Donald H. Burke

Associate Professor of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology

Email:	burkedh@missouri.edu
Phone:	(573) 884-1316
Fax:	(573) 884-9676
Office:	471H Bond Life Sciences Center
Mailing Address:	Molecular Microbiology & Immunology 471H Bond Life Sciences Center University of Missouri-Columbia Columbia, MO 65211
Research Areas:	Ribozyme mechanism and evolution and the Origin of Life; antiviral nucleic acid aptamers and the molecular basis of drug resistant HIV-1.
Webpage:	http://mmi.missouri.edu/burke/db.php

Educational Background

Research Description

Both aptamers and ribozymes are found in nature and can be isolated from combinatorial libraries containing ~10¹⁵ species. Ribozymes are RNA enzymes, while aptamers are RNAs selected to bind molecular partners. LIFE IS MOLECULAR RECOGNITION! By understanding, controlling, and manipulating the transient, non-covalent interactions that govern recognition, we can control the molecules of life. Our work is defining whether metabolic ribozymes can be engineered to replace protein enzymes inside cells, and whether aptamer inhibitors of HIV-1 replication can illuminate viral pathogenesis. We are also learning how the three-dimensional structure of a ribozyme directs catalysis and whether multi-clade targeting of aptamers prevents the evolution of drug resistant HIV.