Title: Photophysics in Biomembranes

Date: 31st March 2023, Friday

Time: 1:00 pm (Central European Time)

Host: Prof. Bartosz Trzaskowski

The seminar will be in the CeNT aula hall (01.130) on the first floor

Abstract: The flux of biomolecules, cell integrity or interactions with many enzymes is governed by biomembranes in living cells. Biomembranes are semi-permeable borders between environments of different properties. A critical parameter is the membrane fluidity, since it determines the motion rate of molecules within the membrane itself. Changes in the fluidity are directly related to the health of the cell. As an example, cancer cells can be characterized by a depletion of cholesterol, a reduction of the fluidity, and an increase in order. The accurate detection of the phase fluidity and lipid composition is therefore of paramount importance from a biomedicine perspective. Thereupon, in recent years increased attention has been paid to the use of computational power and molecular modeling to tackle complex problems in biological environments. Computation can assess a priori novel probes’ optical properties and guide the analysis and interpretation of experimental data in novel studies. This lecture will focus on the computational simulation of optical experiments and light-sensitive molecular probes embedded in model membranes.

This seminar will be given within the framework of the mentoring visit of Action I.1.1/IV.1.1 „Mentoring Programme” of IDUB programme.