Research Program

Our research interest lies at the interface of biological, chemical and physical sciences, focused on novel compounds biologically active in plants and animals. The activities of individual research groups are summarized on respective pages with links below.
In the beginning, a group of phytochemists studied natural regulators of plant growth and division - purine-based cytokinins. Today, we are interested in identification of novel cytokinin metabolites in plants, routes of their synthesis and degradation, interaction with other signalling molecules as well as in the design of their more potent synthetic analogues with an application in crop science. Besides cytokinins, a wide range of other plant growth regulators are being explored, including auxins, derivatives of abscisic acid and brassinosteroids. The Bioanalytical Chemistry core supports the research with several HPLC systems coupled to mass spectrometers (ZMD 2000, Q-ToF micro and Quattro micro API by Micromass), able to quantify and identify not only such small organic molecules (like cytokinins or other plant hormones), but also to identify and sequence proteins.
Only recently, after identification of enzymes involved in metabolism of cytokinins in plants, group of Plant Enzymology has started to explore the mechanisms of cytokinin degradation by cytokinin dehydrogenase. Current study deals with characterization of its physiological electron acceptor.
In 1990's cytokinins have been found to non-specifically inhibit many protein kinases and soon their structures helped to prepare synthetic inhibitors of cyclin-dependent kinases. Joined effort of groups of Biomedicinal Chemistry and Bioorganic Chemistry is focused on the discovery of small molecule compounds targeted against the basic mechanisms of the pathogenesis of cancer, especially oncogenic protein kinases. The strategy is to study structure-activity relationships of active compounds and develop selective drugs that either block proliferation or induce apoptosis of cancer cells.
Many research tasks of either plant physiology, biochemistry or xenobiology require the application of radio-labelled compounds. Our synthesists are also able to prepare labelled compounds at specific sites for example with 3H or 14C. Such compouds are widely used as tracers for bioanalyses or markers for metabolic studies.

Financial Support of the Research

MSM6198959216 (2005-2011)
Modulation of signalling and regulatory pathways of normal and cancer cells, M. Strnad

GA ČR 301/08/1649 (2008-2011)
Modulace dělení normálních a nádorových buněk inhibitory cyklin-dependentních. Řešitel: M. Strnad

GA ČR 204/08/0511 (2008-2010)
Biologická aktivita syntetických inhibitorů cyklin-dependentních kinas. Řešitel: V. Kryštof

GA ČR GD522/08/H003 (2008-2011)
Integrace doktorských studií v oborech biochemie, rostlinné fyziologie a biofyziky. Spoluřešitel: M. Strnad

GA ČRGA522/08/0920 (2008-2011)
Vliv syntetických derivátů cytokininů na percepci a metabolismus rostlinných hormonů a fenotypické změny. Řešitel: J. Frébortová

GA ČR 522/08/H003 (2008-2012)
Integrace doktorandských studií v oborech biochemie, rostlinné fyziologie a byofyziky. Řešitel: I. Frébort, spoluřešitel: M. Strnad

GA ČR 301/08/1649 (2008-2012)
Modulace buněčného dělení normálních a nádorových buněk inhibitory cyklin-dependentních kinas. Řešitel: M. Strnad

GA ČR 522/09/1576 (2009-2012)
Vývoj biospecifických ligandů pro afinitní chromatografii proteinů schopných vázat cytokininy. Řešitel: R. Lenobel

GA AV ČR IAA400550801 (2008-2012)
Příprava tritiem značených brassinosteroidů a jejich aplikace při studiu mechanismu účinku brassinosteroidů na molekulární úrovni Řešitel: doc RNDr. Tomáš Elbert, CSc.; spoluřešitelka : J Swaczynová

GA AV ČRKAN200380801 (2008-2012)
Imunonanotechnologie pro diagnostiku látek hormonální povahy. Řešitel: M. Strnad

IGA MZ ČR NS10282 (2009-2011)
Mechanismy integrity a nestability genomu v patogeneze a potenciální individualizovaná molekulárně-cílená léčba karcinomu prostaty. Spoluřešitel: V. Kryštof

EC: MRTN-CT-2006-035833 (2007-2010)
Vacuolar tranport equipment for growth regulation in plants. Marie Curie Research Training Networks (RTN). Coordinator: Katrin Czempinski - Universität Potsdam, Golm, Germany)

CZ.1.07/2.3.00/09.0018 (2009-2012)
AescuLab – systematické laboratorní vzdělávání studentů a pracovníků VaV v oblasti Life Sciences s podporou e-learningu
www.aesculab.cz

CZ.1.07/2.3.00/09.0035 (2009-2012)
EuroExpres - internacionalizace a inovace vzdělávání pracovníků v oblasti farmacie a biotechnologií
www.euro-expres.upol.cz

CZ.1.07/2.4.00/12.0062 (2009-2012)
BioNet Centrum