RESEARCH INTERESTS
How is virus binding and release modulated at the cell surface? How does it work on the molecular level?
How do viruses diffuse through the glycocalyx and on the cell surface to reach their entry point for optimal infection? What is the role of multiple ligand-receptor-pairs (multivalency)?
What is the role of cell-surface carbohydrates in modulating virus-membrane interactions?
TOOLS
Our lab adopts an interdisciplinary approach to study virus-membrane interactions. It combines advanced biophysical tools, using concepts from chemistry and physics, with cell and molecular biology techniques, including more conventional to the field of virology. This experimental strategy makes it possible to study virus-membrane interactions in a new and more comprehensive way.
PROJECTS
Interactions between herpes simplex virus and cell-surface glycosaminoglycans: the role of viral protein -glycosylation and cellular GAGs in modulating virus binding and diffusion.
Norovirus – glycolipid interactions: virus binding and release from histo-blood group antigens
Apolipoprotein E and infection by Herpes simplex virus type-1: molecular mechanisms behind the role of herpes simplex in Alzheimer’s disease
Attachment and entry of pathogenic coronaviruses
The role of sulfation patterns in modulting the interaction between human papillomavirus and cell-surface glycosaminoglycans
Filovirus interactions at the cell surface: the role of viral and cellular carbohydrates