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Biological Chemistry Faculty

Program Director

Glen Liszczak, Ph.D..
Glen Liszczak, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Transcription regulation and epigenetics; enome integrity; cancer biology; chemical biology and protein semi-synthesis; protein post-translational modifications

Faculty

Sherry Cao, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Transcription and regulation in Clostridioides difficile and other bacterial species; structure and function of RNA polymerase; antibiotics discovery of RNA polymease inhibitors

Sherry Cao, Ph.D.
Chuo Chen, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Natural product synthesis, synthetic methodology development, small molecule library synthesis and chemical biology

Chuo Chen, Ph.D.
Nicholas Conrad, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Gene expression and RNA biogenesis in Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpes virus

Nicholas Conrad, Ph.D.
David Corey, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Engineering proteins and nucleic acids for novel function

David Corey, Ph.D.
Russell DeBose-Boyd, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Regulation of HMG-CoA reductase and sterol metabolism

Russell DeBose-Boyd, Ph.D.
Ivan D’Orso, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Transcription control by RNA Polymerase II; assembly and regulation of viral and human transcription complexes; mechanisms of transcription activation in HIV

Ivan D'Orso, Ph.D.
George DeMartino, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Biochemical mechanisms and regulation of intracellular protein degradation; structure and function of intracellular proteases

George DeMartino, Ph.D.
Joshua Gruber, M.D., Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Epigenome engineering; Nucleosome production; Drug discovery; Tumor immunology

Joshua Gruber, M.D., Ph.D.
Gerta Hoxhaj, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Metabolism, nutrient signaling, cancer, proteomics, kinases

Gerta Hoxhaj, Ph.D.
Daniel Kober, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Membrane Protein, Biochemistry, Structural Biology, Protein Homeostasis, Protein Degradation, Lipid Metabolism

Daniel Kober, Ph.D.
Jennifer Kohler, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Understanding and exploiting the molecular foundations of glycoconjugate biosynthesis

Jennifer Kohler, Ph.D.
Wen-Hong Li, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Research Interests: Probe engineering and targeted drug delivery to islet cells for treating diabetes; Islet biology with an emphasis on functional analysis on zinc signaling and zinc transporters in islet endocrine cells

Wen Hong Li Ph.D.
Weibo Luo, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Research Interests: The role of hypoxia inducible factors in tumor growth and metastasis

Weibo Luo, Ph.D.
David McFadden, M.D., Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Research Interests: Genetically engineered mouse models of cancer, chemical and genetic screens for new vulnerabilities in small cell lung cancer and Ewing sarcoma

David McFadden, M.D., Ph.D.
Steven McKnight, Ph.D

Professor

Research Interests: Molecular genetics and biochemical studies of mammalian gene regulation

Steven McKnight, Ph.D.
Peter Michaely, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Biochemical and structural study of receptor-mediated endocytosis and the membrane skeleton of the plasma membrane

Peter Michaely, Ph.D.
Yunsun Nam, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Research Interests: Mechanisms of RNA-mediated gene regulation; Structural and biochemical studies of RNA function

Yunsun Nam, Ph.D.
Deepak Nijhawan, M.D., Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Research Interests: Using chemistry to identify new cancer drug targets

Deepak Nijhawan, M.D., Ph.D.
Felix Nitschke, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Regulatory mechanisms impacting structure, function and location of glycogen; Molecular consequences of glycogen storage diseases; Development of treatment strategies on molecular basis of the disease pathogenesis; Engineering proteins for improved Gene Therapy

Felix Nitschke, Ph.D.
Kim Orth, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Signal transduction in the microbial pathogen Yersinia pestis

Kim Orth, Ph.D.
Margaret Phillips, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Polyamine and pyrimidine metabolism in trypanosomes and in malaria parasites

Margaret Phillips, Ph.D.
Arun Radhakrishnan, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Protein-lipid interactions at membrane interfaces

Arun Radhakrishnan, Ph.D.
Hijai (Regina) Shin, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Lysosome biology, mTORC1 signaling, lipid metabolism and sensing, organelle communications

