Haribabu Arthanari, PhD

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Academic Titles

Associate Professor, Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School

Research Program Affiliation

Member, Developmental Therapeutics

Member, Cancer Cell Biology

Research Abstract

Our research program combines structural biology, biophysics, high-throughput screening, and drug discovery to understand the mechanistic underpinnings of biomolecular interactions and leverage the structural information to therapeutically target them. This multi-pronged approach enables us to characterize the interaction interface at an atomic level and identify druggable hotspots. Understanding the molecular mechanisms orchestrated by these interactions paves the way to identify disruptive inhibitors that have the potential to lead to treatments for the related pathologies. My research focus includes the following: i) critical interactions between transcription factors and the general transcriptional machinery, including the Mediator complex, co-activators, and remodelling factors, and ii) translation initiation machinery demonstrated to be dysregulated in cancer disease states. We develop a number of novel NMR and biophysical methods to address unique and fundamental questions in biophysics. Another major focus of my lab is to develop NMR methodology that will help to characterize large protein systems and disordered proteins. We have recently developed an open-source ultra-large in silico screening platform VirtualFlow, which enables us to rapidly screen billions of molecules, accessing vast chemical space. A major focus in the lab is to decipher and characterize the functional elements encoded in the disordered regions of the transcription factors.