White Rose BBSRC CASE studentship: Developing new approaches and improved technologies for the study of membrane protein structure and mechanism

CryoEM has undergone a ‘resolution revolution’ in the last ~ 7 years, with dramatic improvements in microscope hardware and image processing. A second wave of this revolution is now underway, with sample preparation for electron microscopy under rapid development, with new methodologies to improve reproducibility and trap short lived intermediate steps by time-resolved methods. This project will use the cutting-edge sample preparation technology at SPT Labtech and world class EM facilities in Leeds to develop a better understanding of some of the basic rules that govern sample preparation whilst furthering our understanding of proteins involved in drug efflux and channel formation.

Objectives:
1. Investigate the effects of membrane protein size, composition and concentration on the resultant grid using established workflows.
2. Further develop time-resolved applications.
3. Use the improved protocols to study export by the multi-drug transporter.
4. Use time-resolved methodologies to look at the incorporation of VIP within liposomes.