Merten Group
The Merten Group develops novel screening technology for chemical applications. For example, we have established tailored systems for the screening of one-bead-one-compound (OBOC) libraries. Furthermore, we are continuously developing novel assays coupling a desired chemical or biological property with a positive fluorescence signal. This allows to easily determine the effect of small molecules on a variety of drug targets. In parallel, we are developing microfluidic modules for the on-chip synthesis of highly diverse compound libraries. Compared to conventional approaches, this should result in drastically increased throughput and minimized consumables costs. Hence large areas of chemical structure space can be explored in search of new bioactive molecules.
Selected Publications:
Nanoliter Plates – Versatile Tools for the Screening of Split-and-Mix Libraries On-bead and Off-bead. Upert G, Merten CA & Wennemers H. 2010. Chem. Comm. In press
Imaging of mRNA in Live Cells Using Nucleic Acid-Templated Reduction of Azidorhodamine Probes. Pianowski Z, Gorska Z, Oswald L, Merten CA & Winssinger N. 2009. JACS 131(18): 6492-6497.
A competition-based assay for the screening of species-specific antibiotics. Granieri L, Miller OJ, Griffiths AD & Merten CA. 2009. J. Antimicrob. Chem. 64(1): 62-68.