Clemons Lab
Principal Investigator: William M. Clemons
Institution: California Institute of Technology (Pasadena, CA)
Primary Subfield: Molecular & Cell Bio
Recruitment Status: ✅ Hiring Postdocs
Research Focus
Project Summary Title: Mechanistic details of key integral-membrane enzymes for antimicrobial discovery The increasing number of antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria represents a significant threat to human health, making the development of novel therapeutic strategies critical. The major component of the bacterial cell wall is the peptidoglycan layer that is a unique meshwork providing essential structural support; therefore, identifying ways to weaken this layer is an ideal antibiotic strategy. Currently, numerous therapeutics target the peptidoglycan synthesis pathway and their use has been extremely successful in medicine. The enzymes involved in the pathway have been extensively characterized except in the case of the membrane components. Most notable are MraY and MurG, essential proteins that catalyze the membrane steps of peptidoglycan biosynthesis. There are a few known inhibitors of MraY, such as tunicamycin, demonstrating its potential as an antibiotic target; however, none of them has found usefulness in the clinic. Our group has developed efficient total synthesis schemes for two of the most promising natural products, capuramycin and muraymycin, and in the last fun…
Active NIH Awards
- 2R01GM114611-09: Mechanistic details of key integral membrane enzymes for antimicrobial discovery (2026)
- 5R01GM114611-08: Mechanistic details of key integral membrane enzymes for antimicrobial discovery (2024)
- 3R01GM114611-08S1: Mechanistic details of key integral membrane enzymes for antimicrobial discovery (2024)
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