Current Research Interests
Living organisms are green chemist masters that produce multi-functional and high-performance materials with a much smaller energetic cost compared to engineering materials and with minimal environmental impact. Biological structures such as seashells, silk fibers, or water-resistant adhesives are all produced under ambient temperature and pressure, in an aqueous environment, and from natural chemicals. The overarching goal of team led by Prof Ali Miserez is to harness these principles. His lab aims to: (i) discover the building blocks of biological materials through combined RNA-sequencing/proteomics approach, (ii) solve their molecular structure and nano-scale assembly via structural biology methods, (iii) establish structure/property/function relationships from the molecular up to the macroscopic scale, and (iv) elucidate the bioprocessing pathways by which these natural materials are synthesized. In upstream research, biological structures discovered in the lab are artificially produced by protein engineering, peptide synthesis, and self-assembly and translated into sustainable materials and biomedical applications. His lab is also active and in the area of marine biofouling and in optically-active materials inspired by Nature.