Host/Pathogen Interactions This is a particularly topical research area, as microbes are constantly adapting (e.g. viral evolution and bacterial resistance, etc.), and an understanding of how microbes gain entry into a cell and the sequelae of host infection represents a large societal need, particularly addressable by the center. We identified an overlap in interests or approaches in the areas of microbial spread and pathogenesis, encompassing microbiology, virology, biosensors, and therapeutics. Specific questions to be addressed are viral-receptor and vesicle-cell interactions as it relates to bacterial and viral defense mechanisms. Some of the large goals that this focus can address are viral infection, bacterial pathogenesis, and antibiotic resistance.
	Targeted Therapeutics through Membrane Interactions There is a particular cross-cutting strength in this area among the group members, with some highly developed and promising technologies for the treatment of diseases of significant societal impact, such as cancer therapies, bacteria infection, regenerative medicine etc. This focus encompasses tissue repair and regeneration, flow mechanics, ligand design, peptide and phage delivery of therapeutics, extracellular matrix-membrane interactions and biomimetics. Some of the applications that could be addressed in this focus is the targeted delivery of chemotherapy drugs to treat cancers and to promote bone regeneration.
	Membrane Functions of Nervous System The brain is one of the most complex organs in the body, with the most number of different membranes and compartments. Tacking the functional roles of nervous membranes requires a wide spectrum of interdisciplinary approaches. This focus encompasses neural-chip, neural-glial interactions, axon-myelin interaction, synaptic vesicle fusion, synaptic interactions, membrane-receptor interactions, and membrane-vesicle interactions. Some of the large goals that this focus can address are neurological mechanisms and novel therapeutics to address brain disorders.
	Membrane Biophysics and Cell Mechanics This fundamental research provides physical insights and innovative approaches that can be applied to the above thematic research foci. This focus includes topics such as cell-cell interactions, signal transduction, and membrane-cell coupling. It also includes the investigation of mechanical forces on the cell, protein partitioning, membrane-cell coupling, membrane-ECM-signaling, receptor dimerization and signal transduction, etc.