Molecular Characterisation of Metal Transport Proteins

微量金属对生命是必不可少的。 它们的催化作用和结构作用的秘密正受到严格的审查。调节生物细胞中营养金属浓度的分子机制仍然知之甚少。 金属代谢的错误会导致疾病。 例如，铜代谢缺陷导致人类的门克斯和威尔逊病，铜和锌与神经退行性疾病如阿尔茨海默病和克雅氏病（疯牛病）有关。该项目将研究负责将营养铜和其他金属输入生物细胞的代谢途径的化学反应。

The trace metals are essential to life. The secrets of their catalytic and structural roles are under intensive scrutiny. The molecular mechanisms which regulate concentrations of nutrient metals in biological cells remain poorly understood. Errors in metal metabolism cause disease. For example, defects in copper metabolism cause Menkes and Wilson diseases in humans and there are connections of copper and zinc to neuro-degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer and Creutzfeldt-Jakob (mad cow). This project will study the chemistry of metabolic pathways responsible for import of nutrient copper and other metals into biological cells.