PIF2024 - Decoding Lipid Function in Endocytic Traffic (PID2023-150264NB-I00)

Cell biology is the branch that studies the foundations of life. In this field, S. cerevisiae has been a key model to identify crucial players and molecular mechanisms in essential cellular processes such as cell division or membrane traffic. Still though, we are far from reconstructing an artificial cell and therefore, plenty of research avenues still need to be explored to reach a comprehensive understanding of the smallest living unit. Our lab uses S. cerevisiae to understand the principles of membrane budding in endocytosis. While most of the research in this field has focused on protein coats and motors such as clathrin or dynamin, our recent work demonstrates that the contact of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and the plasma membrane (PM) supports membrane deformation during endocytic budding, thereby challenging established paradigms in the field. Our data also demonstrate that the main function of the ER-ECS (ER-Endocytic Contact Sites) is to directly transfer sterols and ceramides from the ER to the PM, where they initiate actin polymerization. The Ph. D. project will lie within this novel research frame, combining yeast genetics, state-of-the art- fluorescence and electron microscopy techniques, lipid click chemistry and biophysics to identify the ceramide transporter at ER-ECS and decipher the molecular function of sterols and ceramides in membrane budding.