#  OEB Seminar Series: Mandë Holford 

 



####  calendar\_today Date and Time 

 **February 25, 2021** 

 03:30PM - 03:30PM EST 

####  pin\_drop Location 

 **Webinar**  



 

 [ \[\] arrow\_circle\_right ](https://harvard.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_FTKEYH1uTTmdXaypD_1pxg) 

 



 

 [](https://holfordlab.com/)

   ![Mande Holford](/sites/g/files/omnuum6811/files/styles/hwp_1_1__360x360_scale/public/oeb/files/mande_holford.jpg?itok=pWEP2Wf7) 

 

Mandë Holford  
Associate Professor in Chemistry  
Hunter College and CUNY-Graduate Center *Exploring venom glands, diversity and function of carnivorous marine snails*

 **Abstract:** Venom peptides, and the genes from which they are derived, are a resource for investigating biological processes pertaining to organismal evolution (adaptive radiation, diversification), gene development (duplication, neofunctionalization), and cellular physiology involving ion channels (activating/inhibitory ligands). This talk will demonstrate the scientific path from *mollusks to medicine* examining how venom evolved over time in the terebrid snails (Terebridae), and how we can use this evolutionary knowledge as a roadmap for discovering and characterizing new compounds with therapeutic potential for treating pain and cancer. A venomics strategy, combining genomics, transcriptomics, and proteomics, has been applied to the discovery, characterization and optimization of terebrid venom peptides (teretoxins). However, identifying bioactive venom peptides remains a significant challenge. The Holford lab uses inventive tools from chemistry and biology to: (1) investigate the evolution of venom in the 600 known species of predatory marine snails, (2) discover disulfide-rich peptides from a venom source, (3) develop high-throughput methods for characterizing structure-function peptide interactions, and (4) deliver novel peptides to their site of action for therapeutic application.

 Host: Hanken Lab

 [](https://harvard.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_FTKEYH1uTTmdXaypD_1pxg)

   ![OEB Webinar Registration Button](/sites/g/files/omnuum6811/files/styles/hwp_1_1__360x360_scale/public/oeb/files/webinarregistration.png?itok=Am88DWWZ) 

 



 

 



 

 See also:- [ OEB Seminars ](/event-type/oeb-seminars)
 
 

 Save: [ Add to calendar calendar\_today ](https://www.oeb.harvard.edu/node/1375361/event-feed.ics)  Copy link link