The ultimate goal in biomolecular structural studies is to understand how conformational changes in the 3D structure contribute to the function of the molecule and what happens when the molecule cannot perform its function for example in case of mutations in the gene for a protein or under disease conditions.
We focus on two problems: (1) Mechanisms of G protein signaling in plants, (2) How are metal binding and release regulated in metal transfer proteins, metallothioneins in plants and ferric binding protein in H. influenzae. We are experimentalists, working at different levels starting with recombinant protein production in E. coli. We conduct biochemical and biophysical characterization of proteins using standard wet-lab techniques, as well as chromatography, absorption spectroscopy, circular dichroism and light scattering. For determination 3D structural properties of the target proteins we perform X-ray solution scattering measurements at a European synchrotron radiation facility (e.g. Petra III at DESY, Hamburg). Our work has therapeutic as well as biosensor applications.
