Cellular Logistics - The Machineries of Life
Biological membranes are fascinating dynamic barriers balancing the biological needs for compartmentalization, confinement, and communication. The significance of transport of ions, molecules, and information across cell membranes is highlighted by the diversity of membrane proteins. A detailed understanding of the functionality of transmembrane processes is a focal point in health and diseases.
Our central goal is to understand intracellular transport processes mediated by membrane proteins in particular ABC transport systems that are key players within the adaptive immune response against virally or malignantly transformed cells.
This includes sophisticated strategies by which viruses escape the immune system.
In addition, we focus on molecular machines, which reorganize macromolecular RNA-protein complexes in the quality control of protein synthesis and HIV assembly.
Nanotechnology covers completely new approaches based on molecular assembly to develop new devices in nanoscale dimensions. In (opto) chemical biology, we use light to reprogram dynamic cellular networks.
We tightly integrate advanced methods in cell and structural biology, chemical and synthetic biology, immunology and virology in order to understand the molecular mechanisms of cellular machineries involved in human diseases.
Please take a look at our projects sections for detailed information on the different research topics of our group.
