Brandon Anson

Current Research Interests:

3CL protease is responsible for the maturation of the viral replicase, making it a critical bottleneck in the viral life cycle. Catalysis requires dimerization via a distal interaction that is unique amongst proteases belonging to the chymotrypsin fold. Low concentrations of competitive inhibitors are shown to activate catalysis in a manner suggested to relate to the strength of this interaction. My research focuses on how the enzyme transmits the binding state of one catalytic site, through its unique dimerization domain, to the other, in order to facilitate an efficient acylation/deacylation cycle. Our hope is that the mechanism uncovered will be used to identify robust modes of inhibition for this pandemic viral clade.