My lab studies lung disease in horses, cats, and dogs. We look for relationships between air pollution and the incidence of asthma. As well, we are developing more detailed ways of understanding how lung diseases arise, and finding more accurate methods for diagnosing them.
At the turn of the 21st century, the environmental protection and climate change mitigation are among our most essential efforts to ensure our survival on the planet. Most development practices have been unsustainable up to now and cannot continue in the same fashion. The atmospheric environment is an important part of the environment we all depend on. At the same time, the atmosphere is so fragile and resource limited. Sustainable development toward the protection of the atmosphere is everyone's responsibility.
We are interested in structure-function relationships of enzymes and enzyme evolution. We are studying steroid degrading enzymes from the pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis and other related bacteria. We are also interested in enzymes that can be used to detoxify environmental pollutants.