The secrets of life lie in the molecular flexibility.

Welcome to Prof. Mariusz Jaremko's research group, the

Flexible Systems Lab!

Our research group works mainly on metabolites which are important for human health, and our current main focus in this discipline is oriented towards food, food safety, food quality, and food fraud by utilizing state-of-the-art instrumentation in metabolomics studies. We are also working on aggregation of amylin, a biological peptide that is connected tightly with diabetes II, a disease that is closely related to unhealthy diets. So, food science and the consequences of the food we eat are one of the main areas which the group Flexible Systems investigates. We are also working to develop methods and pulse programs in Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) that allow us to uncover obscured metabolites and to detect them at lower concentrations, in order to understand metabolic pathways better. 


Why the name Flexible Systems?

It's simple; because metabolites, as well as amylin and its analogues, are very flexible systems i.e. amylin does not have a defined 3D structure, and in the case of the small molecules and metabolites we study, while they do have defined structures, they often exhibit very high levels of dynamic flexibility due to their size.

Untangling untidy folds to understand diseases

Copper ions could play a key role when peptide folding goes wrong and leads to harmful aggregates.

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Picking the best methods for metabolomics research

Comparison of different nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy methods has helped to identify the most robust approach for studying different types of biomolecules.

Latest Publications

Isolation, Characterization, and Medicinal Potential of Polysaccharides of Morchella esculenta

by Syed Lal Badshah, Anila Riaz, Akhtar Muhammad, Gulsen Tel Cayan, Fatih Cayan, Mehmet Emin Duru, Nasir Ahmad, Abdul-Hamid Emwas, Mariusz Jaremko
Original Article Year: 2021 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26051459

Abstract

Mushroom polysaccharides are active medicinal compounds that possess immune-modulatory and anticancer properties. Currently, the mushroom polysaccharides krestin, lentinan, and polysaccharopeptides are used as anticancer drugs. They are an unexplored source of natural products with huge potential in both the medicinal and nutraceutical industries. The northern parts of Pakistan have a rich biodiversity of mushrooms that grow during different seasons of the year. Here we selected an edible Morchella esculenta (true morels) of the Ascomycota group for polysaccharide isolation and characterization. Polysaccharopeptides and polysaccharides from this mushroom were isolated using the green chemistry, hot water treatment method. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy revealed the sugar nature and possible beta-glucan type structure of these polysaccharides. Antioxidant assays showed that the deproteinized polysaccharides have moderate free radical scavenging activity. These isolated polysaccharides exhibited good acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyryl cholinesterase (BChE) inhibition activities. Therefore, these polysaccharides may be valuable for the treatment of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. Further bioassays are needed to discover the true potential of M. esculenta polysaccharides for medicinal purposes.

Keywords

Natural products