Daniel Kosman, PhD, studies how organisms acquire and metabolize iron and copper, intrinsically toxic metals essential to cellular respiration and oxygen transport. One of his goals is to develop antifungal drugs to treat infections in humans.

Thomas Russo, MD, is internationally known for his work with strains of E. coli that cause infections outside the intestine and result in morbidity worldwide due to pneumonia, urinary tract infections and meningitis.

Gabriela Popescu, PhD, is studying NMDA receptors in the brain, which are involved in synaptic development, plasticity, memory and learning, as well as in pathologies such as stroke, neurodegeneration, chronic pain, addiction, schizophrenia and epilepsy.

Kenneth Blumenthal, PhD, is an expert in protein structures. He researches structure-function relationships in ion channels using naturally occurring toxins as probes of ion transport and gating processes. One of his goals is to design drugs directed at the target channel.

Noreen Williams, PhD, studies parasitic protozoans, including Trypanosoma brucei, which causes African sleeping sickness, transmitted by the tse-tse fly; and Trypanosoma cruzi, which causes Chagas’ disease, transmitted by the reduviid bug.

Suzanne Laychock, PhD, is investigating the cellular mechanisms regulating insulin secretion in pancreatic cells. Her group has used pancreatic cells in primary culture to develop in vitro systems that mimic aspects of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.