Research Projects

Overview

The research in my lab focusses on membrane proteins important in health and disease. The long-term goal is to understand the structure, function, and dynamics of these proteins at the molecular level, and to address their role in the normal functioning of the cell, as well as in disease states, such as cancer and genetic disorders. One important approach that we take is to study the purified membrane proteins following functional reconstitution into phospholipid bilayer vesicles. A variety of biochemical and biophysical approaches are then used to probe the molecule under study. Techniques in current use in our lab include fluorescence spectroscopy (both intrinsic protein tryptophan fluorescence and extrinsic fluorescence probes covalently linked to proteins or lipids); rapid millisecond kinetics; NMR spectrometry, dynamic light scattering, differential scanning calorimetry, as well as biochemical assays for transport and enzymatic activity.

Fluid mosaic model

Pictorial representation of a biological membrane, showing the insertion of integral proteins, both single-spanning and multispanning, through the hydrophobic interior of the lipid bilayer. Oligosaccharide residues of glycoproteins and glycolipids are found only on the external membrane surface.