You are invited to attend this seminar hosted by the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology:
Date: Friday, 5 April 2024
Time: 2.00PM – 3.00PM
Venue: IMCB Seminar Room 03-46, Level 3 Proteos, Biopolis, Singapore 138673 (Physical)
Speaker: Prof Xiao-Wei Chen, Peking University
Host: Prof Han Weiping, IMCB
A Manganese Bullet Targeting the Top Killer?
Abstract
Precise control of circulating lipids is instrumental in health and disease. Bulk lipids, carried by specialized lipoproteins, are secreted into the circulation initially via the COPII complex. How the universal COPII machinery accommodates the abundant yet unconventional lipoproteins remains unclear, let alone its therapeutic translation. We recently found that COPII employs manganese-tuning, self-constrained condensation to selectively drive lipoprotein delivery and set lipid homeostasis in vivo. Serendipitously, adenovirus hijacks the condensation-based transport mechanism, thus enabling the identification of cytosolic manganese as an unexpected control signal. Manganese directly binds the inner COPII coat and enhances its condensation, thereby shifting the assembly-vs-dynamics balance of the transport machinery. Manganese can be mobilized from mitochondria stores to signal COPII and selectively controls lipoprotein secretion with a distinctive, bell-shape function. Consequently, dietary titration of manganese enables tailored lipid management and reverses deadly atherosclerosis, implicating a condensation-targeting strategy with broad therapeutic potential for cardio-metabolic health.
Biography
Prof Xiao-Wei Chen obtained his BS and BA from Peking University, and completed his PhD and postdoctoral training at the University of Michigan. He was recruited back to the Peking University in 2014. Currently, he is the Boya Distinguished Professor at the College of Future Technology and the Principal Investigator of the Peking-Tsinghua Joint Center for Life Sciences. He is the recipient of the Young Investigator Award from the Chinese American Diabetes Association and Special Recognition Award from the Society of Heart and Vascular Metabolism, as well as the Earl Stadtman Scholar finalist from the National Institute of Health, USA and the Distinguished Young Scholar Award from the National Natural Science Foundation, China. He serves as an associate editor at the Biochemical Journal and on the editorial board of Cell Metabolism, Life Metabolism and Journal of Lipid Research. His work focuses on the fundamental mechanism and translational application of lipoprotein biology and lipid homeostasis, particularly by elucidating a receptor-mediated export program for the lipoproteins and identifying the long-sought biogenic lipid scramblase.
ALL ARE WELCOME (No registration required)
