Ubiquitin chain recognition by deubiquitylating (DUB) enzyme complexes

A studentship to study Ub signalling is available in the laboratories of Dr Elton Zeqiraj and Dr Darren Tomlinson at the University of Leeds. Ubiquitylation of proteins is a post-translational signal that regulates virtually all cellular processes through the precise spatial and temporal control of protein stability, activity or localization. As such, enzymes that perform ubiquitin chain cleavage (called deubiquitylases or DUBs), are frequently mutated in disease and important drug targets in cancer, autoimmune disease and neurodegeneration.

The studentship offers a unique opportunity to study multimeric DUB enzymes in complex with their substrates by cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM). The student will also perform state-of-the art protein engineering work to generate tools to study DUB localization and their enzyme activity and inhibition.

The project will be conducted at the Astbury Centre for Structural & Molecular Biology at the University of Leeds. The Astbury center offers a vibrant research environment and state-of-the art infrastructure for structural biology, protein engineering, drug discovery, chemical biology and proteomics.


Further information about research in the Zeqiraj laboratorY can be found via the link below.
Zeqiraj lab: http://www.personal.leeds.ac.uk/~fbsez


Informal enquires can be made to Dr Elton Zeqiraj ([Email Address Removed])