Molecular mechansims of signal transduction through GABAAR - Lummis Lab, Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge

Nov 2020 - Jan 2021

My work with Professor Sarah Lummis’ lab was part of my final year Biochemistry course. I chose to do a ‘wet’ project, rather than a ‘dry’ computational project, eager to develop wet-lab skills and thought processes and recognising that computational biology should not be isolated from work at the lab bench. My project was to identify specific amino acids important for the function of the gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor, specifically the ligand-gated ion channel class (GABAAR), implicated in schizophrenia and important both therapeutically and clinically. Reviewing past literature and using recent cryo-EM data, I identified several residues of interest involved in information transfer through the protein. Despite the limitations of another national lockdown, we functionally characterised two residues and, based on previous work and cryo-EM data, I proposed hypotheses for the functions of the other residues. Ultimately, my weeks in the lab provided me with valuable experience in troubleshooting procedures, designing experiments, adapting plans to things out of my control and wet-lab biochemistry.