Class of 2005
aaronrob@jhu.edu | B.S. Biochemistry, Cook College Rutgers
Research
I am investigating the role of protein electrostatics using staphylococcal nuclease as a model system. Currently I have two ongoing projects. (1) I am in the process of growing crystals and solving structures for a wide range of nuclease variants where ionizable groups have been inserted into the protein interior. My main goal is to obtain structures for lysine, glutamate and aspartate variants at several positions. With these structures, our lab hopes to gain insight as to how nuclease, and proteins in general, deals with the burial of ionizable residues into their hydrophobic cores. (2) I have also made a series of nuclease double mutants that introduce ion pairs into the hydrophobic core. Through fluorescence, CD and crystallography I hope to gain insight into the responses proteins have to buried ion pairs. Coupled with previous work in the lab, we also hope to determine the energetic cost of burying multiple ionizable groups and the means of off-setting those costs.
Publications
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