Hector Fellow Peter Hegemann receives funding by the European Research Council (ERC)
The project “Switchable rhodOpsins in Life Sciences” (SOL) is a interdisciplinary, collaborative project to structurally and biophysically analyse selected photo-receptors and develop them into “OptoGPCRs”, light-controlled molecular switches with a wide range of applications in biology and medicine.
It is based upon so-called bistable rhodopsins. Rhodopsins are light activated GPCRs, best known for their role as light receptors in the retina of the human eye. The vision receptors in our eyes loose their light-sensor, the vitamin A derivate retinal, upon activation and must be “re-assembled” in order to accept photons (light) again. Bistable rhodopsins however, keep their retinal and can in principle be activated and de-activated by multiple flashes of light without requiring any assembly, acting as true biological “switches”.
During the six years of funding, these bistable rhodopsins will be examined in their functionality. Furthermore bistable rhodopsins with new properties will be created and the findings will be used to develop new Gene therapeutics against human diseases. The ERC Synergy Grant aims at becoming the catalyst for a “second optogenetic revolution”.
The interdisciplinary research team of the project consists of Hector Fellow Peter Hegemann (Humboldt University of Berlin, Germany) alongside Gebhard Schertler head of the Division of Biology and Chemistry at PSI, Sonja Kleinlogel (University of Bern, Switzerland) and Rob Lucas (University of Manchester, UK). The ERC provides 10 million euros in funding.
Congratulations to Peter Hegemann!