Wolfgang Maret is a main international expert in the field of metallomics, especially within biological zinc and magnesium. Wolfgang will tell an interesting story about the major importance of metals in the biology.
In the last decade, we witnessed discoveries that established Zn2+ as a second major signalling metal ion in the transmission of information within cells and in communication between cells. Together with Ca2+ and Mg2+, Zn2+ covers biological regulation with redox-inert metal ions over many orders of magnitude in concentrations.
Divalent metal ions also plays a major role in bacterial biology, and metal homeostasis is a relatively new target in antibacterial therapeutic strategies. Redox-inert metals also play key roles in major health issues such as stroke, edema and epilepsy.
In his talk, Professor Maret will describe coordination in the bio-metallome, and relate the talk to biological function.