Name: | Beena Krishnan |
|
Expertise: | Protein Design & Engineering Protein Spectroscopy |
Contact Address:
Senior Scientist (Scientist EI, Ad hoc) / Ramalingaswami Fellow
Lab No.: P207, GNRPC
Institute of Microbial Technology,
Sector 39-A, Chandigarh – 160 036, India
Phone: +91-172-6665468 (office)
+91-172-6665482 (Lab)
Email: beena@imtech.res.in
beenakrish@gmail.com
Write-up of research and development interests/focus, past and present goals:
RESEARCH INTERESTS
• Deciphering mechanisms of protein folding / misfolding and degradation of secretory proteins, in
particular of proteases and their protein-based inhibitors implicated in human disease.
• Developing new strategies to investigate in vivo protein folding.
• Investigation of protein secretion systems and their role in pathogenesis.
• Membrane biogenesis
Current Research
Proteins are the workhorse biomolecules of a cell. My research interest is in addressing two important aspects of proteins: protein folding mechanism at a fundamental level, and a molecular-level understanding of specific class of proteins, such as extracellular proteins, that are implicated in conformational diseases.
Immediate research themes that will be the focus of my group are:
• Life and death of plasma proteins
• Rational re-designing of human plasma Serpins to develop improved therapeutic biologics
• Understanding of various sequence determinants of protein folding and mis-folding
Significant recognition: Awards, fellowships, international funding of distinction, technologies transferred/licensed etc.:
• Ramalingaswami Re-entry Fellowship from DBT, Govt. of India, 2012-2017
• Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Grant from the Alpha-1 Foundation, 2007 – 2009, to carry out research at UMass, Amherst with Prof. Lila M. Gierasch as a mentor
• Invited speaker at the 6th International Symposium on the Chemistry and Biology of Serpins at North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Sept. 2011
• Invited speaker at the Gordon Research Conference on Protein Folding Dynamics, Ventura, CA, Jan. 2006
• Protein Science Young Investigator Travel Grant / The Protein Society Finn Wold Travel Award
• CSIR-UGC NET fellowship, Dec. 1999
• Reviewer for: Chemistry – A European Journal; Chemistry – An Asian Journal; Chemical Biology and Drug Design; Process Biochemistry; PLoS ONE; & Biochemistry
Selected list of Publications and Patents:
Maki JL, Krishnan B, Gierasch LM.
Using a low denaturant model to explore the conformational features of translocation-active SecA. (2012) Biochemistry 51(7):1369-79. (Cover)
Krishnan B and Gierasch LM.
Dynamic local unfolding in the serpin alpha-1 antitrypsin provides a mechanism for loop insertion and polymerization. (2011) Nature Structural & Molecular Biology 18(2):222-6.
Krishnan B, Kulothungan SR, Patra AK, Udgaonkar JB, Varadarajan R.
SecB-mediated protein export need not occur via kinetic partitioning. (2009)
Journal of Molecular Biology 385(4):1243-56.
Krishnan B, Gierasch LM.
Cross-strand split tetra-Cys motifs as structure sensors in a beta-sheet protein. (2008)
Chemistry & Biology 15(10):1104-15.(Cover)
Krishnan B, Szymanska A, Gierasch LM.
Site-specific fluorescent labeling of poly-histidine sequences using a metal-chelating cysteine. (2007) Chemical Biology & Drug Design 69(1):31-40.
