Welcome to the Landes Research Group
The Landes Research Group uses single molecule spectroscopy to study dynamic heterogeneity and its role in biological and synthetic materials function.
Please feel free to browse our web site, and contact us if you have any questions.
Research Summary
Dynamic complexity, in the form of degenerate and redundant pathways, has been a topic of deep scientific interest for many years. Both types of complexity are thought to contribute to structural and dynamic roles in biological systems and might offer unique insight about new methods of engineering functional materials. In fact, Nobel Laureate Gerald Edelman has suggested that "variation is not noise but is rather the substrate for the emergence of biological form and function", and "with the development of nanotechnology and the reduced cost of electronic chips and memories, it is conceivable that engineers will turn to the deliberate construction of complex degenerate systems".
Our understanding of this feature has advanced with our ability to detect and model it. For example, recent advances in measuring dynamic complexity have been made because of the emergence of single-molecule spectroscopy (SMS). SMS has proven to be especially useful for studying dynamic processes that occur in biological systems, because it can identify inter- and intra-molecular heterogeneity. It is exciting to imagine the wealth of information about complexity in ion transport, immune response, and photosensitization waiting to be discovered now that we have the ability to study these dynamic processes with molecular detail. How do alternate pathways contribute to overall performance? Does reversibility play a role in desensitizing surface receptors? Can we use this information to direct advanced materials synthesis? These are the types of questions we're attempting to answer in our group.