Julian Philipp WagnerPhD Student
About me
I am a PhD student in Prof. Milka Doktorova's lab at SciLife. In the Cell Membrane Biology Lab (CMBL), we are interested in the biophysics of cell membranes and use a combination of experimental techniques and simulations to decipher their organization, structure and function.
I am originally from Germany and before starting my PhD studies at the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics at Stockholm University, I completed a Franco-German undergraduate program in molecular and cell biology at Saarbrücken and Strasbourg Universities and a master’s degree in biochemistry at McGill University (Montreal, Canada). Thus, my scientific journey not only took me to three different countries but also enabled me to gain expertise in the fields of biophysics and biochemistry as well as structural and molecular biology.
Research
Membranes are essential molecular interfaces that insulate cells from external stresses, compartmentalize the cytoplasm, and control the flow of nutrients and information. A key building block of the plasma membrane is lipids, which exhibit considerable structural diversity. In the plasma membrane, the lipids assemble into a bilayer with two distinct leaflets. In each leaflet, the hydrophilic headgroups of the lipids are exposed to the aqueous environment while the hydrophobic tails cluster together in the center, away from the water. A fundamental feature of the cell membrane is their asymmetry: the two leaflets differ in both lipid composition and number of lipids. This asymmetry confers a range of unique properties, yet, its biophysical and functional consequences as well as the effects on protein-membrane interactions remain poorly understood. Interestingly, cells invest a substantial amount of energy maintaining this symmetry, highlighting its functional importance. In my PhD project, I explore these questions using membrane model systems and various experimental techniques to decipher the structure and function of asymmetric membranes.
Want to know more? Check out our lab’s website at: https://www.doktorovaresearch.com/
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