Research profile

Proteins are constantly at risk of misfolding, becoming damaged or aggregating. Cellular proteomes are shaped by opposing, highly regulated processes of protein synthesis and degradation. Furthermore, over half of newly synthesized proteins need to be transported from the site of their synthesis to their final subcellular destinations. Thus, numerous specialized protein quality control and transport pathways are required to guarantee the proper distribution and function of proteins. Such quality control mechanisms that react to the mislocalization or damage of proteins are essential to maintain cellular protein homeostasis – proteostasis. The proteostasis failure is among the pivotal factors of many pathological conditions. Our broad goal is to understand the molecular mechanisms that govern cellular proteostasis maintenance. Most of our current efforts concentrate on the major cellular machinery for specific protein degradation – the ubiquitin-proteasome system. We focus on the quality control of proteins during their transport into cellular organelles. We combine hypothesis based and unbiased screening approaches to discover new factors that integrate these processes.

We are hiring – please inquire p.bragoszewski@nencki.edu.pl

• Lab manager / technician
• PhD Students
• Master’s Student

Research projects:

Since 2020 – SONATA BIS project „Ubiquitin as a modulator of the mitochondrial protein import proces” founded by The National Science Centre

2017 till present – First TEAM project ‘Cellular mechanisms handling failed mitochondrial protein translocation events’ funded by The Foundation for Polish Science.

2014 – 2017 ‘Extramitochondrial factors regulating turnover of mitochondrial intermembrane space proteins’ founded by The National Science Centre, SONATA programme.

Selected publications

Lenkiewicz, A.M., M. Krakowczyk, P. Bragoszewski. Cytosolic Quality Control of Mitochondrial Protein Precursors-The Early Stages of the Organelle Biogenesis. (2021) Int J Mol Sci. 23(1):7.

Kowalski, L., P. Bragoszewski, A. Khmelinskii, E. Glow, M. Knop, and A. Chacinska. Determinants of the cytosolic turnover of mitochondrial intermembrane space proteins. (2018) BMC Biol. 16(1): p. 66.

Schendzielorz, A.B., P. Bragoszewski, N. Naumenko, R. Gomkale, C. Schulz, B. Guiard, A. Chacinska, and P. Rehling. Motor recruitment to the TIM23 channel’s lateral gate restricts polypeptide release into the inner membrane. (2018) Nat Commun. 9(1): p. 4028.

Bragoszewski, P., M. Turek, and A. Chacinska. Control of mitochondrial biogenesis and function by the ubiquitin-proteasome system. (2017) Open Biol. 7(4).

Bragoszewski, P., M. Wasilewski, P. Sakowska, A. Gornicka, L. Bottinger, J. Qiu, N. Wiedemann, and A. Chacinska. Retro-translocation of mitochondrial intermembrane space proteins. (2015) Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 112(25): p. 7713-8.

Wrobel, L., U. Topf, P. Bragoszewski, S. Wiese, M.E. Sztolsztener, S. Oeljeklaus, A. Varabyova, M. Lirski, P. Chroscicki, S. Mroczek, E. Januszewicz, A. Dziembowski, M. Koblowska, B. Warscheid, and A. Chacinska. Mistargeted mitochondrial proteins activate a proteostatic response in the cytosol. (2015) Nature. 524(7566): p. 485-8.