Biochemistry
About
Research in Biochemistry at UVA seeks to identify biologically relevant molecules and study their synthesis, degradation, and role in biological processes.Since molecules interact in complex ways in living organisms, modern biochemical research is a collaborative, interdisciplinary effort. Approaches that are used include molecular biology, genetics, epigenetics, bioinformatics, computational biology, structural biology, and many others. More than 60 faculty from these areas form our robust and dedicated group of mentors in biochemistry.
Research in biochemistry at UVA ranges from computational analysis to clinical applications for cancer and cardiovascular disease. Biochemical studies of interacting proteins, DNA, and sub-cellular structures in normal and disease states provide a wide array of research opportunities. This research, coupled with a broad collection of graduate courses, furnish our students with the skills and background necessary for successful careers in biomedical research and education.
Faculty
Abbas, Tarek A.
The Ubiquitin System and Human Cancer
Ai, Huiwang
Molecular Biosensors; Spatiotemporal Regulation of Biological Signaling; Protein Engineering for Imaging, Diagnostics, and Therapeutics
Auble, David T.
Molecular Mechanisms of Transcriptional Regulation
Bielinsky, Anja Katrin
Genome instability syndromes in cancer and immune deficiencies
Bloom, George S.
Pathogenic mechanisms in Alzheimer's Disease and other neurodegenerative disorders
Bochkis, Irina
Epigenetic and genetic mechanisms underlying metabolic disease
Bushweller, John H.
Drug Development Targeting Transcription Drivers in Cancer; Structure/Function Studies of Transcription Factor Drivers in Cancer
Cafiso, David S.
Molecular Mechanisms for Membrane Transport and Cell Signaling
Chalfant, Charles Edward
Hematology and Oncology, Cell Biology, Lipid Signaling, Cancer Cell Signaling, and RNA Biology
Columbus, Linda
Biophysical Chemistry: Membrane protein structure, function, and dynamics
Creutz, Carl E.
Calcium-dependent, membrane-binding proteins and mechanisms of exocytosis
Deppmann, Christopher
Elucidating and Understanding the Mechanisms Underlying Nervous System Development
Derewenda, Zygmunt S.
Structure-function relationships in proteins
Desai, Bimal N.
Ion channels and Ca2+-signaling in inflammation, immunity and tissue homeostasis
Egelman, Edward H.
Structure and Function of Macromolecular Complexes Using Electron Microscopy
Engel, Daniel A.
Drug Discovery and Molecular Biology of Pathogenic RNA viruses: Ebola, SARS-CoV-2, Influenza and Zika
Ewald, Sarah
Innate immunity, chronic disease, host-parasite interactions, Toxoplasma gondii, proteomics
Felder, Robin A.
Clinical Chemistry and Toxicology. Medical Automation Research. Neurotransmitters, cell surface receptors and intracellular second messengers.
Fox, Jay W.
Basement Membrane Structure and Metalloproteinases
Gahlmann, Andreas
Super-resolution fluorescence imaging of bacterial cells
Garcia-Blanco, Mariano A.
RNA-protein interactions in antiviral immunity and autoimmune diseases.
Gioeli, Daniel
Signal transduction in cancer cells
Goldfarb, Adam N.
Hematopathology and Understanding the Molecular Basis of Hematopoiesis and Leukemogenesis
Guler, Jennifer
Mechanisms of Genetic and Metabolic Adaptation in the Malaria Parasite, Plasmodium falciparum
Harris, Thurl E
Molecular mechanisms controlling insulin signaling and fat synthesis.
Hsu, Ku-Lung
Chemical Biology, Lipid Biochemistry, Medicinal Chemistry, and Mass Spectrometry
Janes, Kevin A.
Systems-biology approaches to cancer biology and virology.
Jiang, Hao
Regulation of stem cell function and tumorigenesis by epigenetics and biomolecular condensation (phase separation)
Jomaa, Ahmad
Localisation of nascent proteins to sub-cellular compartments
Kashatus, David F
The Role of Mitochondrial Fusion and Fission in Tumorigenesis.
Kasson, Peter M.
