Development of chemical tools to study and manipulate biological processes in live cells

Chemical reactions compatible with biological systems offer unique possibility to manipulate and study biological processes under native conditions. Our group has a long term interest in these, so-called, bioorthogonal reactions. Within last years, we have developed a series of reactions that enable us to monitor small molecules or biomolecules in living cells based on fluorescent signal formed during the chemical reaction. We also use chemical and biological approaches to produce peptide or glycopeptide libraries that we screen for specific binding to various cellular targets. Within this project, we plan to develop new and employ existing chemical tools to study and answer various biologically relevant questions. The ideal candidate should have background in synthetic organic chemistry but also interest in chemical biology and biochemistry. This interdisciplinary project will enable you to broaden your knowledge in these and related fields and to experience the international environment of the group and the Institute. 

Field of study: Organic chemistry

References:

• Vazquez, A., Dzijak R., Dracinsky M., Rampmaier R., Siegl S. J., Vrabel, M. (2017). Mechanism-Based Fluorogenic trans-Cyclooctene-Tetrazine Cycloaddition. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 56, 1334-1337.
• Siegl, S. J., Dzijak, R., Vazquez, A., Pohl, R., Vrabel, M.: (2017). The Discovery of Pyridinium 1,2,4-Triazines with Enhanced Performance in Bioconjugation Reactions. Chem. Sci. 8, 3593–3598.