Antibiotic resistance is a looming pandemic-level threat, responsible for 4.95 million deaths worldwide and projected to cause 10 million deaths annually by 2050. Antibiotic resistance can occur through ribosomal or antibiotic modifications, efflux of the antibiotic, or other mechanisms. A pervasive method in bacteria involves ribosomal protection proteins, which bind to the ribosome and catalyze the dissociation of antibiotics, allowing protein synthesis to continue. However, key details of ribosomal protection protein mechanisms are still missing. In the Girodat lab, we are investigating the structural and functional properties of these proteins to better understand how antibiotic resistance has evolved, so we may combat this widespread mechanism of resistance.