Awarded in 2021
Home Department: Structural Biology
Faculty Advisors: Joseph Puglisi (Structural Biology) and Zev Bryant (Bioengineering)

Research Title: Uncovering the Kinetic and Mechanochemical Regulation of Scanning

Research Description: Protein synthesis through translation is a fundamental and essential process for life. Specifically, translation initiation dictates the reading frame of decoding and is often dysregulated in various disease states. Carlos aims to understand the regulation behind scanning; the process by which the ribosome and eukaryotic initiation factors (eIFs) locate the start site of translation. Initiation is dynamic, involving the rapid movements of the ribosome and eIFs, and thus many of these dynamics remain hidden underneath ensemble averages. To overcome these challenges, his plan leverages a combination of single-molecule kinetics and mechanochemical measurements to uncover mechanistic details.