Wnt/beta-catenin signalling: molecular mechanisms and regulation by the ADP-ribosyltransferase tankyrase

Please join us for this seminar with Sebastian Guettler. The talk will be in Bourne LT2 from 1-2pm, followed by Meet the Speaker in the Alice Room from 2-3pm.

Personal Bio:

Sebastian studied Biology, Molecular and Cell Biology and Biochemistry at the Universities of Jena and Heidelberg in Germany and undertook his MSc research with Giulio Superti-Furga at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL). For his PhD research, Sebastian joined Richard Treisman’s laboratory at Cancer Research UK’s London Research Institute, now part of the Francis Crick Institute, where he studied how actin controls MRTF-A, a transcriptional coactivator of Serum Response Factor (SRF). He then moved to Canada for his postdoctoral work, joining the laboratories of Frank Sicheri and Tony Pawson at the Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute in Toronto. There, collaborating with Rob Rottapel, Sebastian uncovered the structural basis of the substrate binding mechanism of the poly-ADP-ribosyltransferase tankyrase, enabling the successful prediction of novel tankyrase substrates and explaining the molecular basis of cherubism, a rare human disease. In October 2012, Sebastian joined the Divisions of Structural Biology and Cancer Biology at the ICR. His previous work on tankyrase paved the way for his current interests in Wnt/β-catenin signalling and telomere homeostasis, with a continued focus on ADP-ribosylation. Highlights of his group’s work include the reconstitution of the β-catenin destruction complex and the control of tankyrase by filamentous polymerisation. Sebastian gained the title of Reader at the ICR in 2019, became Deputy Head of the Division of Structural Biology in 2020, and was conferred the title of Professor in 2022.