Adriana K. Kantcheva: Structural studies of the bacterial leucine transporter LeuT

In her PhD studies, Adriana K. Kantcheva looked into the structural perspective of a bacterial transporter – the leucine transporter from Aquifex aeolicus (LeuT) – which is a homologue to neurotransmitter sodium symporters (NSS) found in humans, such as the serotonin transporter. Two crystal structures of LeuT elucidated new insights regarding ion and substrate binding to this transporter.

Studying members of the NSS family is important as these proteins are found in the central nervous system of humans at the synaptic cleft and are implicated in serious conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy and depression.

The PhD degree was completed at the Centre for Structural Biology, Science and Technology, Aarhus University.

Time: Wednesday 8 May 2013 at 14.00
Place: Lakeside Lecture Theatres (Eduard Biermann Lecture Theatre), Aarhus University
Title of dissertation: The leucine transporter from Aquifex aeolicus as a model for the neurotransmitter sodium symporters – Insights into function and ligand binding
Contact information: Adriana Kantcheva, akk@mb.au.dk
Members of the assessment committee:
Professor Christine Ziegler, Structural Biology, Max Planck Institute of Biophysics, Frankfurt, Germany
Associate Professor Osman Mirza, Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, University of Copenhagen
Associate Professor Ditlev E. Brodersen (chair), Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Aarhus University
Main supervisor:
Professor Poul Nissen, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Aarhus University
Language: The dissertation will be defended in English