Thesis defence of Ramon Guixà: "Modeling the interplay between membrane lipids and GPCRs"

On July 23rd, Ramon Guixà, member of the PharmacoInformatics group of GRIB (IMIM-UPF) will defend his thesis at 10.00 at the Xipre room of PRBB. You are all invited to this event.

ABSTRACT: The lipid composition of cell membranes ultimately determines their biophysical properties, thereby affecting the dynamics and organization of key transmembrane proteins like G protein-couple receptors (GPCRs). The aim of this thesis is to make a step forward towards a better understanding of the nature and extent of the interplay between membrane lipids and GPCRs. We have used molecular dynamics simulations to study the complexity of biological membranes and the effect of the membrane environment on the organization of GPCRs. Thus, we developed a computational framework to comprehensively analyze the properties of lipid bilayers and membrane--protein simulations. In addition, by combining computer simulations and experiments in living cells we demonstrate for the first time that membrane polyunsaturated lipids can modulate the organization of GPCRs. These findings could open new doors to the treatment of several conditions like schizophrenia or Parkinson's disease, where GPCRs have been shown to play an vital role.