CLARK LAB

Professor Clark's research interests are in biochemical engineering, with particular emphasis on biocatalysis, biomaterials, and bioenergy. Underlying these general topics is a longstanding interest in microorganisms from extreme environments (“extremophiles”) and extremophilic enzymes. The Clark Group is highly collaborative and has had many joint projects with research groups in different fields. Current and past projects in Clark’s research group include the structural characterization and activation of enzymes in non-aqueous reaction media, with the goal of overcoming process limitations imposed by aqueous conditions; the development of enzyme- and cell-based microscale systems for high-throughput biocatalysis and bioactivity screening; protein design and assembly for the formulation of advanced biomaterials with unique structural and functional properties; structure-function relationships and biosynthetic applications of artificial metalloenzymes; mechanistic studies of adaptation to harsh environments by extremophilic microorganisms; and sustainable production of biofuels and value-added chemicals from various feedstocks.