Modular switches in protein function [Elektronische Ressource] : a spectroscopic approach / von Madathil, Sineej

Modular Switches in Protein Function: A Spectroscopic Approach D I S S E R T A T I O N zur Erlangung des akademischen Grades Doctor rerum naturalium (Dr. rer. nat.) vorgelegt der Fakultät Mathematik und Naturwissenschaften der Technischen Universität Dresden von Madathil, Sineej stgeboren am 31 May 1981 in Kerala, Indien Gutachter: Prof. Dr. Gert Bernhard, FZ Dresden-Rossendorf & TU Dresden Prof. Dr. Werner Mäntele, Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität, Frankfurt am Main Eingereicht am: 6. Oktober 2009 Verteidigung am: 8. Dezember 2009 Abstract _________________________________________________________ Abstract Understanding the molecular basis of protein function is a challenging task that lays the foundation for the pharmacological intervention in many diseases originating in altered structural states of the involved proteins. Dissecting a complex functional machinery into modules is a promising approach to protein function. The motivation for this work was to identify minimal requirements for “local” switching processes in the function of multidomain proteins that can adopt a variety of structural substates of different biological activity or representing intermediates of a complex reaction path.