NEWS:
2024.02.01: S. Emin Samasas joined Akbey Lab as a research fellow. Welcome to the group Emin.
2024.01.17: New paper from Akbey Lab is accepted @ The FEBS Journal. A great collaborative work by Akbey and Andreasen Labs: “Intrinsically disordered Pseudomonas chaperone FapA slows down the fibrillation of major biofilm forming functional amyloid FapC”.
2023.10.10: Our paper on NMR based structural characterization of Bacterial Biofilms is online now at Journal of Magnetic Resonance. A great work by Chang Byeon and co. in collaboration with Prof. Wook Kim at Duquesne University. “Tapping into the native Pseudomonas Bacterial Biofilm Structure by High-Resolution Multidimensional Solid-State NMR“.
We are very proud to be part of this work is published in a special issue titled New Voices in Magnetic Resonance 2023. “This multi-journal Special Issue project is intended to promote original research by early-career investigators and will be published jointly by JMR and JMR Open, in collaboration with ISMAR. We invite original research contributions in all areas of magnetic resonance, from PIs who are within 7 years of starting their independent position. Postdocs are welcome to submit contributions that represent research independent from and not co-authors by their faculty mentor(s). Top 3 contributions to the Special Issue will be selected by a scientific committee comprised of JMR/JMR Open/ISMAR representatives spanning all areas of magnetic resonance. The three winners will receive a prize of $500 each. An award ceremony and a dedicated JMR/JMR Open/ISMAR virtual symposium with lectures by the three Prize recipients will be held in October 2023. Articles will be published in regular issues as they are accepted in the submitted Journal (JMR or JMR Open).”
2023.10.05: Our paper showing the complete 100% backbone solution NMR assignment of FapA is now online at Journal of Biomolecular NMR Assignments: “Solution-state NMR Assignment and Secondary Structure Analysis of the Monomeric Pseudomonas Biofilm-Forming Functional Amyloid Accessory Protein FapA“.
2023.10.03: Updated Preprint of our solution-state NMR structural study on bacterial functional amyloid FapC and its chaperone partner FapA is now online @Biorxiv: “Identifying interaction interface between Pseudomonas major biofilm forming functional amyloid FapC and disordered chaperone FapA during fibrillation deceleration”.
2023.10.02: New preprint from Akbey Lab is online @Biorxiv. “Tapping into the native Pseudomonas Bacterial Biofilm Structure by High-Resolution 1D and 2D MAS solid-state NMR“. This is our first paper on NMR based structural characterization of Bacterial Biofilms. A great work by Chang Byeon and co., and a collaboration with Prof. Wook Kim at Duquesne University and Akbey Lab. A very exciting research topic that will help us to understand bacterial biofilms at atomic resolution, to fight against amyloid/biofilm related disease, and antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
2023.10.01: Yes rumors are true, Kasper is back ! Welcome back to the group Kasper.
2023.09.20: New paper from Akbey Lab is accepted @Journal of Biomolecular NMR Assignments. A great work by Chang !: “Solution-state NMR Assignment and Secondary Structure Analysis of the Monomeric Pseudomonas Biofilm-Forming Functional Amyloid Accessory Protein FapA”
2023.09.15: Hakan Saricayir finished his research visit at Akbey Lab. Congrats Hakan, you did great work and contribution to the group & we wish you all the best for your future scientific endeavors !
2023.09.11: Ümit presented our lab research progress at the 2023 Alpine NMR conference in Chamonix, France: “Structural biology of functional amyloids”.
2023.07.28: Ted Kinney successfully presented his SURP work. Congrats Ted & we wish you all the best for your future scientific endeavors !
2023.07.13: We have a new, third as Akbey Lab, Biomolecular Magnetic Resonance Database (BMRB) entry for the assignment of FapA: #52035. Another great example of manual assignment of an intrinsically disordered protein (IDP) by Chang, well done ! See the BioRxiv preprint here.
2023.07: We received funding from the UPMC Competitive Medical Research Fund (CMRF) of University of Pittsburgh and UPMC. We are very happy and excited for our first research support funding in the US. Thank you The University of Pittsburgh Office of Research at Health Sciences for seeing the great potential in our research. Award Link.
“Dr. Ümit Akbey (and his team) has been awarded with a Competitive Medical Research Fund (CMRF) by UPMC and University of Pittsburgh. His project entitled “Molecular mechanism of amyloid formation in bacterial biofilms as potential targets for fighting antimicrobial resistance”, aims to obtain atomic-resolution structural information on amyloid fibrillar proteins from bacterial biofilms by using advanced solid-state NMR spectroscopy. These information will pave the way for better understanding of chronic-infections caused by biofilm forming bacteria, that are difficult to treat and mediate antimicrobial-resistance (AMR).”
2023.06: Ümit joined the Editorial Board of the Scientific Reports.
2023.05.22: Ted Kinney joined Akbey Lab as a SURP summer undergraduate student. Welcome Ted !
2023.05.12: Dr. Hakan Saricayir joined Akbey Lab as a visiting scientist. Welcome Hakan !
2023.05.10: Near complete resonance assignment of full-length and truncated minimalistic FapC, a great work led by Chang, is now online at Journal of Biomolecular NMR Assignments. “Solution-state NMR assignment and secondary structure propensity of the full length and minimalistic-truncated prefibrillar monomeric form of biofilm forming functional amyloid FapC from Pseudomonas aeruginosa”
2023.04.20: Ümit presented our lab research progress at the 2023 ENC NMR conference in Asilomar, CA, US: “Structural biology of functional amyloids”.
2023.03.15: Our Preprint is now online @Biorxiv: “Initial Steps of Chaperone-Aided Fibrillation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilm Forming Functional Amyloid FapC”
2023.01: We have two Biomolecular Magnetic Resonance Database (BMRB) entries for the assignment of FapC as a full-length (FL) and shorter L2R3C construct: FapC FL: #51793 & FapC L2R3C: #51792. Amazing effort in manually unambiguously assigning this large intrinsically disordered protein (IDP) Chang, well done !
2022.06: Chang Hyeock Byeon joined my Lab as a laboratory manager. Welcome Chang !