Boehringer Ingelheim grant received
We got an Exploration Grant from the Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation to develop genetically enoded probes to label and functionally characterize membrane domains in planta.
28.09.2012
Plasma membranes require high levels of plasticity to modulate perception and transduction of extra- and intracellular signals. Lateral assembly of protein complexes combined with an independent compositional lipid patterning of the bilayer in both membrane leaflets, provide the opportunity to decorate this interface with specific proteins in an organized and dynamic manner. This ability to reorganize the protein composition of the plasma membrane is essential for the regulation of processes such as polarity of transport, development and microbial infection. While the plant cell wall represents the first physical and mostly unspecific barrier for invading microbes, the plasma membrane is at the forefront of microbial recognition and initiation of defence responses. Accumulating evidence indicating dynamic compartmentalization of plasma membranes in response to environmental cues has evoked increasing interest in its compositional heterogeneity. Functional membrane domains (‘membrane rafts’) host a number of signalling proteins but also serve as key cellular entry points for pathogenic microbes and viruses. Remorin proteins are the only accepted membrane domain marker proteins in plants. The proposed project will define the molecular composition of these domains to unravel their functional specification by using remorin-based probes for in vivo labelling.