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The Diverged Trypanosome MICOS Complex as a Hub for Mitochondrial Cristae Shaping and Protein Import

  • Seznam štítků: PŘF

Mitochondria are famously known in the textbooks as the powerhouse s of eukaryotic cells, a group of organisms that include us, mushrooms and plants. These organelles have a complex architecture, being made up of two membranes with the self-descriptive names outer and inner membrane. These define two compartments within the mitochondria: the intermembrane space between the two membranes and the matrix surrounded by the inner membrane.

In contrast to the outer membrane, the inner membrane has a quite elaborate structure. It is folded into finger-like projections that extend into the matrix called cristae. Cristae are the location protein complexes (a collection of proteins, in which each represents a vital part of a working molecular machine) that allow eukaryotes to breathe oxygen, a vital process for generating energy for the whole cell.

Mitochondria are ancient organelles of eukaryotes, cristae are ancient characters of the organelle and the protein complexes that provide the machinery for respiration are ancient features on cristae. All are found throughout diverse eukaryotes such as us, mushrooms and plants. They are also found in single-cell eukaryotes called protists. Belonging to this diverse and fascinating group of organisms is the causative agent of sleeping sickness, the flagellate called Trypanosoma brucei.

In the Current Biology article by Iosif Kaurov and colleagues, we set out to answer the following questions: what are the shared parts of the machinery that build cristae throughout eukaryotes and what parts of this machinery are different so that suits the containing eukaryote’s specific respiration needs? T. brucei was used in this study since it has a well-developed genetic toolbox, developed by researchers trying to find ways to specifically kill the pathogen, to allow us to dissect the machinery responsible for cristae shaping.

The name of the machine that was the focus of our study is MICOS (mitochondrial contact site and cristae organization system). In yeast (a close relative of mushrooms) and human (which we’ll collectively call “yuman”), it is known that this protein complex generates sites in which the inner and outer membranes to come into close contact with each other and also attach cristae to the rest of the inner membrane. If the yuman MICOS machine is broken, cristae detach from inner membrane and float in the matrix.

Only a single gene for one protein piece of yuman MICOS was found in T. brucei. Knowing this, we were able to isolate the whole MICOS protein complex from T. brucei and see what its similarities and differences are in comparison to yuman MICOS. We found that the inner and outer membrane contact site and cristae attachment to the inner membrane functions were the same between the T. brucei and yuman. Because these two types of organisms are about as distant eukaryotic relatives as can be possibly examined, we can conclude that this role of MICOS is a fundamental one throughout eukaryotes.

But the differences were surprising. Besides that lone recognizable protein of MICOS, the other pieces are very different from those that make up the yuman machine. Furthermore, one of the pieces seems to have a different role than any known so far yuman MICOS. This part helps to capture proteins that belong in the intermembrane space. Among these proteins are little pieces of the respiratory protein complexes that reside in cristae. Therefore we demonstrate that T. brucei MICOS not only helps to give cristae their shape, but also help to place the protein machinery in this part of the mitochondria that is responsible for respiration.

Current Biology: Volume 28, ISSUE 21, P3393-3407.e5, November 05, 2018

The Diverged Trypanosome MICOS Complex as a Hub for Mitochondrial Cristae Shaping and Protein Import

Iosif Kaurov, Marie Vancová, Bernd Schimanski, Lawrence Rudy Cadena, Jiří Heller, Tomáš Bílý, David Potěšil, Claudia Eichenberger, Hannah Bruce, Silke Oeljeklaus, Bettina Warscheid, Zbyněk Zdráhal, André Schneider, Julius Lukeš, Hassan Hashimi

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Outgoing Erasmus students - traineeship

Erasmus+ traineeship – outgoing students

Deadlines for applications:
  • 19 September 2024 for the year 2024/2025, the next deadlines depend on the Erasmus grant
  • The selection procedure - conditions here

The European Union’s Erasmus+ programme enables university students to undertake an internship in their field in a European country of a duration between 2 and 12 months (in 2024/2025 the maximum is 3 months). Within the Erasmus+ programme, graduates are also eligible for such an internship. 

PhD students can also use a short-term internship between 5-30 days. There is no possibility to use the internship between 31 - 59 days in the framework of Erasmus program.

  • internships are sought and arranged by the students themselves; the internship must be arranged on a full-time basis (40 hours per week)
  • at the time of departure, the student must be duly enrolled in any year of their studies and must not have interrupted or terminated his/her studies
  • if the mobility is a repeated mobility, the student can use a maximum of 12 months under the same studies; previous mobilities are added together under the same studies
  • graduate internships – the Learning Agreement of the student must be approved before the student graduates; the work placement must start and end within exactly one year starting from this day (it is also vital to respect the academic calendar and not exceed one academic year)

University of South Bohemia provides students on internships with a grant of 690 to 810 euros per month depending on which country the internship is to be spent in. For a short-term internship between 5 - 30 days the grant is approx. 65 Euros per day.

An Erasmus work placement may take place only in the countries involved in the Erasmus+ programme:

  • EU member states: Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Cyprus, Lithuania, Latvia, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Austria, Romania, Greece, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden.
  • countries of the European Economic Area (Norway, Iceland, and Lichtenstein)
  • also Turkey and Macedonia

 It is not possible to undertake an internship in Switzerland and United Kingdom.

The ERASMUS ID code of University of South Bohemia is CZ CESKE01.

Participation conditions

  • the student must be enrolled in an accredited Bachelor’s, Master’s, or Doctoral study programme at University of South Bohemia – full-time, combined, or even distance form of study
  • the student must be duly registered in a study programme at the sending institution during the work placement; the student can neither interrupt nor terminate their studies at the sending institution before completion of the work placement
  • the work placement is to take place in any public organisation or private enterprise active in the labour market or in the sphere of education (private or public enterprise at local, regional, or national level; professional association; trade union; research institutes; non-financial organisations; educational centres, etc.)
  • the student is to find their own mentor/supervisor at the host institution
  • unauthorised organisations where a work placement cannot be entered into:
  • the student is to work full-time in the foreign enterprise (40 hours per week)
  • if the duration of way is till 500 km (by calculator in forms), students have to use the "green" transport

PROCEDURE

  • Requirements for the selection procedure

    o   Completed application form (max. 30 points): duly completed application form

    o   Study stay (max. 30 points): selected courses at a school abroad for at least 20 ECTS/Internship (max. 30 points) – confirmation of the date and content of the internship from the hosting supervisor

    o   Studies (max. 30 points):

    ·        PhD students – 30 points

    ·        Bc and Mgr students according to the study average determined by the faculty Erasmus coordinator (0–20 points)

                            Study average:        1 – 1.5 = 20 points

                                                                1.6 – 2 = 10 points

                                                                2.1 or more = 0 points 

    o   The applicant's level of linguistic proficiency in the relevant foreign language (max 30 points) (i.e. the language of study at the foreign institution): can be documented by an attachment to the application in one of the following ways:

    ·        proof of having passed an examination in the relevant language at a level of at least B1 (if the receiving institution requires a higher level, proof of this must be provided) as part of the studies at FSC USB (enrolment sheet A – overview of the examinations taken);

    ·        confirmation of successful completion of internationally recognised language exams or presentation of language certificates;

    ·        confirmation from the foreign language teacher

    ·        high school-leaving certificate = level B1

    level C2 = 30 points, C1 = 25 points, B2 = 20 points, B1 = 10 points, A2 and A1 = 0 points, native speaker = 15 points

    o   Mobility ranking (maximum 30 points): priority is given to students who are participating in mobility for the first time (1st trip=30 points, 2nd trip=15 points, 3rd trip and more=0 points)

    A candidate may obtain a maximum of 150 points. The criteria are considered met if at least 100 points are achieved. In the event that the number of candidates achieving more than 100 points is higher than the Erasmus grant allocated to the Faculty of Science for 2024/2025, the ranking from the results of the selection procedure will determine the ranking.

