The Poirier Lab

Open Postdoctoral Position in Single-Molecule DNA Repair and Chromatin Biophysics at the Ohio State University and the Ohio State University Medical Center

Welcome to the Poirier Lab

Each of our chromosomes contains a long chromatin fiber that is a complex assortment of protein and DNA.  The fundamental unit of chromatin is a nucleosome, which contains ~147 base pairs of DNA wrapped around an octamer of H2A, H2B, H3, and H4 histone proteins.  This results in our DNA being organized into about 20 million nucleosome spools. The overall focus of the Poirier Lab is to understand how the DNA within chromatin is transcribed, replicated and repaired. Our approach is to apply a cross-disciplinary techniques that combines biochemical, biophysical and single molecule techniques, which includes: restriction enzyme studies, cyclization experiments, nucleosome mapping, steady state Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer measurements (FRET), stopped flow FRET, fluorescence correlation spectroscopy, single molecule force and twist measurements with magnetic tweezers and single molecule FRET measurements.,  

We currently are focused on three research programs. The first program is to determine how histone post-translational modifications in structured regions of the nucleosome alter chromatin structure and dynamics. The second program is to determine how DNA mismatches are recognized and repaired in chromatin. The third program is to understand how the mechanical properties of DNA is important for DNA-protein interactions.

Because of our interdisciplinary nature, collaborations are essential for our success. We have developed close collaborations with the Ottesen Lab, the Fishel Lab and the Bundschuh Lab.

Funded by:

News

• June 2009: Congratulations to Alex Mooney, Justin North, Robin Nakkula and Jon Picking as co-authors on their publication in Journal of Biological Chemistry.

• May 2009: Congratulations to Bob Forties as lead author on his publication in Nucleic Acids Research.

• May 2009: Congratulations to Justin North for completing his PhD Candidacy Exam.

• April 2009: Congratulations to Justin North as co-author on a publication in the Journal of Experimental Medicine.

• December 2008: Congratulations to Alex Mooney for completi ng his PhD Candidacy Exam.

• May 2008: Congratulations to Jonathan Picking, who was awarded a Biochemistry SURP award to support his 2008 summer research!

• May 2008: Congratulations to Justin North, who was awarded a two year pre-doctoral fellowship from the American Heart Association!

• May 2008: Congratulations to Marek Simon for completing his PhD Candidacy Exam.

• February 2008: We received funding for five years from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences at the National Institutes of Health.