School of Physics

Protein Structure Group
Home
People
Research
Publications
Resources
Links
Protein Crystals
X-ray diffraction
Electron Density



Protein Structure Group
Initiative in Biomolecular Structure

 
School of Physics
University of New South Wales
Sydney 2052
Australia

phone: +61 2 9385 4552
fax: +61 2 9385 6060
email: p.curmi@unsw.edu.au

Proteins are the fundamental molecular machines in any living system.  Understanding how these machines work requires a knowledge of the three dimensional atomic structure of the protein.  The focus of our group is to understand the molecular and cellular function of various protein systems. Our key experimental technique is x-ray crystallography, although we also utilise a battery of other biochemical and biophysical techniques to enhance our understanding.  The laboratory has several themes including: membrane proteins, proteins that undergo dramatic structural changes, light harvesting proteins and molecular machines. The Group uses the tools of modern molecular biology to prepare proteins of choice. These are then characterised via biophysical and biochemical means prior to structure determination.  We use computational and bioinformatic tools to analyse our structures. We are also exploring the physical basis for the structures observed in proteins, structural patterns, their structural transitions and mechanisms of action.

People | Research | Publications |Resources | Links



Updated Aug 2006
s