POSTDOCTORAL POSITIONS are available:

FIELD OF STUDY: tRNA cell biology, metabolism, and biochemistry; tRNA-protein interaction; kinetic profile, tRNA translation on the ribosome.

RESEARCH TOPICS: Investigation of tRNA stability in cells, tRNA biochemistry in aminoacylation, 3’ end maturation, nucleoside modifications, and decoding on the ribosome. A particular emphasis is on the mitochondria and mitochondria-associated human genetic diseases and ageing.

LOCATION: Thomas Jefferson University, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

REQUIREMENTS: A Ph.D. in biological chemistry, biochemistry, biophysics, physics, molecular biology, and cell biology. Experience in fluorescence techniques, Northern analysis, and mitochondria would be preferred.

POSITIONS TO START: June-July, 2012.

CV AND A LIST OF REFERENCES TO:
Dr. Ya-Ming Hou, Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Thomas Jefferson University, 233 South 10th Street, BLSB 220, Philadelphia, PA 19107.
Email: ya-ming.hou@jefferson.edu
Website: www.houlaboratory.org/home.html

RECENT PUBLICATIONS:

1 Zhang, CM, Liu, C, Slater, S, Hou, YM. (2008) Aminoacylation of tRNA with phosphoserine for synthesis of Cys-tRNACys. Nature Structural and Molecular Biology 15, 507-514.
2 Dupasquier, M, Kim, S, Halkidis, K, Gamper, H, Hou, YM. (2008) tRNA integrity is a prerequisite for rapid CCA addition: Implication for quality control. J. Mol. Biol. 379, 579-588.
3 Pan, D, Zhang, CM, Kirillov, S, Hou, YM, Cooperman, BS. (2008) The tRNA tertiary core differentially modulates specific steps of the elongation cycle. J. Biol. Chem. 283, 18431-18440.
4 Hauenstein, SI, Hou, YM, Perona, JJ. (2008) The homotetrameric phosphoseryl-tRNA synthetase from Methanosarcina mazei exhibits half-of-the-sites activity. J. Biol. Chem. 283, 21997-22006.
5 Zhang, CM, Liu, C, Christian, T, Gamper, H, Rosenski, J, Pan, D, Randolph, JB, Wickstrom, E, Cooperman, BS, Hou, YM. (2008) Pyrrolo-C as a molecular probe for monitoring conformations of the tRNA 3' end. RNA 14, 2245-2253.
6 Kim, S, Liu, CP, Halkidis, K, Gamper, H, Hou, YM. (2009) Distinct kinetic determinants for the stepwise CCA addition to tRNA. RNA 15, 1827-1836.
7 Liu, C, Betteridge, T, Hou, YM. (2009) Fluorophore labeling to monitor tRNA dynamics. Methods in Enzymology 469 (Editor Herschlag, D, academic press), 69-93.
8 Hou, YM, Perona, JJ. (2010) Stereochemical mechanisms of tRNA methyl transferases. FEBS Letters 584, 278-286.
9 Hou, YM. (2010) CCA addition to tRNA: Implications for tRNA quality control. IUBMB Life 62, 251-260.
10 Christian, T, Lahoud, G, Liu, C, Hou, YM. (2010) Control of catalytic cycle by a pair of analogous tRNA modification enzymes. J. Mol. Biol. 400, 204-217.
11 Mei, Y, Stonestrom, A, Hou, YM, Yang, X. (2010) Apoptotic regulation and transfer RNA. Protein & Cell, 1, 795-801.
12 Lahouds, G, Hou, YM. (2010) Biosynthesis: A new (old) way of hijacking tRNA. Nature Chem Biol. 6, 795-796.
13 Christian, T, Lahoud, G, Liu, C, Hoffmann, K, Perona, JJ, Hou, YM. (2010) Mechanism of N-methylation by the tRNA m1G37 methyltransferase Trm5. RNA. 16, 2484-2492.
14 Liu, C, Gamper, H, Liu, H, Cooperman, BS, Hou, YM. (2011) Potential for interdependent development of tRNA determinants for aminoacylation and ribosome decoding. Nat. Commun. 2:329 doi: 10.1038/ncomms1331.
15 Lahoud, G, Goto-Ito, S, Yoshida, KI, Ito, T, Yokoyama, S, Hou, YM. (2011) Differentiating analogous tRNA methyltransferases by fragments of the methyl donor. RNA 17, 1236-1246.
16 Ghosh, A, Sakaguchi, R, Liu, C, Vishveshwara S, Hou, YM. (2011) Allosteric communication in cysteinyl-tRNA synthetase: A network of direct and indirect readout. J. Biol. Chem 286, 37721-37731.
17 Igarashi, T, Liu, C, Morinaga, H, Kim, S, Hou, YM. (2011) Pyrophosphorolysis of CCA addition: Implication for fidelity. J. Mol. Biol. 414, 28-43.
18 Liu, C, Sanders, JM, Pascal, JM, Hou, YM. (2012) Adaptation to tRNA acceptor stem structure by flexible adjustment in the catalytic domain of class I tRNA synthetases. RNA 18, 213-221.
19 Frenkel-Morgenstern, M, Danon, T, Christian, T, Igarashi, I, Cohen, L, Hou, YM, Jensen, LJ. (2012) Genes adopt non-optimal codon usage to generate cell-cycle-dependent oscillations in protein levels. Molecular Systems Biology 8, 572.