I received my bachelor’s degree in biochemistry at Ohio Wesleyan University, and then
my doctorate in computational chemistry at the University of Cincinnati. After that
I did two post doctoral research projects, one at Duke and one at North Carolina State
University. I am passionate about inclusive and accessible teaching methods, which
is important to me as a first generation student who also happens to be dyslexic.
I also have fun working on active learning activities and hands-on models for my classes.
I joined the SUNY Plattsburgh faculty in August 2018.
Outside of class I enjoy reading lots of books, as well as painting and photography
(though I’m not particularly great at the last two). I also like spending time with
my pet rabbit, Bigwig (he’s named after a character from Watership Down by Richard
Adams, one of my favorite books growing up).
My research focuses on determining the mechanical stability of proteins by unfolding
simulations, and how drug compounds can change this stability. The main system under
study now is FtsZ, a bacterial protein that is crucial to cell division. The FtsZ
protein is a possible antibiotic target, particularly for the MRSA and VRSA infections
that have become so prevalent in hospitals. In the cell, FtsZ monomers form filaments
that wrap around the cell circumference and then constrict to start the division process.
The stability and bending properties of these long filaments have not been studied
computationally yet due to the amount of processing power required. My lab uses coarse-grained
simulations run on graphics cards to overcome this barrier. We are also using docking
programs to investigate the binding of drug candidates to the FtsZ protein. Our future
work will include simulating the effects of these drug candidates on the dynamics
of the full FtsZ filament.
Structure of the Francisella response regulator QseB receiver domain, and characterization
of QseB inhibition by antibiofilm 2-aminoimidazole-based compounds. Milton, M.E.,
Allen, C.L., Feldmann, E.A., Bobay, B.G., Lucas, J.L., Stephens, M.D., Melander, R.J.,
Theisen, K.E., Zeng, D., Thompson, R., Melander, C., and Cavanagh, J. Mol. Microbiol., 2017, October, 106 (2): 223-235, DOI: 10.1111/mmi.13759
Nucleotides regulate a mechanical hierarchy between subdomains of the nucleotide binding
domain of the Hsp70 chaperone DnaK. Bauer, D., Merz Jr., D.R., Pelz, B., Theisen, K.E., Yacyshyn, G.*, Mokranjac, D., Dima, R.I., Rief, M., Zoldak G. Proc. of the Natl. Acad. of Sci., 2015, August 18, 112 (33): 10389-10394, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1504625112
Molecular investigations into the mechanics of a muscle anchoring complex. Bodmer,
N.K., Theisen, K.E., and Dima, R. I. Biophys. J., 2015, May 5, 108 (9): 2322-2332, DOI:10.1016/j.bpj.2015.03.036
Tubulin bond energies and microtubule biomechanics determined from nano-indentation
in silico. Kononova, O., Kholodov, Y., Theisen, K.E., Marx, K.A., Dima, R.I., Ataullakhanov, F.I., Grishchuk, E.L., Barsegov, V. J. Amer. Chem. Soc., 2014 Nov 12; 136 (49):17036-17045, DOI: 10.1021/ja506385p
Exploring the mechanical properties of filamentous proteins and their homologs by
multiscale simulations. Theisen, K.E. Doctoral Dissertation, Submitted and Approved November, 2013
Mechanics of severing for large microtubule complexes revealed by coarse-grained simulations.
