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SUMMARY:How disordered proteins shape and regulate the genome - Dr Katheri
 ne Stott - Department of Biochemistry 
DTSTART:20221108T203000Z
DTEND:20221108T220000Z
UID:TALK184907@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Toby Nuttall
DESCRIPTION:We are familiar with the concept of disorder as the state to w
 hich we are inexorably driven according to the second law of thermodynamic
 s. However\, as Erwin Schrödinger observed\, life\, by definition\, maint
 ains a highly ordered state. This does not conflict with the second law as
  we have a ready source of free energy in the form of the Sun. Life’s or
 dered state is observable over many length scales\, from the whole organis
 m down to the very molecules from which it is made. The pandemic has educa
 ted us: the general public now knows what the spike protein on the SARS-Co
 V-2 surface looks like\, and many are also aware of the successes of Deep 
 Mind’s “AlphaFold 2” in predicting protein structures in silico. Eve
 rything appears to make sense: life’s complexity is explained by a sophi
 sticated set of lego blocks. Structure dictates function. But what then of
  the 40% or more proteins in humans that do not adopt defined structures? 
 Why are they made\, what are they doing\, and how does their lack of struc
 ture help? In this lecture\, I will attempt to shed some light on this con
 tradictory set of proteins\, using examples from my group’s research int
 o the condensation of DNA into liquid-like and fibre-like states\, which i
 s controlled by a set of highly disordered proteins.
LOCATION:Peterhouse Theatre
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