The ability to rapidly isolate human antibodies using phage display has opened up new approaches to understanding protein function. Research in my laboratory is focused on the manipulation of immunoglobulin molecules to develop novel reagents for characterization of protein expression and structure. We are using phage antibody technology in several areas of proteomics research to develop improved reagents for protein characterization as well as novel inhibitors of protein function that will aid in defining the roles of the many new proteins discovered through genomic sequencing. Major efforts are aimed at dissecting the saliva proteome and developing panels of antibodies for incorporation into new diagnostic platforms using protein microarrays. A second initiative is to derive antibodies useful for solving the structure of proteins by X-ray crystallography. Additional studies focus on the therapeutic potential of single-chain antibodies to reduce protein aggregation and misfolding, a process that characterizes a variety of neurodegenerative diseases and identification of new markers of neural developoment.

Our laboratory also houses the Biomolecular Interaction Core facility. In addition to providing access to phage antibody technology to any investigator in the university, we also can analyze protein-protein interactions using surface plasmon resonance.

1. Maguire-Zeiss KA, Wang CI, Yehling E, Sullivan MA, Short DW, Su X, Gouzer G, Henricksen LA, Wuertzer CA, Federoff HJ. Identification of human alpha-synuclein specific single chain antibodies. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2006 :349:1198-1205.

2.Shea C, Bloedorn L, Sullivan, MA. Rapid Isolation of Antibodies for Structural Genomics, J Structural Funct Gen 2005;6:171-175.

3.Bliss JM, Sullivan MA, Malone J, Haidaris CG. Differentiation of Candida albicans and Candida dublinensis using recombinant human antibody single chain variable fragments specific for hyphae. J Clin Microbiol 41:1152-1160, 2003

4. Haidaris CG, Malone J, Sherril LA, Bliss JM, Gaspari AA, Insel RA, Sullivan MA. Recombinant human antibody single chain variable fragments reactive with Candida albicans surface antigens. J Immunol Methods 257:185-202, 2001