“Crystallography enables us to see a single atom in the highest resolution now in existence. Having this detailed, structured image is a significant advantage in combating disease because it’s easier to stop what you can see.” – Dirk Zajonc, Ph.D.
Dr. Zajonc joined LIAI in 2006 as an Assistant Member in the Division
of Cellular Biology. Dr. Zajonc and his team determine the
three-dimensional structures of immune system proteins at the atomic
level using protein crystallography.
Dr. Zajonc received his M. Sc from the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg
(Germany) in 1998 and his Ph. D. in biochemistry in 2001. He completed
his postdoctoral training at the Scripps Research Institute in 2006.
Dr. Zajonc received an Investigator award from the Cancer Research
institute in 2007.
Dr. Zajonc is an Editorial Board Member for two newly established
open-access journals, Lipid Insights and Glycobiology Insights.
Our group is primarily interested in the structural basis of immune recognition of lipids, how these lipids can modulate an immune response, or how lipid modification of immunologically important proteins can affect immune signalling.
The crystal structure of avian CD1 reveals a smaller, more primordial antigen-binding pocket compared to mammalian CD1. Proc Natl Acad Sci. 2008
pH-dependent interdomain tethers regulate antigen capturre by CD1b. Immunity. 2008
Crystal structures of mouse CD1d-iGb3 complex and its cognate Valpha14 T cell receptor suggest a model for duel recognition of foreign and self glycolipids. J Mol Biol. 2008
CD1 mediated T cell recognition of glycolipids. Curr Opin Struct Biol. 2007
Architecture of CD 1 proteins. Curr Top Microbiol Immunolo. 2007
Structural characterization of mycobacterial phosphatidylinositol mannoside binding to mouse CD1d. J Immunol. 2006
Natural killer T cells recognize diacylglycerol antigens from pathogenic bacteria. Nat Immunol. 2006
Role of lipid trimming and CD1 groove size in cellular antigen presentation. EMBO J. 2006
Design of natural killer T cell activators: structure and function of a microbial glycosphingolipid bound to mouse CD1d. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2006
Structural basis for CD1d presentation of a sulfatide derived from myelin and its implications for autoimmunity. J Exp Med. 2005
Structure and function of a potent agonist for the semi-invariant natural killer T cell receptor. Nat Immunol. 2005
T-cell activation by lipopeptide antigens. Curr Opin Immunol. 2005
Anatomy of CD1-lipid antigen complexes.Nat Rev Immunol. 2005
CD1 assembly and the formation of CD1-antigen complexes.Curr Opin Immunol. 2005
Molecular mechanism of lipopeptide presentation by CD1a. Immunity. 2005
T cell activation by lipopeptide antigens. Science. 2004
Crystal structure of CD1a in complex with a sulfatide self antigen at a resolution of 2.15 A. Nat Immunol. 2003
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