Past Event: 24th August 2020
Virtual Biomacromolecular Structure SIG
24th August 2020 09:30 BST (GMT+1)
09:30 Dr Charlotte Uetrecht, European XFEL and Heinrich Pette Institute, Leibniz Institute for Experimental Virology, Germany.
- Flying viruses - from biophysical to structural characterization
Dr. Charlotte Uetrecht’s group investigates structural changes of viral protein complexes with modern mass spectrometry (MS). The main goal is to better understand the lifecycle of human viruses, especially how viral proteins interact with host factors and each other. Currently, the group’s research focusses on non-structural viral proteins and accessory functions of structural proteins. Assembly of such protein complex can be monitored in a time-resolved manner using MS. Thereby, dynamic changes in complex stoichiometry and topology can be analysed and compared to complementary light and electron microscopy data. Another field of research pursues the development of a mass spectrometer to introduce selected protein complexes with millisecond time resolution into an X-ray free-electron laser, the European XFEL. Hereby, high resolution structures of viral complexes and assembly intermediates of viral capsids can be determined on a shot-to-shot basis.