Biophysical NMR spectroscopy
NMR methods development for the structural investigation of intrinsically disordered proteins, their conformational dynamics, lipid membrane interactions, and binding dynamics
About
Neurotransmitter release at the neuronal synapse is a fundamental process for signal transduction between neurons. The SNARE proteins play a crucial role here by eliciting the fusion of the synaptic vesicle membrane with the presynaptic plasma membrane. A fusion pore will open, and the neurotransmitters are released into the synaptic cleft.
In their pre-fusion state, the SNARE proteins are intrinsically disordered. They do not exhibit a well-defined structure and show high internal flexibility. The SNARE proteins are membrane-anchored. However, the mode of interaction between the SNARE proteins and the lipid membrane is not well understood. Here NMR spectroscopy can provide novel structural and dynamic insights at atomic resolution, as NMR is favorable for studying highly dynamic systems, such as intrinsically disordered proteins.
Research Topics
- Biophysical NMR spectroscopy
- Structural protein dynamics
- Intrinsically disordered proteins
- Membrane proteins
- Neuronal exocytosis
- SNARE proteins
- Solution NMR spectroscopy
- Proton-detected solid-state NMR spectroscopy
Ph.D. students
Moritz Lemke (M. Sc. Biologie) (joined with Prof. Georg Groth)
Tobias Stief (M.Sc. Medizinische Physik)
Katharina Vormann (M.Sc. Biologie)
Students
Melinda Jaspert (B.Sc. Medizinische Physik)
Yashaswini Kalenahalli Gurusiddappa (B.Sc. Physik)
Deniz Karadana (B.Sc. Biologie)
Mirko Kraus (B.Sc. Biologie)
Magdalena Kuom (Medizinische Physik)