Dr. C.J. Law
Lecturer in Biochemistry
BSc (Hons) Biochemistry, University of Stirling, 1995;
PhD Biochemistry & Molecular Biology,
University of Glasgow, 1999.
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Contact Information
Tel: +44 (0)28 9097 2071 (Direct line)
Fax: +44 (0)28 9097 5877
Email: c.law@qub.ac.uk
Room: Medical Biology Centre - 01.443
Research Interests
My research focuses on the structure and function of integral membrane proteins, with emphasis on inner membrane transporter proteins involved in nutrient uptake and drug efflux in prokaryotes such as Escherichia coli, and those involved in metal ion uptake in pathogenic spirochaete bacteria.
My laboratory utilises a comprehensive range of state-of-the-art techniques to answer important questions pertaining to the structure and mechanism of membrane transporter proteins. These include X-ray crystallography, isothermal titration calorimetry, fluorescence spectroscopy and transport assays of protein reconstituted into proteoliposomes.
Positions available
Enquiries from post graduates/post docs who have independent funding or fellowships, and who have a desire to work at the cutting edge of membrane protein biology, are welcome.
Publications
Law, C.J., Enkavi, G., Wang, D.-N. & Tajkhorshid, E. (2009). Structural basis of substrate selectivity in the glycerol-3-phosphate:phosphate antiporter GlpT. Biophys. J., 97: 1346-1353.
Zhou, Z., Zhen, J., Karpowich, N., Law, C.J., Reith, M.E.A. & Wang, D-N. (2009). Antidepressant specificity of the serotonin transporter defined by three LeuT-SSRI structures. Nat. Struct. Mol. Biol., 16: 652-657.
Law, C.J., Maloney, P.C & Wang, D-N. (2008). Ins and outs of major facilitator superfamily antiporters. Annu. Rev. Microbiol., 62: 289-305.
Law, C.J., Almqvist, A., Bernstein, A., Goetz, R.M., Huang, Y., Soudant, C., Laaksonen, A., Hovmöller, S. & Wang, D-N. (2008). Salt bridge dynamics control substrate-induced conformational change in the membrane transporter GlpT. J. Mol. Biol., 378: 826-837.
Law, C.J., Yang, Q., Soudant, C., Maloney, P.C. & Wang, D-N. (2007). Kinetic evidence is consistent with the rocker-switch mechanism of GlpT membrane transport. Biochemistry, 46: 12190-12197.
Law, C.J. & Cogdell, R.J. (2007). The light-harvesting system of purple anoxygenic photosynthetic bacteria. In: Primary Processes of Photosynthesis:Principles and Apparatus, Part 1 (Renger, G., ed), pp205-259. RSC Publishing, Cambridge, U.K.
Zhou, Z., Zhen, J., Karpowich, N., Goetz, R.M., Law, C.J., Reith, M.E.A. & Wang, D-N. (2007). LeuT-desipramine structure reveals how antidepressants block neurotransmitter reuptake. Science, 317: 1390-1393.
Cogdell, R.J., Southall, J., Gardiner, A.T., Law, C.J., Gall, A., Roszak, A. & Isaacs, N.W. (2006). How purple photosynthetic bacteria harvest solar energy. C.R. Chimie, 9: 201-206.
Law, C.J., Gardiner A.T., Southall, J., Roszak, A.W., Howard, T.D., Isaacs, N.W. (2005). How purple bacteria harvest light energy. In: Energy Harvesting Materials, (Andrews, D., ed), pp65-95. World Scientific Publishing Co.
Cogdell, R.J., Gardiner, A.T., Roszak, A., Law, C.J., Southall, J. & Isaacs, N.W. (2004). Rings, ellipses and horseshoes: How purple bacteria harvest solar energy. Photosynth. Res., 81: 207-214.
Law, C.J., Roszak, A.W., Southall, J., Gardiner, A.T., Isaacs, N.W. & Cogdell, R.J. (2004). The structure and function of bacterial light-harvesting complexes. Mol. Memb. Biol., 21: 183-191.
Parkes-Loach, P.S., Majeed, A.P., Law, C.J. & Loach, P.A. (2004). Interactions stabilizing the structure of the core light-harvesting complex (LH1) of photosynthetic bacteria and its subunit (B820). Biochemistry, 43: 7003-7016.
Roszak, A.W., Howard, T.D., Southall, J., Gardiner, A.T., Law, C.J., Isaacs, N.W. and Cogdell, R.J. (2003). Crystal structure of the RC-LH1 core complex from Rhodopseudomonas palustris. Science, 302: 1969-1975.
Law, C.J., Penfold, C.N., Walker, D.C., Moore, G.R., James, R. and Kleanthous, C. (2003). OmpF enhances the ability of BtuB to protect susceptible Escherichia coli cells from colicin E9 cytotoxicity. FEBS Letts., 545: 127-132.
Law, C.J, Chen, J., Parkes-Loach, P.S. & Loach, P.A. (2003). Interaction of bacteriochlorophyll with the LH1 and PufX polypeptides of photosynthetic bacteria: use of chemically synthesized analogs and covalently attached fluorescent probes. Photosynth. Res., 75: 193-210.
Parkes-Loach, P.S., Law, C.J., Recchia, P.A., Kehoe, J., Nehrlich, S., Chen, J. & Loach, P.A. (2001). Role of the core region of the PufX protein in inhibition of reconstitution of the core light-harvesting complexes of Rhodobacter sphaeroides and Rhodobacter capsulatus. Biochemistry, 19: 5593-5601.
Trissl, H-W., Law, C.J. & Cogdell, R.J. (1999). Uphill energy transfer in LH2-containing purple bacteria at room temperature. Biochim. Biophys. Acta Bioenergetics, 1412: 149-172.
Trissl, H-W., Law, C.J. & Cogdell, R.J. (1998). In Proceedings of the XIth International Congress on Photosynthesis, (Garab, G & Pusztai, J, eds.), Vol. 1: pp 65-68. Kluwer Academic Publishers, The Netherlands.
Law, C.J. & Cogdell, R.J. (1998). The effect of chemical oxidation on the fluorescence of the LH1 (B880) complex from the purple bacterium Rhodobium marinum. FEBS Letts., 432 (1-2), 27-30.
Cogdell, R.J., Fyfe, P., Fraser, N., Law, C., Howard, T., McLuskey, K., Prince, S., Freer, A. & Isaacs, N. (1998) Photosynthetic Light Harvesting. In Microbial responses to light and time, (Caddick, M.X et al., eds), pp 143-158. Cambridge University Press
Law, C.J., Prince, S.M. & Cogdell, R.J. (1998). Crystallising the LH1-RC "core" complex of purple bacteria. Biochem. Soc. Trans., 26(2): S160.
Alden, R.G., Johnson, E., Nagaragan, V., Parson, W.W., Law, C.J. & Cogdell, R.J. (1997). Calculations of spectroscopic properties of the LH2 bacteriochlorophyll-protein antenna complex from Rhodopseudomonas acidophila. J. Phys. Chem. B, 101: 4667-4680.
Law, C.J., Cogdell, R.J. & Trissl, H.-W. (1997). Antenna organisation in the purple bacterium Rhodopseudomonas acidophila studied by fluorescence induction. Photosynthesis Research, 52: 157-165.
Law, C.J. & Price, N.C. (1996). The accessibility of proteins in protein-SDS complexes. Biochem. Soc. Trans., 24(2): 323S.
