Our research group has several interests, the largest effort being to better understand protein structure. Our goal is to explore and understand the underlying physical and chemical principles that determine a protein's secondary, tertiary and quaternary structure as well as how these factors contribute to the overall stability of the structure once it is formed. In the longer term, we want to apply this knowledge to practical purposes such as increasing protein stability and designing protein structures. In order to accomplish these objectives we use the techniques of molecular biology, biophysics, organic and peptide chemistry.