Author: dadta

A massive congratulations to David Lab undergraduates Cole Martin and Riley Smith (both mentees of Dr. Daniel Ta, a postdoctoral researcher in the David Lab) for their fantastic presentations at the Larock Conference! Both researchers presented their work towards the DNA glycosylase NTHL1.

Cole shared his research on the “Synthesis of 2′-Fluorothymidine Glycol to Probe the Lesion Recognition Mechanism of NTHL1”, highlighting efforts to create modified DNA duplexes that act as powerful tools to trap the enzyme. Riley presented her work on the “Design and Synthesis of Transition State Analogs to Probe the Mechanism of NTHL1”, detailing the development of novel transition state mimics to investigate how NTHL1 recognizes target oxidative lesions.

We are so proud of the dedication and technical skill they bring to the lab every day. Congratulations to Cole and Riley on a brilliant job sharing this research!

The David Lab is incredibly proud to celebrate the recent graduations of two outstanding researchers: Dr. Melody Malek and Dr. Mohammad (Mo) Hashemian!

Both Melody and Mo have been integral to our research and our lab community. While we will certainly miss their daily presence here at UC Davis, we are thrilled to watch them take their next big career steps. Impressively, both have headed south to begin postdoctoral positions at UC San Diego!

Dr. Melody Malek has officially joined the laboratory of Dr. Alexis Komor.

Dr. Mo Hashemian has officially joined the laboratory of Dr. Partho Ghosh.

We want to extend a massive congratulations to Melody and Mo for successfully defending their dissertations and for all their hard work. Thank you both for your dedication, your mentorship to others, and the fantastic science you’ve contributed to the David Lab.

We can’t wait to see all the amazing things you will accomplish at UCSD!

 

We are thrilled to share that the David Lab has been featured in a recent UC Davis Chemistry Department Spotlight! The article, titled “DNA Repair Enzymes: To have an Fe-S cluster or not?”, highlights our ongoing research into the intricate roles that Fe-S clusters—cofactors typically found in redox enzymes—play in DNA repair mechanisms.

The spotlight showcases two of our lab’s recent breakthrough publications:

• Uncovering the Molecular Basis of MUTYH Dysfunction: In a recent Nature Communications paper, we performed structural and functional profiling of inherited cancer-associated variants (CAVs) near the [4Fe-4S] cluster cofactor of the human DNA repair enzyme MUTYH. We discovered a critical allosteric network connecting DNA binding at the cofactor to damaged base removal at the active site. Our findings demonstrate that CAVs disrupt this network to thwart catalysis, providing a clear molecular basis for CAV dysfunction and offering new hypotheses on how oxidative stress impacts DNA repair.
• Adapting to the Absence of a Cofactor: In collaboration with the Fisher Lab, we recently published a paper in Nucleic Acids Research detailing the structure and activity of “MutYX,” a rare “Fe-S clusterless” MutY from the anaerobic bacteria Eggerthella Sp. The structural findings reveal how this enzyme adapted to the absence of the highly conserved cofactor to maintain its DNA repair activity. Because it utilizes completely novel modes of DNA damage recognition, MutYX presents exciting new avenues for development as a biotechnology tool.

A huge congratulations to all our lab members and collaborators who contributed to these exciting discoveries!

Read the full spotlight on the UC Davis Chemistry News Page.

Read our recent publications here:

Nature Communications: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-58361-w

Nucleic Acids Research: https://doi.org/10.1093/nar/gkaf1127