Lise Arleth gets a 8.6 million kroner grant for research in molecular biophysics
IGM researcher Lise Arleth today (2011-01-26) receives the Sapera Aude Grant from the Danish Council for Independent Research (DFF, Det Frie Forskningsråd). The grant is given to some of the best research talents.
The project Lise Arleth has gotten the money for is popularly named: "How do membrane proteins look when they work". The project has a four year stretch.
It is hoped to record "nano movies" of membrane proteins.
Even though membrane proteins are fascinating and biologically important, they are also technically challenging to study, because they are so small (~5 nanometers), and because they must be studied in their suitable element i.e. in cell membrane-like surroundings, in order for the proteins to not be destabilized.
The main challenge will be to record a "movie" of membrane proteins while they're functioning. To do this, we have to measure soft structures that are only about 5 nm (nanometers) large and with a time-resolution downwards of a millisecond.
Target: Less side-effects of medicine
If we become able to perform such measuring, it will bring forth a far more precise and mechanical understanding of how the membrane proteins work. This will be directly applicable in connection with developing medicine with less side-effects.
The full title of the research project is: "Probing the structure, action and dynamics of membrane proteins under physiological conditions" (in Danish: "Tids-opløste røntgen undersøgelser af struktur, aktivering og dynamik af membran-proteiner")
More on Lise Arleth
- View Lise's list of publications and researcher profile here
- Read an interview with Lise (in Danish)
- The original press release in Danish
- The research career programme Sapere Aude – a talent development programme for the elite.