Center for Membrane Protein Research
Mission: The long-term goal of the Center is to advance our knowledge of the structure and function of membrane proteins in health and disease. The Center brings together a group of TTUHSC and TTU investigators interested in the broad field of membrane-protein research.
Rationale: After completion of the human genome sequence, biomedical research has evolved into a combination of genomics, proteomics, and functional genomics. To a great extent, biomedical research in this century will be focused on prototypical proteins and protein families, including the determination of their structures, normal function, and their roles in human disease. From this knowledge will emanate rational design of new pharmacological agents that will open novel therapeutic approaches.
About 30% of the genes included in the human genome encode membrane proteins. These proteins participate in a myriad of normal and abnormal cell functions, including: 1) transport of ions, water and small solutes; 2) signaling processes; 3) metabolism and detoxification; 4) programmed cell death and necrosis; 5) entry of pathogens into cells, and 6) cellular structural integrity. If the promise of modern proteomics is to be fully realized, greater attention must be paid to the structures of these proteins and how they relate to normal and abnormal function. Crystallization is the method of choice for generating high-resolution structural models. However, membrane proteins have both hydrophobic and hydrophilic surfaces, a duality that makes them more difficult to crystallize than water-soluble proteins. It follows that relatively few structures of membrane proteins have been solved at the level of atomic resolution. In addition, high-resolution structures are important but not sufficient to understand how membrane proteins (and soluble proteins as well) function. To assess function, it is necessary to carry out biochemical and biophysical studies that are informed by structural knowledge, but explore questions of molecular mechanism, protein-protein interactions, and regulation.
CMPR Annual Meeting 2011 (October 2011)
CMPR Annual Meeting 2010 (October 2010)