Debora Rapaport | University Tel Aviv - Israel

• Grant number: 05/02528-6
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Visiting Researcher Grant - International
• Start date: October 12, 2005
• End date: October 22, 2005
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Biology
• Principal Investigator: Danilo Moretti-Ferreira
• Grantee: Danilo Moretti-Ferreira
• Visiting researcher: Debora Rapaport
• Visiting researcher institution: Tel Aviv University, Israel
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IBB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The plasma membrane is the interface between cells and their harsh environment. Uptake of nutrients and all communications among cells and between cells and their environment occurs through this interface. Endocytosis encompasses several diverse mechanisms by which cells internalize macromolecules and particles into transport vesicles derived from plasma membrane. It controls entry into the cell and has crucial role in development, the immune response, neurotransmission, intercellular communication, signal transduction, and cellular and organismal homeostasis. As the complexity of molecular interactions governing endocytosis are revealed, it has become increasingly clear that it is tightly coordinated and coupled with overall cell physiology and thus, must be viewed in a broader context than simple vesicular trafficking.These more subtle regulatory functions are unlikely to be revealed by the overexpression of truncated mutants or other dominant-negative constructs that can wreak havoc because they interfere with the delicate balance of the normal hierarchy coordinated protein-protein interactions involved. New methods of RNA-interference to selectively "knockdown" protein expression in mammalian cells will be discussed.The present course will focus the particular receptor-mediated endocytosis pathway accompanying by new genetic approaches such as dominant-negative mutants, RNA interference, protein-protein interactions, ubiquitination, phosphorylation and the knockout mice procedure. Those newly fascinating molecular biology tools will be broadly discussed offering the students an update overview on novel concepts - "systems biology". Our intention is to approach molecular concepts on the understanding of the biological function of a new protein, translated, transcribed by a new isolated gene. (AU)