Glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) is a lipid anchor for many cell-surface proteins. GPI-anchored proteins are the major form of cell-surface proteins in protozoa. Proteins containing a GPI anchor play key roles in a wide variety of biological processes. It is composed of a phosphatidylinositol group linked through a carbohydrate-containing linker (glucosamine and mannose glycosidically bound to the inositol residue) and via an ethanolamine phosphate (EtNP) bridge to the C-terminal amino acids of a mature protein. The two fatty acids within the hydrophobic phosphatidyl-inositol group anchor the protein to the cell membrane.
Every spring, high school seniors around the country anxiously check their mailboxes in hopes of receiving acceptance letters to various universities. Historically, acceptance into college has been based on grades, SAT score, character, letters of recommendation, extra-curricular activities, and personal statements. However, more recently, another factor in the admission process has emerged; race-based admissions. This new policy has been established in order to give minority students a better chance to gain acceptance into college. This policy, which has been labeled affirmative action, was established in the nineteen sixties under President Lyndon B. Johnson to help diversify higher education in the U.S. and serve as a remedy for past discrimination. Affirmative action is defined as, “Giving preferential treatment to members of a racial, sex, ethnic, or other groups because they are members of groups who have received discriminatory treatment in the past” (Roberts, 90). Furthermore, the use of race in University decisions is supported by some and opposed by others. Proponents of affirmative action claim that it is necessary to achieve diversity in education, which in their opinion should be sought above all else. While opponents argue that race-based admissions actually promote racism and discrimination of people based on the color of their skin. Since the installment of race as a factor in university admittance, many people and organizations have challenged the constitutionality of affirmative action. The Supreme Court has heard numerous cases relating to race-based admission and the debate continues today. Furthermore, this essay will examine the differing views as to whether race should be used in university admission decisions.
In the past, minorities have been discriminated and underrepresented on college campuses. Much of this is a result of the Jim Crow laws that kept African Americans and whites in segregated schools, preventing blacks from receiving an equal education. It wasn’t until the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court ruling that education opportunities for minorities began to change. The Brown decision in 1954 ruled that schools had to begin dismantling segregation, citing the idea “separate but equal,” was actually far from equal. Then in 1964 President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act, which bared discrimination by federally funded colleges. The Civil Rights Act was the base behind the creation of affirmative action, a policy President Johnson greatly supported. “You do not take a person, Johnson said, who for years, has been hobbled by chains and liberate him, bring h
