Fabián Morales Polanco, Ph.D.

Research

In the Frydman lab, I will explore whether proteins assemble into multiprotein complexes as they are being synthesized. Many proteins operate as components within larger protein complexes, where the chemical produced by one protein becomes the starting material for its neighbor. But how and when these complexes form in living cells is unknown. Do the participating proteins encounter one another at random—or is there a mechanism that guides their association? As a doctoral student, I observed that some of the enzymes involved in central reactions of metabolism are synthesized within discrete RNA granules inside the cell’s main compartment. Now, using an array of techniques in biochemistry, genetics, and cell biology, I will extend my investigation in other systems, and assess whether these sites of localized synthesis facilitate the assembly of multi-subunit protein machines. This work will unveil how cells coordinate protein synthesis, folding, and assembly, and could lead to novel approaches for the treatment of conditions in which proteins aggregate abnormally, such as Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.