Program Description

Overview
Protein folding is a highly complex process with important clinical significance. It is a major focus of study by theoreticians, biochemists, cell biologists, and neuroscientists. Furthering our understanding of protein folding will have a significant impact on basic and applied protein science. In order to train graduate students and post-doctoral fellows in this multidisciplinary field, a training program in Protein Folding and Interaction Dynamics: Principles and Diseases has been initiated at the University of Toronto and supported by Canadian Institutes of Health Research Training Grant.

The program brings together scientists from various disciplines within the large Toronto protein folding community to encourage cross-disciplinary research encompassing in vitro, in vivo, computational, and disease-related aspects of protein folding, binding, and misfolding. The program involves thirty-two principle investigators and is coordinated by a five-member program advisory committee. Prospective trainees will become part of a network of laboratories working in the field of protein folding, and they will be co-supervised by at least two members of the program. The unique and rich environment provided by the program will train graduate students and post-doctoral fellows to make significant contribution to this important and multidisciplinary field.

Principle Investigators
Thirty-two excellent research groups from the University of Toronto and its affiliated research institutes are brought together under this program. The faculty members and their affiliations are as follows:

  1. Khosrow Adeli khosrow.adeli@sickkids.ca (416) 813-8682
    Division of Clinical Biochemistry, The Hospital for Sick Children; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: ER translocation of secretory proteins; biogenesis and misfolding of secretory proteins; co-translational and post-translational protein degradation; ER stress
  2. Avi Chakrabartty chakrab@uhnres.utoronto.ca (416) 946-2000 x4910
    Division of Molecular and Structural Biology, Ontario Cancer Institute; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: protein folding, misfolding, and conformational diseases
  3. Tigran Chalikian chalikan@phm.utoronto.ca (416) 946-3715
    Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toronto
    Expertise: studies into conformational properties of macromolecules using high precision densimetry and ultrasonic velocimetry
  4. Hue Sun Chan chan@arrhenius.med.utoronto.ca (416) 978-2697
    Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: theoretical and computational approaches into protein folding, computational biophysical chemistry, and statistical mechanics
  5. Alan Davidson alan.davidson@utoronto.ca (416) 978-0332
    Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto
    Expertise: the use of biophysical techniques to study protein folding
  6. Charlie Deber deber@sickkids.ca (416) 813-5924
    Structural Biology and Biochemistry Program, Hospital for Sick Children; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: membrane protein structure principles and conformational effects in disease
  7. Julie Forman-Kay forman@sickkids.ca (416) 813-5358
    Structural Biology and Biochemistry Program, Hospital for Sick Children; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: structure and dynamics of proteins by NMR, structure of disordered states of proteins, protein folding, and protein recognition
  8. Paul Fraser paul.fraser@utoronto.ca (416) 978-0101
    Center for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto
    Expertise: neurodegenerative disorders specializing in Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, amyloid-related diabetes, and systemic amyloidoses
  9. John Glover john.glover@utoronto.ca (416) 978-3008
    Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: heat shock proteins in mammalian systems, yeast prions, and diseases caused by mutations in human polyglutamine repeat proteins
  10. Claudiu Gradinaru claudiu.gradinaru@utoronto.ca (905) 828-3833
    Department of Physics, University of Toronto at Mississauga
    Expertise: Single molecule biophysics
  11. Elise Heon elise.heon@sickkids.ca (416) 813-8606
    Hospital for Sick Children, Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Science, University of Toronto
    Expertise: Inherited eye disorders: gene discovery, genotype-phenotype correlations, clinical trials
  12. Walid A. Houry walid.houry@utoronto.ca (416) 946-7141
    Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: protein folding, molecular chaperones, and proteomics
  13. Mitsu Ikura mikura@uhnresearch.ca (416) 581-7550
    Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto
    Expertise: calcium signaling, biophysical techniques, NMR spectroscopy
  14. Lewis Kay Kay@Bloch.med.utoronto.ca (416) 978-0741
    Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: NMR spectroscopy, protein dynamics, and molecular structure
  15. Walter Kahr walter.kahr@sickkids.ca (416) 813-7977
    Hospital for Sick Children, Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: Inherited platelet function disorders
