Biophysical Newsletter - June 2014

7

BIOPHYSICAL SOCIETY NEWSLETTER

2014

JUNE

Know the Editors

and open to the research community. The paper should describe what the CT does and how (eg:, descriptions of new algorithms or theories that are implemented by the software). The paper should also describe how the CT can be applied to biophysical problems, preferably with an example. The CT paper is not intended to be a user guide, which, together with any requisite download instructions, should be available on the authors’ website. These papers will be re- viewed for the CT’s general usefulness to biophys- ics research; reviewers will also be asked to test the CT software or explore CT databases. Those of us working on BJ have lots of ideas and plans that are at various stages of development. For example, be on the lookout for the newly designed BJ website, set to roll out as I write this. We are also producing our first special issue, which will focus on Quantitative Cell Biology; it is being edited by Dave Piston, who is now accepting sub- missions for review, with a target for publication in November. We continue our commitment to being responsive to both the needs of the growing biophysics research community and to the oppor- tunities that new publishing technologies and the changes in our field present to us. And, we always remain open to your ideas and suggestions. — Leslie Loew , Editor-in-Chief

Claudia Steinem University of Göttingen Editor in Membranes Section

Claudia Steinem

Q: What is your area of research?

My research interest is in membrane-confined processes such as fusion and fission, ion transport mediated by ion channels and protein pumps as well as protein-lipid and protein-protein interac- tions occurring at the membrane interface. To understand these processes on a molecular level, we pursue a bottom-up approach and develop and apply model membrane systems. In particular, we have established functional lipid bilayers on highly ordered pore arrays. These so-called pore-spanning membranes suspend nanometer- to micrometer- sized pores in an aluminum or silicon substrate. They separate two aqueous compartments and can hence be envisioned as an intermediate between solid supported and freestanding membranes. With these model systems in hand, we are able to inves- tigate transport processes mediated by ion chan- nels, such as connexons, and protein pumps, such as bacteriorhodopsin. Recently, we managed to reconstitute parts of the neuronal fusion machinery enabling us to study the fusion process between a planar pore-spanning membrane and a single vesicle on a molecular level. As pore-spanning membranes are similar to freestanding ones such as giant unilamellar vesicles, domain formation as well as membrane reorganization can be readily observed. We exploit this by studying the impact of protein binding on membrane domain reorga- nization, a process that is discussed in the context of Shiga toxin uptake into a cell. Similarly, we study the coupling of the plasma membrane to the underlying cytoskeleton mediated by the protein ezrin, making use of our pore-spanning membrane systems. All these studies are, of course, not pos- sible without great collaborators, who are in part unified in the Collaborative Research Center (CRC 803, http://www.uni-goettingen.de/en/213080. html) established at the University of Göttingen.

Spotlight on Single-Molecule Dynamics in Membranes Associate Editor Lukas Tamm has com- piled a collection of top papers on membranes published in the last year. Visit www. biophysj.org/ home to view the virtual issue.