Integrated Biomedical Sciences Seminar: Miguel Leung

Structures of supramolecular assemblies essential for reproduction and development

Talare: Miguel Leung, Hubrecht Institute-KNAW & University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, Nederländerna

Värd: Ryo Morimoto, MIMS / Institutionen för molekylärbiologi

Om föreläsningen: Most animal species reproduce sexually, through the fusion of two highly specialized cells called gametes – the sperm and the egg. The sperm loses most of its cytoplasm and many of its organelles, resulting in a highly streamlined form adapted for the sole function of delivering genetic material to its partner gamete. The egg cell, on the other hand, grows to become one of the largest cells in the body as it stockpiles cellular resources needed to provision the elaborate programs of development in the early embryo. Given that nearly 1 in 6 people are affected by infertility and that nearly half of all pregnancies worldwide are unplanned, there is clearly a pressing need to better understand the fundamental biology of gametes.

Towards this goal, my group uses cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET), and artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled protein modeling to solve structures of large multi-protein complexes essential for sperm and egg function. I will share recent examples of how we have used these techniques in a “visual proteomics” approach to determine the precise molecular composition of native protein complexes directly from cryo-EM maps completely de novo, highlighting the tremendous discovery power of modern structural biology.

Integrated Biomedical Sciences Seminars är en bred, öppen seminarieserie inom life science.