Mechanical and chemical crosstalk between membranes and anchored mechano-kinases (P13)

• Subject Area: Biochemistry
• Term: since 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 511488495

This project explores how membranes in their function as signaling platforms transmit mechanical stimuli into cells. While the impact of lateral membrane tension on protein activity is well-known, the effect of forces pulling proteins away from the membrane is much less clear. Focusing on tyrosine kinases Abl and Src, the research aims to understand the stability of their membrane attachment and the role of membrane remodeling in tuning mechanical links. This research will offer insights into how force-coupled remodeling mechanisms enable cellular mechanosensing.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 1638: Cellular membrane remodelling – how changing form creates function
• Applicant Institution: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg
• Project Heads: Professorin Dr. Frauke Gräter; Professor Dr. Walter Nickel