Biophysics Colloquium by Tai-Yen Chen (University of Houston)

Tai-Yen Chen
Assistant Professor of Chemistry
University of Houston

Cu-dependent CTR1 oligomerization and Cu-uptake regulation

Copper enters cells through pores formed by trimeric Human copper transporter 1 (hCTR1). Elevated Cu induces clathrin-dependent endocytosis of hCTR1 and decreases the hCTR1 surface abundance by half. However, it remains unclear how cells minimize the Cu-uptake activity of the remaining surface hCTR1. This study examined the oligomeric states of hCTR1 complexes in fixed COS7 cells using super-resolution localization microscopy and single-molecule oligomeric state quantification assay. We found that the hCTR1 on the plasma membrane exists dominantly in the trimeric form under basal conditions and shifts to monomeric states under Cu stressed conditions. This finding suggests cells may further modulate the oligomer distributions of the surface hCTR1 to reduce cellular Cu-uptake and provide insight into the hCTR1 transport mechanism.

Hosted by Peng Chen and John A. Marohn

~Light refreshments provided~