Malate Dehydrogenase CUREs Community (MCC) Collection
Background
The Malate Dehydrogenase CUREs Community (MCC) (Link opens in a new window) develops protein-centric Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) centered on a single enzyme, malate dehydrogenase (MDH). The MCC is a national group of educational leaders providing research opportunities to their students and other members of the MCC community. They support educators interested in integrating MDH-related research into their teaching laboratories. They encourage instructors teaching different types of courses, at any type of institution, and at different points in their careers to participate in the community. MCC members gain access to mentors, virtual and local professional development, membership to a local hub of educators teaching MDH CUREs, and opportunities to mentor future MCC members. Find a regional hub (Link opens in a new window) and contact the hub director for more information.
Why MDH?
MDH is stable, inexpensive to assay, and easy to purify using histidine-tagged constructs and routine protein and molecular biology techniques. Using a single protein with many available isoforms and mutants provides a shared experience for the research community and facilitates scientific collaborations between institutions. With these plasmids, faculty can begin a sustainable MDH-related CURE focusing on protein expression, structure and function, kinetics and mechanisms of action, regulation and post-translational modifications, and metabolic pathways and protein interactions.
Plasmids
A diverse set of wild-type MDH genes from several species and mutant clones from watermelon have been codon-optimized for expression in bacteria and cloned into an IPTG-inducible His-tag expression vector. All His-tags are cloned at the C-terminus of MDH and, if indicated on the plasmid map, a TEV cleavage site is present between the 6xHis-tag and the coding region of MDH. For detailed clone information, please see the MDH Protein Clone Information Sheet, available to download from each plasmid page.
Use the search bar or sort buttons to find plasmids based on:
- Organism or species (e.g., human, watermelon, Streptomyces)
- Subcellular compartment (chloroplastic, cytoplasmic, glyoxysomal, mitochondrial, peroxisomal)
- Mutation (specific mutation, "active site", "active site loop", or "subunit interface")
| ID | Plasmid | Description | Gene/Insert | Mutations |
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Other Resources
- MDH CUREs Community (Link opens in a new window)— Learn how to get started with a CURE, explore MDH projects, find teaching resources and protocols, learn about regional hubs, access a teaching mentor, and more.
References for teachers
- Using Bioinformatics and Molecular Visualization to Develop Student Hypotheses in a Malate Dehydrogenase Oriented CURE. Callahan KP et al. CourseSource. 2022 Jan 14. DOI: 10.24918/cs.2021.43 (Link opens in a new window)
- External Collaboration Results in Student Learning Gains and Positive STEM Attitudes in CUREs. Callahan KP et al. CBE Life Sci Educ. 2022 Dec;21(4):ar74. PMID: 36206327 (Link opens in a new window)
- Length of course-based undergraduate research experiences (CURE) impacts student learning and attitudinal outcomes: A study of the Malate dehydrogenase CUREs Community (MCC). DeChenne-Peters et al. PLoS One. 2023 Mar 9;18(3):e0282170. PMID: 36893201 (Link opens in a new window)
- Increasing access for biochemistry research in undergraduate education: The malate dehydrogenase CURE community. J Biol Chem. 2022 Sep;298(9):102298. PMID: 35921892 (Link opens in a new window)
Acknowledgments
The MCC and plasmid construction was funded by NSF IUSE 1726932 and NSF RCN-UBE 2119918.