Download Dr. Bryan Ballif identifies phosphorylation sites on key proteins regulating cell  growth and proliferation.

Dr. Bryan Ballif identifies phosphorylation sites on key proteins regulating cell growth and proliferation. Dr. Bryan Ballif stands next to the mass spectrometers in his laboratory and as part of the Vermont Genetics Network Proteomics Facility, which he co‐directs. However, determining precisely where a protein is phosphorylated, and understanding the effect of phosphorylation at a given amino acid requires exacting instrumentation and skilled analysis. Dr. Ballif, working with a colleague, Dr. Diane Fingar, from the University of Michigan, studied regulated phosphorylation on key proteins involved in cell growth and proliferation. Phosphate adduction to a protein increases the protein’s mass by 79.966 daltons. This added mass can be measured in a mass spectrometer and can ultimately be used to pinpoint the site of protein phosphorylation. Read more about their work in two recent publications: ●Site‐specific mTOR phosphorylation promotes mTORC1‐mediated signaling and cell growth. Acosta‐
Jaquez HA, Keller JA, Foster KG, Ekim B, Soliman GA, Feener EP, Ballif BA, Fingar DC. Molecular and Cellular Biology. 2009 Aug;29(15):4308‐24. ●Regulation of mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1) by raptor S863 and multi‐site phosphorylation. Foster KG, Acosta‐Jaquez HA, Romeo Y, Ekim B, Soliman GA, Carriere A, Roux PP, Ballif BA, Fingar DC. The Journal of Biological Chemistry. 2009 Oct 28. [Epub ahead of print].