Molecular Biology Unit

Head
Prof. Barbara Zabłocka, PhD - phone: +48 22 60 86 486 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Research staff
Małgorzata Beręsewicz-Haller, PhD - phone: +48 22 60 86 639; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Joanna Gruszczyńska-Biegała, PhD - phone: +48 22 60 86 639; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Maria Kawalec, PhD - phone: +48 22 60 86 487; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Anna Boratyńska-Jasińska, PhD - phone: +48 22 60 86 487; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..p
Iga Wasilewska, PhD - phone: +48 22 60 86 486; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

PBM marzec 2024 DSC 2094

Former Lab Members
Anita Lewczuk, PhD DVM
Karolina Serwach, PnD
Olga Krupska, PhD
Joanna E. Kowalczyk, PhD
Joanna Dłużniewska, PhD
Piotr Wojtyniak, PhD
Maria Adamiak, M.Sc. WUM
Monika Majewska, M.Sc. SGGW
Piotr Walendzik, M.Sc. SGGW
Paweł Bochomulski, M.Sc. UW
Aleksandra Aksamit, student SGGW
Patrycja Klimczak, M.Sc. UW
Ewelina Bielska, M.Sc. WUT
Martyna Bączek, M.Sc. UW

Research profile
• We focus on a the phenomenon of resistance of CA2-4, DG regions of hippocampus after transient brain ischemia in vivo in the model of global cerebral ischemia in gerbils and in vitro in organotypic hippocampal culture. We assume that mitochondria are the main players in the postischemic signal transduction towards activation of neuro-repair and neuro-regeneration processes.
• We examine the role of mitofusin 2 in cell death and cell survival in different models of transient brain ischemia, especially considering its implication in mitophagy and mitochondria biogenesis.
• STIM proteins as new regulators of NMDA receptor trafficking in neurons
• Looking for a new substances able to exert neuroprotection.

Grants

  • "The role of Tmbim5 in mitochondrial Ca2+ homeostasis in zebrafish". PI Iga Wasilewska PhD, National Science Centre 2021/40/C/NZ4/00031, 2021-2025
  • “STIM proteins as new regulators of NMDA receptor trafficking in neurons.” PI Joanna Gruszczyńska-Biegała PhD, National Science Centre 2017/26/E/NZ3/01144; 2018-2023
  • “The role of mitofusin 2 in damage and regeneration of cells in the brain's ischemia-reperfusion episode”. PI Maria Kawalec PhD, National Science Centre 2016/23/D/NZ3/01631, 2017-2022
  • “Functional meaning of protein kinase C beta (PKC beta) translocation to mitochondria in cerebral ischemia. Revealing the mechanisms of endogenous neuroprotection”. PI Małgorzata Beręsewicz PhD, National Science Centre 2014/15/D/NZ3/02784, 2015 – 2019
  • “Functional meaning of interaction of PKC beta with mitochondrial ATP synthase in response to cerebral ischemia”, PI Barbara Zabłocka PhD, MMRC-KNOW PhD project, 2013-2017
  • Mechanisms underlying the signaling function of PKC beta I i beta II in mitochondria in cerebral ischemia. PI Barbara Zabłocka PhD National Science Centre 2012/05/B/NZ3/00415, 2013 - 2016

Collaboration
domestic
• Prof. Michał Ciborowski, Metabolomics Laboratory, Clinical Research Centre, Medical University of Bialystok
• Prof. Krzysztof Zabłocki, Laboratory of Cellular Metabolism, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw
• Prof. Adam Szewczyk, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw
  Prof.Jacek Jaworski,International Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology in Warsaw
foreign
• Prof. Dariusz C. Górecki, MD, PhD, Molecular Medicine Unit, School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Portsmouth, White Swan  Road, PO1 2DT, UK
• Prof. Gerald W. Dorn II, MD, PhD, Department of Internal Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis MO USA
• Prof. Kevin M. Ryan MD, PhD, The Beatson Institute For Cancer Research, Glasgow, UK

Research equipment
• Light Cycler Real-Time PCR System (Applied Biosystem)
• western blot and chemiluminescence imaging system FUSION FX (VILBER LOURMAT)
• UV Gel Transilluminator Cabinet UV NucleoVision (NucleoTech)
• Tecan Infinite M1000 PRO
• Tissue cultur room GMO klasy II
• SDS-PAGE & western blot equipment
• PCR equipment

Research methods
• In vivo model of transient global brain ischemia in gerbils
• Cell and tissue culturing
• Cell fractions and protein isolation from tissue and cells
• SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and western blotting
• DNA and RNA isolation from tissues, organotypic and cell cultures
• DNA and gene expression analysis (RT-PCR, qPCR)
• Lentivirus vectors

