HOOGENBOOM2	Biophysical mechanism of transport into and out of the cell nucleus
Type	Experimental
#students	1
Orientation	Why is the scientific problem of interest at all? The nuclear pore complex (NPC) is the sole gate of transport between the cell nucleus and the cytoplasm. As such it is responsible, e.g., for transport of messenger (m) RNA from the nucleus into the cytoplasm, where the mRNA can be translated to proteins. In spite of its literally vital importance for the cell, it is still unclear how the NPC prevents transport of some molecules, while it allows others to diffuse rather freely.
How	How is the research going to shed light on the given problem?. In this project, building on our previous research, we will measure the force required to locally indent the central transport channels of intact NPCs with sharp atomic force microscopy (AFM) tips, and thus construct a 3D nanomechanical map of the NPC. Rapid data acquisition methods will enable us to do so much faster than previously, greatly reducing experimental problems related to drift and enhancing our ability to probe NPCs under various conditions: We particularly aim to systematically affect the interactions between the disordered proteins in the channel, and test the resulting changes in collective protein (polymer) behaviour by AFM.
What	What is the specific thing that the student will do, and how does it fit inside the overall project?
Special Knowledge
Supervisor	Dr Bart Hoogenboomb.hoogenboom@ucl.ac.uk