Research in the MacNeill lab is primarily focused on dissecting the enzymes and mechanisms of DNA replication and genome stability using two contrasting genetically-tractable model systems, the eukaryotic fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe and the halophilic euryarchaeon Haloferax volcanii. In addition to this, we also study the molecular biology of T5-like bacteriophages, the activity of the highly diverged DNA ligase enzymes encoded by crAss-like bacteriophages and various eukaryotic viruses, such as Cedratvirus kamchatka, and the function of selected carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes) in Haloarcula hispanica, Haloferax volcanii and related haloarchaea. In the past we have also worked on the parasitic protozoan Trypanosoma brucei and the non-human infectious kinetoplastid model organism Crithidia fasciculata. We use a variety of methods to address questions of protein structure and function, including genetics, genome engineering, cell and molecular biology, biochemistry, structural biology and bioinformatics.
These pages provide details of ongoing projects in the lab, lists of publications and lab members, details of how to apply to join the lab, and some useful links. Click on the topics above to access the desired information.
Research in the lab is currently funded by the Leverhulme Trust, EASTBIO, the Wellcome Trust through its Institutional Strategic Support Fund (ISSF) and the University of St Andrews through its Knowledge Exchange and Impact (KIE) Fund. In recent years the lab has been funded by SULSA, the Medical Research Council and the USAF OSR. Recent PhD students have been supported by Chinese Scholarship Council, Medical Research Council Industrial CASE, SULSA-MSD and Science without Borders scholarships.
