Molecular Cell Biology
Logic and Approaches to
Research
Cooper
Reductionism Science
1. Define a biological problem Genetics, physiology, medicine
2. Inventory of parts Biochemistry, genetics, genomics
3. Concentrations Biochemistry, microscopy
4. Molecular structures X-ray crystallography, NMR
5. Partners Biochemistry, genetics
6. Rate & equilibrium constants Biophysics, microscopy
7. Biochemical reconstitution Biochemistry, microscopy
8. Mathematical model Analytical or numerical
9. Physiological tests Drugs, genetics, RNAi
Approaches to Cell Biology Research
Genetics
• Screen for mutants with a phenotype.
• Crosses to define complementation
groups.
• Details of the phenotypes. Divide into
classes.
• Order the classes by epistasis.
• Clone the genes.
Approaches to Cell Biology Research
Anatomy
• Structure of cells and tissues.
• Ultrastructure (EM), to detect fine
structures, such as filaments or
membranes.
• Correlate structures with function.
• Identify molecules if possible.
Approaches to Cell Biology Research
Biochemistry
• Purify molecules, such as metabolites,
proteins, or even membranes.
• Study their chemical properties in vitro.
• Attempt to re-create in vitro a
phenomenon observed in vivo.
• Reconstitution as an ultimate test for
“sufficiency.”
Approaches to Cell Biology Research
Physiology
• Observe the phenomena exhibited by
living cells or organisms, such as
movement.
• Quantify parameters such as rate of
movement and ask how they correlate
with each other factors.
• Decrease or increase the activity of a
component.
Approaches to Cell Biology Research
Pharmacology
• Find drugs (chemicals) that inhibit or
enhance a phenomenon, such as movement.
• Identify their molecular targets, such as
proteins.
• Use in physiology studies to inhibit a
process acutely.
Example of How the Techniques Interact
• Find a cell that moves, like Dictyostelium.
• Study its movement up a chemotactic
gradient, and quantify various parameters.
• Find drugs that inhibit this movement.
• Study the fine structure of the cell, especially
the areas that seem to be moving.
• Are there small structures, such as filaments
and crosslinkers, and are they in an
arrangement that suggests how movement can
be generated?
Example of How the Techniques Interact
• Purify proteins that make up those fine
structures, such as filaments.
• Purify proteins that bind to those proteins.
• Look for how the different proteins regulate
the relevant activity (which you have to guess
at).
• Determine whether the drugs above affect this
in vitro activity.
Example of How the Techniques Interact
• Localize the proteins
• Ab staining of cells to show that the proteins
really are associated with those fine structures.
• GFP fusions once cDNA is obtained (later)
• Microinject Abs or fragments of proteins looking
for an effect on cell movement (inhibition or
enhancement).
Example of How the Techniques Interact
• Reverse genetics.
• Use the protein to clone cDNA’s and/or genes
encoding it. Modern equivalent - database
search.
• Correlate expression with cell movement.
• Use the cDNA to inhibit the protein
(antisense or knockout)
• Overexpress the protein
• Express fragments or mutated versions of the
protein (dominant effects).
Example of How the Techniques Interact
• Forward genetics.
• Start by making mutants.
• Study phenotype and classify.
• Information about different steps at
which one can stall the process. Use the
physiology and anatomy to classify.
• Epistasis to order the genes.
• Clone and sequence the genes.
• Make protein, make Abs and cDNAs, and do
the experiments above.
Example of How the Techniques Interact
• Reconstitution as an ultimate goal.
• Genetics defines a set of genes / proteins
important for movement.
• Make and mix together pure proteins to
create the movement.
Hypothesis-Driven Experiments
• State the hypothesis
• Not a “straw man” or trivial
• State the experiment
• Possible outcomes
• Interpretation of each outcome
• Controls - positive, negative
• Limitations and Alternative Interpretations
“Proof” of a Hypothesis or Model
• Observed Results as Predicted
• What Alternatives are Excluded?
• Karl Popper, The Logic of Scientific
Discovery, 1934
• How strong is the evidence against the
alternatives?
• Obligation to raise and test credible
alternatives
• Or the ones that others find compelling
Revolutions and Paradigms
• Thomas Kuhn, The Structure of
Scientific Revolutions, 1962
• Evidence against the current
paradigm is the most interesting
and important
Mathematical Modeling
• What features of the model are
verified by experiments?
• How many parameters are varied,
to fit the data?
• What models are excluded?
Experiment Design: Necessary vs Sufficient
• Necessary
• Process with multiple parts. Remove one
and observe loss of function.
• Distinguish Necessary from Regulatory.
• Sufficient
• Synthetic mixture of pure components.
• Add a new component to a mixture.
• Recognize the context.
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