Research in my group is in the general areas of bioorganic and materials chemistry with a specific focus on the development of fluorescent analogs of biomolecules. We design, synthesize and characterize probes targeting specific biomacromolecular structures including DNA, transmembrane proteins, enzymes and receptors. This effort incorporates several research activities including quantum chemical calculations, organic synthesis, optical spectroscopy, in vitro cellular studies, and fluorescence microscopy.
Fluorescent analogs of tyrosine kinase inhibitors allow tracking of drug distribution, aggregation and binding in cancer cells. These dynamics can be linked to cellular outcomes (survival, reduced proliferation, or death) improving our understanding of drug resistance mechanisms.