Aleksandra Nita-Lazar, Ph.D.
Lead, Proteomics Group
Tenure Track Investigator
Proteomics Group
Dr. Nita-Lazar received her Ph.D. in biochemistry in 2003 from the University of Basel for studies performed at the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, where she analyzed protein glycosylation using mass spectrometry methods. After postdoctoral training at Stony Brook University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she continued to investigate post-translational protein modifications and their influence on cell signaling, she joined the Program in Systems Immunology and Infectious Disease Modeling (PSIIM) in April 2009.
Description of Research Program
Research in the Proteomics Group focuses on understanding the changes that occur in the cell proteome in response to various stimuli such as cytokines or pathogen-derived molecules, which alter the differentiation state of cells in the immune system or whose production characterizes various disease states. We are especially interested in large-scale absolute quantitative measurements of components in immune cell signaling networks. We will use the resulting large datasets, combined with the data generated by the high-throughput screening efforts of the Molecular and Cell Biology Group and the microarray/next-generation sequencing data from the Genomics and Immunology Groups, to create predictive models of molecular interactions using the software generated by the Computational Biology Group. The predictions of these models will in turn be employed to better understand biological responses at multiple scales of biological organization, including the cell, tissue, and, eventually, whole organism.
Our primary experimental approach to generating the necessary datasets is mass spectrometry, which we will employ together with other proteomic methods using state-of-the art equipment and technologies available in our laboratory and at NIH.
The following are examples of our projects:
- Protein modifications involved in cell signaling: Because dynamic post-translational modifications (PTMs) are essential for the regulation of cell signaling, it is crucial to quantify the PTMs of proteins involved in signaling cascades. Examples of our interests include Toll-like receptor (TLR) signaling in macrophages or T-cell antigen receptor (TCR) signaling.
- Absolute quantification of molecular representation and interaction: Mathematical modeling of biological events is most reliable when the absolute quantities of molecules are known and used to set parameters in the simulations. Therefore, we are interested in absolute quantification of protein expression and protein-protein interactions, e.g., in the lipid-induced signaling pathways involving the S1P1 and S1P2 receptors in osteoclast precursors that control cell mobilization at bone surfaces (Ishii M et al., Nature 458, 2009).
Special Interest Groups
- Proteomics
- Mass Spectrometry
- Immunology
- Systems Biology
Postdoctoral Fellowship Opportunities
Postdoctoral positions are available in the PSIIM Proteomics Group. To apply, go to Current NIH Postdoctoral Openings, and search for “Proteomics-Systems Immunology and Infectious Diseases Modeling,” opening PD-4534.
Publications
View list in PubMed.
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