Courses taught: Organic Chemistry, Biochemistry, Medicinal Chemistry
Research Projects: Our current projects focus on the enzyme glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) that catalyzes the oxidative deamination of the amino acid glutamate into the citric acid cycle intermediate alpha-ketoglutarate. GDH serves as a link between amino acid metabolism and energy metabolism, and is involved in human disease. Dominant gain-of-function mutations in GDH activate the enzyme and cause the rare metabolic disorder hyperinsulinism/hyperammonemia (HI/HA). Cancer cells upregulate the glutaminolysis pathway that includes GDH to obtain energy and biosynthetic material to meet their unique metabolic needs. We are interested in fundamental questions about GDH biochemistry and enzymology, as well as the development of inhibitors of GDH towards new treatments for HI/HA and GDH-dependent cancers.