Student Spotlight
I earned a B.S. in Cellular and Molecular Biology with Honors from The Johns Hopkins University in 2007. I am a fifth-year MD/PhD candidate working towards my PhD in Cellular and Molecular Biology in the laboratory of Dr. Scott Morrical. I am expecting to graduate in 2014. My other interests include intellectual property and biotechnology law. Christian Sanchez Jordan
Postdoctoral Details
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Research Interests:
Physical Biochemistry
Structural Biology & Protein Function
Background:
Ashley graduated with a B.A. in Biology-Chemistry from Elmira College in 2007. Ashley joined the Biochemistry department in the Fall of 2007.
Intermolecular interactions between human serum transferrin and the transferrin receptor that mediate pH-induced iron release
Project Description:
Given that iron deficiency and iron excess are directly related to a number of human diseases, a detailed understanding of iron transport and delivery within cells is essential. Specifically, iron acquired from the diet is tightly coordinated within a cleft in each lobe of the bilobal protein, human serum transferrin (hTF) for transport throughout the body. Synthesized in the liver and secreted into the blood, hTF serves to sequester iron (preventing its hydrolysis and the potential production of free radicals) and to deliver this essential element to cells by binding with high affinity to the transferrin receptor (TFR) on the surface of all actively dividing cells. The iron, which is delivered inside cells by receptor mediated endocytosis, participates in key functions including oxygen and electron transport. Identification of specific amino acid residues (in both hTF and the TFR) which account for their strong interaction and which drive concerted iron release within the endosome has been an ongoing challenge in the field. The mechanism of iron release is complex because it minimally involves a reduction in pH, anions, lobe-lobe interaction and the active participation of the TFR.
My research is aimed at understanding the interaction between hTF and its receptor (TFR) on the surface of cells. In particular, the focus of my research is to identify specific residues that permit high affinity binding between hTF and the TFR and facilitate iron release from hTF/TFR complex.