Dr. Grace Brannigan

Research Assistant Professor

PhD, Physics, University of California-Santa Barbara (2006)
BA, Physics, Reed College, Portland, OR (2000)

Appointments

08/2009 - present

Research Assistant Professor, Institute for Computational Molecular Science, Temple University

08/2006- 08/2009

Postdoctoral Researcher in Chemistry, Center for Molecular Modeling, University of Pennsylvania

09/2000-07/2006

Physics PhD student, Advisors : Frank Brown (Chemistry) and Philip Pincus (Physics), UC-Santa Barbara

Interests

• Classical and Coarse-grained molecular simulations
• Pharmacology of neuronal transmembrane proteins (including mechanism of general anesthetic action)
  
• Ligand-gated ion channels
• DNA - histone interactions

Awards and Honors

• Biophysical Society Student Travel Award (2006)
• NSF Graduate Fellow (2001-2004)
• UCSB Herbert P. Broida Fellow (2000-2003)
• U.S. Dept. of Education GAANN Fellow (2000-2001)
• UCSB Parsons Fellow (2000-2002)
• Barry Goldwater Scholarship (1999-2000)

Publications

1. Multiple binding sites for the general anesthetic isoflurane identified in the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor transmembrane domain, G. Brannigan, D. N. LeBard, J. Hénin, R. G. Eckenhoff, M. L. Klein, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA , In Press (2010). (Link)
2. An atomistic model for simulations of the general anesthetic isoflurane, J. Hénin, G. Brannigan, W. Dailey, R. Eckenhoff, M. L. Klein (joint first author), Journal of Physical Chemistry B, 114, 604–612 (2010). (Link)
3. A unitary anesthetic binding site at high resolution, L. Vedula, G. Brannigan, N. Economou, J. Xi, M. Hall, R. Liu, M. Rossi, W. Dailey, K. Grasty, M. L. Klein, R. Eckenhoff, P. Loll, Journal of Biological Chemistry 284, 24176-24184, (2009). (Link)
4. Identification of a fluorescent general anesthetic, 1-aminoanthracene, C. A. Butts, J. Xi, G. Brannigan, A. A. Saad, S. P. Venkatachalan, R. A. Pearce, M. L. Klein, R. G. Eckenhoff, I. J. Dmochowski, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the U. S. A. 106, 6501–6506 (2009), (Link)
5. Embedded cholesterol in the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor, G. Brannigan, J. Hénin, R. Law, R. Eckenhoff, M. L. Klein, Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA 105, 14418-14423 (2008). (Link)
6. A model for lipid bilayers in implicit solvent", G. Brannigan and F. L. H. Brown, Chapter 4 in Coarse-Graining of Condensed Phase and Biomolecular Systems, Ed. G. A. Voth, CRC Press ISBN: 9781420059557 (2008).
7. Contributions of Gaussian curvature and non-constant lipid volume to protein deformation of lipid bilayers, G. Brannigan and F.L.H. Brown, Biophys. J. 92, 864-876 (2007). (Link)
8. A Consistent model for thermal fluctuations and protein induced deformations in lipid bilayers, G. Brannigan and F.L.H. Brown, Biophys. J., 90, 1501 (2006). (Link)
9. Implicit solvent simulation models for biomembranes, G. Brannigan, L.C.-L. Lin, and F. L. H. Brown Eur. Biophys. J., 35, 104 (2006). (Link)
10. Flexible lipid bilayers in implicit solvent, G. Brannigan, P. F. Philips, and F. L. H. Brown, Phys. Rev. E, 72, 011915 (2005). (Link)
11. Composition dependence of bilayer elasticity, G. Brannigan and F. L. H. Brown, J. Chem. Phys., 122, 074905 (2005). (Link)
12. The role of molecular shape in bilayer elasticity and phase behavior, G. Brannigan, A.C. Tamboli, and F. L. H. Brown, J. Chem. Phys., 121, 3259-3271 (2004). (Link)
13. Solvent-free simulations of fluid membrane bilayers, G. Brannigan and F. L. H. Brown, J. Chem. Phys., 120, 1059-1071 (2004). (Link)
14. Boundary effects on forced drainage through aqueous foam, G. Brannigan and O. Bonfim, Phil. Mag. Lett., 81, 197-201 (2001).