Welcome to the Boudker lab. We study membrane transporters with particular interest in how the structural dynamics of these proteins underlies function. We think of transporters as miniature machines. However, unlike the machines in our macroscopic world, the molecular machines are stochastic, highly dynamic systems. Through modulating dynamics, transporters evolve to respond and adapt to the physiological needs and physical environments and are regulated both by cellular factors and by drugs. Our favorite system is glutamate transporters. These are ancient proteins found in all kingdoms of life. In bacteria, they pump nutrients into the cells, while in humans, they clear neurotransmitter glutamate from the synaptic cleft. They use the energy of ionic gradients to drive uptake of the substrate amino acids and can build stunning million-fold concentration gradients across cellular membranes. Their dysfunction is linked to numerous neurological disorders and brain pathologies.