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Marcos Sotomayor

Department of Neurobiology Harvard Medical School 220 Longwood Avenue Boston, MA 02115, USA. Email: leunamsocram [at] gmail [dot] com Phone: 617-432-2518

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Education & Training

• Postdoctoral Fellow, 2008 - present
  Department of Neurobiology,
  Harvard Medical School, USA.
  Helen Hay Whitney / Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
  Advisors: Dr. David P. Corey. Dr. Rachelle Gaudet.
  
  
• Ph.D., Physics, 2007
  M.S., Physics, 2004
  Physics Department, UIUC, USA.
  Advisor: Dr. Klaus Schulten.
  
  
• M.S., Physics, 2002
  B.S., Physics, 2001
  DFI, FCFM, Universidad de Chile, Chile.
  Advisor: Dr. Fernando Lund.
  
  
• C.V.

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Research Interests

Elasticity of Repeat Proteins Ankyrin		Mechanosensitive Channels MscS
Elasticity and Dynamics of Cadherin		Elasticity and Dynamics of Fibrinogen

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Publications

• (14) F. Khalili-Araghi, J. Gumbart, P. Wen, M. Sotomayor, E. Tajkhorshid, and K. Schulten. "Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Membrane Channels and Transporters" Current Opinion in Structural Biology, in press, 2009. (pdf)
  
  
• (13) V. Vasquez, M. Sotomayor, J. Cordero-Morales, K. Schulten, and E. Perozo. "A Structural Mechanism for MscS gating in lipid bilayers" Science, 321:1210-1214, 2008. (pdf)
  
  
• (12) M. Sotomayor and K. Schulten. "The Allosteric Role of the Ca++ Switch in Adhesion and Elasticity of C-Cadherin" Biophysical Journal, 94:4621-4633, 2008. (pdf)
  
  
• (11) B. Lim, E. H. Lee, M. Sotomayor, and Klaus Schulten. "Molecular basis of fibrin clot elasticity" Structure, 16:449-459, 2008. (pdf)
  
  
• (10) V. Vasquez, M. Sotomayor, D. Marien Cortes, Benoit Roux, Klaus Schulten, and Eduardo Perozo. "Three dimensional architecture of membrane-embedded MscS in the closed conformation" Journal of Molecular Biology, 378:55-70, 2008. (pdf)
  
  
• (9) M. Sotomayor and K. Schulten. "Single-Molecule Experiments in Vitro and in Silico" Science, 316:1144-1148, 2007. (pdf)
  
  
• (8) M. Sotomayor, V. Vasquez, E. Perozo, and K. Schulten. "Ion Conduction through MscS as Determined by Electrophysiology and Simulation" Biophysical Journal, 92:886-902, 2007. (pdf)
  
  
• (7) M. Gao, M. Sotomayor, E. Villa, E. Lee, and K. Schulten. "Molecular Mechanisms of Cellular Mechanics" Physical Chemistry - Chemical Physics, 8:3692-3706, 2006. (pdf)
  
  
  
• (6) M. Sotomayor, T. A. van der Straaten, U. Ravaioli, and K. Schulten. "Electrostatic Properties of the Mechanosensitive Channel of Small Conductance MscS" Biophysical Journal, 90:3496-3510, 2006. (pdf)
  
  
• (5) M. Sotomayor, D. P. Corey, and K. Schulten. "In Search of the Hair-Cell Gating Spring: Elastic Properties of Ankyrin and Cadherin Repeats" Structure, 13:669-682, 2005. (pdf)
  
  
• (4) E. Tajkhorshid, J. Cohen, A. Aksimentiev, M. Sotomayor, and K. Schulten. "Towards understanding membrane channels" in Bacterial ion channels and their eukaryotic homologues, Boris Martinac and Andrzej Kubalski, editors, pp 153-190. ASM Press, Washington, DC, 2005. (pdf)
  
  
• (3) M. Sotomayor and K. Schulten. "Molecular Dynamics Study of Gating in the Mechanosensitive Channel of Small Conductance MscS" Biophysical Journal, 87:3050-3065, 2004. (pdf)
  
  
• (2) D.P. Corey and M. Sotomayor. "Tightrope act" Nature, 428:901-902, 2004.
  
  
• (1) C.J. Clarke, A. Gendrin, M. Sotomayor. "The dispersal of circumstellar discs: the role of the ultraviolet switch" Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 328:485-491, 2001. (pdf)
  
  

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Presentations

Talks

• "Cadherin Dynamics and Molecular Mechanisms of Hereditary Deafness"
  32nd Midwinter Research Meeting, Association for Research in Otolaryngology, 2009.
  
