Professor Peter Freddolino
Biological Chemistry
University of Michigan
Ann Arbor, MI

Monday, January 25, 2016
3:00 pm (CT)
3269 Beckman Institute

Abstract

Protein-nucleic acid interactions drive many crucial processes in biological systems, from transcription and translation to DNA replication and cell division. Modeling and manipulating cellular behavior, crucial goals in systems and synthetic biology, will require a substantial improvement of our ability to model and predict these interactions. Using a combination of high throughput experimental techniques and cutting edge simulations, we are building a complete map of the protein-DNA, protein-RNA, and DNA-DNA interactomes of E. coli under a variety of physiological conditions. We have identified a series of key hot spots for protein- DNA interactions that play a central organizing role in the genome, and identify the binding sites for several previously uncharacterized transcription factors that play crucial roles in bacterial stress responses.