The goal of our lab is to investigate the basic biology of trypanosomes, protozoan parasites responsible for important tropical diseases. Our hope is that the basic discoveries made in our lab will impact on the prevention or treatment of the diseases that they cause. Our studies involve biochemistry, molecular biology, cell biology, and genetics.

We focus on two research areas:

Kinetoplast DNA - Trypanosome mitochondrial DNA, known as kDNA, consists of several thousand DNA circles topologically interlocked in a giant DNA network. We are studying the novel mechanism by which kDNA replicates, the structure of isolated kDNA, and the complex structural organization of this network in vivo. We have been depending heavily on RNA interference, a powerful tool for selective inhibition of trypanosome gene expression, to study the function of proteins involved in kDNA replication. Recently we have exploited genomics, proteomics, and RNA interference libraries to discover new proteins involved in the replication process.

Trypanosome Surface Proteins - We are studying the variant surface glycoprotein (VSG) and procyclin, the surface proteins of bloodstream and insect-form trypanosomes. We
are focusing mainly on their GPI anchors and the mechanism by which the anchors become myristoylated. We are also studying how the trypanosome takes up, processes, and especially how it synthesizes myristate for use in myristoylation of GPIs.