Research
Research in the Fitzgerald lab is centered around the utilization of mass spectrometry-based readouts to assess proteome-wide protein folding and stability. This assessment allows us to detect and/or quantify protein-ligand binding interactions and to characterize biological states. This is possible because of the close connection between protein folding and protein function. The Fitzgerald lab also seeks to improve existing mass spectrometry-energetic-based strategies for the determination of protein stability while developing new protocols. Several benefits have come with such improvements including a reduction of false negatives in protein-ligand studies, increased proteomic coverage, and significant reduction in reagent cost and instrument time. The method development and application focuses of our lab are described in more detail below: