Department of Molecular and Cell Biology Faculty

Molecular & Cell Biology Faculty

The following is an alphabetical list of MCB faculty members and brief descriptions of their research. A list of faculty by division affiliation is available here

Click on a faculty member's name to see a complete description of their research (if available). Alternatively, use the search form below to search the faculty research interest pages for keywords.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Tom Alber: Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Structure/function correlates in tuberculosis, molecular recognition and signaling
Mark Alper: Adjunct Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Biochemistry; biomolecular materials
Sharon Amacher: Associate Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Cell fate determination in vertebrate embryonic development
Bruce N. Ames: Professor of the Graduate School Division of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Mechanisms of aging. Mitochondrial decay in aging. Oxidants and antioxidants in DNA damage. Micronutrient deficiencies and DNA damage. Chronic inflammation and Cancer.
[Return to Top] B Clinton E. Ballou: Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Georjana Barnes: Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Microtubule cytoskeleton and cell cycle controls
Greg Barton: Assistant Professor of Immunology and Pathogenesis
Innate immune system
Diana Bautista: Assistant Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Molecular mechanisms of transduction in touch and pain receptors
Steven Beckendorf: Professor Emeritus of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Molecular biology of development; Global warming: solutions and biological effects; Concentrating solar power.
James Berger: Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Structural and mechanistic biochemistry of macromolecular assemblies and machines that regulate the initiation of DNA replication and chromosome and superstructure
Carolyn R. Bertozzi: Howard Hughes Investigator and Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Molecular basis of cell surface interactions
David Bilder: Associate Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Genetics of cell and tissue architecture
Michael Botchan: Department Co-Chair and Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Eukaryote gene expression
Rachel Brem: Assistant Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Genetics of Regulatory Variation
Steven E. Brenner: Associate Professor (Affiliated) of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Computational Genomics
Beth Burnside: Vice Chancellor for Research and Chancellor's Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Cell biology of the photoreceptor cytoskeleton
Carlos Bustamante: Howard Hughes Investigator and Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Structural characterization of nucleo-protein assemblies
[Return to Top] C Richard Calendar: Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Molecular genetics of viruses
W. Zacheus Cande: Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Cell and developmental biology
Jamie H. D. Cate: Associate Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Molecular Basis for Protein Synthesis by the Ribosome
Lu Chen: Assistant Professor of Neurobiology
Mechanisms of synapse formation during development and synapse modification in plasticity
Steven Chu: Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Molecular Physics
Thomas Cline: Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Sex determination in Drosophila
Kathleen Collins: Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Telomere structure, function and replication
Laurent Coscoy: Assistant Professor of Immunology and Pathogenesis
Molecular mechanisms of immune evasion in viral infection
[Return to Top] D Yang Dan: Professor of Neurobiology
Information processed by neuronal circuits
Abby Dernburg: Associate Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Chromosome organization and dynamics during meiosis
Jennifer A. Doudna: Howard Hughes Investigator and Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Ribozymes and RNA machines
David G. Drubin: Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Actin and microtubule cytoskeletons in yeast and mammalian cells
Peter Duesberg: Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Genetic structure of retroviruses
[Return to Top] E Michael B. Eisen: Associate Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Genomics/Bioinformatics
[Return to Top] F Daniel Feldman: Associate Professor of Neurobiology
Sensory processing and plasticity in cerebral cortex
Marla Feller: Associate Professor of Neurobiology
The role of neural activity in the assembly of retinal circuits
Gary Firestone: Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Molecular endocrinology; tumor biology
John G. Flannery: Affiliated Professor of Neurobiology
Molecular mechanisms underlying diseases of the retina
John Forte: Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Membrane proteins, transport and energetics
Walter Freeman: Professor Emeritus of Neurobiology
Neurophysiology; nonlinear brain dynamics
James Fristrom: Professor Emeritus of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Role of transmembrane proteins in cell-cell adhesion and the actin cytoskeleton
[Return to Top] G Gian Garriga: Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Developmental neurobiology; molecular genetics
John Gerhart: Professor of the Graduate School Division of Cell and Developmental Biology
Developmental biology
Robert Glaeser: Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Cryo-EM of multiprotein complexes; membrane proteins; structural biology; biophysics; advancing the capabilities of high-resolution cryo-EM in biology.