Selected publications

  • Serwach K, Nurowska E, Klukowska M, Zablocka B, Gruszczynska-Biegala J. STIM2 regulates NMDA receptor endocytosis that is induced by short-term NMDA receptor overactivation in cortical neurons. Cell Mol Life Sci. 2023 Nov 21;80(12):368. doi: 10.1007/s00018-023-05028-8.  
  • Wasilewska I, Majewski Ł, Adamek-Urbańska D, Mondal SS, Baranykova S, Gupta RK, Bielecki D, Winata CL, Kuznicki J. Lack of Stim2 Affects Vision-Dependent Behavior and Sensitivity to Hypoxia. Zebrafish. 2023 Aug;20(4):146-159. doi: 10.1089/zeb.2022.0068.
  • Lewczuk A, Zablocka B, Beresewicz-Haller M. Is Nrf2 Behind Endogenous Neuroprotection of the Hippocampal CA2-4,DG Region? Mol Neurobiol. 2023 Mar;60(3):1645-1658. https://doi:10.1007/s12035-022-03166-x 
  • Lewczuk A., Boratynska-Jasinska A., Zabłocka B., Validation of the Reference Genes for Expression Analysis in the Hippocampus after Transient Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury in Gerbil Brain. IJMS 2023, 24, 2756. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24032756

  • Rybkowska P., Radoszkiewicz K., Kawalec M., Dymkowska D., Zabłocka B., Zabłocki K., Sarnowska A., The Metabolic Changes between Monolayer (2D) and Three-Dimensional (3D) Culture Conditions in Human Mesenchymal Stem/Stromal Cells Derived from Adipose Tissue. Cells 2023, 12, 178. https://doi.org/10.3390/cells12010178 .

  • Kawalec M., Wojtyniak P., Bielska E., Lewczuk A., Boratynska-Jasinska A., Beręsewicz-Haller M., Frontczak-Baniewicz M., Gewartowska M., Zabłocka B. Mitochondrial dynamics, elimination and biogenesis during post-ischemic recovery in ischemia-resistant and ischemia-vulnerable gerbil hippocampal regions. BBA - Molecular Basis of Disease 1869 (2023) 166633. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbadis.2022.166633

  • Wojtyniak P., Boratynska-Jasinska A., Serwach K., Gruszczynska-Biegala J., Zablocka B., Jaworski J., Kawalec M. Mitofusin 2 integrates mitochondrial network remodelling, mitophagy and  renewal of respiratory chain proteins in neurons after oxygen and glucose deprivation. Mol. Nerobiol. 2022 59(10):6502-6518 https://doi.org/10.1007/s12035-022-02981-6 IF 5,68, 5Y 5,58

  • Beresewicz-Haller M., Hippocampal region-specific endogenous neuroprotection as an approach in the search for new neuroprotective strategies in ischemic stroke. Fiction or fact? Neurochem Int. 2022 Nov 21;162:105455. doi: 10.1016/j.neuint.2022.105455 .

  • Sowińska M.,Szeliga M., Morawiak M., Zabłocka B., Urbanczyk-Lipkowska Z. Design, Synthesis and Activity of New N1 -Alkyl Tryptophan Functionalized Dendrimeric Peptides against Glioblastoma. Biomolecules 2022, 12(8), 1116; https://doi.org/10.3390/biom12081116

