Zoom seminar for OIST "Bridging the genotype-phenotype-fitness divide: from protein interfaces to organismal fitness"

• Zoom link: https://oist.zoom.us/j/94282733063?pwd=bUFnTlRJa0VhbmlpRXN6NlZvZVN4Zz09
• Meeting ID: 942 8273 3063
• Meeting Passcode: 977263

Speaker 

Dr. Shimon Bershtein / Ben-Gurion University of the Negev Department of Life Sciences

Abstract

Homomers are prevailing in bacterial proteomes, particularly in central metabolic enzymes where formation of quaternary structures is essential to function and regulation. Protein interfaces that facilitate homomerization are thus subject to intense evolutionary pressure. Although in-depth studies of protein interfaces have established the key determinants of homomeric complex formation, we still lack a basic understanding of the molecular mechanisms that drive evolutionary variation in homomeric complexes. In particular, it is not clear i) how protein interface evolution is linked to variation in function and structural integrity of homomeric complexes, or ii) how these emerging properties of the homomeric complexes affect organismal fitness and adaptability. Using bacterial methionine S-adenosyltransferases (MATs), an essential homo-tetrameric enzyme of central metabolism, as a model protein, I will demonstrate that evolution acts on the inter-dimeric interfaces of MATs to tailor the regulation of their activity and intracellular turnover to the unique environmental needs of bacteria.

Contact

Mika Uehara(mika.uehara@oist.jp)