Laman Group
Our Research
Our lab works on a family of enzymes known as ubiquitin ligases which are crucial for the healthy function of cells, especially in the context of environmental stresses and infection. When they are dysfunctional, this results in an array of different diseases including Parkinson’s disease, cancer, male infertility, and anaemia. Given the wide-ranging importance of these enzymes in many different cell types, our research is aimed at understanding why they are so important by discovering which cellular proteins they modify and what processes they control inside of cells. We study their impact on fundamental processes like controlling protein and organelle degradation, metabolism, and the trafficking of cellular components. Alongside this, we aim to harness the ability of ubiquitin ligases to specifically modify particular proteins to generate a new class of therapeutics.
Current Projects include:
- Neuroprotective roles of Fbxo7/PARK15.
- Fbxo7 roles in spermiogenesis.
- Fbxo7 and PI31 as proteasome regulators.
- The roles of F-box proteins in cancer.
- Targeting ubiquitin ligases and ubiquitinated proteins with bioPROTACs.
- Understanding PROTAC toxicity.