    Please submit the completed and signed application forms with the required attachments or send them by email to the Erasmus+ programme coordinator Mgr. Barbora Okosy (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)

    Applications for study stays and internships in the academic year 2024/2025 should be submitted by the following deadline:

    19.9.2024 by 15:00

    The results of the selection procedure, which is within the competence of FSC USB—i.e. the ranking of applicants—are governed by the resulting scores, see the individual items listed above. The results of the selection procedure will be sent to you by email.

    If you have any questions, please contact the Erasmus+ coordinator Mgr. Barbora Okosy – in person at Building B, 1st floor, office 15 (entrance as for the Motýl children's group), by phone: 387 776 212 or by e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

  • Before Departure

    1. A document detailing the Learning Agreement for Traineeship is to be jointly submitted by all three parties – the student, Erasmus coordinator (Barbora Okosy), and host institution (the student’s supervisor at the host institution).The student is to contact their supervisor at their chosen university/institution/company and fill in the Learning Agreement for Traineeship in consultation with them. This document may, preferably, be submitted to the Erasmus coordinator along with the application documents or separately at a later date, but no later than three weeks before the commencement of the mobility.

    2. OLA - Online Language TEST of your mobility language 

    • the test is mandatory (not for native speakers)
    • the results are to be made available to the student only, who will receive recommendation, if necessary, on how to improve their level
    • students are to take and submit the test before signing their Grant Agreement
    • the student attaining a result of between CEFR levels A1 and B1 in their OLS test will be automatically allocated a language course licence
    • in other cases, students may assign themselves a voluntary language course in their OLS profile

    3. Grant agreement signature

    • the grant agreement is to be signed no later than 14 days before the student’s departure – without this agreement, the Erasmus traineeship cannot begin and the scholarship cannot be paid out
    • the grant agreement is to be submitted for signature to the International Office, Rectorate Building, 4rd floor, door No. 04045

    The student is to contact Ms. Vašková via e-mail at - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. - when they have collected all the documents needed to sign the Grant Agreement - at least 5 working days before the expected date of the meeting 

    The following documents are to be attached to the e-mail in the following formats:

    • the completed Grant Agreement form (yellow marked fields) in Word
    • a scan of the Learning Agreement for Traineeship signed by the student, the faculty coordinator (Barbora Okosy) and the supervisor at the receiving organisation
    • a copy of the health insurance and a liability insurance
    • online language test - confirmation

    First, however, the student is to contact the Erasmus faculty coordinator (Barbora Okosy) who is to help them complete their Learning Agreement and check the other documents.

    The student is obliged to have valid health insurance and insurance of liability for the duration of his/her mobility for the final destintion. The faculty offers for you the insurance of liability, it is valid for one year in the whole EU. It costs 480 CZK. You can pay it online. The bank account number is 104725778/0300. And you have to send the bank statement to Ms. Okosy (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) till 20th of previous month with your name, address, date of birth and phone.

    The insurance company who deals especialy with Erasmus+ mobility: https://www.erapo.cz/, you can check it.

     

  • After the mobility

    Students are to:
    • submit the original Traineeship certificate with the dates of departure and arrival (in Learning Agreement for traineeship, 3rd part – After mobility) to Barbora Okosy, this document must be the ORIGINAL !!!
    • complete and submit the Final report (students will receive the login code via email (check the spam) - EU Survey)
    • take the online language test again on return from their mobility

Forms

Read more …Outgoing Erasmus students - traineeship

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Drosophila macrophages switch to aerobic glycolysis to mount effective antibacterial defense

  • Seznam štítků: PŘF

Gabriela Krejcova, Adam Bajgar from Dmel macrophages squad and coworkers from the Laboratory of molecular integrative physiology in Drosophila led by Tomas Dolezal published an article in eLife journal. The authors show that activated insect macrophages undergo a metabolic shift to aerobic glycolysis and that this metabolic remodeling is highly conserved between insects and mammals, being regulated by the same molecule - Hypoxia-inducible factor 1α.

