Casey Krusemark

Title:

Assistant Professor

PhD Granting Institution:

Univ. of Wisconsin Madison

Contact:

Email Address: ckrusema@purdue.edu

Primary Training Group:

Chemical Biology

Secondary Training Groups:

Biotechnology, Cancer Biology

Research Areas:

Research in the Krusemark laboratory is focused on the discovery of functional small molecules using the power of in vitro evolution. DNA-programmed combinatorial chemistry (DPCC) enables the "translation" of DNA constructs into DNA conjugates with wholly synthetic small molecules, thus enabling Darwinian-like selections. DPCC allows the synthesis and functional interrogation of small molecule libraries of unprecedented size and complexity (presently up to 1010 members).

Current Projects:

The Krusemark lab works on the further development of the DPCC technology, towards the goal of a streamlined system for generating drug leads and biological tool compounds. We use a combination of chemical, engineering, and molecular biology methods. We are working to expand the synthetic toolbox available for building molecules on unprotected DNA towards drug-like small molecules. Our lab will develop tools to study the protein kinase C (PKC) family of kinases, which are involved in the signal transduction pathways of numerous and varied cellular processes.