Ladislau Kovari
Position Title
Professor and Associate Chair
Education
University of Tennessee, Ph.D., 1992
Fellowships- Purdue University, 1992-1997, Structural Biology (X-ray Crystallography)
Graduate
Accepting new MS students in 2025: Yes
Accepting new PhD students in 2025: Yes
Links of Interest
Office Location
4263 Scott Hall
Research
Dr. Kovari's research involves biochemical, structural, and drug design studies of viral proteases and their inhibitors, focusing on coronaviruses and COVID-19.
Research Focus
Our laboratory performs structure-function studies of viral drug targets using structural, biochemical and computational methods. We use X-ray crystallography and molecular modeling to explore HIV drug resistance, perform structure-based drug design against viruses (HIV-1 and hepatitis C virus) and investigate the problem of molecular recognition and protein flexibility. The objective of our research is to understand and overcome the mechanisms of viral resistance in particular as it relates to HIV and HCV. To do this, we determine the crystal structures of multidrug-resistant HIV-1 protease clinical isolates in order to elucidate the mechanisms of HIV drug resistance and help design the next generation of HIV-1 protease inhibitors.
Publications