Stability of a Translocated Chromosome in Chronological Ageing Yeast

Chromosome translocation is a disastrous event for a cell, affecting almost every aspect ranging from metabolism, organelle maintenance and homeostasis to gene maintenance and expression. By using the Bridge Induced Translocation (BIT) system I wanted to define the effects of an induced translocation on the Chronological Life Span (CLS) of yeast with particular interest to the maintenance of the translocated chromosome through-out the life span. The results demonstrate that every translocant strain has a different CLS with a high increase in Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) levels at the end of the life span but the loss of the translocated chromosome occurs at the end of the life span with different rates between the translocants. Furthermore, the RDH54 gene may play a role in the correct segregation of the translocant chromosome since in its absence there is an exponential increase in loss of that chromosome.