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PhD candidate (f/m/d) "Mechanisms of polyspecificity of the organic cation transporter OCT1"
Activities and responsibilities
The organic cation transporter OCT1 is a membrane transporter that may mediate the uptake of drugs and toxins into the liver for metabolism and elimination. OCT1 recognizes and translocates a great variety of cationic compounds. The mechanisms of this very broad substrate specificity, also referred to as polyspecificity, are poorly understood, despite newly emerging cryo-EM structures of the transporter. In this project, we aim to identify mechanisms of OCT1 polyspecificity by utilizing structural and functional differences between OCT1 orthologs and paralogs. Our group has long-lasting experience in cloning, manipulation, overexpression, and functional characterization of transporter proteins in model cells using molecular and cell biological techniques, such as site-directed mutagenesis, recombinant DNA techniques, cellular uptake experiments coupled with LC-MS/MS analytics, immunocytochemistry and many more (PMIDs 35469921, 33037045, and 31597043). We are looking for a highly motivated early career researcher to complement our team. The project is funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and should focus on differences between OCT1 orthologs and paralogs as a tool to better understand the mechanisms of polyspecificity of OCT1.
Your tasks:
- Cloning of OCT1 orthologs, generation of mutants, and overexpression in HEK293 cells
- Functional characterization of OCT1 orthologs using cellular uptake experiments and LC-MS/MS analytics
- Detailed analyses of OCT polyspecificity regarding highly similar substrates, stereoselectivity, and computational modelling
- Data analyses
- Presentation of results at scientific meetings
- Writing of scientific manuscripts
Qualification profile
- Master of Science or comparable degree in molecular biology, human biology, biology, pharmacy or related field
- Enthusiasm and motivation to work on scientific questions and to solve problems
- Experience in molecular and cell biological techniques will be of advantage
- Ability to work independently as well as in a team
- Very good English language skills (oral and written), basic knowledge of German will be of advantage
We offer
Universitätsmedizin Greifswald
Dr. Marleen Meyer-Tönnies
Fleischmannstraße 8
17475 Greifswald
email