| Yaoqi Lu (鲁耀骐) PhD Candidate Email: yaoqilu16@163.com Transfer of lipid across the cytoplas(m) is an essential process for intracellular lipid traffic. As a major lipid transport mechanis(m), lipid transfer proteins (LTPs) can mediate lipid transfer across the cytoplas(m). Phosphatidylinositol-transfer proteins (PITPs) have been considered as phospholipid transport proteins and central factors in the diversification of phosphoinositide signaling. My projects focus on the two evolutionarily distinct families of PITPs: the Sec14-like and the StAR-related lipid transfer domain (START)-like families. I aim to elucidate the lipid binding/transfer specificity and molecular mechanis(m)s of PITPs by using structural biology and biochemistry techniques. | |
| Weiqi Liu （刘玮琦） The 2’-5’-oligoadenylate synthetase (OAS)/RNase L system is an innate immunity pathway in a pathogen-responsive pattern to degrade viral and cellular RNAs, thus blocking viral infections. Viral dsRNA activates 2’,5’-oligoadenylate synthetase (OAS), a pathogen recognition receptor. Upon binding dsRNA, the active OAS-RNA complex converts ATP to PPi and 2’-5’-linked oligoadenylates (2-5A). Human cells express four OAS family members: OAS1, OAS2, OAS3 and OASL. OAS3 is mainly responsible for producing 2-5A activators of RNase L during infections by a wide range of human viruses. So it is important to study the mechanis(m) of dsRNA recognition and activation of OAS3. I aim to understand the mechanis(m) by disclosing the structure and the catalytic kinetics of OAS3. | |
| Yuhan Xu（许玉菡） PhD Candidate Email: blackeyes_002@163.com Lipids are one of the most important biomolecules. Lipids are synthesized in cells by endoplas(m)ic mesh and transported to different places by vesicle transport and non-vesicle transport. Lipid transport proteins are transported by mediating membrane contact sites in two cell membranes, which plays a very important role in the transport of lipids in non-vesicle transport. Lipid transport protein has many families, of which I mainly study the LAM family, is a class of lipid transport proteins that mainly transport steroids, including the structural domain responsible for membrane positioning and multi-domain research. | |
| Huijuan Zhu (朱卉娟) PhD Candidate Email: huijuanzhu1212@163.com Intracellular sterol traffic is essential for many biological functions, including regulation of membrane permeability, integrity, protein transport and signaling transduction. Non-vesicular sterol transport could be mediated by sterol-specific lipid transfer proteins (LTPs) with the ability to extract sterols from membranes. Membrane contact sites (MCSs) in eukaryotic cells are hotspots for lipid exchange. Lipid transfer proteins anchored at membrane contact sites (LAMs) contain sterol-specific lipid transfer domains [StARkin domain (SD)] and multiple targeting modules to specific membrane organelles. Whether the LAM family proteins act only as sterol transporter or as regulators mediating lipid trafficking remains to be elucidated. Therefore, I aim to explore the lipid-binding specificity of the LAM family proteins containing one or two StARkin domains, and to illustrate whether the two SDs have a synergetic effect on lipid transfer. I am also investigating the mechanis(m) of tethering membrane mediated by other domains (SD, GRAM and C2) and the effect of MCS on lipid transfer by LAM. | |
| Yanan Sun (孙亚男) PhD Candidate Email: sunyn0125@163.com Human oxysterol-binding protein-related proteins (ORPs) are important lipid binding/transfer proteins. They mediate lipid transfer or regulate lipid-modifying enzymes between membrane. Human ORPs have 12 homologues containing the conserved OSBP-related domain (ORD) which binds and transfers lipids such as sterols, PIPs and phosphatidylserine (PS). Following our previous new findings in ORP1 and ORP2, my project focuses on the enzymology of several ORPs members including ORP5/8/9/10/11, and expect to resolve their crystal structures, clarify their actions as lipid transporters. | |
| Yuanqing Tian(田原青) PhD Candidate, Grade 2021 Email: 1030880064@qq.com Bacteria survive lethal stress by resistance, tolerance and persistence. Tolerance and persistence render failure of treatments in half clinical bacterial infections, confer recurrence of most infections, cause long-term therapy, and promote evolution of genetic mutations for antibiotic resistance. The knowledge of resistance is well known currently. However, the mystery of tolerance and persistence are largely unknown and their importance in clinic is unfortunately underestimation due to absence of understanding and of appropriate clinical test strategies. Persisters seem to be tolerant to all antibiotics even at doses far higher for killing susceptible bacterial sub-populations. These problems in infectious diseases encourage me to explore the mechanis(m) of bacterial tolerance and persistence as my doctoral project for the goal to develop potential agents and methods to kill tolerant and persistent pathogens. | |
| Shanyue Zhao (赵善悦) PhD Candidate, Grade 2021 | |
| Ke Yan(蔺珂) PhD Candidate, Grade 2021 | |
| 武巍峰 | ||
| 李海龙 | ||
