ChemBio seminar by Prof. Zhihao Zhuang (Uni Delaware) - CH-635
Event details
| Date | 11.07.2023 |
| Hour | 16:15 › 17:15 |
| Speaker | Prof. Zhihao Zhuang |
| Location | |
| Category | Conferences - Seminars |
| Event Language | English |
Title: Chemical Biology Approaches for Investigating Protein Deubiquitination
Abstract:
Posttranslational modification of proteins by ubiquitin (Ub) is a crucial regulatory mechanism in various cellular processes. Ubiquitin-mediated pathways are being rapidly discovered in different aspects of cell biology. Human deubiquitinases (DUBs) are an emerging class of therapeutic targets for drug discovery against cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. Activity-based DUB probes are powerful tools for identifying new DUB functions, understanding DUB catalysis and specificity, and developing DUB inhibitors. My lab has developed protein- and polyubiquitin-based DUB probes that helped identify DUBs targeting specific proteins and elucidate the mode of ubiquitin chain recognition and cleavage by human ubiquitin-specific protease (USP). We have also worked on cell-permeable DUB probes that enable DUB profiling in live cells and inhibitor discovery. These chemical biology approaches offer insights into various cellular processes that involve protein ubiquitination and deubiquitination, laying the groundwork for future development of therapeutics that modulate DUBs.
Speaker's biography:
Zhihao Zhuang obtained his bachelor's degree in 1997 from Sichuan University. He then pursued further studies at the University of New Mexico (Ph.D.) and Pennsylvania State University (postdoctoral). In 2007, he joined the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Delaware as an assistant professor. He was promoted to associate professor in 2013 and to full professor in 2019. His research focuses on the chemistry and biology of ubiquitin in post-translational protein modifications, deubiquitination, and protein degradation. His lab developed chemical methods for protein ubiquitination, protein probes and small-molecule inhibitors for deubiquitinases (DUBs), and new targeted protein degradation approaches. The results from these studies have been published in journals such as Nature Chemical Biology, JACS, PNAS, Chemical Science, and ACS Chemical Biology. He has received several awards, including the CAREER award from the National Science Foundation and the Research Scholar award from the American Cancer Society. He has also served as a reviewer for the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation.
Lab website: http://sites.udel.edu/zhuanggroup/
Abstract:
Posttranslational modification of proteins by ubiquitin (Ub) is a crucial regulatory mechanism in various cellular processes. Ubiquitin-mediated pathways are being rapidly discovered in different aspects of cell biology. Human deubiquitinases (DUBs) are an emerging class of therapeutic targets for drug discovery against cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. Activity-based DUB probes are powerful tools for identifying new DUB functions, understanding DUB catalysis and specificity, and developing DUB inhibitors. My lab has developed protein- and polyubiquitin-based DUB probes that helped identify DUBs targeting specific proteins and elucidate the mode of ubiquitin chain recognition and cleavage by human ubiquitin-specific protease (USP). We have also worked on cell-permeable DUB probes that enable DUB profiling in live cells and inhibitor discovery. These chemical biology approaches offer insights into various cellular processes that involve protein ubiquitination and deubiquitination, laying the groundwork for future development of therapeutics that modulate DUBs.
Speaker's biography:
Zhihao Zhuang obtained his bachelor's degree in 1997 from Sichuan University. He then pursued further studies at the University of New Mexico (Ph.D.) and Pennsylvania State University (postdoctoral). In 2007, he joined the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Delaware as an assistant professor. He was promoted to associate professor in 2013 and to full professor in 2019. His research focuses on the chemistry and biology of ubiquitin in post-translational protein modifications, deubiquitination, and protein degradation. His lab developed chemical methods for protein ubiquitination, protein probes and small-molecule inhibitors for deubiquitinases (DUBs), and new targeted protein degradation approaches. The results from these studies have been published in journals such as Nature Chemical Biology, JACS, PNAS, Chemical Science, and ACS Chemical Biology. He has received several awards, including the CAREER award from the National Science Foundation and the Research Scholar award from the American Cancer Society. He has also served as a reviewer for the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation.
Lab website: http://sites.udel.edu/zhuanggroup/
Practical information
- Informed public
- Free