**SEMINAR CANCELLED** NSplit inteins for post-translational control of protein structure and function

Our lab is interested in understanding and manipulating the properties of peptides and proteins through protein design, protein evolution and protein chemical biology approaches. The research program consists of projects focused on the mechanism and applications of protein splicing by inteins, the development of novel bioconjugation protocols, artificial control of protein function, the biosynthetic logic of non-ribosomal peptide synthetases, and the post-translational modification of proteins with ubiquitin-like modifiers.

In this talk, our work on protein splicing mediated by inteins and split inteins will be highlighted. Inteins are internal protein domains that excise themselves out of a precursor protein with concomitant ligation of the flanking sequences termed exteins. The associated remodeling of the peptide backbone in this process has enabled many applications for proteins of interest in the fields of biotechnology, chemical biology and biomedicine. Our lab has discovered, characterized and engineered many of the most commonly used inteins and applied them in novel schemes to control protein structure and function, for example for selective protein chemical modification and light-control of proteins.

Host: Dr Baojun Wang