  
• "Cadherin Dynamics and Molecular Mechanisms of Hereditary Deafness"
  Force-Gated Ion Channels: From Structure to Sensation, 2008.
  
  
• "The Allosteric Role of the Ca++ Switch in Adhesion and Elasticity of C-Cadherin"
  20th CMB-MB Annual Research Symposium, 2007.
  
  
• "Ion Conduction through the Mechanosensitive Channel of Small Conductance MscS"
  CECAM meeting Ionic Transport: from Nanopores to Biological Channels, 2007.
  
  
• "Life under Tension: Molecular Mechanisms of Mechanosensitive Channels and Mechanical Sensors"
  MCTP/ICAM Workshop Mechanics of Life: From Biomolecules to Molecular Machines, 2007.
  
  
• "Tertiary and Secondary Structure Elasticity of Repeat Proteins"
  87th International Bunsen Discussion Meeting on Mechanically Induced Chemistry -Theory and Experiment- 2005.
  
  
• "Mechanisms of Mechanosensitive Channels and Mechanical Sensors Studied by Molecular Dynamics Simulations"
  Gordon Research Conference on Mechanotransduction and Gravity Signaling in Biological Systems, 2005.

Posters

• "Structure, Dynamics, and Elasticity of Cadherin-23 Repeats Involved in Hereditary Deafness"
  7th Molecular Biology of Hearing and Deafness Meeting, 2009.
  
  
• "Mechanical Strength of Cadherin Binding Interfaces Suggested by Crystallography"
  Biophysical Society Meeting, 2009.
  
  
• "Ca++ Dependent Dynamics and Forced Unbinding of Classical Cadherins"
  Gordon Research Conference on Signaling by Adhesion Receptors, 2008.
  
  
• "The Allosteric Role of the Ca++ Switch in Adhesion and Elasticity of C-Cadherin"
  Biophysical Society Meeting, 2008. (html)
  
  
• "Three Dimensional Architecture of MscS N-terminus and TM Segments in the Closed State"
  Biophysical Society Meeting, 2007. (V. Vasquez, M. Sotomayor, D. M. Cortes, B. Roux, K. Schulten, E. Perozo.)
  
  
• "Tertiary and Secondary Structure Elasticity of Repeat Proteins"
  Biophysical Society Meeting, 2007. (html)
  
  
• "Ion Conduction through MscS as Determined by Electrophysiology and Simulation"
  Biophysical Society Meeting, 2007. (html)
  
  
• "Tertiary and Secondary Structure Elasticity of Ankyrin Repeats"
  Biophysical Society Meeting, 2006. (html)
  
  
• "Tertiary and Secondary Structure Elasticity of Repeat Proteins"
  IUPAB/EBSA International Biophysics Congress, 2005.
  
  
• "Is TRPA1 the Transduction Channel? Mechanics of the Ankyrin Repeat Domain"
  28th Midwinter Research Meeting, Association for Research in Otolaryngology, 2005.
  
  
• "Molecular Dynamics Study of Mechanosensation Proteins Ankyrin and Cadherin"
  Biophysical Society Meeting, 2005. (html)
  
  
• "Multiscale Modeling of Gating and Ion Conduction in the Mechanosensitive Channel of Small Conductance MscS"
  Biophysical Society Meeting, 2005. (html)
  
  
• "Molecular Dynamics Study of Gating in the Mechanosensitive Channel of Small Conductance MscS"
  Biophysical Society Meeting, 2004. (html)
  
  
• "Mechanical Properties of Ubiquitin Chains"
  Biophysical Society Meeting, 2004. (html)
  
  
• "Numerical Studies of Melting in Infinite Crystalline Solids"
  American Physical Society 2003 Annual March Meeting. (pdf)
  
  
• "The dispersal of circumstellar discs: the role of the ultraviolet switch"
  2002 International Astronomical Observatories in Chile Workshop. (pdf)

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Teaching

• Theoretical and Computational Biophysics Workshops (Urbana, Boston, Chicago, Talca, Bethesda)
  • VMD Molecular Graphics Tutorial
    
  • NAMD Molecular Dynamics Tutorial
  • Membrane Proteins Tutorial
  • Water Case Study ( 3D-pdf version )

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Memberships and Awards

• Helen Hay Whitney Foundation Fellowship 2009 (accepted)
• Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation Fellowship 2009 (declined)
• Best Talk Prize, 2007 UIUC Molecular Biophysics Symposium
• MCC/UIUC travel award 2007
• BPS/IUPAB travel fellowship award 2005
• The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi

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Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology // National Institutes of Health // National Science Foundation // Physics, Computer Science, and Biophysics at UIUC
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