The Shalev-Benami Lab

A wonderful collaboration with the Caffrey group revealed the enzymatic mechanism by which a small bacterial membrane protein, lipoprotein N-acyltransferase (LNT), catalyzes lipoprotein synthesis in bacteria. @LukeSmithers_, @ODegtjarik, you guys rock! science.org/doi/10.1126/sc…

“Today, we urge each and every one of you to stand with us against terrorism. Just as we seek truth and understanding in science, so too must we seek truth in the world we inhabit. The power of the scientific community is immense, and our voices can resonate far beyond the walls of our laboratories. The recent events have shaken us to the core. But they have also reminded us of the importance of our collective power and action, and the impact we can have on the world. We must recognize that, as scientists, our words carry weight and our public statements have the power to influence opinions, policies, and, ultimately, the course of history. In the face of darkness, let our voices be the guiding light.” This letter, titled “Standing Together Against Terror and Violence”, was sent today from the Weizmann Institute of Science Management to the international science community. Full letter here >> wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/campus/standin… #WIS_stand_together

Thank you @WeizmannScience for a clear message. We cannot move forward before evil is clearly identified and denounced as evil.

@JoH_VieR @OferYizhar @BejaLab @IgorSchapiro Thank you Johannes!

This is the least we can do and I am happy to assist if anybody needs shelter in #Berlin. Israel is a powerhouse in #Rhodopsin and #Optogenetic research and the current situation is a nightmare. Stay strong, we are with you! @OferYizhar,@BejaLab,@IgorSchapiro,@ShalevBenamiLab ...

📢Finally out! The latest work from my postdoc at the amazing @ShalevBenamiLab @WeizmannScience is officially published today! 🎉 It was an absolute pleasure working on this project! 🔬

Dietmar Weichert, Chia-Ying Huang, Coilín Boland, Katherine Bowen, Abraham Oluwole, Corinne Lutomski, Carol V. Robinson, Eoin M. Scanlan, Meitian Wang and Vincent Olieric, we couldn’t have done this without you!

A wonderful collaboration with the Caffrey group revealed the enzymatic mechanism by which a small bacterial membrane protein, lipoprotein N-acyltransferase (LNT), catalyzes lipoprotein synthesis in bacteria. @LukeSmithers_, @ODegtjarik, you guys rock! science.org/doi/10.1126/sc…

This 3.21 Å #Rhodopsin structure resolved by #SingleParticle #CryoEM, published in @NatureSMB, reports the discovery of bestrhodopsins, a microbial subfamily of the rhodopsins from a marine unicellular algae. DOI: doi.org/10.1038/s41594… EMDB: ebi.ac.uk/emdb/EMD-13485

Take five bestrophin channel subunits, fuse each of them to a tandem of rhodopsins, put them all together and you get a gigantic light-driven bestrophin complex. Amazing discovery/characterization from @BejaLab @ShalevBenamiLab @LabInoue and many others! nature.com/articles/s4159…

Bestrhodopin are light-gated Cl channels found in dinoflagellates. They consist of 1-2 rhodopins fused w/ a Best-like channel. Given the association of Best1 patient mutants w/ eye disease, could this hint at another means of channel regulation in animals?nature.com/articles/s4159…

Exciting times at the Shalev-Benami group. Our first lab wedding (Mazal Tov Ori & Yael🎉), Our first MSc graduation (@igorkaczm a true pleasure, congrats👨‍🎓) and Igor and Donna's paper is out @NatureSMB nature.com/articles/s4159…. All in the same week! You make me a proud mama-goose!

日本、イスラエル、ドイツの国際共同研究の論文がNat. Struct. Mol. Biol.に公開されました。今回、藻類からロドプシンとベストロフィンが融合した、全く新しいタンパク質が発見され、その構造や光反応も報告しています。10個のロドプシンを含む超巨大複合体は圧巻です！ nature.com/articles/s4159…

New class of rhodopsin gated ion channels! 2 rhodopsins regulating a Bestrophin channel. Far red absorption! Alternative 11-cis isomerization! Extraordinary finding by Andrey Rozenberg and @BejaLab. Amazing structure by @ShalevBenamiLab. Fun project and great poeple!

The craziest structure (and scientific adventure) we have had so far...

Super excited to finally see this work out! A crazy team work with @BejaLab @LabInoue @OferYizhar @IgorSchapiro @Yuji_Furutani and Tweeterless Hegemann, Kandori & Sheves groups. @igorkaczm @aleph_reish @JoH_VieR and Donna Matzov, you guys did a great work! nature.com/articles/s4159…

@LabSkiniotis, @lab_tall We couldn't have asked for a better team work to crack this down! @XBarrosAlvarez @NwokonkoRobert and 'Twitter-less' Alex Vizurraga and Donna Matzov, congrats guys! nature.com/articles/s4158…

Nice collaboration with @LabSkiniotis and @ShalevBenamiLab to structurally demonstrate the adhesion GPCR tethered agonist mechanism that our lab helped discover. pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pn… Eight AGPCRs in four @Nature papers today validate the mechanism. nature.com/articles/s4158…

In a new paper out today in #Science, the structure of activated MC4R is revealed providing new opportunities for drug discovery as discussed in the #Perspective by Sadaf Farooqi. See our website for links to the paper and Prof Farooqi's article. goos.org.uk/resource-centr…

Don't miss this piece by @Farooqi_Lab on our paper describing the #cryoEM structure of MC4 receptor : ✨ Putting a brake on hunger science.sciencemag.org/content/372/65… @ODegtjarik @ShalevBenamiLab @masha_niv @PeterMc66323620 @fabrizio_fierro

211 new entries this week, including this structure of MC4R, involved in appetite suppression & potential target for anti-obesity drugs. Solved: @ShalevBenamiLab, @PeterMc66323620, @masha_niv, @BenZvi_Lab. Published: @ScienceMagazine. All latest entries: PDBe.org/latest