BBS research zebrafish Chang Isacoff Faculty of the Division of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology (BBS) are engaged in advanced study of the biological chemistry of cellular metabolites; enzymatic catalysis; the structure and function of biological macromolecules, especially nucleic acids and proteins; the supramolecular organization of complex cellular assemblies, including the transcription and DNA replication proteins, biological membranes; and, regulation of biological processes such as chromosomal folding, protein secretion and intracellular signaling. These problems are being investigated in systems that range from bacteria and bacteriophage to yeast to human cells and their viruses. Faculty of this division also participate in interdepartmental programs in structural biology, chemical biology, microbiology and toxicology. Facilities include those for protein-sequence analysis, peptide and oligonucleotide synthesis, access to the synchrotron at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab for X-ray crystallography, and NMR spectrometry. The Division holds a weekly seminar series by invited speakers, and each year is the host for the Chiron, Li, Stanier, and Wilson Lecturers.

Faculty

The following is an alphabetical list of active MCB faculty members in the division and brief descriptions of their research. Additional faculty lists are available using the following links:

Emeriti and Professors of the Graduate School | Secondary Divisional Affiliates

 

Michael Botchan
Dean of Biological Sciences Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Eukaryote DNA replication and control of S phase

Carlos Bustamante
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Raymond and Beverly Sackler Chair and Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Structural characterization of nucleo-protein assemblies

Jamie H. D. Cate
Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Molecular Basis for Protein Synthesis by the Ribosome

Christopher Chang
Class of 1942 Chair and Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Deciphering roles for metals and redox signals in neurobiology, metabolism, and cancer enabled by activity-based sensing and related chemical technologies

Michelle Chang
Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Enzyme catalysis and metabolic engineering

Kathleen Collins
Walter and Ruth Schubert Family Chair, Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Biology, biochemistry, and biotechnology of retroelements, retroelement reverse transcriptases, and functional RNAs

Jennifer A. Doudna
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, Li Ka Shing Chancellor's Chair in Biomedical and Health Sciences and Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
RNA-mediated gene regulation

Britt Glaunsinger
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Virology; messenger RNA processing and degradation

Nicholas Ingolia
Associate Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Molecular basis and physiological roles of the Translational control of gene expression through global and genome-wide analyses

John Kuriyan
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Chancellor's Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Structural and functional studies of signal transduction and DNA replication

Bronwyn Lucas
Assistant Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
In cell structural biology

Michael Marletta
Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Structure/Function Relationships in Proteins; Enzyme Catalysis; Molecular Mechanisms of Cell Signaling

Susan Marqusee
Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Determinants of protein structure and folding

Andreas Martin
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Associate Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Energy-dependent proteases and molecular machines

Sabeeha Merchant
Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Biochemistry of metals; photosynthesis and bioenergy; genomics of algae

Evan Miller
Associate Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Chemical biology, neuroscience, organic chemistry, fluorescence, imaging

Eva Nogales
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Structure-function of macromolecular assemblies: cytoskeleton self-assembly and nucleic acid transactions

Daniel K. Nomura
Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Using chemoproteomic platforms for drug discovery against the undruggable proteome and incurable diseases

James Nuñez
Assistant Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Epigenome editing, epigenetic memory and inheritance; CRISPR technology development

Eunyong Park
Assistant Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Structure and mechanism of membrane transport proteins; cryo-EM; biochemistry; biophysics

Daniel Portnoy
Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Molecular and cellular basis of microbial pathogenesis

Donald Rio
Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Molecular genetics; transposable elements; RNA splicing

David Savage
Associate Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Synthetic biology and metabolism.

Alanna Schepartz
CZ and Irmgard Distinguished Chair of Chemistry, Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Chemical and synthetic biology; how cellular molecules and machines function and how this information can be used to design new and useful molecules.

Robert Tjian
Howard Hughes Medical Institute President and Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Eukaryotic molecular biology; biochemistry

Ross Wilson
Assistant Adjunct Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Molecular mechanisms and therapeutic delivery of genome editing enzymes

Ahmet Yildiz
Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Structural mechanism of molecular motors. High resolution imaging of subcellular structures

Qiang Zhou
Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Biochemistry of HIV gene expression and transcriptional elongation

Roberto Zoncu
Associate Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
How organelles sense nutrients and regulate cellular growth

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Emeriti and Professors of the Graduate School

Bruce N. Ames
Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Mechanisms of aging. Mitochondrial decay in aging. Oxidants and antioxidants in DNA damage. Micronutrient deficiencies and DNA damage. Chronic inflammation and Cancer.

Giovanna Ferro-Luzzi Ames
Professor Emerita of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Bacterial molecular biology; membranes

Michael Chamberlin
Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Nucleic acids; gene expression

Robert Glaeser
Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Cryo-EM of multiprotein complexes; membrane proteins; structural biology; biophysics; advancing the capabilities of high-resolution cryo-EM in biology.

Caroline Kane
Professor Emerita of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Eukaryotic gene regulation during transcript elongation

Judith Klinman
Professor Emerita of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Principles of catalytic and regulatory mechanisms in enzyme-catalyzed reactions

Stuart Linn
Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Enzymology of DNA metabolism

Hiroshi Nikaido
Professor of the Graduate School Division of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Membrane biochemistry; bacterial physiology

Edward Penhoet
Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology

Jeremy Thorner
Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Signal transduction mechanisms; biochemistry; molecular genetics; cell biology

David Zusman
Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology
Microbial development; molecular genetics

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Secondary Divisional Affiliates

The following faculty have a secondary affiliation with the Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology division.

Stephen Brohawn
Assistant Professor of Neurobiology
Molecular basis of sensory transduction and cellular electrical signaling

James Hurley
Kirsch Springer Chair in Biological Sciences and Professor of Cell Biology, Development and Physiology
Structural membrane biology

G. Steven Martin
Professor Emeritus of Cell Biology, Development and Physiology
Cell biology; tumor virology

Michael Rape
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Professor of Cell Biology, Development and Physiology
Protein ubiquitination, degradation and the control of cell division and differentiation

Randy Schekman
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Professor of Cell Biology, Development and Physiology
Organelle assembly; protein transport

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