Göttinger Graduiertenzentrum für Neurowissenschaften, Biophysik und Molekulare Biowissenschaften

Kopec, Wojciech, Dr. *

Project Leader in the Computational Biomolecular Dynamics Group


  • Since 03/2020 Project Leader in the Computational Biomolecular Dynamics Group at the Department of Theoretical and Computational Biophysics at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Goettingen
  • 12/2015 - 03/2020 Postdoc in Computational Biomolecular Dynamics Group at the Department of Theoretical and Computational Biophysics at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Goettingen
  • 07/2012 - 10/2015 PhD in Biophysics, Himanshu Khandelia’s Group at the University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
  • 10/2010 - 07/2012: Master in Chemistry, Jagiellonian University




Major Research Interests

I use physics-based numerical models to understand the dynamic behavior, on the atomistic scale, of complex molecular machines - proteins, membranes and synthetic molecules. In particular, I use Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations and related methods to gain an unfiltered view into physics of processes happening at the interfaces of biological cells and their synthetic counterparts. Such an approach is often referred to as ‘computational microscope’, and I am using it to peek into and discover novel mechanisms governing biological processes, with an overarching goal of exploiting them in the future to solve major issues we are facing as a society - either in medicinal or environmental science.
I am currently focused on computational studies of transport phenomena across biological and synthetic membranes. In our bodies, these processes are controlled by specialized proteins - ion channels and transporters. Malfunctions of those proteins often lead to diseases, and it is estimated 15-20% of current drugs target ion channels. Moreover, a precise manipulation of such proteins by light or soundwaves, in approaches such as optogenetics and sonogenetics, can be exploited to control specific circuits in the brain.



Homepage Department / Research Group

http://www3.mpibpc.mpg.de/groups/de_groot/project.html#conduction



Selected Recent Publications


  • Mironenko A, Zachariae U, de Groot BL, Kopec W (2021) The persistent question of potassium channel permeation mechanisms, Journal of Molecular Biology, Apr20: 167002

  • Kopec W, Żak A, Jamróz D, Nakahata R, Yusa SI, Gapsys V, Kepczynski M (2020) Polycation-Anionic lipid membrane interactions, Langmuir 36(42): 12435

  • Schubeis T, Le Marchand T, Daday C, Kopec W, Movellan KT, Stanek J, Schwarzer TS, Castiglione K, de Groot BL, Pintacuda G, Andreas LB (2020) A β-barrel for oil transport through lipid membranes: Dynamic NMR structures of AlkL, PNAS 117(35): 21014

  • Kopec W, Rothberg BS, de Groot BL (2020) Molecular mechanism of a potassium channel gating through activation gate-selectivity filter coupling, Nature Communications 10(1):5366

  • Öster C, Hendriks K, Kopec W, Chevelkov V, Shi C, Michl D, Lange S, Sun H, de Groot BL, Lange A (2019) The conduction pathway of potassium channels is water-free under physiological conditions, Science Advances 5(7):eaaw6756

  • Kopec W, Köpfer DA, Vickery ON, Bondarenko AS, Jansen TLC, de Groot BL, Zachariae U (2018) Direct knock-on of desolvated ions governs strict ion selectivity in K+ channels, Nature Chemistry 10(8):813-820