Center for Bioinformatics at KU

As part of our public Seminar Series
http://bioinformatics.ku.edu/seminars

February 17, Tue 2009
1:00 pm, MRB 100 Conference Room

Dr. Mario Rivera

University of Kansas

Toward a molecular understanding of iron acquisition and homeostasis in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Efforts in our laboratories are aimed at understanding at a fundamental level the structure, function, dynamics and interactions of proteins involved in heme-iron metabolism and iron homeostasis in the opportunistic P. aeruginosa. The lecture will summarize recent successes and challenges in the quest to obtain the structural characterization of proteins involved in (1) the piracy of heme from the host hemoglobin (2) the degradation of the heme in the cytosol to release iron and (3) the mobilization of iron from bacterioferritin, a protein that stores iron and enables the organism’s survival while other mechanisms are activated to procure the nutrient from extracellular sources.