David Jakeman, PhD

Expertise

Dr. Jakeman is an Assistant Professor in the College of Pharmacy and cross-appointed to the Department of Chemistry. Dr. Jakeman is originally from the United Kingdom where he obtained his Ph.D. at the University of Sheffield in bioorganic chemistry. He then moved to Washington State University and was a post-doctoral research associate for two years investigating enzyme mechanisms by liquid and solid-state NMR spectroscopy. A further post-doctoral position at the University of British Columbia (UBC) for three years developing mechanism-based approaches to enzymatic systems for oligosaccharide synthesis prepared him for his current position at Dalhousie University in the College of Pharmacy.

Research Interests

Dr. Jakeman is a Canadian Bacterial Diseases Network young investigator.
Research in his laboratory for chemical biology and protein engineering focuses upon carbohydrate enzymology and medicinal chemistry directed towards novel antibacterial and anticancer agents. Glycobiology involves understanding the fundamental roles played by glycosylated biomolecules in living cells. Dr. Jakeman's analysis of the structure, mechanism and function of glycosyltransferases, enzymes involved in coupling sugar residues onto antibiotic structures, will potentially lead to the preparation of novel carbohydrate-containing bioactive molecules with altered carbhydrate appendages, and subsequently improved selectivity, toxicity and efficacy. The analysis of enzyme reaction mechanisms unique to bacteria provide suitable targets for the development of antibacterial agents. One such pathway is the rhamnose biosynthetic pathway and research in the Jakeman laboratory focuses upon developing novel, selective and potent antibacterial agents. A third project within Dr. Jakeman's research group involves the incorporation of non-natural amino acids into biologically active secondary metabolites through a unique bacterial-mediated transformation.

Research Services Available

• Preparation of small molecules through organic synthesis Cloning, expression and protein purification of bacterial genes Directed evolution of enzymes and developing screening / selection strategies

• Analysis of 1H NMR spectroscopic studies of enzymes and proteins

Dr. Jakeman's Homepage
http://myweb.dal.ca/~dljakema/