Maloni, Gabriele

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10735.1/6074

Gabriele Maloniis an Assistant Professor of Bioinorganic Chemistry and Biochemistry. His research is investigating "the bioinorganic chemistry of essential transition metals and metal-based drugs in biological systems." His current projects include:

  • Structure and function of transmembrane metal transporters
  • Reactivity of transition metal complexes towards proteins and nucleic acids
  • Metallochemistry and biophysics of amyloidogenic peptides and brain metalloproteins

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Recent Submissions

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    Crystal Structure of the DNA-Binding Domain of Myelin-Gene Regulatory Factor
    (Nature Publishing Group, 2017-06-16) Zhen, Xiangkai; Li, Bowen; Hu, Fen; Yan, Shufeng; Meloni, Gabriele; Li, Huiliang; Shi, Ning; Meloni, Gabriele
    Myelin-gene Regulatory Factor (MyRF) is one of the master transcription factors controlling myelin formation and development in oligodendrocytes which is crucial for the powerful brain functions. The N-terminal of MyRF, which contains a proline-rich region and a DNA binding domain (DBD), is auto-cleaved from the ER membrane, and then enters the nucleus to participate in transcription regulation of the myelin genes. Here we report the crystal structure of MyRF DBD. It shows an Ig-fold like architecture which consists of two antiparallel beta-sheets with 7 main strands, packing against each other, forming a a-sandwich. Compared to its homolog, Ndt80, MyRF has a smaller and less complex DBD lacking the helices and the big loops outside the core. Structural alignment reveals that MyRF DBD possess less interaction sites with DNA than Ndt80 and may bind only at the major groove of DNA. Moreover, the structure reveals a trimeric assembly, agreeing with the previous report that MyRF DBD functions as a trimer. The mutant that we designed based on the structure disturbed trimer formation, but didn't affect the auto-cleavage reaction. It demonstrates that the activation of self-cleavage reaction of MyRF is independent of the presence of its N-terminal DBD homotrimer. The structure reported here will help to understand the molecular mechanism underlying the important roles of MyRF in myelin formation and development.
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    Mammalian Metallothionein-3: New Functional and Structural Insights
    (MDPI AG, 2017-05-24) Vasak, Milan; Meloni, Gabriele; Meloni, Gabriele
    Metallothionein-3 (MT-3), a member of the mammalian metallothionein (MT) family, is mainly expressed in the central nervous system (CNS). MT-3 possesses a unique neuronal growth inhibitory activity, and the levels of this intra- and extracellularly occurring metalloprotein are markedly diminished in the brain of patients affected by a number of metal-linked neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease (AD). In these pathologies, the redox cycling of copper, accompanied by the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), plays a key role in the neuronal toxicity. Although MT-3 shares the metal-thiolate clusters with the well-characterized MT-1 and MT-2, it shows distinct biological, structural and chemical properties. Owing to its anti-oxidant properties and modulator function not only for Zn, but also for Cu in the extra- and intracellular space, MT-3, but not MT-1/MT-2, protects neuronal cells from the toxicity of various Cu(II)-bound amyloids. In recent years, the roles of zinc dynamics and MT-3 function in neurodegeneration are slowly emerging. This short review focuses on the recent developments regarding the chemistry and biology of MT-3.

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