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:
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- Claudiu
Gradinaru claudiu.gradinaru@utoronto.ca
(905) 828-3833
Department of Physics, University of Toronto at Mississauga
Expertise: Single molecule biophysics
- 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
- Walid
A. Houry walid.houry@utoronto.ca
(416) 946-7141
Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
Expertise: protein folding, molecular chaperones, and proteomics
- Mitsu
Ikura mikura@uhnresearch.ca
(416) 581-7550
Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto
Expertise: calcium signaling, biophysical techniques, NMR
spectroscopy
- Lewis
Kay Kay@Bloch.med.utoronto.ca
(416) 978-0741
Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
Expertise: NMR spectroscopy, protein dynamics, and molecular
structure
- Walter Kahr walter.kahr@sickkids.ca (416) 813-7977
Hospital for Sick Children, Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto
Expertise: Inherited platelet function disorders
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- Andrew
Woolley awoolley@chem.utoronto.ca
(416) 978-0675
Department of Chemistry, University of Toronto
Expertise: protein chemistry, peptide chemistry, biophysical
chemistry
- 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
- 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 – )
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