Advisor: Derek Prosser, Ph.D., Department of Biology

ALS8 is a subtype of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis that is linked to a mutation in the membrane protein VAPB. A genetic screen in a yeast model of ALS8 identified AVL9 as a potential suppressor of the ALS phenotype. Avl9 is a poorly characterized protein suspected to be believed in vesicle trafficking as a guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) toward Rab family of small GTPases. My research is focused on identifying substrates of Avl9 as well as characterizing its functional role in yeast trafficking. Through this characterization we hope to understand how we can utilize Avl9 in a possible role for treatment of ALS and other neurodegenerative diseases.