ASET Colloquium
Understanding and engineering signalling in the immune system
by Prof. Ronald Vale (University of California, San Francisco)
Friday, February 8, 2013
from
to
(Asia/Kolkata)
at Colaba Campus ( AG-66 )
at Colaba Campus ( AG-66 )
Description |
The T-cell immune response is initiated when the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) protein on the surface of an antigen-presenting cells (APC) interacts with the T-cell receptor (TCR) on a T-lymphocyte. To understand how these extracellular interactions are transmitted into intracellular signals, we have generated an “artificial T cell” in which 13 immune-specific signalling genes were introduced into a non-immune, fibroblast-like cell. This artificial T-cell will initiate a specific intracellular signal with presented with a cell bearing a complementary MHC. In dissecting this process, we find that several intriguing physical events take place in the membrane, including spatial segregation of proteins and membrane bending, which appear to underlie the T cell signalling response. By understanding these phenomena, we have been able to engineer artificial receptors and ligand that can generate specific signalling responses in T cells. These studies illustrate how genetic engineering, microscopy, cell biology and the physical chemistry of membranes can be applied to understanding the immune system. About the Speaker: Prof. Ronald Vale is Howard Hughes Medical Investigator at the University of California, San Francisco. He was president of the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) in 2012. Ron Vale is the recipient of numerous awards and recognitions, most recent being the Lasker Basic Medical Research Award, which he shared with Jim Spudich and Michael Sheetz. This award recognizes the path- breaking discovery of the molecular motor Kinesin by Vale and his colleagues. Ron Vale is also passionate about the development of Life Sciences in India. He has travelled widely here on numerous visits, and has been a driving force behind the “Young Investigators Meetings” and the Indiabioscience web portal, both fertile meeting grounds for young researchers. |
Organised by | Dr. Satyanarayana Bheesette |