Alexey Bondar, Ph.D.

E-mail: alexey.bondar@entu.cas.cz & abondar@prf.jcu.cz

Born 15/7/1984, in Minsk, Belarus

Education:

2014                Ph.D. degree in Biophysics at the Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic; thesis advisor: J. Lazar, Ph.D. Thesis title: “Studies of membrane protein structure and function using polarization microscopy”. Graduated with honors.

2006                Master’s degree in Biochemistry at the Belarusian State University in Minsk, Belarus; thesis advisor: M. Sholukh, Ph.D. Master’s thesis title: “Studies of the cytoprotective properties of prostaglandin groups A and E”. Graduated with honors.

2005                Bachelor’s degree in Biology at the Belarusian State University in Minsk, Belarus.

Employment History:

Awards and Fellowships (selected):

2022                 US and EU Patent application 18/057,629 (co-inventor with J. Lazar): Probe and method for detecting membrane-associated proteins in living cells

2020-2023        INTER-COST grant “Studies of GPCR and G-protein localization in membrane domains using single-molecule imaging”

2020-2022   Junior GAČR grant “Role of receptor/G protein preassembly in G protein signaling”

2017-2019        Junior GAČR grant “Insights into mechanisms of G protein signaling by the β2-adrenergic receptor”

2016                 Keystone “Future of Science” scholarship to attend the conference “G Protein-Coupled Receptors: Structure, Signaling and Drug Discovery”, Keystone CO, USA.

2015                 Award of the Czechoslovak Microscopy society for the best dissertation involving utilization of microscopy techniques

2014                 Award of the University of South Bohemia for outstanding scientific contribution in dissertation

2014                 Keystone “Future of Science” scholarship to attend the conference “G protein-coupled receptors: structural dynamics and functional implications”, Snowbird UT, USA.

2012                 FEBS Youth Travel Fund grant to attend the workshop “Dynamics of cell signal systems workshop”, Oslo, Norway

2010                 FEBS Youth Travel Fund grant to attend the workshop “Spatial and temporal regulation of signaling”, Oslo, Norway

2009                 EMBO travel fellowship to attend the course “Advanced optical microscopy”, UK.

2009                 FEBS Youth Travel Fund grant to attend the course “Practical course in computational biology”, Split, Croatia.

2008                 FEBS Youth Travel Fund grant to attend the course “Microspectroscopy: monitoring molecular interactions in living cells”, Wageningen, Holland.

2008                 Student research grant of the Grant Agency of the University of South Bohemia

Publications (Total number of citations (WOS): 197; H-index 7):

