U.S.-Netherlands Planning Visit: Binding and Recognition of Complex Glycolipids by Mycobacterial Proteins

通过这次规划访问，纽约州立大学斯托尼布鲁克的研究员杰西卡·西利格将与荷兰格罗宁根大学的合作伙伴启动一个合作项目。 她的同行Adriaan Minnaard和他的团队在分枝杆菌脂质及其类似物的全合成方面建立了专业知识，这补充了Seeliger对酶机制和底物活性的研究。他们的目的是共同研究分枝杆菌中脂质生物合成和转运背后的蛋白质机制和催化机制。 他们对分子识别的化学决定因素的关注应该提高我们对疏水底物如何被识别为从胞质溶胶（它们被制造的地方）运输到它们所居住的外膜的知识。 从计划的长期合作的结果，预计将提高我们的基本了解在分枝杆菌的脂质生物合成。 如果成功，研究人员希望获得有关化学探针的新信息，这些信息不仅对分枝杆菌研究界有用，而且对其他研究其他细菌中脂质的人也有用。 这次催化研究访问通过使美国和欧洲的专家能够分享研究资源并在具有强烈共同兴趣和能力的领域规划有益的项目，实现了推进基础生物学知识的计划目标。 通过检查生物合成途径和运输不寻常的脂质，特别是在放线菌中获得的经验，可能有更广泛的影响，有助于我们的能力，以确定细菌抗原的免疫受体。 此外，一名参与的美国研究生将获得国际合作团队的宝贵早期职业介绍。

Through this planning visit, researcher Jessica Seeliger of SUNY at Stony Brook will initiate a cooperative project with partners in the Netherlands at the University of Groningen. Her counterpart, Adriaan Minnaard, and his group have established expertise in total synthesis of mycobacterial lipids and their analogues, which complements Seeliger's studies of enzymatic mechanistic and substrate activity. Together, their intent is to investigate the protein machinery and catalytic mechanisms behind lipid biosynthesis and transport in mycobacteria. Their focus on chemical determinants of molecular recognition should improve our knowledge of how hydrophobic substrates are recognized for transport from the cytosol, where they are made, to the outer membrane where they reside. Results from the planned long-term collaboration are expected to improve our fundamental understanding of lipid biogenesis in mycobacteria. If successful, the researchers expect to gain new information about chemical probes that would be useful not only to the mycobacterial research community, but also to others studying lipids in other bacteria. This catalytic research visit fulfills the program objective of advancing basic biological knowledge by enabling experts in the United States and Europe to share research resources and plan beneficial projects in areas of strong mutual interest and competence. The experience gained through examination of biosynthetic pathways and transport of unusual lipids, particularly in Actinobacteria, may have broader impact by contributing to our ability to identify immunological receptors for bacterial antigens. Furthermore, one participating U.S. graduate student will gain a valuable early career introduction to international collaborative teamwork.