Bioorganic chemistry of nucleic acids

The research interests of the laboratory for Bioorganic Chemistry of Nucleic acids reside in the synthesis of activated building blocks of chemically modified nucleoside analogs for their use in selection experiments for the crafting of functional nucleic acids with enhanced activities. Particularly, we strive to generate modified aptamers to be used as tools for medical imaging applications and the detection of specific targets such as enzymes, peptides, cancer cells, and small molecules. In addition, we are developing catalytic nucleic acids for the detection of DNA lesions as well as for their use as synthetic tools in molecular biology.