Our section is investigating the structural basis of intercellular signaling via chemotaxis and the role of chemokines and defensins in the process of viral infection. We are also interested in correlating the structures of defensins and chemokines with their antimicrobial and chemotactic properties. We are also studying the enzymatic mechanism and specificity of human L-asparaginase and plant-type asparaginases, structures of urokinase plasminogen activator complex with its receptor as wel as TREM-Like Transcript protein 1 (TLT-1). Although we primarily use X-ray crystallography in our studies, our research techniques extend into biochemistry and molecular biology.
| Wu, Zhibin; Li, Xiangqun; Ericksen, Bryan et al. (2007) Impact of pro segments on the folding and function of human neutrophil alpha-defensins. J Mol Biol 368:537-49 |
| Zou, Guozhang; de Leeuw, Erik; Li, Chong et al. (2007) Toward understanding the cationicity of defensins. Arg and Lys versus their noncoded analogs. J Biol Chem 282:19653-65 |
| Pazgier, M; Hoover, D M; Yang, D et al. (2006) Human beta-defensins. Cell Mol Life Sci 63:1294-313 |
| Buck, Christopher B; Day, Patricia M; Thompson, Cynthia D et al. (2006) Human alpha-defensins block papillomavirus infection. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 103:1516-21 |
| Pazgier, Marzena; Lubkowski, Jacek (2006) Expression and purification of recombinant human alpha-defensins in Escherichia coli. Protein Expr Purif 49:1-8 |
| Economopoulou, Matina; Bdeir, Khalil; Cines, Douglas B et al. (2005) Inhibition of pathologic retinal neovascularization by alpha-defensins. Blood 106:3831-8 |
| Wu, Zhibin; Cocchi, Fiorenza; Gentles, David et al. (2005) Human neutrophil alpha-defensin 4 inhibits HIV-1 infection in vitro. FEBS Lett 579:162-6 |
| Xie, Cao; Prahl, Adam; Ericksen, Bryan et al. (2005) Reconstruction of the conserved beta-bulge in mammalian defensins using D-amino acids. J Biol Chem 280:32921-9 |
| Wu, Z; Ericksen, B; Tucker, K et al. (2004) Synthesis and characterization of human alpha-defensins 4-6. J Pept Res 64:118-25 |
| Szyk, Agnieszka; Lu, Wuyuan; Xu, Chenqi et al. (2004) Structure of the scorpion toxin BmBKTtx1 solved from single wavelength anomalous scattering of sulfur. J Struct Biol 145:289-94 |
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