We are interested in using physical concepts and experimental techniques to study fundamental questions in molecular biology. The biological systems under study include helicases that unzip DNA, the DNA recombination intermediate called the Holliday junction and its associated enzymes, folding and catalysis of hairpin and VS ribozymes, DNA replication machinery, and chromatin remodeling complexes. Our main experimental tool is single-molecule fluorescence spectroscopy and microscopy, supported by nano-mechanical tools such as magnetic and optical tweezers.

We use modern molecular biology techniques to engineer the molecules with fluorescence tags and tether them to a bio-friendly surface. Then, we shine laser light on each molecule to watch it do its thing. A clever design of such experiments can yield new insights to fundamental biological problems. We also use computational tools extensively, not only to acquire and analyze data, but also to model the problems mathematically, to exploit the genomic databases, and to simulate the molecular motions and reactions.