The Disputation will be live streamed for everyone else.
The livestream will be activated 15 minutes before the Defense starts.
Trial lecture
February 2nd, 10:15 AM, Auditorium 3, Chemistry building
Trial lecture title:
“Glycans in health and diseases”
The trial lecture will be live streamed for everyone else.
The livestream will be activated 15 minutes before the trial lecture starts.
Kreeringssammendrag/Conferral summary
Avhandlingen fokuserer på en bedre forståelse av de molekylære mekanismene til to toksiner: koleratoksin, et bakterielt toksin som forårsaker kolera, og cctx2, et fungalt toksin som dreper soppspisende ormer. Dette vil bedre forståelsen og hjelpe til å utvikle en bedre kur for kolera samt å utvikle miljøvennlige sprøytemidler.
Main research findings
A double-edged sword
AB toxins are proteins often used by pathogens as an attack molecule. However, some organisms use them as a defense molecule, when threatened by a predator. This PhD thesis provides insights on the understanding of the molecular mechanism of two AB toxins, representing the two distinct roles of attack and defense.
Cholera toxin (CT) and its cousin LT from Escherichia coli are very similar proteins, both causing diarrheal diseases with different severity. In this work, we investigated the structural differences between the two toxins. We then provided a hypothesis to the difference in toxicity and disease severity, which may lead to the design of better therapeutics.
The second target is a fungal toxin: Coprinopsis cinerae toxin 2 (CCTX2). CCTX2 is a defense protein used by the fungus against nematodes attacks. This work describes the molecular structure of the protein and explores its potential function. This work on CCTX2 paves the way for the design of safer nematicides.
Candidate contact information
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/flore-kersten/
Email: flore.kersten@ncmm.uio.no
Tel. +47 48667880