Theisen, K.E., Desai, N.J.*, Volski, A.M.*, and Dima, R.I. J. Chem. Phys. 2013 September 28; 139: 121926- 1 to 12, Special issue: “Applications of Physical Principles to Problems
in Biology” DOI: 10.1063/1.4819817
Multiscale modeling of the nanomechanics of microtubule protofilaments. Theisen, K.E., Zhmurov, A., Newberry, M.E.*, Barsegov, V., and Dima, R.I. J. Phys. Chem. B 2012 July 26; 116 (29):8545-8555; Special issue: “Macromolecular Systems Understood through Multiscale
and Enhanced Sampling Techniques” DOI: 10.1021/jp212608f
Exploring the contribution of collective motions to the dynamics of forced-unfolding
in tubulin. Joshi H., Momin, F.*, Haines, K.E., Dima, R.I. Biophys. J. 2010 Feb 17; 98 (4):657-66, DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2009.10.043
Presentation, ACS National Meeting, Orlando, FL “Two new models of protein dynamics
for use in a non-majors biochemistry course”, April 4, 2019
Presentation, NCSU Biochemistry Department Seminar, “Teaching with Primary Literature”,
November 9, 2017
Presentation, NCSU Peer Scholars, ”Designing Lecture Slides with Backwards Design”,
October 9, 2017
Presentation, NCSU Peer Scholars, ”Creating a Professional ePortfolio”, September
29, 2017
Poster, D.E. Shaw Research Graduate and Postdoctoral Women’s Forum, “Modeling the
Effect of Confinement on the Mechanics of Microtubule Protofilaments”, June 16, 2017
Presentation, Invited Seminar, University of Massachusetts Amherst: “Modeling tubulin
and the microtubule lattice to understand the action of severing enzymes”, January
28, 2016
Poster, Triangle Cytoskeleton Meeting, an ASCB local meeting, Research Triangle Park:
“Modeling the Effect of Confinement on the Mechanics of Microtubule Protofilaments”,
September 12, 2014
Presentation, Public Defense, University of Cincinnati: “Exploring the mechanical
properties of filamentous proteins and their homologs by multiscale simulations”,
October 31, 2013
Presentation, ACS National Meeting, Indianapolis, IN: “Modeling the Effect of Length
and Crowding on the Mechanics of Microtubule Protofilaments”, September 11, 2013
Poster, Sigma Xi Student Research Conference, Research Triangle Park, NC: “Modeling
the Effect of Confinement on the Mechanics of Microtubule Protofilaments”, November
9, 2013
Poster, Computational Biophysics to Systems Biology Workshop 2013, Norman, OK: “Modeling
the Effect of Length and Crowding on the Mechanics of Microtubule Protofilaments”,
May 19, 2013
Presentation, Department Seminar: “Exploring the mechanical properties of filamentous
proteins and their homologs by multiscale simulations”, March 26, 2013
Poster, Graduate Poster Forum, University of Cincinnati: “Microscopic Origins of Microtubule
Depolymerization”, March 1, 2013
Poster, Computational Biophysics to Systems Biology Workshop 2012, Knoxville, TN:
“Multiscale Modeling of the Nanomechanics of Microtubule Protofilaments”, June 3,
2012
Presentation, Department Seminar, University of Cincinnati: “Multiscale Modeling of
the Nanomechanics of MT Protofilaments”, February 2, 2012
Poster, Gordon Research Conference on Protein Folding Dynamics, Ventura, CA: “Multiscale
Modeling of the Nanomechanics of MT Protofilaments”, January 8-13, 2012
Poster, Gordon Research Seminar on Protein Folding Dynamics, Ventura, CA: “Multiscale
Modeling of the Nanomechanics of MT Protofilaments”, January 7-8, 2012
Poster, Oesper Award Poster Session, University of Cincinnati: “Mechanical properties
of tubulin protofilaments”, October 14, 2011
Poster, ACS National Meeting, Denver, CO: “Mechanical properties of tubulin protofilaments”,
August 31, 2011
Presentation, Central Regional Meeting of the ACS: “The role of force orientation
in the mechanical response of biological filaments”, June 18, 2010
Presentation, Department Seminar, University of Cincinnati: “Exploring the origin
of mechanical stability in cytoskeletal filaments”, June 7, 2011
Poster, Oesper Award Poster Session, University of Cincinnati: “The role of force
orientation and pulling speed in the mechanical response of the tubulin dimer”, October
8, 2010
