Ion Channel Structure and Function

Ion channels are key players in many physiological processes and their function is tightly regulated. The work in the lab is targeted towards understanding how ion channel structure and mechanism interrelate at the molecular level to fulfill diverse physiological needs. In particular, we are interested in ligand-gated ion channels and their allosteric regulation and we investigate them via a combination of structural, biochemical, biophysical, and electrophysiological approaches.  We use cryo-EM to determine high-resolution structures of ion channels in different conformations and in different lipid environments that we can directly assign to functional states via information from single-channel recording and other functional assays. This will ultimately pave the way towards conformationally-selective drug therapies.

Source:  https://physiology.med.cornell.edu/people/crina-nimigean-ph-d/