Page 24 - CBAC Newsletter 2015

My first post-doctoral training in the USA was
done at the Hormel Institute, University of
Minnesota. I enjoyed working on cancer research
in the lab of cellular and molecular biology. This
lab has a very impressive experience in cell
signaling study, and the four years I spent there
were very useful and fruitful for me.

I loved my project done at the University of
Minnesota about the inhibitory effect of green tea
polyphenol EGCG on tumor-promoting activity of
human peptidyl prolyl cis/trans isomerase (Pin1).
In this study, the crystal structure of Pin1/EGCG
complex revealed two different ligand binding
sites, one per each of two Pin1 domains that
carry different functions, and the presence of two
interaction sites and their role in the tumor
suppression was confirmed by many in vivo and
in vitro experiments including xenograft mouse
model. It was an exciting experience and that
paper still has a high impact factor.

I also spent two years in Steve Goldstein Lab, first
in the University of Chicago with continuation in
Brandeis after Steve moved there for the provost
position. In Steve’s lab, I earned knowledge and
experience in the purification of ion channels.

In 2011, I met [CBAC faculty member] Jonathan
Silva in Steve Goldstein’s Lab when I came there
for a job interview. By the time I joined the
Goldstein Lab, Jon had already moved to
Washington University in St. Louis. Later, upon
learning that Jon was interested in biochemical
studies of sodium channel and having earned a
working experience in membrane protein purifi-
cation, I applied for the position in his lab and so
became a member of the team in September of
2013. It is really a team - even maybe a little bit
like a family - and it is a pleasure to work with all
those enthusiastic, talented and friendly young
people.

Jon's lab research is focused on combining
computational and experimental approaches to
understand ion channel diseases and drug
treatments at their most fundamental level.

18 | CBAC Center Heartbeat