معرفی
Dr. James M. Rini is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Toronto. His research focuses on structural biology, glycobiology, and virology, with particular emphasis on protein-carbohydrate interactions, glycosyltransferase mechanisms, coronavirus receptor binding, and therapeutic antibody engineering.
- Education: Ph.D. in Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto
- Postdoctoral Training: Research Institute of Scripps Clinic
Research in the Rini lab spans three major areas: (1) Elucidating how glycosyltransferases like UGGT, POFUT1, and POFUT2 regulate ER quality control and Notch receptor trafficking. (2) Investigating structural determinants of coronavirus S-protein interactions with host receptors to understand immune evasion and viral evolution. (3) Engineering therapeutic antibodies by modifying N-glycans at Asn-297 to enhance clinical efficacy for cancer and arthritis treatment.
His work integrates x-ray crystallography with cell-based assays and chemoenzymatic approaches. Key publications include structural studies on SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies, Notch glycosylation, and mammalian cell expression systems. Current projects involve understanding proteostasis mechanisms and developing virus-like particle assays.
