Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Chemistry, School of Science and Engineering

Monsanto Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

The Demchenko laboratory, Glycoworld, has trained more than 150 researchers and has developed many innovative tools for the synthesis and application of carbohydrates (glycans or glycoconjugates) in five major areas:

1. New synthetic reagents and building blocks;

2. Reactions for stereocontrolled glycosylation;

3. Expeditious strategies and automated technologies for oligosaccharide synthesis;

4. Biomedical studies on the development of glycopharmaceuticals; and

5. Integration of glycans and nanomaterials in carbohydrate nanotechnology.

Some of these methods have been applied to the synthesis of tumor-associated glycosphingolipids to study their roles in metastasis of cancers and in pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases; glycoconjugates of important bacterial pathogens Streptococcus pneumoniae and Staphylococcus aureus for vaccine development; glycopeptides as LPS antagonists for treating septicemia and for the development of Alzheimer's disease therapeutics; human milk oligosaccharides to study their functions, and carbohydrate-based imaging reagents, enzyme inhibitors, and personalized vaccine adjuvants.

Website: https://glyco-world.com/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biology, College of Arts and Sciences

Macelwane Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Blythe Janowiak, Ph.D., studies the opportunistic pathogen Group B Streptococcus. While present in the normal human vaginal microbiota, pregnant mothers are routinely screened and treated with broad-spectrum antibiotics to lower risks to immune-naïve newborns. This has unintended consequences for the later development of a newborn's healthy microbiome, leading to increased inflammation, asthma, and immune-disorder risk. Janowiak studies the interaction between GBS, the microbiome, and the healthy or altered immune system, and the regulation of glutathione synthesis and metabolism as a means to reveal novel, specific and selective treatments for GBS. Janowiak also collaborates throughout the university, providing expert guidance on tools and strategies for studying the microbiome, oxidative stress, and antioxidants in multiple systems. Finally, Janowiak has a strong passion in training the future generation of biomedical scientists, as evidenced by her mentoring five to ten undergrads and one to three grad students in biochemical and microbiological research per semester.

Website: https://sites.google.com/a/slu.edu/janowiak-lab/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Chemistry, School of Science and Engineering

Monsanto Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

The research in Marvin Meyers' lab is focused the application of medicinal chemistry towards the discovery of potential drug candidates to treat people with rare and neglected diseases. It collaborates with experts in infectious disease biology, including malaria, tuberculosis, infectious diarrhea (cryptosporidiosis), cryptococcal meningitis, hepatitis B virus and herpes simplex virus. The lab also has ongoing collaborations with experts in oncology, FSHD muscular dystrophy and infant short-gut syndrome. The lab uses synthetic organic chemistry techniques to prepare new compounds, which are analyzed by its collaborators to assess their biological properties. Using medicinal chemistry and structure-based drug design principles, the lab optimizes the potency, pharmacokinetics and safety profiles of compounds with the goals of identification of tool compounds and, ultimately, candidate drug molecules for clinical trials.

Website: https://www.meyerschemlab.com/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

The Tavis Lab’s primary focus is antiviral drug discovery targeting the Hepatitis B Virus ribonuclease H (RNaseH). The lab has developed a suite of biochemical and cell-based assays to evaluate how inhibitors of the RNaseH affect the enzyme and viral replication. Its key resource is a small but chemically diverse set of nuclease inhibitors and their analogs. The lab routinely conducts cytotoxicity assays using MTS (mitochondrial function), neutral red retention (lysosome function), crystal violet retention (DNA accumulation, usually interpreted as cell growth), and LDH release (plasma membrane integrity) to gain a more comprehensive view of how its compound affect the cell. The lab collaborates with medicinal chemists in the United States, France, Greece and China and are actively pushing forward two anti-HBV RNaseH hit-to-lead optimization projects. They work closely with other members of the SLU-IDBI, including Feng Cao, Ph.D.; Maureen Donlin, Ph.D.; Lynda Morrison, Ph.D.; and Getahun Abate, Ph.D. Through these collaborations, the lab has demonstrated that the inhibitors in its library can have high selectivity for one virus or cellular organism over the others, opening a pathway to antimicrobial development targeting nucleases.

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

The Ungerleider Lab studies the Epstein-Barr Virus, a tumor-associated pathogen that has established a lifelong infection in nearly the entire world’s population. EBV promotes the long-term survival and proliferation of host cells and is a causal factor in a number of lymphomas and epithelial cancers. Their work explores how EBV replicates, how infection drives tumorigenesis, and seeks to identify targetable vulnerabilities in EBV-associated cancers.

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

Susana Gonzalo's long-term research interest is to understand the molecular mechanisms that contribute to the genomic instability that drives aging and cancer, with the ultimate goal of targeting these mechanisms therapeutically. Nuclear lamins orchestrate genome organization, forming a scaffold for tethering chromatin and protein complexes regulating many nuclear functions. Lamin dysfunction impacts nuclear architecture, chromatin structure, as well as DNA transcription, replication and repair. These data, and the association of lamins dysfunction with dozen of degenerative disorders, premature aging, and cancer, provide evidence for these proteins operating as “caretakers of the genome." Gonzalo's research focuses on identifying mechanisms whereby lamins regulate genome stability and function, as these mechanisms are key to identify therapies that ameliorate the progression of laminopathies in patients.

Website: https://biochem.slu.edu/faculty/gonzalo/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

The Sergey Korolev lab studies mechanism of protein function using X-ray crystallography combined with biophysical and biochemical methods. Systems of interest include 1) recombination mediator proteins (RMPs) important for genome maintenance, DNA repair and implicated in cancer (BRCA1/2, PALB2) and pathogen drug resistance; 2) DNA helicases involved in DNA replication and repair; 3) calcium-independent phospholipase (iPLA2B) critical for inflammation, calcium homeostasis and implicated in a wide spectrum of diseases from ischemia to neurodegeneration.

Website: https://biochem.slu.edu/faculty/korolevwp/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biology, College of Arts and Sciences

Macelwane Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Our lab is interested in neural tube closure, whose defect leads to congenital malformation, such as spina bifida, and the remodeling of the nervous system, which might alleviate neural injuries or neurodegeneration. Our research focuses on how neural cells wire their gene regulatory network (GRN), the ensemble of transcription factors and signaling pathway components orchestrating a gene expression program, during these processes. It also investigates how protein-targeted degradation via ubiquitination influences GRN implementation. E3 ligase ubiquitination dysfunction also leads to various birth defects as well as cancer progression. To study these questions, we are using the invertebrate chordate Ciona.

Website: https://www.slu.edu/arts-and-sciences/biology/faculty/lemaire-laurence.php 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Building on the South Campus

Research Interests

Adriana Montaño is an expert in the study and development of therapies for mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS), a set of rare diseases affecting bone, musculoskeletal and organ development. Her discoveries include potential therapies for MPS IVA. Her work is extensive, working on multiple facets Morquio disease. She has contributed to the development of clinical repositories, enabling discovery and diagnostic research, improvement of diagnostic and childhood screening protocols and assays, as well as extensive research improving enzyme replacement therapy by protein and delivery optimization. Montaño has also collaborated with multiple industry partners to study other lysosomal storage and bone disorders.

Website: https://biochem.slu.edu/people/montano/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Building on the South Campus

Research Interests

Fran Sverdrup's lab is focused on drug discovery in human genetic and infectious diseases. They perform target identification and validation, drug screening and preclinical evaluation of drug candidates. Their major project targets facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD), one of the most common forms of muscular dystrophy for which there is no treatment. They have identified druggable pathways that modulate expression of the toxic DUX4 gene responsible for FSHD and are translating those findings into potential therapies. They are currently advancing three exciting classes of drugs, identified through high-throughput screening, that turn off DUX4 expression. This includes a robust lead optimization program involving close collaboration with their medicinal chemistry colleagues. Sverdrup is moving these compounds into animal model testing and have established a key collaboration with a pharmaceutical partner to eventually advance into human clinical trials. A second interest is in anti-infectives research with recent programs targeting malaria, lymphatic filariasis and African sleeping sickness. To accomplish these activities, Sverdrup maintains a network of collaborations with disease experts, medicinal chemists, pharmaceutical/biotech companies and foundations.

Website: https://biochem.slu.edu/people/sverdrup/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biology, College of Arts and Sciences

Macelwane Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Daniel Warren's research program centers on understanding how animals are able to meet the physiological challenges imposed by their environments and by their natural and evolutionary histories. He uses an integrative approach to understand why some animals, particularly pond turtles, are better able to tolerate dramatic changes in oxygen availability, temperature and body-fluid pH. At the cellular level, his studies focus on the heart, which must and does continue to function under conditions (low oxygen and extremely low pH) that would otherwise be fatal to other vertebrates, including mammals. These include studies of cardiac pH regulation and the effects of pH on the cellular processes involved in excitation-contraction coupling, the sequence of events that starts with electrical depolarization of the cell and culminates in mechanical shortening. Warren aims to improve the understanding of how these processes evolved throughout evolution and to better characterize new or existing solutions to physiological problems that many kinds of organisms face. Warren's work may also lead to the identification of targets for therapeutic intervention to treat human diseases associated with inborn errors in metabolism and ischemia, a pathological condition that occurs most notably in the heart and brain when blood flow (and, therefore, oxygen and glucose delivery) is restricted during myocardial infarction and stroke, respectively.

Website: https://thewarrenlab.org/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biology, College of Arts and Sciences

Macelwane Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Skeletal muscle plays predominant roles in clearance of glucose from the blood and whole body energy metabolism.  The lab investigates aspects of muscle metabolism including regulation of glucose transport into muscle, alteration of growth-related and metabolic signaling within muscle cells, and control of mitochondrial function.  In particular, we are interested in regulation of glucose transport under basal conditions, under the influence of hormones such as insulin (which stimulates glucose transport into muscle), and under conditions of metabolic stress.

Website: https://sites.google.com/a/slu.edu/fisher-lab/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Pharmacology and Physiology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

Vincenza Cifarelli has developed a multidisciplinary research program that addresses the role of vascular and lymphatic endothelium in tissue homeostasis and remodeling, inflammation and metabolic health. Area of interests are gut-liver axis, adipose tissue disfunction in metabolic disease and cardiac inflammation. The Cifarelli Lab conducts studies in rodent model of disease as well as in people with genetic variants in the lipid transporter CD36.

Website: https://www.slu.edu/medicine/medical-education/graduate-programs/biomedical-sciences/pharmacology-physiology/about-us/cifarelli-lab.php 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Pharmacology and Physiology, School of Medicine

Schwitalla Hall on the South Campus

Research Interests

Liberty François-Moutal focuses on studying the synaptic delivery of mRNA in neurodegeneration and painful neuropathies. With her expertise in biochemistry, biophysical characterization of protein interactions with biologically active molecules, as well as drug design approaches, she aims to characterize and target interactions relevant to RNA transport. 

Website: https://hopecenter.wustl.edu/people/liberty-francois-moutal-phd/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

The Sergey Korolev lab studies mechanism of protein function using X-ray crystallography combined with biophysical and biochemical methods. Systems of interest include 1) recombination mediator proteins (RMPs) important for genome maintenance, DNA repair and implicated in cancer (BRCA1/2, PALB2) and pathogen drug resistance; 2) DNA helicases involved in DNA replication and repair; 3) calcium-independent phospholipase (iPLA2B) critical for inflammation, calcium homeostasis and implicated in a wide spectrum of diseases from ischemia to neurodegeneration.

Website: https://biochem.slu.edu/faculty/korolevwp/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biology, College of Arts and Sciences

Macelwane Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Our lab is interested in neural tube closure, whose defect leads to congenital malformation, such as spina bifida, and the remodeling of the nervous system, which might alleviate neural injuries or neurodegeneration. Our research focuses on how neural cells wire their gene regulatory network (GRN), the ensemble of transcription factors and signaling pathway components orchestrating a gene expression program, during these processes. It also investigates how protein-targeted degradation via ubiquitination influences GRN implementation. E3 ligase ubiquitination dysfunction also leads to various birth defects as well as cancer progression. To study these questions, we are using the invertebrate chordate Ciona.

Website: https://www.slu.edu/arts-and-sciences/biology/faculty/lemaire-laurence.php 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Pharmacology and Physiology, School of Medicine

Schwitalla Hall on the South Campus

Research Interests

Navia Lab’s research seeks to understand how lipid metabolism affects pain states and chronic pain susceptibility. The lab investigates immuno-metabolic changes and transcriptional regulation underlying chronic pain development. We explore neuro-immune interactions, cellular reprogramming, and metabolic mechanisms across various cell types involved in nociceptive pathways in different animal models of chronic pain. The lab aims to uncover new mechanisms, pathways, and potential therapeutic targets for safe chronic pain treatments that will contribute to improving the lives of people living with chronic pain and other neurological disorders.

Website: https://www.navialab.info/index.html 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biology, College of Arts and Sciences

Macelwane Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

The Sengupta Lab is interested in deciphering how different muscles are coordinated for diverse movements, how this coordination is refined over development and how this coordination is disrupted in motor diseases. Generating movement is essential for survival. Even simple movements like walking require precise coordination between different body parts that is not a trivial feat. Just like toddlers slowly get better at walking, motor coordination improves as the animal matures. Motor coordination is specifically disrupted in several motor diseases and spinal cord injury, yet therapy remains limited.

In vertebrates, neurons in the spinal cord help generate movements and are modulated by inputs from the brain. The Sengupta Lab uses zebrafish, a tiny, transparent vertebrate to study motor coordination. Spinal neurons in zebrafish are homologous to other vertebrates like mice and humans but are significantly less in number and complexity providing a tractable system to investigate motor control. Moreover, the transparency at early stages allows easy use of in vivo techniques to record from neurons (electrophysiology, calcium imaging) and manipulate them (optogenetics) during natural behaviors (swimming, hunting). Using these techniques, the Sengupta Lab aims to determine how zebrafish coordinate their fins and body during swimming and how this coordination develops. By defining functions of distinct populations in the brain and spinal cord, we aim to provide tangible targets for much-needed therapy.

Website: https://sites.google.com/view/senguptalab  

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

The Tavis Lab’s primary focus is antiviral drug discovery targeting the Hepatitis B Virus ribonuclease H (RNaseH). The lab has developed a suite of biochemical and cell-based assays to evaluate how inhibitors of the RNaseH affect the enzyme and viral replication. Its key resource is a small but chemically diverse set of nuclease inhibitors and their analogs. The lab routinely conducts cytotoxicity assays using MTS (mitochondrial function), neutral red retention (lysosome function), crystal violet retention (DNA accumulation, usually interpreted as cell growth), and LDH release (plasma membrane integrity) to gain a more comprehensive view of how its compound affect the cell. The lab collaborates with medicinal chemists in the United States, France, Greece and China and are actively pushing forward two anti-HBV RNaseH hit-to-lead optimization projects. They work closely with other members of the SLU-IDBI, including Feng Cao, Ph.D.; Maureen Donlin, Ph.D.; Lynda Morrison, Ph.D.; and Getahun Abate, Ph.D. Through these collaborations, the lab has demonstrated that the inhibitors in its library can have high selectivity for one virus or cellular organism over the others, opening a pathway to antimicrobial development targeting nucleases.

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biology, College of Arts and Sciences

Macelwane Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Daniel Warren's research program centers on understanding how animals are able to meet the physiological challenges imposed by their environments and by their natural and evolutionary histories. He uses an integrative approach to understand why some animals, particularly pond turtles, are better able to tolerate dramatic changes in oxygen availability, temperature and body-fluid pH. At the cellular level, his studies focus on the heart, which must and does continue to function under conditions (low oxygen and extremely low pH) that would otherwise be fatal to other vertebrates, including mammals. These include studies of cardiac pH regulation and the effects of pH on the cellular processes involved in excitation-contraction coupling, the sequence of events that starts with electrical depolarization of the cell and culminates in mechanical shortening. Warren aims to improve the understanding of how these processes evolved throughout evolution and to better characterize new or existing solutions to physiological problems that many kinds of organisms face. Warren's work may also lead to the identification of targets for therapeutic intervention to treat human diseases associated with inborn errors in metabolism and ischemia, a pathological condition that occurs most notably in the heart and brain when blood flow (and, therefore, oxygen and glucose delivery) is restricted during myocardial infarction and stroke, respectively.

Website: https://thewarrenlab.org/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biomedical Engineering, School of Science and Engineering

Biomedical Engineering Building on the North Campus

Research Interests

Natasha Case conducts research in orthopaedic bioengineering, emphasizing articular cartilage and bone. Her research focuses on how mechanical, biophysical, and biochemical stimuli interact to direct cartilage tissue development and adaptation, applied to optimizing tissue engineering strategies. Case aims to expand knowledge about structure-function relationships in orthopaedic tissues and to increase understanding about biophysical regulation of these tissues, with the long-term goal of applying knowledge in these areas to enhance repair strategies for orthopaedic tissues.

Dr. Case's lab is also focused on developing physiologically accurate in vitro tissue models that can be used for evaluating new pharmaceutical compounds, biologics, and therapeutics to either treat orthopaedic degenerative diseases or to support orthopaedic tissue regeneration. Toward that goal, the lab is investigating how macromolecular crowding and confinement approaches can be utilized to enhance the development of collagen-enriched in vitro tissue models.

Website: https://www.slu.edu/science-and-engineering/academics/biomedical-engineering/faculty/case-natasha.php 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biomedical Engineering, School of Science and Engineering

Biomedical Engineering Building on the North Campus

Research Interests

Koyal Garg’s research is focused on developing extracellular matrix (ECM) based-based biomaterial and stem cell therapies for improving the regeneration and functional capacity of skeletal muscle following traumatic injuries. Garg has developed clinically relevant mouse and rat models of muscle trauma involving volumetric muscle loss (with or without an adjacent bone fracture). Using these models, they are studying the efficacy of novel regenerative and rehabilitative technologies to accelerate recovery following muscle trauma. The lab is equipped to perform histological and biochemical (i.e., gene and protein) analysis as well as muscle force measurements. 

Website: https://www.gargklab.com/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Physics, School of Science and Engineering

Shannon Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Irma Kuljanishvili performs research on the synthesis and characterization of novel 1D and 2D nanoscale materials for scalable device technologies and applications. This work includes development of novel Scanning Probe Microscopy and Spectroscopy techniques, as well as SPM based lithography and Nanoscale design, assembly, and patterning techniques. She collaborates with other SLU-IDBI researchers on the development of new solid-state materials that can be combined in with biological molecules to create composites with new properties or multiple targets. Her interests also include functionalization of materials for use in medical devices, or for use as anti-bacterial or direct anti-cancer agents.

Website: https://www.slu.edu/science-and-engineering/academics/physics/faculty/kuljanishvili-irma.php 

IDBI-SPUR Project Description

New emerging materials for future medical devices and implants will be investigated in this project. Such materials include Carbon nanotubes and ZnO nanowires, 2D carbon films, or other 2D materials. Student will work along side other team members to design and study new biocompatible, nano materials, and surface coating, some of which with superhydrophobic properties. Several such materials will be synthesized in Kuljanishvili’s lab and their properties, will be tested using variety of experimental techniques. Materials will also be tested in terms of their mechanical strength, while embedded or layered with other biocompatible materials such as polymers, or hydrogels.

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Chemistry, School of Science and Engineering

Monsanto Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Drug discovery relies on developing and testing new molecules to evaluate their effectiveness and chemical properties. One key aspect is understanding how drugs interact with plasma proteins, which affects their distribution in the body. Traditionally, plasma protein binding assays use dialysis membranes, but these can introduce errors if not properly handled. This project focuses on validating a new material, developed in the Chemistry Department, that encapsulates human serum albumin in an alginate matrix. This innovation aims to improve the reliability of plasma protein binding assays. Undergraduate researchers will use liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LCMS) to analyze pharmaceuticals with known binding properties and assess the accuracy of this new approach.

Website: https://www.slu.edu/science-and-engineering/academics/chemistry/faculty/damon-osbourn.php 

IDBI-SPUR Project Description

Students involved in this research will gain hands-on experience in sample preparation, instrumental analysis, and data interpretation. They will work closely with a faculty mentor and actively participate in assay development, experimental design, and scientific communication. This opportunity is ideal for students interested in analytical chemistry, materials science, or pharmaceutical research and provides valuable experience in an interdisciplinary research environment.

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biomedical Engineering, School of Science and Engineering

Biomedical Engineering Building on the North Campus

Research Interests

Alex Reiter’s research is focused on optimizing treatment for musculoskeletal injuries and diseases. With a primary focus on tendon, ligament and muscle, he seeks to understand healthy tissue function and structure, assess changes that occur in injury and disease, and develop therapeutics to improve outcomes.

Website: https://sites.google.com/slu.edu/reiterlab/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biomedical Engineering, School of Science and Engineering

Biomedical Engineering Building on the North Campus

Research Interests

Silviya Zustiak’s laboratory focuses on hydrogel biomaterials and soft tissue engineering, with emphasis on developing novel biomaterials as cell scaffolds, drug screening platforms and protein delivery devices. 3D Biomaterial-based models are crucial for closing the reproducibility gap between 2D tissue culture and animal models by providing a cell environment that mimics real tissue. 3D systems could have an immediate impact in the development of platforms for toxicology screening, addressing concerns of drug failures in clinical trials due to lack of efficacy or unforeseen side effects. The laboratory also develops injectable and biodegradable hydrogels for sustained localized drug and protein delivery. This research is highly multidisciplinary, merging engineering, materials science and biology.

Website: https://www.zustiaklab.com/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

Immunotherapy relies on tumor-specific T cells to target and eradicate cancer cells, and this potential has motivated immunologists and oncologists for many decades. Despite tremendous recent success, translating immunotherapy into a reliable treatment option for most cancer patients is still not a reality. One of the major challenges to successful immunotherapy is the induction of T cell tolerance within patients. Tolerance is multifaceted, involving both the death of tumor-reactive T cells and the induction of anergy, which renders any surviving T cells inert. Research in the Teague lab aims to identify and therapeutically target the molecular mechanisms that regulate T cell tolerance as a means to boost anti-tumor immunity, and ultimately to inform translational efforts to provide enhanced immunotherapy for patients with cancer.

Website: https://www.slu.edu/medicine/medical-education/graduate-programs/biomedical-sciences/molecular-microbiology-immunology/faculty/ryan-teague.php 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

The Adolph Lab uses biochemical and cell biology techniques to understand the mechanisms used by DNA binding proteins to protect and manage single-stranded DNA intermediates during DNA replication and repair. DNA binding proteins are important for maintaining the stability of the genome and the pathways associated with these proteins are involved in how cells respond to damage and how cancer cells respond to therapeutic agents.

Website: https://sites.google.com/view/adolph-laboratory/home 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

Susana Gonzalo's long-term research interest is to understand the molecular mechanisms that contribute to the genomic instability that drives aging and cancer, with the ultimate goal of targeting these mechanisms therapeutically. Nuclear lamins orchestrate genome organization, forming a scaffold for tethering chromatin and protein complexes regulating many nuclear functions. Lamin dysfunction impacts nuclear architecture, chromatin structure, as well as DNA transcription, replication and repair. These data, and the association of lamins dysfunction with dozen of degenerative disorders, premature aging, and cancer, provide evidence for these proteins operating as “caretakers of the genome." Gonzalo's research focuses on identifying mechanisms whereby lamins regulate genome stability and function, as these mechanisms are key to identify therapies that ameliorate the progression of laminopathies in patients.

Website: https://biochem.slu.edu/faculty/gonzalo/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biology, College of Arts and Sciences

Macelwane Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Our lab is interested in neural tube closure, whose defect leads to congenital malformation, such as spina bifida, and the remodeling of the nervous system, which might alleviate neural injuries or neurodegeneration. Our research focuses on how neural cells wire their gene regulatory network (GRN), the ensemble of transcription factors and signaling pathway components orchestrating a gene expression program, during these processes. It also investigates how protein-targeted degradation via ubiquitination influences GRN implementation. E3 ligase ubiquitination dysfunction also leads to various birth defects as well as cancer progression. To study these questions, we are using the invertebrate chordate Ciona.

Website: https://www.slu.edu/arts-and-sciences/biology/faculty/lemaire-laurence.php 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

The Sergey Korolev lab studies mechanism of protein function using X-ray crystallography combined with biophysical and biochemical methods. Systems of interest include 1) recombination mediator proteins (RMPs) important for genome maintenance, DNA repair and implicated in cancer (BRCA1/2, PALB2) and pathogen drug resistance; 2) DNA helicases involved in DNA replication and repair; 3) calcium-independent phospholipase (iPLA2B) critical for inflammation, calcium homeostasis and implicated in a wide spectrum of diseases from ischemia to neurodegeneration.

Website: https://biochem.slu.edu/faculty/korolevwp/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biology, College of Arts and Sciences

Macelwane Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Sofia Origanti, Ph.D., studies the regulation of protein synthesis with a focus on eukaryotic initiation factors (eIFs). Many eIFs are overexpressed in cancers and serve to enhance cancer growth. eIF6 is one such factor that is overexpressed in many types of cancers and serves as a potential therapeutic target for inhibiting cancer growth and progression. eIF6 is also deregulated in the rare disorder Shwachman-Diamond syndrome (SDS) and targeting eIF6 has been proposed as a potential therapeutic mechanism for treating SDS.

Website: https://www.origantilab.org/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biology, College of Arts and Sciences

Macelwane Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Susan Spencer is examining how transcriptional targets of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) promote cell proliferation in cancer. The lab is particularly focused on EGFR-driven expression of microtubule spindle-associated proteins and how their upregulation in cancer influences cell division. By analyzing interactions among these proteins, the lab aims to understand how they impact mitotic spindle formation and microtubule dynamics.

Website: https://spencerlab.weebly.com/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Chemistry, School of Science and Engineering

Monsanto Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

The Demchenko laboratory, Glycoworld, has trained more than 150 researchers and has developed many innovative tools for the synthesis and application of carbohydrates (glycans or glycoconjugates) in five major areas:

1. New synthetic reagents and building blocks;

2. Reactions for stereocontrolled glycosylation;

3. Expeditious strategies and automated technologies for oligosaccharide synthesis;

4. Biomedical studies on the development of glycopharmaceuticals; and

5. Integration of glycans and nanomaterials in carbohydrate nanotechnology.

Some of these methods have been applied to the synthesis of tumor-associated glycosphingolipids to study their roles in metastasis of cancers and in pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases; glycoconjugates of important bacterial pathogens Streptococcus pneumoniae and Staphylococcus aureus for vaccine development; glycopeptides as LPS antagonists for treating septicemia and for the development of Alzheimer's disease therapeutics; human milk oligosaccharides to study their functions, and carbohydrate-based imaging reagents, enzyme inhibitors, and personalized vaccine adjuvants.

Website: https://glyco-world.com/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Chemistry, School of Science and Engineering

Shannon Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Research in the Karunananda Lab strategically leverages a combination of synthetic inorganic, organometallic, and computational chemistry techniques to solve pressing challenges in catalysis. The overall research theme is built on employing multiple metals and/or multiple ligands to synergistically bring about novel reactivity and selectivity. A special focus is placed on interrogating reaction mechanisms through experimental and computational techniques to predict and design novel catalysts. Current projects in the lab include photosensitizer development using earth-abundant metals with target applications in organic synthesis and photodynamic therapies, and organometallic catalyst development for polymer upcycling. The experimental work in the lab focuses on multi-metallic complex synthesis, characterization and catalytic reaction development. The computational work in the lab focuses on photoreactivity and catalyst optimization with DFT calculations, statistical analysis, and machine learning approaches. 

Website: https://www.karunanandalab.com/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

The Sergey Korolev lab studies mechanism of protein function using X-ray crystallography combined with biophysical and biochemical methods. Systems of interest include 1) recombination mediator proteins (RMPs) important for genome maintenance, DNA repair and implicated in cancer (BRCA1/2, PALB2) and pathogen drug resistance; 2) DNA helicases involved in DNA replication and repair; 3) calcium-independent phospholipase (iPLA2B) critical for inflammation, calcium homeostasis and implicated in a wide spectrum of diseases from ischemia to neurodegeneration.

Website: https://biochem.slu.edu/faculty/korolevwp/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Chemistry, School of Science and Engineering

Monsanto Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

The research in Marvin Meyers' lab is focused the application of medicinal chemistry towards the discovery of potential drug candidates to treat people with rare and neglected diseases. It collaborates with experts in infectious disease biology, including malaria, tuberculosis, infectious diarrhea (cryptosporidiosis), cryptococcal meningitis, hepatitis B virus and herpes simplex virus. The lab also has ongoing collaborations with experts in oncology, FSHD muscular dystrophy and infant short-gut syndrome. The lab uses synthetic organic chemistry techniques to prepare new compounds, which are analyzed by its collaborators to assess their biological properties. Using medicinal chemistry and structure-based drug design principles, the lab optimizes the potency, pharmacokinetics and safety profiles of compounds with the goals of identification of tool compounds and, ultimately, candidate drug molecules for clinical trials.

Website: https://www.meyerschemlab.com/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Pharmacology and Physiology, School of Medicine

Schwitalla Hall on the South Campus

Research Interests

Research in the Walker lab focuses mainly on synthetic and medicinal chemistry to develop tool compounds or novel therapeutic agents against a variety of biological targets and therapeutic indications. The lab is actively involved in multiple research collaborations partnering with investigators both at SLU and other Universities. They use modern synthesis techniques and also a number of in silico approaches to design and synthesize new target molecules. A major area of research focus and collaboration for their group is developing strategies and molecules to target antibacterial resistance as part of their long-standing collaboration with the Zgurskaya and Rybenkov labs at the University of Oklahoma. They are working to develop molecules that can penetrate the outer membrane of Gram-negative pathogens and inhibit efflux pumps, which contribute both to the intrinsic and acquired resistance of many pathogens to antibiotics. They recently demonstrated that novel ligands they prepared can potentiate the activity of the antibiotics novobiocin and erythromycin in E. coli.

Website: https://www.slu.edu/medicine/medical-education/graduate-programs/biomedical-sciences/pharmacology-physiology/faculty/walker-john.php 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Pediatrics, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

Nermi Parrow studies iron metabolism, transport, and homeostasis in the context of health and disease. Parrow's research includes studies on anemia, iron deficiency (nutritional, genomic), and thalassemias. 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biology, College of Arts and Sciences

Macelwane Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

In addition to my main research interests (see "infectious diseases" section above), I run the IDBI Microbe Screening Core (MSC) out of my research laboratory. Drug-resistant bacteria are increasing at an alarming rate, and we may soon be in a Post-Antibiotic Era where easily curable bacterial diseases become untreatable and deadly. The IDBI established the MSC to advance novel antibiotic discovery to combat the growing threat of of drug-resistant bacteria, particularly the "ESKAPE" pathogens. The MSC is pursuing the following three connected projects to achieve this goal: 

1. Screen Existing Drug Library: Systematically testing thousands of existing compounds, many developed at SLU, against ESKAPE pathogens to identify potential antibiotic candidates

2. Natural Product ID: Exploring the natural world, screening extracts for novel antibiotic activity

3. AI-Powered Design & Compound Selection: Utilize artificial intelligence tools with public and SLU proprietary data to model, design, and test entirely new antibiotics from scratch

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Chemistry, School of Science and Engineering

Shannon Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Research in the Karunananda Lab strategically leverages a combination of synthetic inorganic, organometallic, and computational chemistry techniques to solve pressing challenges in catalysis. The overall research theme is built on employing multiple metals and/or multiple ligands to synergistically bring about novel reactivity and selectivity. A special focus is placed on interrogating reaction mechanisms through experimental and computational techniques to predict and design novel catalysts. Current projects in the lab include photosensitizer development using earth-abundant metals with target applications in organic synthesis and photodynamic therapies, and organometallic catalyst development for polymer upcycling. The experimental work in the lab focuses on multi-metallic complex synthesis, characterization and catalytic reaction development. The computational work in the lab focuses on photoreactivity and catalyst optimization with DFT calculations, statistical analysis, and machine learning approaches. 

Website: https://www.karunanandalab.com/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine

Doisy Research Center on the South Campus

Research Interests

The Sergey Korolev lab studies mechanism of protein function using X-ray crystallography combined with biophysical and biochemical methods. Systems of interest include 1) recombination mediator proteins (RMPs) important for genome maintenance, DNA repair and implicated in cancer (BRCA1/2, PALB2) and pathogen drug resistance; 2) DNA helicases involved in DNA replication and repair; 3) calcium-independent phospholipase (iPLA2B) critical for inflammation, calcium homeostasis and implicated in a wide spectrum of diseases from ischemia to neurodegeneration.

Website: https://biochem.slu.edu/faculty/korolevwp/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Chemistry, School of Science and Engineering

Monsanto Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Drug discovery relies on developing and testing new molecules to evaluate their effectiveness and chemical properties. One key aspect is understanding how drugs interact with plasma proteins, which affects their distribution in the body. Traditionally, plasma protein binding assays use dialysis membranes, but these can introduce errors if not properly handled. This project focuses on validating a new material, developed in the Chemistry Department, that encapsulates human serum albumin in an alginate matrix. This innovation aims to improve the reliability of plasma protein binding assays. Undergraduate researchers will use liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LCMS) to analyze pharmaceuticals with known binding properties and assess the accuracy of this new approach.

Website: https://www.slu.edu/science-and-engineering/academics/chemistry/faculty/damon-osbourn.php 

IDBI-SPUR Project Description

Students involved in this research will gain hands-on experience in sample preparation, instrumental analysis, and data interpretation. They will work closely with a faculty mentor and actively participate in assay development, experimental design, and scientific communication. This opportunity is ideal for students interested in analytical chemistry, materials science, or pharmaceutical research and provides valuable experience in an interdisciplinary research environment.

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biology, College of Arts and Sciences

Macelwane Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Sofia Origanti, Ph.D., studies the regulation of protein synthesis with a focus on eukaryotic initiation factors (eIFs). Many eIFs are overexpressed in cancers and serve to enhance cancer growth. eIF6 is one such factor that is overexpressed in many types of cancers and serves as a potential therapeutic target for inhibiting cancer growth and progression. eIF6 is also deregulated in the rare disorder Shwachman-Diamond syndrome (SDS) and targeting eIF6 has been proposed as a potential therapeutic mechanism for treating SDS.

Website: https://www.origantilab.org/ 

Research Lab Affiliation and Location

Biology, College of Arts and Sciences

Macelwane Hall on the North Campus

Research Interests

Liu lab research seeks to broadly understand the structure and dynamics of biological macromolecules that dictate the solar energy capture and transformation. This area of research spans a range of topics and is well represented in the modern biophysics’ themes that interface with informational quantification/digitization era. Current areas of research include how membrane bound protein complexes that are involved in energy capture and transduction interact to carry out their chemical reactions, and how the membrane protein complexes change conformation to generate structural queue in synergy with other protein complexes in a larger scale energy flow pathway. By using state-of-the-art mass spectrometers coupled with in-depth biochemical/gene engineering technologies, we take a systematic approach to study photosynthetic reaction centers (RCs) dynamics upon changing environmental schemes, such as light and temperature. We strive to translate our structural findings into light/environmental adaptation context.

Website: https://hliulab.org/