Cristian Munteanu, Dr.

Group: Bioinformatics & Structural Biochemistry
Department: Bioinformatics & Structural BiochemistryResearch Scientist
Biography
2019: Research Scientist (CS) III at the Institute of Biochemistry of the Romanian Academy (IBRA)
2016 – 2019: Research Scientist (CS) at the Institute of Biochemistry of the Romanian Academy (IBRA)
2014 – 2016: Research Assistant at IBRA
EDUCATION AND TRAINING
2011 – 2016: Ph.D. in Biology at Institute of Biochemistry of the Romanian
Academy (IBRA) with the thesis title: “Insights into functional
interaction proteomics of endoplasmic reticulum associated
degradation (ERAD) and antigen presentation in melanoma using
mass spectrometry”, Coordinators: Dr. Andrei Jose Petrescu/Dr.
Niculina Mitrea (University of Medicine and Pharmacy Carol Davila,
Bucharest)
2011 – 2014: Resident Pharmacist in Pharmaceutical Laboratory at University of
Medicine and Pharmacy (UMF) Carol Davila, Bucharest, Romania
(Accredited Postgraduate Medical Specialization by the Ministry of
Health from Romania)
2010 – 2012: MSc in Biological Chemistry at Normal Superior School of
Bucharest (NSSB) - IBRA with the thesis title: “Expression and
purification of the antimicrobial peptide Cecropin P1 in Escherichia
Coli”
2005 – 2010: B.Sc. and M.Sc in Pharmacy at UMF Carol Davila (Bucharest,
Romania) with the thesis title: “HPLC and molecular modeling
stability evaluation of inclusion complexes between repaglinide and
beta-cyclodextrin”
Papers
- . Affinity proteomics and deglycoproteomics uncover novel EDEM2 endogenous substrates and an integrative ERAD network. Molecular & cellular proteomics : MCP, 2021:100125.IF=5.91
- . EDEM3 Domains Cooperate to Perform Its Overall Cell Functioning. Int. J. Mol. Sci., 2021, 4(22):2172.IF=4.56
- . Silencing the Cytoskeleton Protein Iba1 (Ionized Calcium Binding Adapter Protein 1) Interferes with BV2 Microglia Functioning. Cellular and molecular neurobiology, 2020.IF=3.80
- . Analysis of EYA3 Phosphorylation by Src Kinase Identifies Residues Involved in Cell Proliferation. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2019, 20(24):6307.IF=4.18
- . Gangliosidome of human anencephaly: A high resolution multistage mass spectrometry study. Biochimie, 2019, 163:142-151.IF=3.36
- . Profiling Optimal Conditions for Capturing EDEM Proteins Complexes in Melanoma Using Mass Spectrometry. Advances in experimental medicine and biology, 2019, 1140:155-167.IF=2.13
- . Human caudate nucleus exhibits a highly complex ganglioside pattern as revealed by high-resolution multistage Orbitrap MS. Journal of Carbohydrate Chemistry, 2019, 38(9).IF=0.80
- . Identification and structural characterization of novel O- and N-glycoforms in the urine of a Schindler disease patient by Orbitrap mass spectrometry. Journal of Mass Spectrometry, 2015, 50(9):1044‐1056.IF=2.54
- . COMBINING HETEROLOGOUS BACTERIAL EXPRESSION SYSTEM WITH AFFINITY CHROMATOGRAPHY PURIFICATION TO OBTAIN NATIVE MOUSE TYROSINASE. Farmacia, 2015, 2(63):254-261.IF=1.16
- . Three-dimensional Modeling and Diversity Analysis Reveals Distinct AVR Recognition Sites and Evolutionary Pathways in Wild and Domesticated Wheat Pm3 R Genes. Molecular Plant Microbe Interactions, 2014, 27(8):835-845.IF=3.94
- . Identification of an unusually sulfated tetrasaccharide chondroitin/dermatan motif in mouse brain by combining chip-nanoelectrospray multistage MS2 -MS4 and high resolution MS. Electrophoresis, 2013, 34(11):1581‐1592.IF=3.16
Grants
A promising approach of the therapeutic strategy in melanoma is immunotherapy. One of the most promising melanoma antigens is tyrosinase, which was frequently found as overexpressed in melanomas. It wash shown that this protein undergoes unproductive folding in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) leading to the selection of the incorrectly folded molecules for degradation via the ubiquitin proteasome system. The current project aims to obtain epitopes with potential increased clinical outcome.
The overall goal of the current project is to understand the impact of tissue transglutaminase (TG2) targeting in the context of ovarian cancer (OC) tumor microenvironment (TME). Our aproach is aimed at testing the hypothesis that interventions in targeting TG2 in the OC TME will disrupt pro-tumorigenic signaling cross-talk within tumors.
The principal goal of this project is the development of a new class of small molecule inhibitors (SMIs) targeting TG2-FN interaction, which is currently in the phase of lead optimization, translatable to clinical use for prevention of ovarian cancer dissemination, either alone or in combinations.
This project aims to understand the molecular events associated with protein aggregation and how a Golgi located protein along with the UPR pathway modulate this process. Model proteins such as IL-1β and α-synuclein, previously shown to aggregate will be employed for these studies. Achieving the objectives of this project should facilitate the understanding of the signaling pathways and the sequence of events correlating the stress sensing machinery with cytoplasmic proteome instability.