Overview
The Ojo laboratory’s main research interest is in the area of molecular target-based drug discovery for neglected infectious parasitic diseases. Our laboratory’s scholarly work is focused on studies to better understand the biology of parasites’ specific enzymes as targets for novel therapeutics. A good understanding of processes that influence the biology of parasite survival and acquired drug resistance will be important in chemical modification of existing antimicrobial agents or in designing new compounds based on the same or different target(s) of interest. Research work in the Ojo lab is a multidisciplinary endeavor requiring knowledge in chemistry, genetics/molecular biology, biochemistry, and pharmacokinetics/drug metabolism. We take advantage of our high-throughput screening & protein production pipelines to develop well-characterized inhibitors that can be further developed as cost-effective & potent therapeutics for neglected infectious diseases. Our team utilizes a wide variety of molecular/biochemical and in vivo pharmacokinetics/efficacy techniques. Ongoing research work centers on the role of specific protein kinases in signaling events essential for cell survival. We also study other parasitic enzymes including Methionyl-tRNA synthetase (MetRS) and other Aminoacyl tRNA synthetase that are essential for survival.
Principal investigator
Diseases we study
- Besnoitiosis
- Cryptosporidiosis
- Cystoisosporiasis
- Giardiasis
- Gonorrhea
- Malaria
- Mycoplasma Genitalium
- Neosporosis
- Prostate Cancer