Prof. Mark Sansom, Department of Biochemistry, University of Oxford, UK
Membrane protein interactions and function viewed by molecular simulations

Host: Parthiban Marimuthu (Parthiban.Marimuthu@abo.fi)

Mark Sansom heads a group of 20 researchers focusing on biomolecular simulations of membranes. Current topics of research include membrane protein/lipid interactions, and the behaviour of water in ion channels and nanopores. He has worked for over 25 years at the interface between life and physical sciences, and has ca. 550 500 publications with an h index of 80. He has also played a role in helping to develop UK HPC strategy.

Selected recent papers
Rao, S., Klesse, G., Stansfeld, P.J., Tucker, S.J., & Sansom, M.S.P. (2019) A heuristic derived from analysis of the ion channel structural proteome permits the rapid identification of hydrophobic gates. PNAS 116: 13989-13995.

Saotome, K., Teng, T., Tsui, C.C. (A.), Lee, W.H., Sansom, M.S.P., Liman, E.R. & Ward, A.B. (2019) Structures of the otopetrin proton channels Otop1 and Otop3. Nature Struct. Molec. Biol. 26: 518–525.

Song, W., Yen, H.-Y., Robinson, C.V., & Sansom, M.S.P. (2019) State-dependent lipid interactions with the A2a receptor revealed by MD simulations using in vivo-mimetic membranes. Structure 27: 392–403.

Yen, H.-Y., Hoi, K.K., Liko, I., Hedger, G., Horrell, M.R., Song. W., Wu, D., Heine, P., Warne, T., Lee, Y., Carpenter, B., Plückthun, A., Tate, C.G., Sansom, M.S.P. & Robinson, C.V. (2018) PtdIns(4,5)P2 stabilises active states of GPCRs and enhances selectivity of G-protein coupling. Nature 559: 423–427.