Ralf P. Richter
CIC biomaGUNE, Biosurfaces Unit, San Sebastian, Spain
Grenoble University, Department of Molecular Chemistry, Grenoble, France
Max-Planck-Institute for Intelligent Systems, Stuttgart, Germany
Biological hydrogels – from supramolecular organization and dynamics to biological function
Nature has evolved complex materials that are exquisitely designed to perform specific functions. Certain proteins and glycans self-organize in vivo into soft and dynamic, strongly hydrated gel-like matrices. Illustrative examples of such biomolecular hydrogels are cartilage or mucus. Even though biomolecular hydrogels are ubiquitous in living organisms and fulfill fundamental biological tasks, we have today a very limited understanding of their internal organization, and how they function. The main reason is that this type of assemblies is difficult to study with conventional biochemical methods.
In order to study biomolecular hydrogels directly on the supramolecular level, we have developed an unconventional approach that draws on knowledge from several scientific disciplines. Exploiting surface science tools, we tailor-make model systems by directed self-assembly of purified components on solid supports. With a toolbox of biophysical characterization techniques, including QCM-D, ellipsometry, AFM and RICM, these model systems can be investigated quantitatively and in great detail. The experimental data, combined with polymer theory, allow us to develop a better understanding of the relationship between the supramolecular organization and dynamics of biomolecular hydrogels, their physico-chemical properties and their biological function. To illustrate this concept, I will present a few examples, including recent works on the formation and stabilization of the “sweet” jelly-like matrix that forms around the mammalian egg during ovulation (and is crucial for fertility) and on the nuclear pore permeability barrier (that regulates nucleo-cytoplasmic transport).
Brief biography
Ralf obtained his MSc in Physics at Chalmers/Gothenburg University (Sweden) in 1999. After an intermezzo in industry, he completed his PhD in Chemistry at the IECB/University of Bordeaux (France) in 2004. Following a postdoctoral stay at the University of Heidelberg (Germany), he became research group leader at the CIC biomaGUNE (San Sebastian, Spain) in 2007. Since 2012, he also holds a Chair of Excellence at Grenoble University (France). Ralf has been awarded a Ramon y Cajal fellowship in 2009 and an ERC Starting Grant in 2012. Current research in the Richter Lab revolves around soft biological structures at interfaces, such as the cell surface and glycocalyx and the nuclear pore complex. The Richter Lab creates well-controlled model systems with tunable complexity, to understand the physical principles underlying the self-organization, structure and function of these architectures, and for applications as biosensors and for the control of cellular fate.