Grant: Project Grant

Sumoylation is the process by which specific proteins in eukaryotic cells become modified through attachment of the SUMO peptide, which has various possible effects on the functions of the targeted proteins. When cells encounter environmental stress conditions, the number of SUMO modifications increases dramatically and rapidly, but it is not fully understood why this occurs. SUMO-targeted proteins, which number in the hundreds or thousands, are involved in multiple processes in the cell, but proteins that control gene expression are particularly subject to this type of modification. This suggests that the elevated sumoylation levels that occur in response to stress may promote changes to gene expression that allow cells to adapt to the stress condition. To explore this, we will identify specific proteins involved in gene expression that are targets of sumoylation to characterize how SUMO modification controls their functions at the molecular level. Additionally, we will examine how changes to cellular sumoylation levels affect gene expression by determining which genes are regulated this way and through what mechanisms this regulation takes place. In cancer, tumour cells frequently show abnormal sumoylation levels, which often correlates with poor prognosis and metastasis. In the long term, our work is important for understanding whether these abnormal sumoylation levels promote the expression of genes that favour tumour growth.