1. Petelak A., Lambert N.A., Bondar A. 5-HT7 receptor slows down the Gs protein: a single molecule perspective Molecular Biology of the Cell (2023) [IF 3.3, cited 0x]
2. Bondar A., Rybakova O., Melcr J., Dohnalek J., Khoroshyy P., Tichacek O., Timr S., Miclea P., Sakhi A., Markova V., Lazar J. Quantitative Linear Dichroism Imaging of Molecular Processes in Living Cells Made Simple by Open Software Tools. Communications Biology (2021) [IF 6.3, cited 1x]
3. Bondar A.*, Lazar J. Optical sensors of heterotrimeric G protein signaling. FEBS Journal (2021) [IF 5.5, cited 5x] (*corresponding author)
4. Myskova J., Rybakova O., Brynda J., Khoroshyy P., Bondar A., Lazar J. Directionality of light absorption and emission in representative fluorescent proteins. PNAS (2020) [IF 11.2, cited 15x]
5. Bondar A.*, Jang W., Sviridova E., Lambert N.A. Components of the G_ssignaling cascade exhibit distinct changes in mobility and membrane domain localization upon β₂‐adrenergic receptor activation. Traffic (2020) [IF 6.2, cited 4x] (*co-corresponding author)
6. Bondar A.*, Lazar J. The G protein Gi1 exhibits basal coupling but not preassembly with G protein-coupled receptors. Journal of Biological Chemistry (2017) [IF 4.0, cited 9x] (*corresponding author)
7. Sviridova E., Rezacova P., Bondar A., Veverka V., Novak P., Schenk G., Svergun D., Kuta Smatanova I., Bumba L. Structural basis of the interaction between the putative adhesion-involved and iron-regulated FrpD and FrpC proteins of Neisseria meningitidis. Scientific Reports (2017). [IF 4.1, cited 6x]
8. Timr S., Brabec J., Bondar A., Ryba T., Zelezny M., Lazar J., Jungwirth P. Nonlinear Optical Properties of Fluorescent Dyes Allow for Accurate Determination of Their Molecular Orientations in Phospholipid Membranes. Journal of Physical Chemistry B (2015). [IF 3.3, cited 10x]
9. Han Z., Jin L., Chen F., Loturco J.J., Cohen L.B., Bondar A., Lazar J., Pieribone V.A. Mechanistic Studies of the Genetically Encoded Fluorescent Protein Voltage Probe ArcLight. PLoS ONE (2014). [IF 3.5, cited 38x]
10. Bondar A.*, Lazar J. Dissociated Ga_GTP and Gbg protein subunits are the major activated form of heterotrimeric Gi/o proteins. Journal of Biological Chemistry (2014). [IF 4.6, cited 17x] (*corresponding author)
11. Timr S., Bondar A., Cwiklik L., Stefl M., Hof M., Vazdar M., Lazar J. and Jungwirth P. Accurate Determination of the Orientational Distribution of a Fluorescent Molecule in a Phospholipid Membrane. Journal of Physical Chemistry B (2014) [IF 3.4, cited 22x]
12. Lazar J., Bondar A., Timr S., Firestein S., Two-photon polarization microscopy reveals protein structure and function. Nature Methods (2011). [IF 20.7, cited 65x]
13. Hubich , Bondar A., Kastsiuk T., Kastsiuk U., Lakhvich F., Sholukh M., Hepatoprotective action of prostaglandin A2 analogs under CCl4-induced liver injury in vitro. Hepatology Research (2007). [IF 1.892, cited 6x]

Conference Presentations (selected):

2020      Bondar A. Preassembly between the G protein-coupled receptors and G proteins studied at the single-molecule level // 3^rd COST ERNEST meeting (Invited talk)

2018      Bondar A., Lambert N.A. G proteins avoid, but are not excluded from, clathrin-coated structures // Gordon Research Conference Phosphorylation and G-Protein Mediated Signaling Networks, Biddeford, ME, USA (Oral presentation)

2016      Bondar A., Brzakova A., Timr S., Lazar J. Precoupling of G proteins with GPCRs visualized by two-photon polarization microscopy // 60^th Annual meeting of the Biophysical Society, Los Angeles CA, USA (Oral presentation)

2016      Bondar A., Lazar J. Studies of G proteins preassembly with GPCRs with two-photon polarization microscopy // Keystone Symposium G Protein-Coupled Receptors: Structure, Signaling and Drug Discovery, Keystone CO, USA (Oral presentation)

2015      Bondar A. Studies of protein structure and function using polarization microscopy // Annual meeting of Czechoslovak Microscopy Society, Lednice, Czech Republic (Invited talk)

2014      Bondar A., Lazar J. In vivo imaging and quantitation of interactions between Gi/o protein subunits and GPCRs by two-photon polarization microscopy // Keystone Symposium G protein-coupled receptors: structural dynamics and functional implications, Snowbird UT, USA (Oral presentation)

Tutoring of students:

2009-2019        Annual Summer School in Molecular Biophysics and Systems Biology, Nové Hrady, Czech Republic (Project leader: one-month project, 2 students/year)

2021-2022        Bachelor’s students of the joint Biochemistry program of the Johannes Kepler University in Linz and the University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice (2 students)

2022-2023        Bachelor’s student of the Faculty of Science (1 student)

Scientific Interests:

- Mechanisms of GPCR/G protein signal transduction

- Imaging and computational techniques for studies of membrane proteins

- Development of optical sensors for cell signaling processes

Member of:

COST Action ERNEST – Management Committee member, Workgroup 4 Co-Leader.

American Society for Neuroscience

American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Biophysical society

Czech Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (FEBS constituent society)

Czechoslovak Microscopy Society (EMS constituent society)

Languages Spoken:

Fluent: Russian (native), English (advanced), Czech (intermediate); other: Belarusian, German