University of Maryland A. James Clark School of Engineering

Search
About Us
Visit Us
Giving
Engineering's Future
Academics
Research
News and Events

Prospective Students
Current Students
K-12 Students
Alumni
Faculty and Staff
Business and Government
Media
Newsroom
         

Event Information

ChBE Seminar Series: William Prinz
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
11:00 a.m.-12:15 p.m.
Room 2110 Chemical and Nuclear Eng. Bldg.
For More Information:
Professor J. Klauda
jbklauda@umd.edu

Moving Sterols and Signals Between Organelles at Membrane Contact Sites

Presented by William Prinz
National Institutes of Health (NIH)

The exchange of small molecules and signals between organelles is thought to occur at regions of membrane apposition called membrane contact sites (MSCs). However, few components of MCSs have been identified and little is known about how they function. The oxysterol-binding protein (OSBP)-related proteins (ORPs) are a large family of conserved lipid-binding proteins implicated in intracellular signaling, vesicular trafficking, and nonvesicular sterol transport. We have found that the ORPs in S. cerevisiae facilitate membrane contact and sterol transfer between bilayers at MCSs by a novel mechanism. The core lipid-binding domain present in all ORPs has two membrane-binding faces, allowing them to bind two membranes simultaneously. Remarkably, ORPs can transfer sterols between two membranes even while tightly bound to both, suggesting that ORPs can transport lipids without dissociating from membranes. The two membrane binding faces work cooperatively to transport lipid; ORP binding to phosphoinositides in one membrane greatly enhances the extraction and transfer of sterols from a second. Consistent with a role for ORPs at MCSs, we show that most of the seven ORPs in yeast are enriched at these regions, particularly between the endoplasmic reticulum and plasma membrane. Our findings define specific components of MCSs that simultaneously interact with each organelle, allowing them to sense and regulate the lipid content of both membranes.

This Event is For: Graduate • Faculty • Post-Docs

 

Browse Events By Calendar

Calendar Home

« Previous Month    Next Month »

November 2009
SU M TU W TH F SA
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 w
8 9 10 11 12 13 14 w
15 16 17 18 19 20 21 w
22 23 24 25 26 27 28 w
29 30 w

Tell Us About Your Event!

Submit Event

Most new events will appear on the calendar within one business day.

Browse Events By...

Audience

Alumni
Campus-Wide
Clark School
Corporate Partners
Current Students-All
Donors and Friends
Employers
Faculty
Graduate
K-12
Open to the Public
Press
Prospective Students
Post-Docs
Staff
Undergraduate

Category

Career Activities
Conference
Deadline
Information Session
Lecture
Panel
Recruitment
Seminar
Special Events
Social
Student Societies
Symposium
Workshop

Directions and Map

Directions to Campus
Campus Map

 

 

Back to top

     
         
         
Visit the University of Maryland Homepage Return to the Clark School Homepage