The overall structure of P7-NusA-TEC
Research News
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July 11, 2019 "Structural basis for transcription antitermination at bacterial intrinsic terminator" Online: Nature Communications
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May 27, 2019 "Structures and mechanism of transcription initiation by bacterial ECF factors" Online: Nucleic Acids Research
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March 11, 2019 "Structure basis for transcription initiation by bacterial ECF σ factors" Online: Nature Communications
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March 5, 2018 "Structural insights into the unique mechanism of transcription activation by Caulobacter crescentus GcrA" Online: Nucleic Acids Research
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March 14 , 2018 "CapZyme-Seq Comprehensively Defines Promoter-Sequence Determinants for RNA 5′ Capping with NAD+" Online: Molecular Cell
Transcription is the first and the most-regulated step of gene expression, by which RNA polymerase (RNAP) copies genetic information from DNA to RNA. It is fundamentally important to understand the structure, function, and regulation of the transcription machinery--RNAP. RNAPs are well conserved across bacterial species but are less conserved between bacteria and human. Therefore, bacterial RNAPs are promising drug target for antibiotic discovery. Two categories of bacterial RNAP inhibitors (Rifamycins and Fidaxomicin) are currently in clinical use for the treatment of various infectious diseases.
Our lab focuses on the molecular mechanism of transcription and transcription regulation. We also develop new bactericidal antibiotics targeting bacterial RNA polymerase. We employ multiple approaches in Structure biology (X-ray crystallography and cryo-EM), Biochemistry, Enzymology, Microbiology, and Bioinformatics. Our current projects include:
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Molecular mechanism of bacterial transcription initiation
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Transcription regulation by alternative initiator “sigma” factors
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Molecular mechanism of transcription-coupled DNA repair
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Molecular mechanism of bacterial transcription termination
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Discovery and mechanism study of new RNAP regulatory proteins
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Discovery of new antibiotics targeting bacterial RNA polymerase
Lab News
May 30,2019
Li Lingting received the Chinese government scholarship to fund her upcoming overseas study. Congratulations!
Apr 20,2019
Linlin You received a poster award in the 5th East China Structural Biology Conference, Nanjing. Congratulations!
Jan 24,2019
Xiaoxian Wu has received the "Quanyin Innovation Talent Scholarship of 2018”. Congratulations!
Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology,
Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
The Zhang Lab
| CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology | CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences |
300 Fenglin Rd. Shanghai, China