Yumee K. Koo, PhD

Associate Professor of Practice

Department

Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry

Contact

I am interested in the study of the mechanisms of macromolecular interactions, including protein-lipid and protein-inhibitor interactions. Efforts are focused on the characterization of proteins using biochemical and spectrometric techniques and the development of kinetic and binding assays for therapeutically important enzymes. One example of a system we are interested in studying is the class of cysteine proteases, which are the proteolytic enzymes that utilize a cysteine residue for their catalytic activity. Especially mammalian papain-like cysteine proteases (also known as thiol-dependent cathepsins), which are medically important since these proteases are essential in osteoporosis, arthritis, immune-related diseases, atherosclerosis, and cancer, as well as in a wide variety of parasitic infections. Targeting this enzyme is therefore very effective in the development of new drugs for a number of diseases. My interest is in developing an assay system for the inhibition of papain-like cysteine proteases as a model system in order to utilize it for the study of enzyme kinetics.

BS (Yonsei University)
MS (Yonsei University)
Ph.D (University of Illinois)
Liu, YM.; Chen, FQ.; Putt, M.; Koo, YK.; Madaio, M.; Cambier, JC.; Cohen, PL.; Eisenberg, RA “ B cell Depletion with anti-CD79 mabs ameliorates autoimmune disease in MRL LPR mice”.; J. of Immunology , 2008, 181, 2961- 2972. 
“Purification and Inactivation of 3-hydroxyanthranilic acid 3,4-dioxygenasefrom Beef Liver,” Dhirendra Nandi, Eric S. Lightcap, Yumee K. Koo,Xingliang Lu, Jean Quancard, and Richard B.Silverman, Int. J. Biochem. Cell Biol., 2003, 35(7),1085. 
“Multiple Active Enzyme Species of gamma-aminobutyric acid aminotransferase Are Not Isozymes,” Yumee Kim Koo, Dhirendra Nandi, and Richard B. Silverman, Arch. Biochem. Biophys., 2000, 374, 248. 
“Structure Based Design: Novel Spirocyclic Ethers as Nonpeptidal P2-Ligands for HIV Protease Inhibitors,” Arun K. Ghosh, Wonhwa Cho, Yumee Kim Koo, et al., Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett., 1998, 8, 979. 
“Potent HIV Protease Inhibitors Incorporating High-Affinity P2-Ligands and (R)-(Hydroxyethylamino) sulfonamide Isostere,” Arun K. Ghosh, Wonhwa Cho, Yumee Kim Koo, et al., Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett., 1998, 8, 687. 
“A Phospholipase A2 Kinetic and Binding Assay Using Phospholipid-Coated Hydrophobic Beads,” Yumee Kim, Lenka Lichtenbergova, Yana Snitko, and Wonhwa Cho, Analytical Biochemistry, 1997, 250, 109.
Mechanisms of protein-lipid and protein-inhibitor interactions. Characterizing proteins using biochemical and spectrometric techniques and developing kinetic and binding assays for therapeutically important enzymes