Research programs at the Bond LSC
Unlike some research centers, the Bond LSC does not have a single scientific theme. Our goal is to allow novel research opportunities and directions to arise from interactions among our talented and diverse scientists. The focus is on addressing new questions in news ways using interdisciplinary approaches.
Of the 33 current LSC investigators, 11 are plant biologists. They all use molecular techniques to investigate plant responses to stresses, plant growth and development, and evolution. Signaling systems and genomics are particular strengths of our plant research programs.
Eighteen LSC investigators are focused on biomedical problems. A large subgroup is interested in neuromuscular phenomena, and another in virology. Animal development and inflammatory processes are also well represented and we have strength in the study of signaling systems. Some of the many diseases/conditions our LSC investigators study are Duchenne muscular dystrophy, Sjogren's syndrome, spinal muscular atrophy, Charcot-Marie-Tooth disorder, Alzheimer's, cardiovascular disease, multiple sclerosis, HIV/AIDS, autism, addictive behaviors and endometrial cancers. Mice, rats, drosophila, yeast, and zebra fish are among the models our investigators use.
We have four computational scientists in the Bond LSC, whose interests include bioinformatics and biostatistics, pattern recognition, predictive models of protein structure and protein-protein interactions, and bioinformatics algorithms for systems biology.
The Bond LSC's greatest strength is in developing interdisciplinary collaborative projects. For example, our bioinformatics investigators are working with plant scientists to unravel the evolutionary origins of signals root-infesting nematodes use to modify plant growth and development.
Another plant scientist is working with a biomedical investigator to express plant genes encoding elements of the proteasome in animal cells to assess the importance of protein-protein interactions in signal transduction.
Our virology group combines excellence in microscopy, virology, computational biology, protein modeling, and RNA aptamer design to produce novel anti-viral agents that are being developed into new drugs.
The LSC neuromuscular team integrates expertise in protein signaling, gene regulation, and adult stem cell biology to learn how exercise produces muscle repair and development.
We have oncologists working with engineers to develop photoacoustic detection of circulating cancer cells, and plant scientists and engineers developing sensors to detect insect-damaged plants in the field.
In a sense the Bond LSC exists to demonstrate that a scientific product can be greater than the sum of the individual investigators, if they are encouraged to work together across boundaries in a world-class environment. That is our goal, and it will be the measure of our success.
