I am a biophysical chemist who uses theory and computational techniques to study the non-equilibrium thermodynamics of molecular-scale biological processes. My research program focuses on questions where non-equilibrium statistical mechanics and information theory provide ground-breaking insights into the fluctuation-dominated behavior of biomolecular systems. Through my research I intend to uncover the basic principles of driven biomolecular-scale energy conversion, especially the physical constraints placed on biomolecular machines by their operational imperatives: doing useful work in finite time while driven by strong gradients in the fluctuation-dominated microscopic realm of a cell at room temperature. Such insights into the constraints on efficient nanoscale energy conversion may illuminate efforts to devise therapeutics for the numerous human illnesses (including cardiomyopathy, neurodegeneration and cancer) resulting from the dysfunction of particular biomolecular machines. Design principles derived from these constraints should also prove useful in synthesizing artificial molecular machines, for example for solar energy conversion or drug delivery.

Nonequilibrium thermodynamics of biomolecular machines

244th National Meeting (2012)

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