Author

From activation to repression: decoding the impact of PPARγ ligands on ligand-binding domain conformation

Apr. 11, 2025—Nuclear receptors (NRs) are a group of transcription factors that control gene expression in response to endogenous metabolites and synthetic ligands. Ligands bind the C-terminal ligand-binding domain (LBD) of NRs which is widely believed to alternate between transcriptionally active and repressive states and be stabilized upon ligand binding. Various X-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy studies...

CSB Spotlight: Areetha D’Souza, Chazin Lab

Mar. 21, 2025—Areetha D’Souza is a research instructor in the Department of Biochemistry and the Chazin Lab. With a diverse scientific background centering on NMR and cryo-EM, she still has time for the finer things in life—especially tacos! Meet Areetha … What is the focus of your research? I’m currently studying nucleotide excision repair (NER). NER is...

CSB Research Spotlight: X-ray Crystallography – Paving the way for ‘hypoallergen’ treatments against peanut allergies

Mar. 7, 2025—Ben Spiller, associate professor of pharmacology, and collaborators recently published two papers that dig into how peanut allergies are provoked and providing support for the use of a potential treatment option: hypoallergens. Both papers were published in February in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. Read more about how the IgE antibodies’ structural, immunological...

CSB Research Spotlight: Sanders Lab – New mechanisms that cause irregular heartbeat

Mar. 3, 2025—In a recent collaboration with researchers at Northwestern University, newly-minted PhD Kathryn Butcher (Brewer) and Professor of Biochemistry and Vice Dean of Basic Sciences Chuck Sanders found that, for people with long QT syndrome, a heart condition that causes an irregular heartbeat, a more tailored approach to treatment could be more beneficial than the usual...

Greater than the sum of its parts: the role of VARP-SNX27 binding in endosomal “supercomplex” formation

Feb. 14, 2025—In cells, multi-subunit coat protein complexes are responsible for coordinating the transport of transmembrane proteins and lipid cargo between membranes. At the endosome, cargo trafficking is mediated by retromer, a heterotrimer composed of VPS26, VPS29, and VPS35. Retromer serves as a “master regulator”, recruiting machinery to help deform the membrane and sort cargo into vesicles...

CSB Student Profile: Clay Tydings

Feb. 7, 2025—Teamwork makes the dream work! Clay Tydings, of the Walker and Meiler Labs, thinks collaboration is key to not only furthering his scientific endeavors but also for achieving a personal goal. Meet Clay … What is the focus of your research and what tools/techniques do you use? I work on developing methods for modeling peptides...

Investigations into inositol phosphates: the mTOR regulators you’ve never heard of!

Jan. 31, 2025—Inositol phosphates are a family of small metabolites characterized by their different phosphorylation patterns. Inositol hexakisphosphate (IP6), the fully phosphorylated form of inositol phosphate, is found in many organisms and is the most abundant inositol phosphate in animal and plant cells. IP6 serves a wide range of functions including regulation of enzyme activity, mediation of...

Jenny Tran wins the Dr. Anne Karpay Award in Structural Biology

Jan. 23, 2025—Congratulations to Jenny Tran, of the Breann Brown lab, on being named the 2025 recipient of the Dr. Anne Karpay Award in Structural Biology. “It’s such an honor to be selected as the recipient of the Karpay Award,” Tran said. Although she completed a summer research internship with Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professor David G....

Jenny Tran presents Karpay Award Seminar January 21

Jan. 17, 2025—2025 Anne Karpay Award in Structural Biology Winner Jenny Tran, of the Breann Brown lab, gives the MBTP/CSB Seminar on Tuesday, January 21, at 12:20pm in 1220 MRB3. Although in high school Jenny completed a summer research internship with Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professor David Lynn at Emory University, she originally wanted to pursue architecture...

CSB Research Faculty Profile: Heather Kroh

Jan. 9, 2025—Heather Kroh, PhD, is a research assistant professor in the Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology department and currently works in the Lacy lab. With a long-standing dedication to scientific education, she participates in many mentoring and outreach programs, but her favorite activity might just be picking up pretty rocks. Meet Heather … What project are you...

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