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Physics Colloquium: Rudolf Podgornik (University of Ljubljana)

February 19, 2016 - 6:30pm

Title: Viral electrostatics

I will present several models of the effects of electrostatic interactions on viruses. Starting from a discussion of charge distribution and the pertaining charge regulation description, I will explore in detail several examples of the role of charge-charge interactions for capsid stability as well as the interactions between the capsid proteins and the compactified genetic cargo.

Biography:
Rudolf Podgornik is s a professor of physics at the Physics Department, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, University of Ljubljana and a professor of biophysics at the Medical Faculty, University of Ljubljana. He is the head of the research program Biophysics of polymers, membranes, gels, colloids and cells, financially supported by the Slovene Agency for Research and Development (ARRS). He is a member of the Theoretical Physics Department at the Jozef Stefan Institute in Ljubljana and an adjunct professor at the Physics Department, University of Massachusetts, Amherst and at the Materials Science & Engineering Department at the Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland. He has been awarded the Zois Award, which is the highest prize for scientific excellence in Slovenia and he was a co-recipient of the Martin Hirschorn IAC Prize. His fields of research are: physics of soft matter, physics of coulomb fluids and macromolecular interactions, Lifshitz theory of van der Waals dispersion interaction and Casimir effect, physics of membranes, polymers and polyelectrolytes and especially physics of DNA and viruses.

Every Friday 10:45-11:45 a.m., COB 267 (except as noted). Tea and cookies will be served from 10:30 - 10:45 a.m. Questions regarding the seminar series should be directed to Prof. Bin Liu

Location

COB 267