Metalloenzyme Engineering

Our laboratory focuses on metalloenzyme engineering for biocatalysis, bioremediation, and therapeutic proteins. Metalloenzymes can catalyze complex transformations under ambient conditions. These catalysts have evolved to produce small molecules that are important in nature. Altering the amino acid sequence of proteins allows for the engineering of enzymes for new or altered functionality. Our laboratory aims to evolve new metalloenzymes that will benefit society and the environment. Our approach to enzyme engineering consists of four different directions: traditional directed evolution techniques, machine-learning-guided directed evolution, unnatural amino acid incorporation, and method development for new approaches to enzyme engineering.