate crucial roles for G proteins in regulation of cell proliferation, asexual and sexual differentiation, and stress tolerance, through both cAMP-dependent and independent pathways. In addition, our results are applicable to both agriculture and drug discovery, in that homologues of two N. crassa Ga genes have been implicated in virulence in several plant and animal fungal pathogens.

A second project is study of opsins and opsin-related proteins (ORPs) in fungi. We have cloned and mutated the first opsin gene from a eukaryotic microbe, N. crassa nop-1. NOP-1 is most similar to archaeal opsins and binds all-trans retinal using a Schiff base linkage. We are continuing our analysis of nop-1, and are also characterizing an ORP from N. crassa, in order to determine the role that opsins and ORPs play in light-sensing in filamentous fungi.

Publications

Kays, A.M., Rowley, P.S., Baasiri, R.A. and Borkovich, K.A. (2000).
Regulation of conidiation and adenylyl cyclase levels by the Ga protein GNA-3 in Neurospora crassa, Mol. Cell. Biol. 20: 7693-7705 (Featured on cover of issue No. 21).

Yang, Q., Bieszke, J.A. and Borkovich, K.A. (2000).
Differential complementation of a Neurospora crassa Ga_i mutation using mammalian Ga protein genes, Mol. Gen. Genet. 263: 712-721.

Bieszke, J.A., Braun, E.L., Kang, S., Bean, L.E., Natvig, D.O. and Borkovich, K.A. (1999).
The nop-1 gene of Neurospora crassa encodes a seven transmembrane helix, retinal-binding protein homologous to archaeal rhodopsins. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci USA 96: 8034-8039.

Bieszke, J.A., Spudich, E.N., Scott, K.L., Borkovich, K.A. and Spudich, J.L (1999).
A eukaryotic protein, NOP-1, binds retinal to form an archaeal rhodopsin-like photochemically reactive pigment. Biochemistry 38: 14138-14145.

Ivey, F. D., Yang, Q. and and Borkovich, K.A. (1999).
Positive regulation of adenylyl cyclase activity by a Ga_i homologue in Neurospora crassa. Fungal Genet. Biol. 26: 48-61.

Yang, Q. and Borkovich, K.A. (1999).
Mutational activation of a Gai causes uncontrolled proliferation of aerial hyphae and increased sensitivity to heat and oxidative stress in Neurospora crassa. Genetics 151: 107-117.