My research interests are predominantly in Phase Transitions and Cooperative Phenomena involving Soft Interfaces. I have developed an interdisciplinary research program to model the thermodynamics of Model and Biological Membranes and Biomaterials. Recently, I have worked on:
(i) Hydrogen Bonding in Lipid Bilayers.
(ii) Using non-local electrostatics to model the effects of electrostatic interactions between Biological Macromolecules and Bilayer or Monolayer interfaces.
(iii) Modelling the effects of interactions between Peptidoglycan Networks and the Membrane of Gram-Negative Bacteria.
(iv) Modelling enzyme-activated micelle gelation or and how it depends upon various parameters.
(v) Modelling ruminant grazing.
(vi) Providing research expertise to the Food Research Laboratory and to the Canola Research Group.
(vii) Modelling phase transitions in Magnetically-Ordered Solids.

MY CURRENT WORK INVOLVES:

(a) Modelling the Headgroup region of Lipid Bilayers or Monolayers.
(b) Modelling the thermodynamics of Biological Macromolecules at the interfaces of Membranes or Lipid Monolayers. This major program is modelling Proteins [Cytochrome C and SP-A], DNA (see pictures) and the Lipopolysaccharides in the outer membrane of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
I share with two Canadian colleagues (October 1994 -l998) an NSERC Collaborative Project Grant to study forces between macromolecules and membranes.
(c) Modelling the effects of the interactions between Peptidoglycan Networks and Biological Membranes.

In addition to my Canadian colleagues, these projects are being carried out in collaboration with colleagues in Moscow, Munich and Wuerzburg.

I am also working on:
(d) Modelling thermally-activated protein gelation.
(e) In collaboration with a colleague at StFXU, I am modelling magnetically-ordered Holmium in order to understand "Lock-in" phenomena in the presence of external magnetic fields. We are also modelling magnetically-ordered Cobalt to understand aspects of the "spin-reorientation" transition.

Curriculum Vitae

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