Publications
The work, in plain language
Each paper below comes with a short, jargon-free summary — what we asked, what we found, and why it matters — plus the full citation and a link to read it.
Protein Science · 2025
Proline variants in the BRCA1 coiled-coil domain disrupt folding and binding to PALB2
Baker CNS, Pajela PGC, Martin DE, Dzyuba SV, Stewart MD. Protein Science. 2025;34(1):e5240.
What we asked
When BRCA1 carries a variant of unknown significance, can we tell whether it still binds its repair partner PALB2 — quickly and cheaply?
What we found
A simple heat-based binding test reliably separates harmful variants from harmless ones, flags two new likely-harmful ones, and reveals that a proline anywhere in the region collapses the helix and breaks binding.
Why it matters
The test takes about four days and can be run by undergraduates — a realistic first-pass screen to help classify the variants patients actually receive.
microPublication Biology · 2024
One of these strains is not like the others: C. elegans DW102 has an altered dependence on brc-1 and brd-1 for regulation of cyp gene transcription
Thapa I, Sellin Jeffries MK, Stewart MD. microPublication Biology. 2024.
What we asked
Does a widely-used worm strain really behave like a double mutant of the two BRCA1-like genes, as the field assumes?
What we found
No. Most of its expected gene-silencing changes don't appear, and one gene shifts the opposite direction — suggesting the strain carries hidden, unreported differences.
Why it matters
Many labs build experiments on this strain. Flagging the discrepancy protects everyone's conclusions and keeps a shared research tool honest.
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Full publication list
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