Wollscheid Lab: Master Thesis in Receptor Nanoscale Organisation & Cellular Signaling

The research of our lab focuses on cell surface protein in general and specifically on receptors. We recently suceeded in developing a technology which enables the decoding of ligand-receptor interactions [1]. The TRICEPS-based ligand-receptor capture technology enables the direct identification of receptors of orphan ligands on cell and tissues [2] by mass spectrometry. However, there is now growing evidence that receptors do not act as lonely heros, but that their microenviroment and nanoscale organization influences the information transfer from the receptor into the cell upon binding by a ligand or drug [3]. Unfortunately there is very limited knowledge about the nanoscale organization of proteins/proteoforms within the cell surface available. This is mainly due to a lack of suitable technologies for the unbiased discovery of such cis, or lateral interactions within the plasma membrane. A qualitative and quantitative view of the nanoscale organisation of cellular receptors and reorganisation upon perturbation with drugs would provide new avenues of investigation for future drug development, specifically in respect to targeting dynamic protein-protein interactions.

The research within this master thesis project would include:

• the tailoring of a newly established and unpublished (be part of it!) chemoproteomic technology for dynamic cell surface protein-protein interaction mapping
• the application of this mass-spectrometry based technology to a defined set of key cell surface receptors
• the computational analysis of the data in the context of cellular signaling networks

If you have a background in biochemistry and cell biology and want to be part of this exciting project, please contact us!

[1] Fexternal page rei, A. P. et al. Direct identification of ligand-receptor interactions on living cells and tissues. Nat. Biotechnol. 30.997-1001 (2012).

[2] external page https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDPpCjULezE

[3] external page Delos Santos, R. C., Garay, C. & Antonescu, C. N. Charming neighborhoods on the cell surface: Plasma membrane microdomains regulate receptor tyrosine kinase signaling. Cell. Signal. 27, 1963–1976 (2015).

Contact:

Prof. Dr. Bernd Wollscheid / Project lead: Damaris Bausch-Fluck
Department of Health Sciences and Technology (D-HEST)
Institute of Molecular Systems Biology (IMSB)

ETH Hönggerberg, HPT, D77
Auguste-Piccard-Hof 1

CH-8093 Zürich, Switzerland

E-mail: /
Web: wlab.ethz.ch