{"id":13717,"date":"2026-08-05T15:07:12","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T13:07:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/?post_type=prosjekt&#038;p=13717"},"modified":"2026-08-05T15:45:07","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T13:45:07","slug":"valeriia_kalienkova","status":"publish","type":"prosjekt","link":"https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/en\/prosjekt\/valeriia_kalienkova\/","title":{"rendered":"Valeriia Kalienkova"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\"><p>[vc_row el_class=&#8221;article-white&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1649536549777{margin-right: 0px !important;margin-left: 0px !important;}&#8221;][vc_column][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner]<div class=\"spacer-f96c97828f0d47b1724343c705ecae9d423\" style=\"\"><\/div><style>@media (min-width: 320px) { .spacer-f96c97828f0d47b1724343c705ecae9d423{ height: 10px;}}@media (min-width: 767px) { .spacer-f96c97828f0d47b1724343c705ecae9d423{ height: 10px;}}@media (min-width: 979px) { .spacer-f96c97828f0d47b1724343c705ecae9d423{ height: 10px;}}@media (min-width: 1200px) { .spacer-f96c97828f0d47b1724343c705ecae9d423{ height: 10px;}}<\/style><div class=\"header left  \"><h1 class=\"font-size-sm\" title=\"Valeriia Kalienkova\">Valeriia Kalienkova<\/h1><\/div>[\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;3\/4&#8243;]\n                    <div class=\"info-container\">\n                        <div class=\"fields row\">  <div class=\"field1 col-lg-4 col-md-4 col-sm-12\">\n                                            <div class=\"field1-header\" >\n                                            TMF-prosjekt\n                                            <\/div >\n                                            <div class=\"field1-number\" >\n                                            Acid Sensing Ion Channels in Physiological Context \u2013 PhysiolASIC \n                                            <\/div >\n                                        <\/div> <div class=\"field2 col-lg-4 col-md-4 col-sm-12\">\n                                            <div class=\"field2-header\" >\n                                            Project period\n                                            <\/div >\n                                            <div class=\"field2-number\" >\n                                            2026 - 2030\n                                            <\/div >\n                                        <\/div> <div class=\"field3 col-lg-4 col-md-4 col-sm-12\">\n                                            <div class=\"field3-header\" >\n                                            Department\n                                            <\/div >\n                                            <div class=\"field3-number\" >\n                                            Department of biomedicine\n                                            <\/div >\n                                        <\/div>\n                        <\/div>   \n                    <\/div>[vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Valeriia Kalienkova is a researcher at the Department of Biomedicine.\u00a0She has a keen interest in the mechanisms of membrane transport and membrane excitability, as well as the mechanistic aspects of membrane protein function<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">. She obtained her PhD from the University of Zurich and has\u00a0subsequently\u00a0worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Groningen and the University of Bergen.\u00a0Kalienkova\u00a0employs\u00a0structural biology\u00a0(cryo-electron microscopy, X-ray\u00a0crystallography)\u00a0and biochemical methods to understand how\u00a0membrane proteins\u00a0function in health and disease.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In the TMF Starting Grant project\u00a0PhysiolASIC,\u00a0Kalienkova\u00a0will study acid-sensing\u00a0ion channels, known as ASICs. These are small \u2018gates\u2019 in the cell membrane of nerve cells that respond when the environment around the cells becomes more acidic. When the channels are activated, they allow sodium ions to enter the cell and can thus influence electrical\u00a0signaling\u00a0in the nervous system. ASIC channels are linked, amongst other things, to pain\u00a0processing, memory and learning, and they are also associated with serious medical conditions such as neurodegeneration, damage following\u00a0ischemic\u00a0stroke and glioblastoma.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Although ASIC channels stand out as promising yet underexplored\u00a0pharmacological\u00a0targets, our understanding of how they function in their natural environment\u00a0remains\u00a0limited. A key challenge is that these channels exist in several variants and can form both simple and complex channel\u00a0assemblies\u00a0with different properties.\u00a0At the same time, membrane proteins are often influenced by the lipids surrounding them and by other proteins with which they interact.\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">To date, little is known about endogenous interaction networks of ASICs.\u00a0T<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">o\u00a0develop more precise tools and potential treatments,\u00a0it is essential to\u00a0understand ASIC channel\u00a0function\u00a0in living tissue, not merely as isolated proteins in the laboratory.