Professor Grace Kenney focuses on exploring uncharacterized areas of microbial chemistry. In one area of research, the Kenney lab investigates new classes of microbial metalloenzymes that carry out complex redox reactions, with an emphasis on systems with biocatalytic potential. A second area of focus is the identification and characterization of previously unknown classes of bioactive natural products, including the elucidation of their biosynthetic pathways. A final area of interest is the molecular machinery that allows to microbes to respond to oxidative stress and to maintain the correct levels of potentially toxic transition metals. Research in all of these areas draws on techniques encompassing bioinformatics, structural biology, bioinorganic chemistry, and microbiology. The Kenney lab’s long-term goal is to identify enzymes, pathways, and metabolites that can targeted and manipulated for use in biocatalysis, bioremediation, metabolite production, and drug discovery.
“Genome mining with hypothetical proteins.”
Kenney GE§. Methods in Enzymology. 717:199-240. (2025)
"A new heme enzyme family forms hydrazine groups in diverse biosynthetic pathways"
Kenney GE, Wang KA, Ng TL, van der Donk WA, Balskus EP. doi: 10.1101/2025.05.27.656397
“Structure and function of prodrug-activating peptidases,”
Velilla JA, Kenney GE, Gaudet R. Biochimie 2023, 205, 124-135
"MbnH is a diheme MauG-like protein associated with microbial copper homeostasis"
Kenney GE, Dassama LMK, Manesis AC, Ross MO, Chen S, Hoffman BM, Rosenzweig AC. J Biol Chem. 2019, 294, 44, 16141-16151
"The biosynthesis of methanobactin"
Kenney GE, Dassama LMK, Pandelia ME, Gizzi AS, Martinie RJ, Gao P, DeHart CJ, Schachner LF, Skinner OS, Ro SY, Zhu X, Sadek M, Thomas PM, Almo SC, Bollinger JM Jr, Krebs C, Kelleher NL, Rosenzweig AC. Science 2018, 359, 6382