Discovery of intrinsically disordered sequences conferring desiccation survival

Informazioni relative al progetto

Desiccation Survival

ID dell’accordo di sovvenzione: 838945

DOI

10.3030/838945

Progetto chiuso

Data della firma CE 21 Marzo 2019

Data di avvio 1 Aprile 2019

Data di completamento 31 Marzo 2021

Finanziato da

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Costo totale

€ 212 933,76

Contributo UE

€ 212 933,76

Coordinato da

UNITED KINGDOM RESEARCH AND INNOVATION
United Kingdom

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - Desiccation Survival (Discovery of intrinsically disordered sequences conferring desiccation survival)

Periodo di rendicontazione: 2019-04-01 al 2021-03-31

Sintesi del contesto e degli obiettivi generali del progetto

Desiccation is a form of stress wherein extremely dry conditions cause intracellular proteins to unfold and aggregate irreversibly, resulting in cell death. How cells and organisms survive desiccation is a fundamental question in biology. Families of intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) in tardigrades (a phylum of microscopic animals), have been shown to be important for their survival during long periods of dryness. Under desiccation conditions, some of these proteins undergo glass-transition and gelation to form vitrified solids that protect intracellular proteins from unfolding and aggregation. However, the features of these proteins that confer protection are unknown. In this project, I endeavoured to unravel how the sequence features of tardigrade disordered proteins dictate their functions in achieving desiccation survival. The results of the project will help us understand better how proteins achieve biological functions and provide insight into possible mechanisms for combating harsh abiotic stresses.

Lavoro eseguito dall’inizio del progetto fino alla fine del periodo coperto dalla relazione e principali risultati finora ottenuti

Through development of an integrative analytical pipeline, combining computational sequence analysis, structural characterization using NMR, solution biophysics and ensemble generation, membrane biophysics, yeast genetics and cell biology, I successfully identified new protein sequences and features that could contribute to desiccation survival and abiotic stress tolerance in general. I also uncovered the mechanism by which these IDPs achieve stress tolerance.

Progressi oltre lo stato dell’arte e potenziale impatto previsto (incluso l’impatto socioeconomico e le implicazioni sociali più ampie del progetto fino ad ora)

The results of this project provided insights into how IDPs function in a complex cellular context under stress, and resources to describe functional mechanisms of IDPs across different size and time scales. The project illustrates the importance of studying molecular mechanisms by which abiotic-stress tolerant organisms survive under harsh condition and brings possibility in future bioengineering and fundamental biological research for improving our lives.

An overview of project summary