Hijai (Regina) Shin, Ph.D.
Myles Smith, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Bioactive natural product synthesis; asymmetric catalysis; cancer biology

Myles Smith, Ph.D.
Anju Sreelatha, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Mitochondrial Biochemistry; Redox Biology; AMPylation; Selenoproteins

Anju Sreelatha, Ph.D.
Uttam Tambar, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Synthesis of complex biologically active natural products; development of new tandem methodologies

Uttam Tambar, Ph.D.
Boyuan Wang, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Mechanisms by which starvation leads to persistence in bacteria; Identifying new regulatory metabolite-RNA and metabolite-protein interactions; Peptide synthesis and protein semi-synthesis

Boyuan Wang, Ph.D.
Fei Wang, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Membrane protein trafficking and function; autophagy and its developmental roles; organelle biogenesis and communication

Fei Wang, Ph.D.
Jinfan Wang, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Single-molecule, fluorescence microscopy, RNA biochemistry, translational control of gene expression, mitochondrial translation

Jinfan Wang, Ph.D.
Richard Wang, M.D., Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Research Interests: Double-stranded DNA tumor viruses (human papillomavirus, human polyomaviruses); circular RNA biogenesis and function; facilitative glucose transporters

Richard Wang, Ph.D.
Kenneth Westover, M.D., Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Research Interests: Cancer biology and development of new therapeutic drugs

Kenneth Westover, M.D., Ph.D.
Jin Ye, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Geranylgeranylation and HCV replication; regulation of geranylgeranyl lipid homeostasis; regulated intramembrane proteolysis

Jin Ye, Ph.D.

Associate Members

These faculty members do not accept graduate students. They participate in teaching, co-mentoring, exam and dissertation committees, and all other program responsibilities.

Michael Brown, M.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Genetics of human disease, Mechanism of vesicular transport in animal cells, Regulation of cholesterol metabolism and membrane composition

Michael Brown, M.D.
Igor Butovich, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Research Interests: Lipidomics; ocular (bio)chemistry; molecular enzymology; lipoxygenases, lipid peroxidation, and arachidonic acid cascade

Igor Butovich, Ph.D.
Xiaorong Fu, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Mass spectrometry, Stable isotope tracers, Metabolic flux

Xiaorong Fu, Ph.D.
Marie-Alda Gilles-Gonzalez, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Research Interests: Mechanisms of O2, CO, and NO sensing and in novel signal-transduction heme proteins

Marie-Alda Gilles-Gonzalez, Ph.D.
Scott Grundy, M.D., Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Metabolic Syndrome

Scott Grundy, M.D., Ph.D
Masato Kato, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Biochemistry, Biophysics, Structural biology, cross-beta polymers, phase transition/separation, membrane-less organelle, neurodegenerative diseases

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Mark Lehrman, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Informational carbohydrates in the endoplasmic reticulum: roles in protein folding, stress responses, and human disease

Mark Lehrman, Ph.D.
Andrew Lemoff, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Proteomics, mass spectrometry

Andrew Lemoff, Ph.D.
Anthony Michael, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Research Interests: Evolution of biosynthetic diversity; role of polyamines in cellular processes

Anthony Michael, Ph.D.
Diana Tomchick, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Structural characterization of signal-transduction protein complexes, proteins involved in reproductive biology, and novel proteins from pathogenic bacteria; improved methods of crystallographic data collection, processing, and phasing; automated crystallization techniques

Diana Tomchick, Ph.D.
Gloria Vega, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Metabolic Syndrome and obesity, mechanisms of dyslipidemia

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Noelle Williams, Ph.D.

Professor

Research Interests: Development of novel chemical leads from high throughput screens, new natural products, or rational target-based chemical design as viable therapeutics for preclinical models; areas explored include pharmacokinetics, formulation, metabolism, toxicology, and efficacy for a variety of disease models, including cancer, bacterial infections, and neurological disorders

Noelle Williams, Ph.D.