The Department of Biological Sciences will host a colloquium titled “The heritable amyloids of Saccharomyces cerevisiae: defining prion-specific chaperone functions in yeast,” on Friday, Oct. 11, at 3 p.m. in Wehr Life Sciences 111. The event will feature Dr. Justin Hines, Linda Roth Professor of Chemistry at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania.
Living organisms are primarily composed of proteins, which function like machines and require a specific folded shape to work correctly. Misfolding of proteins into alternative shapes called amyloid structures is linked to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and prion diseases. Hines’ research focuses on understanding the behavior of amyloid protein aggregates in baker’s yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae), known as yeast prions, and the role of molecular chaperones in preventing or reversing protein misfolding.
The Biological Sciences Department’s Friday Seminar Series is supported by the Scholl Endowment. Eminent scientists are invited to the department to deliver seminars, and students have ample opportunity to engage these scientists in individual or group conversation.
