Objective "Protein misfolding and aggregation are associated with a wide range of severe, and so far incurable, neurological and systemic disorders, which include Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, and type II diabetes. As these conditions are the consequence of the impairment of protein homeostasis, a variety of cellular natural defenses have evolved to eliminate protein aggregates as they form. In this application we are concerned with the problem of understanding the molecular basis of such defense mechanisms, by focusing on the specific case of the interaction between alpha-synuclein, a protein closely involved in Parkinson's disease, and Hsp70, a molecular chaperone with a variety of cellular functions, including the ability of recognising misfolded or aggregated proteins. We are going to address this problem using a wide arsenal of biophysical, biochemical and computational methods, including FRET and NMR spectroscopy, fluorescence methods, dynamic light scattering, transmission electron microscopy, isothermal titration calorimetry and molecular dynamics simulations. The outcome of this study will provide relevant structural information at atomic level on the binding modes of Hsp70 with diverse molecular forms of alpha-synuclein related to neurotoxicity. The results of this project are expected to increase our understanding of the molecular basis of the interactions between molecular chaperones and unstructured states of proteins, as well as to provide insights for the development of novel strategies for the rational design of therapeutic approaches against protein aggregation." Fields of science natural sciencesphysical sciencesopticsmicroscopyelectron microscopynatural sciencescomputer and information sciencescomputational sciencenatural sciencesphysical sciencesopticsspectroscopyabsorption spectroscopynatural sciencesbiological sciencesbiochemistrybiomoleculesproteinsprotein foldingmedical and health sciencesbasic medicineneurologyparkinson Programme(s) FP7-PEOPLE - Specific programme "People" implementing the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities (2007 to 2013) Topic(s) FP7-PEOPLE-2010-IEF - Marie-Curie Action: "Intra-European fellowships for career development" Call for proposal FP7-PEOPLE-2010-IEF See other projects for this call Funding Scheme MC-IEF - Intra-European Fellowships (IEF) Coordinator THE CHANCELLOR MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE Address Trinity lane the old schools CB2 1TN Cambridge United Kingdom See on map Region East of England East Anglia Cambridgeshire CC Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Administrative Contact Renata Schaeffer (Ms.) Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window EU contribution No data
