For a successful drug approval the pharmaceutical quality, the efficacy and harmlessness has to be shown. Therefore clinical trials as well as preclinical studies are of particular importance. Our group is interested in the molecular mode of action of phytopharmaceutical and synthetic drugs.

We mainly focus on the analysis of molecular dynamics of G-protein coupled receptors (GPCR) within the plasma membrane of living cells. GPCRs can be analyzed by using fluorescently labelled ligands or by directly labelling the receptor protein. Detection can be performed using different biophysical approaches. Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) allows the discrimination of receptor population with varying diffusion coefficients. Using fluorescently labelled ligands, kinetic binding parameters can be measured. Single molecule microscopy enables the localization and tracking of individual molecules. Monitoring trajectories of individual fluorescently labelled receptors provides important information concerning the molecular receptor dynamic.

Members