Minority Postdoctoral Research Fellowship for FY 2002

Adams Paul D, Ithaca NY

Investigators

Abstract

This action funds an NSF Minority Postdoctoral Research Fellowship for FY2002. The goal of the fellowship is to prepare minority scientists for positions of scientific leadership in academia and industry. To attain this goal, the fellowship provides opportunities for postdoctoral training of the highest quality to recent doctoral recipients. This program is an effort by the NSF to increase the number of research scientists from underrepresented minority groups, thereby contributing to the future vitality of the Nation's scientific enterprise. It is expected that Fellows trained through these fellowships will play important roles in training of the future workforce. The research and training plan for this fellowship is entitled "Structural studies on Cdc42Hs mutant proteins that may initiate cellular transformation." NMR spectroscopy is being used to characterize mutant forms of Cdc42Hs, an intracellular signal transduction protein cloned in E. coli. This protein binds GTP or GDP and acts as a molecular timing switch based on the nature of the bound ligand. The research will determine the structure and dynamics of two Cdc42Hs mutants to understand the role of Cdc42Hs in processes that lead to cell transformation.