My name is Attila
Jancsó. Apart from a two-years postdoctoral
fellowship, I've been working at the Department of
Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry at the University
of Szeged since I finished my MSc studies (1997). I
obtained my PhD in chemistry in 2002. My present
position is associated professor.
I have three main research topics run under the
umbrealla of the Bioinorganic Chemistry Research
group. We are studying the metal ion and semimetal
binding features of different bacterial
metalloregulatory proteins from the MerR and ArsR
families. The main goal if these studies is to forward
our understanding on the molecular details of the
metal ion selective mechanisms of their operation. A
somewhat related topic covers the design and
characterization of the toxic metal ion binding
properties of oligopeptides labelled by fluorescent
groups. The design of ligands is heavily inspired by
the metal ion binding sites of metalloregulatory
proteins and other metalloproteins. The oligopeptides,
investigated both in solution phase and in their solid
supported forms, may be potential candidates as metal
ion receptor molecules in optochemical metal ion
sensors. We have recently commenced another research
direction focussing on the solution forms of the
semimetal arsenic (and the closely related antimony),
an element with a well-known toxicity for all living
organisms, but also with an over thousand years long
history of use in the treatment of various diseases.
The goal of these studies is to explose in details the
interaction of these semimetal compounds with ligands
possessing thiol functional groups.
My teaching duties at the department cover lectures
and laboratory practicals in Inorganic Chemistry and
Analytical Chemistry.