Structural and functional investigations of novel kinesin assemblies: deciphering intersubunit communication in asymmetric motors

生命的一个决定性特征是运动。从我们在街上行走的能力，到我们细胞内单个分子的分布，运动是一种基本的必需品，而被称为“运动蛋白”的微小蛋白质机器为大多数形式的运动提供动力。这些马达将ATP等高能分子中的化学键断裂所释放的能量转化为机械力，以便沿着细胞中的蛋白质轨道沿着。在此过程中，他们将各种货物运输到单元中所需的目的地。最近在纳米技术开发方面的努力集中在驱动蛋白和其他马达蛋白上，作为构建和驱动纳米级器件的灵感来源。Allingham博士研究的一个主要目标是了解驱动蛋白运动设计的各个方面，这些方面赋予它们运动特性，以促进这一领域的快速发展。阿林厄姆博士的实验室目前正在进行的研究的具体重点涉及破译机制，通过该机制，来自各种不同生物体的新型驱动蛋白能够协调化学能转化为受控运动。通过确定这些驱动蛋白的三维结构、观察它们的运动以及研究突变对这些参数的影响，阿林厄姆博士的研究小组希望深入了解这种机制，这可能会彻底改变我们对马达如何执行其各种重要功能的理解。在细胞中以及这些功能如何在不同时间和不同细胞类型中受到调节。这些研究还将为研究生提供机会，以获得先进研究方法的多学科培训，并使他们能够为我们理解基础科学问题做出重大贡献。

A defining characteristic of life is movement. From our ability to walk down the street, to the distribution of individual molecules within our cells, movement is a basic necessity and tiny protein machines known as "motor proteins" power most forms of it. One of the best-known families of motor proteins are kinesins. These motors convert the energy released from breaking chemical bonds in high-energy molecules like ATP into mechanical force in order to move along protein tracks in cells. In the process, they transport various cargoes to their required destinations in the cell. Recent efforts in nanotechnology development have focused on kinesins and other motor proteins as a source of inspiration for building and powering nanoscale devices. A major goal of Dr. Allingham's research is to understand the aspects of kinesin motor design that confer their motile properties in order to facilitate rapid development in this area. The specific focus of studies currently underway in Dr. Allingham's laboratory involve deciphering the mechanism by which novel forms of kinesin from a variety of different organisms are able to coordinate the conversion of chemical energy into controlled movement. By determining the three-dimensional structures of these kinesins, observing their movement, and studying the effects of mutations on these parameters, Dr. Allingham's group hopes to gain insight into this mechanism, which could revolutionize our understanding of how motors carry out their various vital functions in cells and how these functions are regulated at different times and in different cell types. Such studies will also provide opportunities for graduate students to obtain multidisciplinary training in advanced research methods and allow them to make significant contributions to our understanding fundamental scientific questions.