Donald Glaser: Professor of the Graduate School Division of Neurobiology
Psychophysics of vision
Alexander Glazer: Professor of the Graduate School Division of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Macomolecular complexes; photosynthetic systems
[Return to Top] H Iswar Hariharan: Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Mechanisms of control of growth and cell proliferation. Regulation of regenerative growth.
Richard Harland: C.H. Li Distinguished Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Molecular biology of development
Lin He: Assistant Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
microRNA functions in cancer development, mouse tumor models
Rebecca Heald: Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Mitotic spindle assembly and function in Xenopus laevis
[Return to Top] I Ehud Isacoff: Professor of Neurobiology
Ion channel function and synaptic plasticity
[Return to Top] K Caroline Kane: Professor in Residence of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Eukaryotic gene regulation during transcript elongation
Gary Karpen: Adjunct Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Chromosome structure and function
Nicole King: Assistant Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Choanoflagellates and the evolution of multicellular animals from their unicellular ancestors
Jack Kirsch: Professor of the Graduate School Division of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Enzymology; site-directed mutagenesis
Judith Klinman: Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Principles of catalytic and regulatory mechanisms in enzyme-catalyzed reactions
Arash Komeili: Assistant Professor (Affiliated) of Cell and Developmental Biology
Assembly and Subcellular Organization of Bacterial Organelles
Richard H. Kramer: Professor of Neurobiology
Chemical signaling within and between neurons
Bryan A. Krantz: Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Molecular Mechanism of Protein Translocation Across Membranes
John Kuriyan: Howard Hughes Investigator and Chancellor's Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Structural and functional studies of signal transduction and DNA replication
[Return to Top] L Harold Lecar: Professor of Neurobiology
Neural biophysics; excitable membranes
Michael Levine: Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Regulation of enhancer-promoter interactions
Stuart Linn: Professor of the Graduate School Division of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Enzymology of DNA metabolism
Kunxin Luo: Associate Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Signal transduction pathways mediated by receptors and the mechanisms controlling the activity of the receptor kinases
[Return to Top] M Robert Macey: Professor Emeritus of Cell and Developmental Biology
Terry Machen: Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Epithelial transport; cellular and membrane physiology
Michael Marletta: Aldo DeBenedictis Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Structure/Function Relationships in Proteins
Susan Marqusee: Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Determinants of protein structure and folding
G. Steven Martin: Department Chair and Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Cell biology; tumor virology
Howard Mel: Professor Emeritus of Cell and Developmental Biology
Barbara Meyer: Howard Hughes Investigator and Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Sex determination in C. elegans
[Return to Top] N Satyabrata Nandi: Professor Emeritus of Cell and Developmental Biology
Tumor biology; endocrinology
John Ngai: Professor of Neurobiology
Molecular and cellular mechanisms of olfaction
Hiroshi Nikaido: Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Membrane biochemistry; bacterial physiology
Eva Nogales: Howard Hughes Investigator and Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Structure-function of macromolecular assemblies: cytoskeleton self-assembly and nucleic acid transactions
[Return to Top] O George Oster: Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Mathematical modeling of molecular, cellular and developmental systems
W. Geoffrey Owen: Dean of Biological Sciences and Professor of Neurobiology
Membrane biophysics; retinal neurophysiology
[Return to Top] P Nipam Patel: Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Genetic and evolutionary studies of embryonic pattern formation
Mu-ming Poo: Professor of Neurobiology
Neurobiology
Daniel Portnoy: Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Molecular and cellular basis of microbial pathogenesis
David Presti: Senior Lecturer of Neurobiology
