Research

Our research at the interface of chemistry and biology has a broad aim of correlating biological activity with chemical structure and reactivity.  Many cancers are linked to dietary and environmental factors and can be initiated by chemical alterations in nucleic acid structures.  Likewise, the diet contains xenobiotic small molecules that prevent carcinogenesis or modulate the action of chemotherapeutics in targeting biomolecules.  Our program unites contemporary research in synthetic organic, physical organic, medicinal, and analytical chemistry with the study of carcinogenesis and toxicology. It involves chemical synthesis of small molecules and DNA, enzyme inhibition studies, enzyme-mediated DNA transformations, the study of natural products and their derivatives, cell-based toxicity assays, mass spectrometric analysis of modified biomolecules, and other basic chemistry aspects of new biotechnologies.  Knowledge regarding mechanisms of chemical toxicology and the chemical tools developed as part of this research are expected to contribute to less toxic therapeutic and natural disease prevention strategies.