A common theme to the laboratory's research projects is the investigation of medically relevant enzymes with interesting chemical properties, such as complex multifunctional systems and proteins performing unusual catalytic functions. The core of the research activity is represented by X-ray crystallography, employed to study protein three-dimensional structures. This is complemented by other approaches such as site-directed mutagenesis, analysis of enzyme kinetics and computational chemistry. Current research is focusing on enzymes of the neurotransmitter metabolism, on a protein complex involved in chromatin remodeling, on an enzymatic system for the biosynthesis of a class of membrane phospholipids, on the structural genomics of viral replicative enzymes, and on the reaction of flavoenzymes with oxygen.
