The Yousaf
group uses a multidisciplinary approach to develop new surface chemistries
and materials to investigate
important cell biological problems, such as cell migration and cell division.
The lab uses a variety of methods ranging from organic synthesis, several
analytical techniques, microfabrication, material science, microscopy,
biochemistry, and cell biology. The following are brief descriptions of
the three main
research interests in the Yousaf lab:
1. New Microarrays to Study Small Molecule-Protein and Protein-Protein
Interactions
Although there have been many recent advances in small-molecule and protein-microarray
technology, no system is able to immobilize small molecules and proteins
in defined densities and orientations onto a substrate that has very low
non-specific binding and is compatible with a variety of protein identification
technologies. The Yousaf lab uses a surface-chemistry approach based on
self-assembled monolayers of alkanethiolates (SAMs) on gold to develop
novel small-molecule, protein, and cDNA transfection microarrays that
can be used for drug discovery, proteomics, and for investigating signaling
between molecular networks within a cell. 2. Chemical, Material, and Cell Biological Approaches to Study Cell Division
The Yousaf group uses a multidisciplinary strategy to understand the role
of proteolysis in late mitotic events, and to develop novel materials
to study how cell size and the cytoskeleton affect cell-cycle transitions.
The lab also studies the biochemistry of checkpoint proteins using FRET
(fluorescence resonance energy transfer) and quantum dot strategies. 3. A Surface Chemistry and Materials Approach to Develop Substrates for
Lipid Raft-Dependent Actin Polymerization
Locally differentiated patches of membrane (microdomains) are thought
to form either spontaneously or through distinct signals, persist for
a time and then disappear back into the disorder of the fluid mosaic.
The organization of membranes into microdomains or lipid rafts is functionally
important since they organize membrane functions, either by concentrating
interacting molecules in particular regions of the cell surface or by
excluding molecules and so preventing their interaction. The Yousaf lab
uses a multidisciplinary approach to understand how these domains form
and how they stimulate actin polymerization at the membrane. They are
currently developing model systems to address these questions, and also
to study membrane enzymology using lipid-based drugs. Selected Publications:
Chan EW, Yousaf MN. (2007) Surface-Chemistry Control to Silence Gene Expression in Drosophila Schneider 2 Cells through RNA Interference. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. Apr 5; [Epub ahead of print]
Chan EW, Yousaf MN. (2006) Immobilization of ligands with precise control of density to electroactive surfaces. J Am Chem Soc. 128(48):15542-6.
Dillmore WS, Yousaf MN, and Mrksich M. (2004) A photochemical method
for patterning the immobilization of ligands and cells to self-assembled
monolayers. Langmuir 20:7223-31.
Yeo WS, Yousaf MN, and Mrksich M. (2003) Dynamic interfaces between cells
and surfaces: electroactive substrates that sequentially release and attach
cells. J Am Chem Soc. 125:14994-5. Yousaf MN, Houseman BT, and Mrksich M. (2001) Using electroactive substrates
to pattern the attachment of two different cell populations. Proc
Natl Acad Sci U S A 98:5992-6.
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