Our research group uses organic chemistry, biochemistry, and molecular biology to understand and exploit the reactivity and structure of nucleic acids. Our ability to chemically synthesize unnatural molecules and carry out physico-chemical and biochemical studies with them enables us to address a variety of biologically important questions at the molecular level.
The investigations carried out in our group are designed to answer fundamental problems concerning nucleic acid chemistry, such as providing chemical insight into how cytotoxic antitumor agents that target DNA kill tumor cells. Practical applications give rise to tools that are useful in biotechnology.
Our studies on nucleic acids are divided into the following areas: