We are aiming to understand the causes and the effects of pathogenic viruses at the molecular level. Currently, proteins from coronaviruses (e.g. SARS-CoV-2; COVID-19 virus) are being studied by structural- and biochemical- methods.
We also try to understand the interactions happening between proteins from the host and pathogenic bacteria such as Streptococcus, Legionella, Mycobacterium, Salmonella, etc.
Even though prokaryotes do not have ubiquitin in their genome, there are several proteins that alter or utilize host ubiquitin machinery. We are trying to understand the structure and molecular basis of ubiquitin-mediated interactions between hosts and pathogens.