Research Highlights 2010
Flip the Clip
A new study by the FMP and MDC sheds light on a molecule with an important role in antigen recognition by the human immune system. Paper clips are used to attach pages to each other that you might want to separate again. The cells of our immune system produce a molecule that has a similar function – appropriately, it's called CLIP...
Reference
Günther S, Schlundt A, Sticht J, Roske Y, Heinemann U, Wiesmüller KH, Jung G, Falk K, Rötzschke O, Freund C. Bidirectional binding of invariant chain peptides to an MHC class II molecule. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2010 Dec 21;107(51):22219-24.
Link to the homepage of the Freund group here
Research Highlights 2011
Searching for new drugs in a European partnership
In the framework of the EU-OPENSCREEN project, European research institutes are combining their knowledge of the biological effects of chemical substances. The project, co-ordinated by the Leibniz-Institut für Molekulare Pharmakologie (FMP) in Berlin, has received 3.7 million Euros from the European Union to carry out a three-year preparatory phase project.
Managing the chemical workplaces of the cell
Our cells contain many small compartments with high levels of acid in which specialized molecules perform their jobs. Creating and maintaining the acid is the job of proteins in the membranes that surround the compartments. Now the lab of Thomas Jentsch at the MDC and FMP has revised our view of the functions of some of these proteins, which may help explain diseases that arise when the compartments fail. Their work is reported in two studies that appeared in the June 11 issue of Science:
References:
Novarino G, Weinert S, Rickheit G, Jentsch TJ. Endosomal chloride-proton exchange rather than chloride conductance is crucial for renal endocytosis. Science. 2010 Jun 11;328(5984):1398-401. Epub 2010 Apr 29.
Weinert S, Jabs S, Supanchart C, Schweizer M, Gimber N, Richter M, Rademann J, Stauber T, Kornak U, Jentsch TJ.Lysosomal pathology and osteopetrosis upon loss of H+-driven lysosomal Cl- accumulation. Science. 2010 Jun 11;328(5984):1401-3.
Link to the homepage of the Jentsch group here
The nuts and bolts of thought
Receptor proteins on the surface of nerve cells transmit sensory information and thoughts. Each receptor protein is formed from a closely-knit group of similar pieces. Andrew Plested's laboratory at the FMP has now exposed some of the physical and chemical properties that determine how the different pieces of an important type of receptor connect to each other.
Reference:
Das U, Kumar J, Mayer ML, Plested AJ. Domain organization and function in GluK2 subtype kainate receptors. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2010 May 4;107(18):8463-8.
Link to the homepage of the Plested Group here
