Our research focuses on understanding the informational basis of cellular state, especially how intra- and extra-cellular perturbations affect that state.  In order to thrive, organisms must process and manage information.  Fifty years of molecular biology and biochemistry have provided a framework where the cellular players are increasingly well defined, so that their interactions within the larger network, or system, make possible the application of the tools of physics to guide experimental design and ultimately extract physical models.   We use single cell model organisms of bacteria, yeast and algae (primarily E.coli, S.cerevisiae, and C.reinhartii), to address these fundamental questions through a combination of traditional molecular biology techniques, and high throughput synthetic biology, genomics, transcriptomics, and proteomics. 

Some ongoing projects include:

• Elucidating natural switch design and response (transcription factor logic) in eukaryotic gene regulation
  
• Probing the robustness of the structure of the genetic code to coding errors
  
• Testing the coupling strength (evolutionary relationship) between decoding (assembly) machinery and their components
  
• Defining the error spectrum of the protein pool and its dynamics
  
• Testing the balance between mutation rate and persistence in populati ons
• Understanding the content of natural information and its relation to selectivity