  16. Clifford Lingwood cling@sickkids.ca (416) 813-5998
    Hospital for Sick Children, Research Institute, and Departments of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology and Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: receptor functions of glycolipids; verotoxin; hsp70 chaperone
  17. Don Mahuran hex@sickkids.ca (416) 813-6161
    Hospital for Sick Children, Research Institute, and Departments of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, Medicine, and Institute of Medical Sciences, University of Toronto
    Expertise: lysosomal storage diseases; chemical chaperones; enzyme purification; lysosome proteomics
  18. Emil Pai pai@hera.med.utoronto.ca (416) 978-7015
    MaRS Centre, Departments of Medical Biophysics and Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: X-ray crystallography
  19. Régis Pomès pomes@sickkids.ca (416) 813-5686
    Structural Biology and Biochemistry Program, Hospital for Sick Children; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: theoretical and computational biophysics; statistical mechanics of liquids, and molecular simulation techniques for studying the structure, dynamics, and function of biomolecular systems
  20. Gil Privé prive@uhnres.utoronto.ca (416) 581-7541
    Ontario Cancer Institute, Departments of Medical Biophysics and Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: Structural biology, membrane proteins, detergents, protein-lipid interactions, transcription factors
  21. Scott Prosser scott.prosser@utoronto.ca (905) 828-3802
    Departments of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Toronto Mississauga
    Expertise: NMR, membrane proteins, 19F NMR, membrane immersion depth measurements, membrane model systems
    protein tagging for NMR and in vivo experiments
  22. Reinhart Reithmeier r.reithmeier@utoronto.ca (416) 978-7739
    Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: Membrane protein folding and trafficking, chaperones, bicarbonate transport, inherited diseases
  23. Janice Robertson jan.Robertson@utoronto.ca (416) 946-0435
    Center for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto
    Expertise: neurodegenerative diseases specializing in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), cytoskeleton, cell death, molecular cell biology
  24. Gerold Schmitt-Ulms g.schmittulms@utoronto.ca (416) 946-0066
    Center for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto
    Expertise: proteomics; neurodegenerative diseases
  25. Simon Sharpe ssharpe@sickkids.ca (416) 813-7852
    Molecular Structure and Function Program, The Hospital for Sick Children; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: solid state NMR; protein and peptide structure; misfolding; membrane proteins
  26. Boris Steipe boris.steipe@utoronto.ca (416) 946-7741
    Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: protein stability, protein engineering, bioinformatics, and molecular systems engineering
  27. Elisabeth Tillier e.tillier@utoronto.ca (416) 946-4501 ext 3978
    Dept. of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto
    Expertise: development of computational methods for the analysis of protein sequences
  28. David Williams david.williams@utoronto.ca (416) 978-2546
    Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: in vivo protein folding within the ER, molecular chaperones, antigen presentation by class I histocompatibility molecules
  29. Shoshana Wodak Shoshana@sickkids.ca (416) 813 6351
    Structural Biology and Biochemistry Program, Hospital for Sick Children; Scientific Director, Center for Computational Biology; Departments of Biochemistry and Medical Genetics & Microbiology, University of Toronto
    Expertise:
    computational structural biology and bioinformatics
  30. Andrew Woolley awoolley@chem.utoronto.ca (416) 978-0675
    Department of Chemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise:
    protein chemistry, peptide chemistry, biophysical chemistry
  31. Christopher M. Yip christopher.yip@utoronto.ca (416) 978-7853
    Department of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry, University of Toronto
    Expertise: single molecule imaging, protein-protein interactions, molecular and protein self-assembly
  32. Rongmin Zhao rzhao@utsc.utoronto.ca (416) 208-2740
    Department of Biological Sciences, University of Toronto Scarborough; Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto
    Expertise: molecular chaperones in plant and yeast cells, protein degradation, and plant stress physiology

 

Members of the Program Advisory Committee (July, 2009 – )

Walid A. Houry
Julie Forman-Kay
Hue Sun Chan
David B. Williams
Khosrow Adeli

walid.houry@utoronto.ca
forman@sickkids.on.ca
chan@arrhenius.med.utoronto.ca
david.williams@utoronto.ca
khosrow.adeli@sickkids.ca
Director
Co-Director
Member
Member
Member

 

Home | Program Description | Faculty | Trainees | How to Apply | Events and Information | Publications Copyright © 2002. CIHR Training Program in Protein Folding
Program Guidelines Faculty How to Apply Faculty How to Apply Program Description Main Current Events Trainees Publications