College of Medicine
McKenna Lab
Led by Robert McKenna · Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
What we study
The McKenna Lab studies how the structure of biological molecules relates to their function, using X-ray and neutron crystallography, and computer modeling. They aim to understand disease mechanisms and develop treatments for conditions like cancer and malaria.
What working here is like
- Wet lab
- Computational
- Coding helps
- Projects
- 5
- Papers
- 5
Current projects
Carbonic anhydrases
Researching the structure and function of carbonic anhydrases to understand their role in diseases.
Manganese superoxide dismutase
Studying manganese superoxide dismutase to explore its role in oxidative stress and disease.
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HIV-protease
Investigating HIV-protease to develop therapeutic strategies for HIV treatment.
Malaria-plasmepsins
Analyzing malaria-plasmepsins to understand their role in malaria infection.
Mycoplasma hyorhinis protein Mh-p37
Researching the cancer-associated Mycoplasma hyorhinis protein Mh-p37 to understand its role in cancer.
Summaries are written by AI in plain language from public symposium abstracts and may be imperfect.
Recent papers, explained
- Mapping the sialic acid-binding sites of LuIII and H-1 parvovirus
2025 · Journal of Virology
Identifies sialic acid as a binding site for a cancer-fighting virus.
- Design, anticancer activity, and mechanistic evaluation of a novel class of selective human carbonic anhydrase IX inhibitors featuring a trifluorodihydroxypropanone pharmacophore
2025 · European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry
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- Off-target binding of the histone deacetylase inhibitor vorinostat to carbonic anhydrase II and IX
2025 · Acta Crystallographica Section F Structural Biology Communications
Finds how a cancer drug binds to enzymes outside its intended target.
- Structural and Functional Characterization of Porcine Adeno-Associated Viruses
2025 · Viruses
Studies the structures of adeno-associated viruses from pigs to improve gene therapy.
- The amazing AAV capsids: Into the structure-verse
2025 · Molecular Therapy — Methods & Clinical Development
Plain-language summaries are AI-written and reviewed by us; check the paper for details.
How to reach out
Robert McKenna hasn't set up this page yet. Their UF Scholars profile lists their publications.