Welcome to the Derbyshire Lab, a collaborative, multidisciplinary research group that works at the interface of chemistry and biology to address global health problems.

We, as a whole, value and welcome people of all races, genders, sexual orientations, religions, abilities, ethnicities, and identities. We embrace the unique backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives that each person brings, as our individuality is crucial to our excellence as a team.

We do not tolerate, and rebuke hateful speech and actions aimed to belittle or harm any person through the use of racism, sexism, misogyny, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, ableism, classism, or any other forms of discrimination.

As members of the Duke University community, we aim to foster inclusive environments to combat the diversity disparity and inequalities within STEM fields. For further resources addressing these issues at Duke University, see here.

Research Overview

Chemical Biology

Biochemistry - Enzymology

Microbiology - Parasitology

Parasites infect billions of humans each year and cause several major diseases, largely in underserved populations in developing parts of the world. Malaria, in particular, is a leading cause of deaths worldwide, and its causative agents, Plasmodium parasites, are crafty as they have successfully eluded our defense mechanisms since they first infected us tens of thousands of years ago.

The Derbyshire Lab uses chemical tools and biological methods to uncover novel aspects of malaria parasite biology with the ultimate aim of identifying druggable targets. Projects range from developing assays for phenotypic and target-based screens – forward and reverse chemical genetics – to dissecting biological pathways and identifying small molecules with potential therapeutic value. Our interdisciplinary collaborative program integrates both novel and established methods to address target identification, which is one of the most challenging aspects of malaria drug discovery. Our lab’s goal is to globally interrogate parasite biology by using chemical biology, molecular biology, biochemistry and parasitology.

Latest Publications

Mansfield, C.R., Quan, B., Chirgwin, M.E., Eduful, B., Hughes, P.F., Neveu, G., Sylvester, K., Ryan, D.H., Kafsack, B.F.C., Haystead, T.A.J., Leahy, J.W., Fitzgerald, M.C., Derbyshire, E.R. Selective Targeting of Plasmodium falciparum Hsp90 Disrupts the 26S Proteasome. Cell Chemical Biology 2024, 31, 729-742.

Keeler, A.M., D'Ambrosio, H.K., Ganley, J.G., Derbyshire, E.R. Characterization of Unexpected Self-Acylation Activity of Acyl Carrier Proteins in a Modular Type I Apicomplexan Polyketide Synthase. ACS Chemical Biology 2023, 18, 785-793.

Ong, H.W., de Silva, C., Avalani, K., Kwarcinski, F., Mansfield, C.R., Chirgwin, M., Truong, A., Derbyshire, E.R.,** Zutshi, R.,** Drewry, D.** Characterization of 2,4-dianilinopyrimidines Against Five P. falciparum Kinases PfARK1, PfARK3, PfNEK3, PfPK9 and PfPKB. ACS Medicinal Chemistry Letters 2023, 14, 1774-1784.

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