Advancing Aquaporin Research through Comparative Water Diffusivity Analysis Using MRI

Project Description:

Aquaporins are integral membrane proteins that transport water across cell membranes and play a vital role in regulating water balance in a variety of organisms. Within the Mukherjee lab group, our primary research focuses on engineering aquaporin-based genetic reporters compatible with non-invasive MRI. Initially centered on developing human aquaporin (hAQP-1) based genetic reporters as a versatile contrast agent, our research has extended to assess the feasibility and performance of hAQP-based genetic sensors in various cell lines, culminating in successful in vivo imaging. In this project, we aim to expand on these promising findings by developing a genetically encoded aquaporin capable of water diffusivity on par with or surpassing the performance of hAQP-1, which could be completely self-sufficient with no requirement for metals or other external factors to amplify contrast. Through MRI, our objective is to identify novel aquaporins with water conductivity comparable to or superior to hAQP-1, laying the groundwork for their use as contrast-free imaging sensors via transgenic insertion into cells.