Neurobiology
[Return to Top] R Michael Rape: Assistant Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Protein ubiquitination, degradation and the control of cell division and differentiation
David Raulet: Professor of Immunology and Pathogenesis
T-cell development and function
Jasper Rine: Howard Hughes Professor and Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Gene regulation; cell biology
Donald Rio: Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Molecular genetics; transposable elements; RNA splicing
Ellen Robey: Professor of Immunology and Pathogenesis
Fate determination in the T-lymphocyte lineage
Henk Roelink: Associate Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology
Embryonic induction in vertebrate development
Daniel S. Rokhsar: Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Collective phenomena and ordering in condensed matter and biological systems
Gerald Rubin: Howard Hughes Investigator and MacArthur Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Molecular genetics; molecular neurobiology
Harry Rubin: Professor Emeritus of Cell and Developmental Biology
Cell and tumor biology
[Return to Top] S Howard Schachman: Professor of the Graduate School Division of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Physical biochemistry
Randy Schekman: Howard Hughes Investigator and Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Organelle assembly; protein transport
Mark Schlissel: Professor of Immunology and Pathogenesis
The regulation of lymphocyte development, genetic transcription, chromatin structure, and V(D)J recombination.
Kristin Scott: Associate Professor of Neurobiology
Establishment of nerve cell connectivity in developing nervous systems
William Sha: Associate Professor of Immunology and Pathogenesis
B cell gene regulation and fate determination
Nilabh Shastri: Professor of Immunology and Pathogenesis
Mechanisms of immunesurveillance
Herbert Srebnik: Professor Emeritus of Cell and Developmental Biology
Richard Steinhardt: Professor Emeritus of Neurobiology
Cellular and developmental physiology
Gunther Stent: Professor Emeritus of Neurobiology
Mechanisms underlying embryonic development of the nervous system
Richard Strohman: Professor Emeritus of Cell and Developmental Biology
Cell biology
[Return to Top] T Mark Tanouye: Professor, Affiliated of Neurobiology
Mechanisms of nervous system structure and function
Jeremy Thorner: William V. Power Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Signal transduction mechanisms; biochemistry; molecular genetics; cell biology
Paola Timiras: Professor Emerita of Cell and Developmental Biology
Neuroendocrinology of development and aging
Robert Tjian: Howard Hughes Investigator and Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Eukaryotic molecular biology; biochemistry
[Return to Top] U Fyodor Urnov: Associate Adjunct Professor of Genetics, Genomics and Development
Engineered zinc finger DNA binding proteins
[Return to Top] V Russell Vance: Assistant Professor of Immunology and Pathogenesis
Host-pathogen interactions
[Return to Top] W Karsten Weis: Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Macromolecular transport into and out of the nucleus in eukaryotic cells
David Weisblat: Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Developmental biology
Matthew Welch: Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
The role of the actin cytoskeleton in cell locomotion
Frank Werblin: Professor of Neurobiology
Neurophysiology of vision
Gerald Westheimer: Professor of the Graduate School Division of Neurobiology
Neurobiology; psychophysics
Fred Wilt: Professor of the Graduate School Division of Cell and Developmental Biology
Molecular embryology; cell biology
Jeffery Winer: Professor of Neurobiology
Neuroanatomy; comparative neurobiology; neurochemistry
Astar Winoto: Director of Cancer Research Laboratory and Professor of Immunology and Pathogenesis
Molecular mechanisms of apoptosis and proliferation in T cells, cancer, host pathogen interaction and human stem cells.
Andrew Wurmser: Assistant Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Differentiation of Neural Stem Cells
[Return to Top] Z Qing Zhong: Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Programmed cell death
Qiang Zhou: Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Biochemistry of HIV gene expression and transcriptional elongation
Robert Zucker: Professor of Neurobiology
Cellular neurophysiology; synaptic biophysics
David Zusman: Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Microbial development; molecular genetics

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