James N. Wilson, PhD, University of Miami

James N. Wilson, PhD,
James N. Wilson, PhD

The Wilson lab is focused on the general areas of bioorganic and materials chemistry with a specific focus on the development of fluorescent analogs of biomolecules. They design, synthesize and characterize probes targeting specific biomacromolecular structures including DNA, transmembrane proteins, enzymes and receptors. This effort incorporates several research activities including quantum chemical calculations, organic synthesis, optical spectroscopy, in vitro cellular studies, and fluorescence microscopy. Fluorescent analogs of tyrosine kinase inhibitors allow tracking of drug distribution, aggregation and binding in cancer cells. These dynamics can be linked to cellular outcomes (survival, reduced proliferation, or death) improving our understanding of drug resistance mechanisms.

The Investigator's Annexe Part of The Investigator's Annexe program.

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References

  1. Pitter DR, Brown AS, Baker JD, Wilson JN. One probe, two-channel imaging of nuclear and cytosolic compartments with orange and red emissive dyes. Org Biomol Chem. 2015 Aug 10. doi: 10.1039/C5OB01428J
  2. Pitter DR, Wigenius J, Brown AS, Baker JD, Westerlund F, Wilson JN. Turn-on, fluorescent nuclear stains with live cell compatibility. Org Lett. 2013 Mar 15;15(6):1330-3.
  3. Wilson JN, Wigenius J, Pitter DR, Qiu Y, Abrahamsson M, Westerlund F. Base pair sensitivity and enhanced ON/OFF ratios of DNA-binding: donor-acceptor-donor fluorophores. J Phys Chem B. 2013 Oct 10;117(40):12000-6.