Center for BioOptical Nanotechnology

Our center integrates biology, chemistry and biophysics together to explore the diversity of function and structure in biological and biomimetic systems.  We do this at two levels. 

First, we employ a variety of molecular evolution strategies to search large pools of sequences for rare molecules with desirable functions.  These methods allows us to rapidly find new molecules and molecular systems with novel activities and is being applied to the discovery of synthetic antibodies, novel translation start sites, new catalysts as well as small nucleic acid and protein motifs. 

Second, we employ a variety of spectroscopic and analytical tools, and the associated biophysical analysis, to both investigate natural systems, such as photosynthesis, and to analyze the novel systems we generate.

Our project teams have specific efforts ongoing in:

• Developing novel catalytic activities in peptides and small proteins
• Identifying novel translational start sites in the human genome
• Evolving aptamers to key protein post-translational modifications
• Exploring peptide enzyme interactions and the ability of peptides to modify enzyme function
• Screening and selecting cells on surfaces
• Searching large combinatorial libraries for novel protein folds
• Developing synthetic antibodies: Peptide Mutagenesis &  DNA-Based Synthetic Antibodies
  
• Seeking engineering lessons from Mother Nature as we study energy transfer during photosynthesis