Christopher Fischer

My general research interests include both the kinetics and the thermodynamics of protein-protein and protein-nucleic acid interactions as well as the development and implementation of new biophysical methodologies and techniques for the study of these phenomena. The specific research focus of my group is trying to understand the interactions between the ISW2 enzyme, a member of the ISWI family of chromatin remodeling proteins, and eukaryotic DNA. We are developing a quantitative physical description of the mechanism by which this molecular motor utilizes the chemical potential energy it gains from ATP binding and hydrolysis to perform the mechanical work of regulating chromatin structure.