While the switch to aerobic glycolysis has been known for a while in mammalian immunity, the finding that insect immune cells undergo the same switch demonstrate how important such metabolic behavior of activated immune cells is throughout evolution. This is further supported by conserved molecular regulation by Hypoxia-inducible factor 1α in both mammals and insects. In addition, macrophage-derived factors produced in response to aerobic glycolysis also cause changes in systemic sugar metabolism and represent a mechanism by which activated immune cells secure enough energy for ongoing processes. These results connect the aerobic glycolysis with the privileged behavior of immune system, which was previously identified in the same laboratory.

Krejcova G, Danielova A, Nedbalova P, Kazek M, Strych L, Chawla G, Tennessen JM, Lieskovská J, Jindra M, Dolezal T, Bajgar A (2019) Drosophila macrophages switch to aerobic glycolysis to mount effective antibacterial defense. eLife 14;8. pii: e50414. doi: 10.7554/eLife.50414. 

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Incoming Erasmus Students

  • Application Process

    If you wish to come to our faculty as an Erasmus+ student, firstly check with your home institutional coordinator, whether your university has a valid Erasmus+ Agreement with Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice. If yes, then ask your home coordinators about the selection and nomination process at your home institution.

    Your home university must officially nominate you for a study stay via e-mail (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.). The information provided should include:

    • Name and surname
    • Date of birth
    • E-mail address
    • Study area according to an agreement
    • Level of Study (Undergraduate, Master, Doctorate)
    • Period of mobility (Fall, Spring or whole year)

    After receiving the official nomination sent by home university, a nominated student will receive an information e-mail with the web link to reach online application.

    Nomination / Application deadlines

    • For winter semester: 30 April / 15 May 
    • For summer semester: 30 October / 15 November 

  • Forms

    We are also connected to EWP, so there is a possibility to sign the Learning Agreement for studies online.

    You can use your home documents for the mobility.

  • Courses in English

    Available courses for incoming students (Erasmus+) in the academic year 2023/2024: https://wstag.jcu.cz/ects/fakulty/FBI?lang=en

    • the courses with the green sentance: The course is available to visiting students

    Erasmus students can choose also:

    UBO/XERAZ, Czech for Erasmus students, 3 ECTS

    KAJ/EKMD, Communication and intercultural skills in English, 3 ECTS

  • Useful Links

  • Erasmus Charter

Read more …Incoming Erasmus Students

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Water

  • Seznam štítků: Research

Wanted: Postdoc candidate in Quantitative Freshwater Biology for a Junior Group Leader position

Our group, in close cooperation with the Institute of Hydrobiology, BC CAS, studies freshwater lentic ecosystems (e.g. glacial lakes in the Bohemia Forest, manmade reservoirs and fishponds), partly also streams and other interesting freshwaters, ensures specialized undergradute education in Hydrobiology (limnology) in both bachelor and master programs and guarrants the doctoral study programme in Hydrobiology/Limnology. 

Our research is focused on biotic interactions between aquatic organisms and their interactions with abiotic fcktors, both at a holistic level of entire ecosystem or catchment and under controlled experimental lab (cultivation experiments) or open-air conditions (mesocosms). We provide integration into multidisciplinary teams and joint projects of our Department and the Institute of Hydrobiology that enable training of various approaches and methods, such as current chemical analyses, traditional taxonomy and ecophysiology, molecular analyses, including microbial metagenomics and metatranscriptomics, and ecological modelling.

Our recent projects has been focused, e.g., on problems of eutrophication or acidification of freshwaters in relation to soil processes in the catchment, the role of bacteria and phytoplankton in organic matter and nutrient cycling, on interaction between microorganisms and aquatic macrophytes, or top-down effects of both invertebrate and fish predation on zooplankton structure, population dynamics and ecology of fish in reservoirs and post-mining lakes.

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