Shannen Cravens

The research done in the Cravens lab is inspired by a desire to understand life at a fundamental level, primarily through biophysical studies of DNA and sequence-specific DNA targeting molecules. Recently, I have expanded the scope of my lab to include an exploration of tooth decay using atomic force and confocal microscopy. My lab has 3 ongoing projects: 1) Exploring how chemical damage to artificial, catalytic DNAs (known as a DNAzymes) that were developed as an RNA-targeting therapeutic can limit their ability to function as disease mitigators; 2) Identifying and characterizing small molecule chalcones that are capable of serving as anti-bacterial and anti-tumor agents through DNA binding; 3) Studying the effects of popular beverage and food fads on tooth enamel erosion by analyzing calcium leaching and surface deterioration. Students in my lab will employ a variety of molecular biology, biochemistry, structural biology, and analytical chemistry techniques.