Proteins are the molecules performing most tasks important for the well-being of living cells. It is well established that proteins adopt 3D structures that dictate their function. Yet, large regions of human proteins (as much as 40%) do not adopt a stable 3D structure. These disordered regions, however, play critical biological roles to control how our cells survive, divide, and transfer information. Because they are unstructured, their investigation is challenging so they have remained a dark spot in structural biology research. I propose to develop new experimental methods and new data analysis software to tackle that challenge. Then, my team will investigate three particularly interesting protein regions that play critical roles in regulation. Understanding these disordered regions on the molecular level would contribute invaluable knowledge about disease mechanisms and transform tomorrow’s medical science.