Graham | Biomedical and Molecular Sciences | School of Medicine

Laurie Graham PhD

Position(s)

Assistant Professor

Contact Info

Faculty Bio

My research in the Peter Davies lab involves the study of antifreeze proteins (AFPs) that bind to ice crystals and prevent ice growth at subzero temperatures. We are currently purifying, characterizing and cloning genes for new AFPs from a variety of organisms. The genes will be expressed in a suitable system, and we will attempt to crystallize the purified proteins and solve their structures. This will help us to identify the structural features required for ice binding and provide clues as to their mechanism of action. We are also studying AFP gene families from a variety of organisms to determine whether those that produce similar AFPs do so because they have arisen by 1) convergent evolution 2) divergent evolution from a common ancestor or 3) lateral gene transfer.

Research Interests

My research in the Peter Davies lab involves the study of ice binding proteins (IBPs). AFPs are found in many different organisms such as insects, fish, plants and bacteria. Many IBPs function as antifreeze proteins (AFPs) that bind to the surfaces of ice crystals and inhibit their growth at subzero temperatures, thereby protecting the organism from freezing damage. Despite their similar function, many different types of proteins folds have evolved into AFPs, often within a single group such as beetles. Others IBPs inhibit the recrystallization of ice in the frozen state or induce freezing at temperatures close to zero. This diverse group of proteins is an excellent model for studying protein structure-function relationships and protein evolution.

We are currently purifying, characterizing and cloning genes for new AFPs from a variety of organisms. The genes will be expressed in a suitable system, and we will attempt to crystallize the purified proteins and solve their structures. This will help us to identify the structural features required for ice binding and provide clues as to their mechanism of action. We are also studying AFP gene families from a variety of organisms to determine whether those that produce similar AFPs do so because they have arisen by convergent evolution, from a common ancestor or by lateral gene transfer.

Selected Publications

Hobbs, R. S., Shears, M. A., Graham, L. A., Davies, P. L. and Fletcher, G. L. (2011) Isolation and characterization of type I antifreeze proteins from cunner, Tautogolabrus adspersus, order Perciformes. FEBS Journal 278, 3699–3710
Lin, F.H., Davies, P.L. and Graham, L.A. (2011) The Thr- and Ala-rich hyperactive antifreeze protein from inch worm folds as a flat silk-like β-helix. Biochemistry 50, 4467-4478.
Mok, Y.F., Lin, F.H., Graham, L.A., Celik, Y., Bravlasky, I. and Davies, P.L. (2010) Structural basis for the superior activity of the large isoform of snow flea antifreeze protein. Biochemistry 49, 2593–2603.
Celik, Y., Graham, L.A., Mok, Y.F., Bar, M., Davies, P.L. and Bravlasky, I. (2010) Superheating of ice crystals in antifreeze protein solutions. PNAS 107, 5423-5428.
Kelly, J.C., Cuerrier, D., Graham, L.A, Campbell R.L. and Davies, P.L. (2009) Profiling of calpain activity with a series of FRET-based substrates BBA 1794, 1505-1509.
Graham, L.A., Ewart, K.V., Lougheed, S.C., and Davies, P.L. (2008) Lateral transfer of a lectin-like antifreeze protein gene in fishes. PLoS ONE 3(7):e2616 (11 pages)
Graham, L.A., Marshall, C.B., Lin, F.H., Campbell, R.L. and Davies, P.L. (2008) Hyperactive antifreeze protein from fish contains multiple ice-binding sites. Biochemistry 47, 2051-2063.
Graham, L.A., Qin, W., Lougheed, S.C., Davies, P.L. and Walker, V.K. (2007) Evolution of hyperactive, repetitive antifreeze proteins in beetles. J. Mol. Evol. 64, 387-398.
Lin, F.H., Graham, L.A., Campbell, R.L. and Davies, P.L. (2007) Structural modeling of snow flea antifreeze protein. Biophys. J. 92, 1717-1723.
Scotter, A.J., Marshall, C.B., Graham, L.A., Gilbert, J.A., Garnham, C.P. and Davies, P.L. (2006) The basis for hyperactivity of antifreeze proteins. Cryobiology 53, 229-239.
Scotter, A.J., Kuntz, D.A., Saul, M., Graham, L.A., Davies, P.L. and Rose, D. (2006) Expression and purification of sea raven type II antifreeze protein from Drosophila melanogaster S2 cells. Prot. Expr. Purif. 47, 374-383.
Graham, L.A. and Davies, P.L. (2005) Glycine-rich antifreeze proteins from snow fleas. Science 310, 461.
Graham L.A., Brewer, D., Lajoie, G. and Davies, P.L. (2003) Characterization of a subfamily of beetle odorant-binding proteins found in hemolymph. Mol. Cell. Proteomics 8, 541-549.
Marshall, C.B., Daley, M.E., Graham, L.A., Sykes, B.D. and Davies, P.L. (2002) Identification of the ice-binding face of antifreeze protein from Tenebrio molitor. FEBS Lett. 529, 261-267.
Graham, L.A. and Davies, P.L. (2002) The odorant-binding proteins of Drosophila melanogaster: annotation and characterization of a divergent gene family. Gene 292, 43-55.
Graham, L.A., Tang, W., Baust, J.G., Liou, Y-C. Reid, T.S. and Davies, P.L. (2001) Characterization and cloning of a Tenebrio molitor hemolymph protein with sequence similarity to insect odorant-binding proteins. Insect Biochem. and Mol. Biol. 31, 691-702.

Team

Faculty Bio

Research Interests

Selected Publications

Faculty