Christopher Grefen, PhD – Ruhr-University Bochum — CSB Seminar

CSB Departmental Seminar

Friday, December 12th @ 11:00 am

SPEAKER: Christopher Grefen, PhD – Ruhr-University Bochum

TITLE: Insertion pathways for membrane proteins in the plant ER

ABSTRACT: Membrane proteins are essential for almost every cellular process, yet the routes they take to reach the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) are surprisingly diverse. While many follow the classical SRP/Sec61 pathway, a growing number rely on alternative, non-canonical routes. These include tail-anchored (TA) proteins and other SRP-lacking proteins with internal transmembrane domains that Sec61 cannot efficiently handle.
In this talk, I will share recent findings from Arabidopsis thaliana that combine mechanistic insights into the Guided-Entry of TA proteins (GET) pathway with the organism-level consequences of pathway loss. I will show how specific lipid species influence GET receptor function and how impaired insertion affects development, tissue differentiation, and stress responses. Finally, I will present unpublished data on the SRP-independent (SND) pathway, revealing how its loss disrupts fertility and why plants rely on this alternative route for proper reproductive development.

HOST: Heather McFarlane

LOCATION: Cell and Systems Biology, 25 Harbord Street, Suite 432

LIVESTREAM LINK: https://csb.utoronto.ca/live-stream/