Scott Bailey
Johns Hopkins University, MD·Biochemistry
Cells guard their DNA in very different ways. Bacteria and other prokaryotes fight off viruses using CRISPR, a kind of molecular memory.
- Fields
Biochemistry
Biophysics
Microbiology & Immunology
- Topics
CRISPR-Cas
CRISPR immunity
guide RNA
- Grants
- 1 known grant, through Apr 2031
What they work on
- Determine how CRISPR-associated proteins use small guide RNAs to locate and destroy foreign DNA or RNA in prokaryotes, using cryo-EM structures together with biochemical, biophysical and cell-based assays.
- Define the molecular mechanisms of CRISPR-mediated resistance to viruses and plasmids, including how the CRISPR protein machinery, which evolved separately from eukaryotic RNA interference, carries out targeting.
- Solve cryo-EM structures of UHRF1, a regulator that maintains DNA methylation, bound to methylated nucleosomes, the DNA-histone units of chromatin, to reveal how it recognizes its substrates.
More about the research
Human cells keep their genome stable partly by preserving DNA methylation, chemical tags on DNA that help control which genes are used. This research explores the molecular machinery behind both processes, mainly by using cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), which images frozen proteins to reveal their 3D structures.
Why it matters
This work could clarify how bacteria defend themselves against phage infection and how DNA methylation is regulated in humans. Defining these mechanisms could support new molecular tools, such as CRISPR-based technologies. It could also lay groundwork for better disease control linked to genome stability.
Known grants
From NIH and NSF research grants. Labs often have other funding we can't see.
Closest labs
Jack Dunkle
University of Alabama, AL·Biochemistry
Test whether mismatches at specific sensitive positions in the guide RNA-target RNA duplex shut down interference by the Cas10-Csm complex, defining the accuracy rules for RNA-targeting Type III CRISPR-Cas systems.
Aneel Aggarwal
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY·Biochemistry
Determine how the CBASS anti-phage system, which signals through cyclic oligonucleotides, becomes allosterically activated to trigger abortive infection and protect a bacterial population.
Andrew Santiago-Frangos
University of Pennsylvania, PA·Biochemistry·Early-career
Find conserved DNA motifs in CRISPR leader sequences that may control spacer integration, transcription or RNA processing, using a bioinformatic search across CRISPR systems.
The school
Johns Hopkins University: 100 labs on PI Pages, $4.1B a year on research, 622 research doctorates a year.
Reach out
A start for your email. Fill in the brackets.