PHYSICS AND ASTRONOMY

Science at the Edge

Friday, April 30, 2010

11:30a

1400 Biomedical & Physical Sciences Bldg

Refreshments at 11:15a in 1400 BPS Bldg

Carl Frieden

Washington University

“Investigating the apoE family of lipoproteins”

Abstract

Monomeric apoE is a 299 amino acid lipid transport protein of molecular weight 34.3 kDa. The apoE family includes three major isoforms termed apoE2, apoE3 and apoE4. These isoforms differ in only two positions: apoE4 (Arg¹¹²,Arg¹⁵⁸), apoE3 (Cys¹¹², Arg¹⁵⁸), and apoE2 (Cys¹¹²,Cys¹⁵⁸). Yet the physiological role of the isoforms appears to quite different with apoE4 being a known risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease and other cognitive functions while apoE2 associated with the genetic disorder type III hyperlipoproteinemia. The protein consists of a distinct N-terminal and C-terminal domain with a hinge region between the two domains but no structure of the complete protein is currently available. Complicating the study of the protein is an oligomerization to higher molecular weight forms. The proteins also bind to the LDL receptor, to lipids and to Ab. Our studies attempt to distinguish between the isoforms using ¹⁹F-NMR and fluorescence (i.e., Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy, FRET) methods.

Kim Crosslan

Undergraduate Secretary

Dept. Physics & Astronomy

Michigan State University

1312 Biomedical & Physical Sciences

East Lansing,  MI  48824

517-884-5531

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