Sharonda LeBlanc
Bio
Dr. LeBlanc earned her PhD in Nanoscale Science from UNC Charlotte in 2012 where she explored the effects of proximal electric fields on single quantum dot fluorescence using time-resolved confocal microscopy. She moved on to a Postdoc at UNC Chapel Hill (2014 – 2020) where she used single molecule Förster/fluorescence resonance energy transfer (smFRET) to study protein – nucleic acid interactions involved in DNA repair. As a postdoc, she spent half of her time working at NC State with Professor Weninger. Dr. LeBlanc joined the NC State Physics faculty as an Assistant Professor in Fall 2020.
Area(s) of Expertise
Dr. LeBlanc is fascinated by the large numbers of protein machines called enzymes that coordinate to carry out complex biological processes. Her research focuses on understanding the molecular details of essential pathways. The LeBlanc lab seeks to uncover precisely how individual proteins interact with their binding partners, how those interactions are modulated by dynamic conformational changes, and how enzymes fail in complex diseases such as cancer. Dr. LeBlanc’s research approach will utilize confocal microscopy with time-correlated single photon counting to study these fast biological processes at the single molecule level. Of particular interest are the protein – nucleic acid interactions involved in the ribosome assembly pathway. She is also interested in exploring biological sensing applications with quantum dots.
Publications
- MitoTracker: A useful tool in need of better alternatives , EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CELL BIOLOGY (2023)
- Recurrent mismatch binding by MutS mobile clamps on DNA localizes repair complexes nearby , PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (2020)
- Coordinated protein and DNA conformational changes govern mismatch repair initiation by MutS , NUCLEIC ACIDS RESEARCH (2018)
- Single Molecule FRET: A Powerful Tool to Study Intrinsically Disordered Proteins , BIOMOLECULES (2018)