Structural Studies of Enzymes That Make Bacterial Natural Products

image of the structure of ObiF, a protein that makes the lactone antibiotic obafluorin.

This project will work to understand the structure and function of enzymes that are used by bacteria to make novel antibiotics and other bioactive molecules.

Project is Not Currently Available

This project has reached full capacity for the current term. Please check back next semester for updates.

Project description

Many bacteria produce natural products, small molecules that are secreted from the cell that allow them to thrive in diverse environments that they face. Many of these compounds have important bioactivities, including antibiotic, anticancer, and have thus inspired over half of the FDA-approved drugs for the past four decades. Our lab has a longstanding interest in a family of large modular enzymes that produce peptide based natural products. One unusual class are transmembrane proteins that produce polymers of amino acids joined through their side chains. Using experimental and computational atomic models, we hope to gain insight into the molecular mechanisms that these enzymes employ. An undergraduate in the lab will be involved in the cloning of new members of this family and producing new, diverse family members that may have unusual activities. The student will work closely with a research scientist in the lab but will expand the project through new enzymes that will be studied for functional and structural characterization.

Project outcome

The specific outcomes of this project will be identified by the faculty mentor at the beginning of your collaboration. 

The undergraduate student will be immersed in the lab, learning techniques that are relevant for state-of-the-art structural biology techniques. These include both wet lab and computational tools, including

  1. Wet lab molecular biology techniques, including plasmid isolation and cloning, site-directed mutagenesis, and protein expression and purification.
  2. Biochemical analysis including enzyme assays and protein crystallization.
  3. Computational tools including structural enzymology informatics, computational modeling, interpretation of structures for mutation design and prediction of enzyme activity.

Additionally, the student will be exposed to other scientists in the lab to become familiarized with other research projects in the lab. The student will attend weekly lab meetings where they will learn to listen and critically analyze data as well as observe others. The student will present their work once per semester, allowing them to develop the skills to organize a scientific presentation with sufficient background and clear, well-designed slides to convey complex information to their audience.

Project details

Timing, eligibility and other details
Length of commitment Longer than a semester (about 6-9 months)
Start time Anytime
In-person, remote, or hybrid?
 In-person
Level of collaboration Individual student project
Benefits Stipend
Who is eligible All undergraduate students studying biochemistry, chemistry, or biology who have taken a Biochemistry or Organic Chemistry class. GPA of 3.2 or higher. Students should have familiarity with basic lab skills and the ability to work independently.
Goldwater and the National Science Foundation

Students participating in this project might be interested in and eligible for the Goldwater Scholarship and the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. Connect with the Office of Fellowships and Scholarships to learn more.

Project mentor

Andrew Gulick

Professor

Structural Biology

955 Main St.

Phone: (716) 829-3696

Email: amgulick@buffalo.edu

Start the project

  1. Email the project mentor using the contact information above to express your interest and get approval to work on the project. (Here are helpful tips on how to contact a project mentor.)
  2. After you receive approval from the mentor to start this project, click the button to start the digital badge. (Learn more about ELN's digital badge options.) 
Start the Digital Badge

Preparation activities

Once you begin the digital badge series, you will have access to all the necessary activities and instructions. Your mentor has indicated they would like you to also complete the specific preparation activities below. After you’re approved to begin the project, your mentor will send the relevant materials. Please reference this when you get to Step 2 of the Preparation Phase. 

  • Read a short article describing the enzymes that make bacterial natural products. 
  • Meet with Dr. Gulick to discuss the article and the research project.

Keywords

structural biology, enzymes, bacteria, antibiotics, medicine