My research focuses on metal ion sensing and transport by proteins. Every cell is confronted by the challege of securing essential mineral nutrients from its surroundings while preventing the uptake of toxic metal ions like cadmium and lead. It must also balance its uptake with its needs, and take pains that each essential metal ion is present in the amount necessary for survival but not present in excess. From a chemical perspective, those challenges are of interest because of the demands placed on specificity and affinity for one metal ion in comparison to all others present in the cell. These issues are also critical to human health. Many human disease states can be related to an imbalance of metal ions (mercury poisoning and anemia are just two) while bacterial infections lead to a war between the human host and the bacterial invader to secure metal ion resources essential for the bacterium's survival.

Recent lab publications

A selection of recent senior theses from our lab

Crystallographers Anomalous: Lab Moodle Page