title: Probe the Dynamics of Membrane Domains and Its Biological Effects using Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Xubo Lin (TALK)

institution: Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering, Beihang University

abstract:

In addition to being the first biological barrier for mammalian cells, the plasma membrane also serves as a multifunctional platform for exchanging matter and signals. Due to the differential preferences, its main components (e.g. lipids and proteins) can segregate into membrane domains of different compositions and properties. The dynamics of these membrane domains may determine the specific biological functions of the plasma membrane. Molecular dynamics simulation, also known as “Computational Microscope”[1], provides a powerful tool to study the membrane dynamics on the atomic/molecular level. Here, I will discuss about our recent progresses on the membrane dynamics (e.g. membrane domain stability and anti-registration) as well as its effects on the intrinsic transmembrane potential and the protein dynamics including the membrane partitioning of the transmembrane peptide of Linker for Activation of T-cells (LAT), and the clustering of H-Ras lipid anchors.

References:

[1] Eric H. Lee, Jen Hsin, Marcos Sotomayor, Gemma Comellas, Klaus Schulten. Discovery Through the Computational Microscope. Structure, 2009, 17(10), 1295-1306.