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"TextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\" lang=\"EN-US\" xml:lang=\"EN-US\" data-contrast=\"auto\"><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">The aim of\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SpellingErrorV2Themed SCXW214518809 BCX8\">PhysiolASIC<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">\u00a0is to\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SpellingErrorV2Themed SCXW214518809 BCX8\">characterise<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">\u00a0ASIC channels in their physiological context.<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">Kalienkova<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">\u00a0will develop new ASIC-specific protein binders, including nanobody-based tools and\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">novel\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">binders designed using computational methods. These will be used to extract native ASIC complexes from brain tissue, whilst preserving the lipid environment and interacting proteins. The complexes will then be\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SpellingErrorV2Themed SCXW214518809 BCX8\">analysed<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">\u00a0using techniques such as cryo-EM, mass\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun ContextualSpellingAndGrammarErrorV2Themed SCXW214518809 BCX8\">spectrometry<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">\u00a0and functional measurements to understand how the\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">native ASIC\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">channels are\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SpellingErrorV2Themed SCXW214518809 BCX8\">organised<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">,\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">and how they can be modulated<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW214518809 BCX8\">.<\/span><\/span><span class=\"EOP Selected SCXW214518809 BCX8\" data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text]<div class=\"header left  \"><h2 class=\"font-size-sm\" title=\"Media links\">Media links<\/h2><\/div><div class=\"external-links-container light-brown\"><ul class=\"external-links\"><li class=\"inner-item\"><i class=\"fa fa-external-link\"><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/kommunikasjon.ntb.no\/pressemelding\/18740030\/30-millioner-til-unge-uib-forskere-fra-trond-mohn-forskningsstiftelse?publisherId=17847312&amp;lang=no\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">uib.no<\/a><span class=\"description\">UiB artikkel om TMF Starting Grant 2025<\/span><\/li><\/ul><\/div>[\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/4&#8243;]\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"standard-image left no-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1292\" src=\"https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/skodvin_Valeriia-1920x1292.jpg\" class=\"attachment-img-xxl size-img-xxl\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/skodvin_Valeriia-1920x1292.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/skodvin_Valeriia-300x202.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/skodvin_Valeriia-1024x689.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/skodvin_Valeriia-768x517.jpg 768w, https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/skodvin_Valeriia-1536x1034.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/skodvin_Valeriia-2048x1378.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/skodvin_Valeriia-320x215.jpg 320w, https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/skodvin_Valeriia-420x283.jpg 420w, https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/skodvin_Valeriia-576x388.jpg 576w, https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/skodvin_Valeriia-992x668.jpg 992w, https:\/\/mohnfoundation.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/skodvin_Valeriia-1200x807.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/figure><div class=\"external-links-container blue-arrow-right\"><ul class=\"external-links\"><li class=\"inner-item\"><i class=\"fa fa-external-link\"><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www4.uib.no\/finn-ansatte\/valeriia.kalienkova\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Homepage University of Bergen<\/a><\/li><li class=\"inner-item\"><i class=\"fa fa-external-link\"><\/i><a href=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Project webpage<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>[\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column]<div class=\"spacer-f4de40bb4e7b53dd110c90e1adcadb9a23\" style=\"\"><\/div><style>@media (min-width: 320px) { .spacer-f4de40bb4e7b53dd110c90e1adcadb9a23{ height: 30px;}}@media (min-width: 767px) { .spacer-f4de40bb4e7b53dd110c90e1adcadb9a23{ height: 30px;}}@media (min-width: 979px) { .spacer-f4de40bb4e7b53dd110c90e1adcadb9a23{ height: 60px;}}@media (min-width: 1200px) { .spacer-f4de40bb4e7b53dd110c90e1adcadb9a23{ height: 60px;}}<\/style>[\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Valeriia Kalienkova is a researcher at the Department of Biomedicine. In the TMF Starting Grant project PhysiolASIC, Kalienkova will study acid-sensing ion channels, known as ASICs. 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