Appointments:
Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, cross-appointed to Department of Chemistry
Affiliations:
Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University Faculty of Science
Research Interests:
Structural biology; Regulatory peptides; Membrane proteins; Extracellular matrix; G-protein coupled receptor activation mechanisms; Therapeutic design; Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy; Atomic force microscopy; Fluorescence & circular dichroism spectroscopy.
Using structural biology to combat cancer
My laboratory studies the progression of cancer at the atomic level. The major current focus of our research on the cancer front is the hormone apelin and its cell-surface receptor protein, which can be hijacked by a tumour to allow formation of new blood vessels to feed its growth. By revealing the shapes and chemical properties of apelin and its receptor protein, we aim to design drugs to prevent the usage of this system for tumour growth.
Involvement with BHCRI to date:
Dr. Rainey is a BHCRI Associate Member who has served on BHCRI Scientific Review Committees and presented at both ILS and Seminar Series. He is also a supervisor for CRTP trainees.
Phone:
(902) 494-4632
Email:
Website:
structbio.biochem.dal.ca/jrainey/
Contact:
Sir Charles Tupper Medical Building, Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine, 5850 College Street, P.O. Box 15000, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada B3H 4R2
Publications:
Reddy, T. and Rainey, J.K. (In press) Interpretation of biomolecular NMR spin relaxation parameters. Biochemistry and Cell Biology.
Langelaan, D.N. and Rainey, J.K. (In press) Membrane catalysis of peptide-receptor binding. Biochemistry and Cell Biology.
Reddy, T., Li, X., Fliegel, L., Sykes, B.D. and Rainey, J.K. (In press) Correlating structure, dynamics, and function in transmembrane segment VII of the Na+/H+ exchanger isoform 1. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta – Biomembranes. (Published online July 11, 2009.)
Langelaan, D.N. and Rainey, J.K. (2009) Headgroup-dependent membrane catalysis of apelin-receptor interactions is likely. The Journal of Physical Chemistry B. 113: 10465-10471.
Langelaan, D.N., Bebbington, E.M., Reddy, T. and Rainey, J.K. (2009) Structural insight into G-protein coupled receptor binding by apelin. Biochemistry. 48: 537-548.
Reddy, T., Ding, J., Li, X., Sykes, B.D., Rainey, J.K.and Fliegel, L. (2008) Structural and functional characterization of transmembrane segment IX of the NHE1 isoform of the Na+/H+ exchanger. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 283: 22018-22030.