Ulrike Kinkel
Exchange student intern, Pharmacology
Ulrike Kinkel received her bachelor´s degree in Biochemistry from the University of Leipzig in 2013. She is currently a master student with specialization in Biomedicine at the University of Leipzig expecting to graduate in 2015
Research Description
Arrestins are involved in G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) desensitization. Since non-visual arrestins are able to interact with various GPCRs, it is favorable to increase receptor specificity. Hence, Ulrike focused on the construction of arrestin-3 mutants with enhanced specificity for individual NPY-receptor subtypes. Furthermore, she tested the binding behavior of Y239T-arrestin-3 to different Y-receptor mutants using Bioluminescence Resonance Energy Transfer (BRET).
Ulrike will continue her work on this project in the context of her master´s thesis in the laboratory of Prof. Dr. Annette Beck-Sickinger at the University of Leipzig in 2015.