  • Wawro B, Nieznanska H, Nieznanski K, Gruszczynska-Biegala J, Stepkowski D, Strzelecka-Golaszewska H. Mechanisms of the modulation of actin-myosin interactions by A1-type myosin light chains. Biochim Biophys Acta Gen Subj. 2022 Jun;1866(6):130132. doi: 10.1016/j.bbagen.2022.130132 .
  • Xiawei Dang, Emily K. Walton, Barbara Zablocka, Robert H. Baloh, Michael E. Shy, Gerald W. Dorn, II Mitochondrial Phenotypes in Genetically Diverse Neurodegenerative Diseases and Their Response to Mitofusin Activation. Cells 2022, 11, 1053. https://doi.org/10.3390/cells11061053
  • Wawro B.,Nieznanska H., Nieznanski K., Gruszczynska-Biegala J., Stepkowski D., Strzelecka-Golaszewska H. Mechanisms of the modulation of actin-myosin interactions by A1-type myosin light chains. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - General Subjects, 2022, 1866 (6): 130132.
  • Gruszczynska-Biegala J, Stefan A, Kasprzak AA, Dobryszycki P, Khaitlina S, Strzelecka-Gołaszewska H. Myopathy-Sensitive G-Actin Segment 227-235 Is Involved in Salt-Induced Stabilization of Contacts within the Actin Filament. Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Feb 26;22(5):2327. doi: 10.3390/ijms22052327.
  • Joanna Gruszczynska-Biegala, Francisco Javier Martin-Romero, Tarik Smani and Agnese Secondo, Molecular Components of Store-Operated Calcium Entry in Health and Disease, Editorial. Front. Cell. Neurosci., 2021, https://doi.org/10.3389/fncel.2021.771138
  • Zabłocka B. , Górecki DC., Zabłocki K., Disrupted Calcium Homeostasis in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy: A Common Mechanism behind Diverse Consequences. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 2021, 22, 11040. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms222011040.
  • Beręsewicz-Haller M., Krupska O., Bochomulski P., Dudzik D., Chęcińska A., Hilgier W., Barbas C., Zablocki K., Zablocka B. Mitochondrial Metabolism behind Region-Specific Resistance to Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury in Gerbil Hippocampus. Role of PKCβII and Phosphate-Activated Glutaminase. Int J Mol Sci. 2021;7;22(16):8504. doi: 10.3390/ijms22168504. IF 5.9
  • Krupska O., Kowalczyk T., Beręsewicz-Haller M., Samczuk P., Pietrowska K., Zabłocki K., Krętowski A., Ciborowski M.,Zabłocka B. Hippocampal sector-specific metabolic profiles reflect endogenous strategy for ischemia-reperfusion insult resistance. Molecular Neurobiology 2021; 58(4):1621-1633. DOI: 10.1007/s12035-020-02208-6.IF 4.5
  • Franco A, Dang X, Walton EK, Ho JN, Zablocka B, Ly C, Miller TM, Baloh RH, Shy ME, Yoo AS, Dorn GW 2nd. Burst mitofusin activation reverses neuromuscular dysfunction in murine CMT2A. Elife. 2020 Oct 19;9:e61119. doi: 10.7554/eLife.61119. IF 7.08
  • Sowińska M., Szeliga M., Morawiak M., Ziemińska E., Zabłocka B., Urbańczyk‐Lipkowska Z. Peptide Dendrimers with Non‐Symmetric Bola Structure Exert Long Term Effect on Glioblastoma and Neuroblastoma Cell Lines. Biomolecules 2021, 11, 435. https://doi.org/10.3390/biom11030435
  • Gruszczynska-Biegala, J.; Strucinska, K.; Maciag, F.; Majewski, L.; Sladowska, M.; Kuznicki, J. STIM Protein-NMDA2 Receptor Interaction Decreases NMDA-Dependent Calcium Levels in Cortical Neurons. Cells 2020, 9, 160. ; IF 5,656, https://doi.org/10.3390/cells9010160
  • Serwach K, Gruszczynska-Biegala J. STIM Proteins and Glutamate Receptors in Neurons: Role in Neuronal Physiology and Neurodegenerative Diseases. Int J Mol Sci. 2019 May 9;20(9). pii: E2289. doi: 10.3390/ijms20092289. Review
  • Sowinska M., Morawiak M., Bochynska-Czyz M., Lipkowski AW., Zieminska E., Zabłocka B., Urbanczyk-Lipkowska Z. (2019) Molecular antioxidant properties and in vitro cell toxicity of the p-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) functionalized peptide dendrimers. Biomolecules. 2019 Mar 5;9(3). pii: E89. doi: 10.3390/biom9030089
  • Beręsewicz M., Charzewski Ł., Krzyśko K.A., Kochański A., Zabłocka B., Molecular modelling of mitofusin 2 for a prediction for Charcot-Marie-Tooth 2A clinical severity. Scientific Reports 2018, 8:16900, doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-35133-9
  • Popek M, Bobula B, Sowa J, Hess G, Polowy R, Filipkowski RK, Frontczak-Baniewicz M, Zabłocka B, Albrecht J, Zielińska M. Cortical Synaptic Transmission and Plasticity in Acute Liver Failure Are Decreased by Presynaptic Events. Mol Neurobiol. 2018;55(2):1244-1258; doi: 10.1007/s12035-016-0367-4
  • Krupska O, Sarnowska A, Fedorczyk B, Gewartowska M, Misicka A, Zablocka B, Beresewicz M. Ischemia/Reperfusion-Induced Translocation of PKCβII to Mitochondria as an Important Mediator of a Protective Signaling Mechanism in an Ischemia-Resistant Region of the Hippocampus. Neurochem Res. 2017 Aug;42(8):2392-2403. doi: 10.1007/s11064-017-2263-3. Epub 2017 Apr 12.
  • Beręsewicz M, Boratyńska-Jasińska A, Charzewski Ł, Kawalec M, Kabzińska D, Kochański A, Krzyśko KA, Zabłocka B. (2017) The Effect of a Novel c.820C>T (Arg274Trp) Mutation in the Mitofusin 2 Gene on Fibroblast Metabolism and Clinical Manifestation in a Patient. PLoS One. 2017 Jan 11;12(1):e0169999. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0169999.
  • Kawalec M, Boratyńska-Jasińska A, Beręsewicz M, Dymkowska D, Zabłocki K, Zabłocka B. Mitofusin 2 Deficiency Affects Energy Metabolism and Mitochondrial Biogenesis in MEF Cells. PLoS One. 2015 Jul 31;10(7):e0134162. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0134162.