Center for Integrative Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery
Controlling the Mucus That Kills Pulmonary Patients
50 million Americans suffer from asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and cystic fibrosis. A hallmark of these diseases is excessive mucus that can lead to airway plugging. Current therapies are not effective in reducing airway mucus. Our work will lay the foundation for developing novel inhibitors of a protein whose role in airway mucus overproduction was recently discovered at UNC.
Center for Integrative Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery
Molecular Simulations of Ultra-Large Biological Systems
Our ultimate goal is to build a computer system that can reproduce the inner workings of a cell. Such a system will be a major research tool in drug discovery and molecular biology. The objective of this project is to develop a pilot software and perform a proof-of-concept study. The innovation of our approach involves the creation of synergy between the scientific disciplines of molecular dynamics and systems biology.