Research

Project 1: Chemotaxis

Bacteria have wonderful sensory abilities. We use computers to delve into the molecular mechanisms by which they sense and process information from their environments. Using chemotaxis as a model sensing system, we study how the wiggling and giggling of proteins leads to robust information processing. A grand ambition, we are making headway towards a complete description of chemotaxis signaling in the model organism Escherichia coli. Decades of work provide a rich experimental backdrop for exploring molecular information processing computationally, using molecular simulations,  

Project 2: integrative modeling: We collaborate with numerous research groups, particularly those using cryo-electron tomography, to help resolve the atomic structures of complicated biomolecular complexes. Towards this end, we employ a wide range of modeling techniques and software. Recent successes include:

core signaling unit

S-layer

PMMO array

Bacteriophage capsid

Future: