MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology
One of the world's leading research institutes, our scientists are working to advance understanding of biological processes at the molecular level - providing the knowledge needed to solve key problems in human health.
Circadian clocks are found across all higher species, controlling daily rhythms of behaviour and physiology. They are thought to “tick” by producing and then degrading circadian proteins on a 24 hour cycle. At a molecular level, they typically involve expression of “clock” genes that are inhibited approximately every 24 hours by the proteins they encode.
In order to function properly, many of the cell’s proteins need to be segregated to membrane-bound organelles and assembled into multi-protein complexes. Newly made proteins that fail to be localised or assembled properly must be promptly recognised by the cell and destroyed. These pathways of protein quality control are important because the accumulation of aberrant proteins can lead to neurodegeneration and various other diseases.
Effective immunity to infections requires the development of a diverse repertoire of antibodies. Antibody diversity is created through a process known as somatic hypermutation, which is the programmed mutation of specific sequences of DNA in the antibody genes. The introduction of mutations results in the production of antibodies that recognise and bind to different antigens, such as microbes, and allows the immune system to adapt as it is exposed to new antigens.
Target of Rapamycin (TOR) is a protein kinase that is essential in maintaining cellular homeostasis. In mammalian cells the enzyme occurs as two large protein complexes and one of these, mTORC1, controls growth of cells by integrating signals from growth factors and the nutritional state of cells. Many tumours in humans are associated with inappropriate regulation of this protein complex, and it has been demonstrated to be an important therapeutic target for cancer and autoimmune disorders.
Most organisms, including humans and plants, have circadian rhythms that allow them to adjust their metabolism and behaviour to match the 24-hour cycle of day and night. Circadian rhythms are even observed at the level of individual cells, and are dependent upon a biological clock mechanism that is not fully understood.
‘Synthetic biology’ is a scientific approach that seeks to answer fundamental questions in biology by reconstruction and modification of the molecules and processes of life. Beyond its well-known role as the carrier of genetic information, DNA (and its close cousin RNA) have shown great promise as a nano-molecular building material: by careful arrangement of the bases A, T, C and G, DNA strands can be programmed to fold into specific 3D shapes.