Jessica Sarver

My research focuses on utilizing ESR to determine structural details of biological systems that cannot easily be analyzed using other methods such as x-ray crystallography or NMR.  I’m specifically interested in protein systems.  The project I am currently working on is determining the molecular details in the binding specificity of the restriction endonuclease EcoRI, a DNA-binding protein.  In this project we utilize ESR distance measurements to compare the protein-DNA complex when bound to varying sequences of DNA.  I’m also involved in the glycine receptor project in which distance measurements are performed on the glycine receptor, a large transmembrane protein.  These measurements provide structural details about the protein for which there is no crystal structure due to both the size and lipid environment of the protein.       

 

When I’m not in the lab working I enjoy going running, reading, going to festivals, hunting, and of course, watching the Steelers play on Sunday afternoons (unfortunately this is done in my living room and not at Heinz field).  I go running with friends from school, but I hope to join one of the running clubs in Pittsburgh before I’m done with gradschool.  Pittsburgh offers a wide variety of activities that any typical city would such as theatre and festivals.  There are always food or beer festivals going on in the summertime which are always enjoyable.  I’m originally from Pittsburgh so I’m naturally drawn to hunting and watching the Steelers.  So…HERE WE GO STEELERS HERE WE GO!!