Probing Membrane Protein Dimerization in the Native Bilayer Environment

Kalina Hristova, Department of Materials Science and Engineering Johns Hopkins University

A class of membrane proteins, termed receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs), conduct biochemical signals via lateral dimerization in the plasma membrane. The transmembrane (TM) domains of RTKs play an important role in the dimerization process, and single amino acid substitutions in the TM domains are known to induce pathologies such as cancers and growth disorders. We seek to determine the structural and thermodynamic consequences of these pathogenic mutations. For these studies, we are developing novel methods for quantitative assessments of transmembrane helix dimerization in membrane environments.

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