If you can still read this message after the webpage has finished loading, then your browser may not be capable of using CSS to display this site correctly. Please view
the 
2005 ASBMB Fellowship: Daniel Ryan
I began my Bachelor
of Science (Bioinformatics) degree at the University of Sydney in
1998 and quickly realised I had a keen interest in the biological
sciences. As my degree progressed, I became more and more
fascinated with the world of biochemistry and in particular the
control of gene expression. At the end of my second year of
undergraduate studies I was lucky enough to land a Summer Vacation
Research Scholarship in the lab of Dr Jacqui Matthews at the School
of Molecular and Microbial Biosciences. Working part-time in
Jacqui's lab during my third year, I decided investigating
transcription factors, protein-protein interactions, and protein
chemistry was the road for me. In 2001, I completed my Honours
year, looking at the protein-protein interactions of transcription
factor complexes that have been linked to leukaemia formation, and
have since continued this work into my PhD.
The first half of my PhD focussed on dissecting the interactions between the LIM-only (LMO) proteins, LMO2 and LMO4, with their obligate partner-protein ldb1. LMO proteins are key regulators of development, and LMO2 and LMO4 are associated with leukaemia and breast cancer, respectively. Using a panel of ldb1 mutants and a yeast two-hybrid system I was able to identify the residues of ldb1 involved in binding the two LMO proteins. This data highlighted key similarities and differences in the interaction of ldb1 with LMO2 and LMO4, and helped provide an explanation as to how ldb1 is able to bind a range of LIM domain-containing proteins. Subsequently, part of this work was published in EMBO Journal in 2004. More recently my research has concentrated on the biophysical characterisation of a DNA-binding multi-protein complex that is necessary for blood cell development, but is also often activated in T-cell acute leukaemias.
The generous ASBMB Fellowship will allow me to attend the 6th European Symposium of the Protein Society in Barcelona, Spain, where I hope to present some of my current work and learn about the latest developments in protein science.
Previous Page | Top of Page
This page last modified: October 10, 2008.