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Jan Schuller
Our laboratory investigates the structure and function of bioenergetic machines using structural biology, biochemistry and molecular biology. We are specialized in cryoEM single particle analysis, which allows us to determine high-resolution structures of membrane-bound multi-protein complexes and uncover their molecular dynamics, which is essential for understanding their function. In the framework of the M4C initiative, we are interested to study the function and evolution of those biomolecular machineries that bacteria use to conserve energy and capture the climate gas CO2, which includes the photosynthetic apparatus and electron bi-furcating CO2-reducing super complexes.
Research Focus:
Microbes as Drivers; Microbes as Responders
Key Publication(s):
*Winiarska A, Ramírez-Amador F, Hege D, Gemmecker Y, Prinz S, Hochberg G, *Heider J, *Szaleniec M, *Schuller JM. A bacterial tungsten-containing aldehyde oxidoreductase forms an enzymatic decorated protein nanowire. Science Advances 2023 9:eadg6689 doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adg6689.
Dietrich HM, Righetto RD, Kumar A, Wietrzynski W, Trischler R, Schuller SK, Wagner J, Schwarz FM, Engel BD, *Müller V, *Schuller JM. Membrane-anchored HDCR nanowires drive hydrogen-powered CO2 fixation. Nature 2022 607:823-830. doi: 10.1038/s41586-022-04971-z
*Schuller JM, Birrell JA, Tanaka H, Konuma T, Wulfhorst H, Cox N, Schuller SK, Thiemann J, Lubitz W, Sétif P, Ikegami T, Engel BD, *Kurisu G, *Nowaczyk MM. Structural adaptations of photosynthetic complex I enable ferredoxin-dependent electron transfer. Science 2019 363:257-260. doi: 10.1126/science.aau3613.