AP Biology Research Project - Cell Signaling Diseases Project
INTRODUCTION
Communication between cells is important in order to ensure that all cells are performing their required functions. Cell
to cell communication usually takes the form of a signal transduction pathway. You can think of such a pathway as a row
of dominoes, all standing on their ends. Push one domino over, and the rest fall, due their direct or indirect association
with the first one you pushed over.
Some signals that cells send only work over a short distance. For example, in the brain, neurotransmitters allow one
neuron to excite its neighbor. The signal travels no further. Other signals, however, do travel a further distance.
Hormones, for example, are secreted by a source organ and travel to target cells, equipped with specialized receptors, in
remote regions of the body. Unfortunately, signal transduction might go awry. Because there are so many players and
so many steps in the process, it is easy to see how this might happen. To complete this project you will need to:
1. Review information about how problems in cell signaling can lead to diseases:
a. Explain the stages of a normal signal transduction pathway.
i. Understand the role of extracellular molecules (or ligands) in normal signal transduction.
ii. Recognize the role of protein kinases, cyclic AMP or calcium in the regulation of cellular
biochemical pathways in non-diseased cells.
iii. Describe what a cell does when it receives a signal (what kinds of cellular processes are altered
upon receipt of a signal)
b. Explain how the disease you have researched results from a disruption of this signal transduction
pathway (whether it be at reception, transduction or response)
2. Share this information in a visual and oral presentation
Your responsibility is to develop a poster that explains the basics of the disease and its relationship to a faulty
signal transduction pathway. Much of this research is "cutting edge." Your poster must explain both the
"normal" pathway and the "faulty" pathway and describe treatments and/or research being done for the
disease. Pictures and graphics are also necessary. I do not expect you to work at the graduate level on this
project but I do expect you to be able to explain, in your own words, the basics of the mechanism and the way in
which the failure of the mechanism leads to disease.
Please use reliable sources – start with EBSCO. Here are some additional good places to try:
http://fig.cox.miami.edu/~cmallery/150/memb/cellcomm.htm
http://www.cellsignal.com/reference/pathway/index.jsp
http://www.emedicine.com/
http://www.bioteach.ubc.ca/CellBiology/CellSurfaceReceptors/
http://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/
http://www.cellsignallingbiology.org/
http://www.kumc.edu/gec/support
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/projects/genome/guide/human/
http://medgen.genetics.utah.edu/photographs.htm
http://www.genome.gov/
Disease Choices
Ataxia Telangiectasia (AT)
Heart Disease - Congenital Heart Disease or
Cardiomyocyte Hypertrophy
Parkinson's disease
Multiple Sclerosis
Pancreatic Cancer
Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML)
Alzheimer Disease
Tuberous Sclerosis
Neurofibromatosis
Alopecia
Diabetes (Type 2 - Insulin Resistance)
Cockayne Syndrome
Asthma
Cystic Fibrosis
Werner Syndrome
Norrie Disease
Glaucoma
Tuberous sclerosis
Waardenburg syndrome
Kostmann Disease
Ebola
Thrombasthenia
Cholera
Shigellosis
Ameobic dysentary
Wiskott - Aldrich syndrome (WAS)
Bernard-Soulier Syndrome
Chronic myelogenous leukemia
Botulism
Pertussis (whooping cough)
Bipolar Affective Disorder
Osteoporosis
Tourette syndrome
Hypertension
Arteriosclerosis
Aging
Flu (1918)
Bubonic plague
Grading: Total Points – 35 points
1. Format - poster - 10 points
 All information must be typed; use headings and appropriate font sizes
 Pictures and graphics included; at least three including
o A picture or drawing of a person with the disease or a picture or drawing of
organs and/or tissues affected by the disease.
o A picture or drawing of the normal, working cell signaling pathway(s)
involved.
o A picture or drawing of the faulty cell signaling pathway(s) involved.
 Neat/colorful presentation - no spelling or grammatical errors
 Include name(s) in lower right corner of poster
 Include list of 3 or more sources used for project (properly cited using MLA) of
poster
2. Content - 16 points
 Disease - basics only - cause and core symptoms
 Cell signaling pathway involved
o Correct mechanism
o Incorrect mechanism
 Graphics of pathway (3 minimum)
 Current direction of treatment and research
3. Presentation - 9 points
 Three - five minute presentation of poster to class
 Be able to put content into "own words" and explain poster
 No direct reading off poster – both team members (if two) speak and can answer
questions asked of them
Format
Criteria
Overall presentation
of poster
Pictures & Graphics
Citations
Content
Disease Information
Normal cell
signaling pathway
Faulty cell signaling
pathway
Current treatments
& research
Presentation
Length
Comments:
4
Fluency
3 or more sources
cited properly using
MLA format
The cause and core
symptoms of the
disease are clearly
explained
All 3 components of
the normal signaling
pathway are present
and fully explained
All 3 components of
the faulty signaling
pathway are present
and fully explained
Current treatments
and research
present and fully
explained
3
2
1
All information is
typed, no spelling or
grammatical errors,
neat, colorful
Poster contains 1-3
spelling or
grammatical errors,
lacks neatness or
color, or not all
information is typed
Missing 1 of 3
required images
Poster contains 4 or
more spelling or
grammatical errors,
is messy and lacks
color, not typed
2 sources cited
1 source cited
The cause and core
symptoms are
present but missing
3-4 key details
All 3 components of
the normal signaling
pathway are present
but no details
The cause and core
symptoms are
missing 4 or more
key details
Missing 1 or more
components of the
normal signaling
pathway and no
details
Missing 1 or more
components of the
faulty signaling
pathway and no
details
Missing current
treatments or
research and no
details
Presentation less
than 2 minutes
Presenter(s) present
little of the content
in their own words,
do not seem to
understand the
disease presented,
struggle to answer
questions
Images include
normal pathway,
faulty pathway, and
affected
organs/tissues
3 sources cited, MLA
format not followed
The cause and core
symptoms are
present but missing
1-2 key details
All 3 components of
the normal signaling
pathway are
presenting but
missing some details
All 3 components of
the faulty signaling
pathway are
presenting but
missing some details
Current treatments
and research
present but missing
some details
Presentation lasts 35 minutes
Presenter(s) present
content in their own
words and clearly
understand the
disease presented,
can answer
questions
Presenter(s) do not
read off of the
poster during
presentation
All 3 components of
the faulty signaling
pathway are present
but no details
Current treatments
and research
present but with not
details
Presentation lasts 23 minutes
Presenter(s) present
most of content in
their own words,
have some gaps in
understanding the
disease presented,
have some
hesitation in
answering questions
Presenter(s)
occasionally read off
of the poster during
presentation
Missing 2 of 3
required images
Presenter(s) read off
of the poster for the
majority of the
presentation
TOTAL: ___________/ 35