Dr. Kurosu has a broad background in organic chemistry / medicinal chemistry and protein chemistry, with special training and expertise in preclinical drug discovery (hit to lead). His research includes anticancer and antibacterial drug discoveries associated with Gram-negative bacteria, Mycobacterium spp., spore-forming bacteria (e.g., Clostridioides difficile), and solid cancers (e.g., pancreatic, breast, and ovarian cancers). As PIs on several NIH- and internally funded programs, he has studied essential enzymes for growth of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acinetobacter baumannii, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and glycosyl transferases (N-glycan biosynthesis) for solid cancers. He has developed concise syntheses of complex natural and unnatural molecules, and designed/synthesized chiral small molecules. He also develops convenient assays amenable to HTS. These efforts have resulted in the discovery of several new drug leads effective against dormant M. tuberculosis, C. difficile spores, and MDR-Acinetobacter baumannii. A strong cytostatic DPAGT1 inhibitor developed in his group is innovative. Our lab has set up cytotoxicity assays against a panel of cancer cell lines and bacterial growth inhibitory assays against batteries of pathogens including BSL3 bacteria. Basic biochemical assays (immunofluorescence and Western blot) and pharmacological evaluation including in vitro ADMET studies have been performed in his lab.