Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Prof.Dr.KaoriSugihara DepartmentofPhysicalChemistry UniversityofGeneva QuaiErnestAnsermet30 1211Geneva4,Switzerland tel:+41223793134 email:[email protected] Mechanosensitiveionchannelstudiesbyatomicforcemicroscopy Goaloftheproject Mechanosensitive (MS) ion channels present the best example of mechanotransductionmechanisminbiologicalsystems.Theyareinvolvedinoneof theleastunderstoodfivesenses,touchingsensation.Recently,majorMSchannels, Piezo1 and Piezo2, have been identified in vertebrates. Since their discovery, their mechanismsofforce-sensingandgatingareatthecenterofattention.Thecurrent bottleneckforthisinvestigationisthelackofpropertoolstoapplylocalforcesand monitor the response of the channels simultaneously. In this project, we combine atomicforcemicroscopyandcalciumimaging(fluorescencemicroscopy)forstudying theresponseofPiezoMSchannelsagainstdifferentstrengthandfrequencyoflocal forces. Strong and frequent force application will mimic touching rough surfaces, while soft and slow force application will simulate touching smooth surfaces. Ion influxforeachcasewillbemonitoredbycalciumsensitivedyes.Bycorrelatingthe cell electrical response with applied forces, we aim to clarify the function of Piezo proteins. Startingdateandduration Theprojectisavailableuntilthepositionisfilled.Itisforinternshipsandmaster projects.