Physical mechanisms of infectious disease; influenza infection; membrane fusion; antibiotic resistance; molecular dynamics simulation; machine learning.
Kendall, Melissa M.
Bacterial cell signaling, host-pathogen interactions, intestinal pathogens
Kuyumcu-Martinez, Muge N
RNA regulatory networks and RNA binding proteins during cardiovascular development and in cardiovascular disease
Laurie, Gordon W.
Restoration of Homeostasis in Disease
Leitinger, Norbert
Role of lipid oxidation products in inflammation and vascular immunology in atherosclerosis and diabetes
Li, Hui
Gene regulation in cancer, RNA processing; Epigenetic modification; Stem cell and development
Lukens, John R.
Understanding How Immunological Pathways Contribute to Neurodegenerative, Neurodevelopmental, Mental and Behavior Disorders
Lynch, Kevin R.
Chemical biology of sphingosine 1-phosphate
Manichaikul, Ani W.
Statistical Genetics, Genetic Epidemiology, Biostatistics, Network analysis
Mayo, Marty W.
Transcriptional Regulation by NFKB
Miller, Clint L.
Genetic variation, Complex diseases, Coronary artery disease, Genomics, Epigenomics, Regulatory mechanisms, Vascular biology, Pharmacology and Physiology
Mohi, Golam
Cell signaling, stem cell biology, molecular and epigenetic mechanisms of blood and breast cancers
Naegle, Kristen
Regulation and function of tyrosine phosphorylation in complex networks
Nakamoto, Robert K.
Structure-Function of Active Transporters
O’Rourke, Eyleen Jorgelina
Obesity and Aging
Papin, Jason A.
Systems biology, infectious disease, cancer, toxicology, metabolic engineering
Park, Kwon-Sik
Mechanisms of tissue/organ homeostasis and tumorigeensis
Paschal, Bryce M.
Nuclear Transport, Signaling, and Cancer
Pemberton, Lucy F.
Nuclear Transport in Chromatin Assembly and Transcriptional Regulation
Pornillos, Owen
Structure and assembly of HIV, virus/host interactions, structural biology of the innate immune system
Ramakrishnan, Girija
Microbial Pathogenesis
Rekosh, David M.
Human Immunodeficiency Virus Gene Expression; Human Endogenous Viruses; SARS-CoV-2 Protein Trafficking; Post-transcriptional Gene Regulation
Schulman, Ira G.
Regulation of transcription by nuclear hormone receptors, transcriptional control of metabolism and inflammation, small molecule approaches to drug discovery
Sheynkman, Gloria M.
Proteoform Systems Biology: proteogenomic approaches to uncover the role of proteomic variation in human disease
Shin, Jung-Bum
Auditory Neurobiology
Smith, Jeffrey S.
Transcriptional Silencing and Aging in Yeast
Stukenberg, P. Todd
Mechanisms of chromosome segregation in Mitosis and generation of Chromosomal Instability in tumors
Swiatecka-Urban, Agnieszka
Regulation of cell-surface stability and intracellular trafficking of membrane proteins in epithelial cells
Tamm, Lukas K.
Biomembrane Structure and Function; Cell Entry of Enveloped Viruses; Neurosecretion by Exocytosis; Structure of Bacterial Pathogen Membrane Proteins; Lipid-Protein Interactions
Trinh, Bon Q
Understanding Protein and RNA regulations of gene expression via chromatin structure in myeloid cell development and diseases
Tsihlis, Nick
Vascular Biology, Nanotechnology, Biomaterials, Drug Delivery
Vande Pol, Scott B.
How Viruses, Particularly Papillomaviruses, Can Cause Cancer
Walsh, Kenneth
Clonal hematopoiesis: A new mechanism of cardiovascular disease
Wang, Yuh-Hwa
Genome instability in cancer and repeat expansion diseases
Wiener, Michael C.
Structure/function of integral membrane proteins; structural biophysics; enzymology and virology of ZMPSTE24; sparse-constraint structure determination; technology development
Wotton, David
Regulation of Gene Expression, Development and Tumor Progression by TGF beta Signaling
Zeitlin, Scott O.
Mechanisms of Huntington's Disease Pathogenesis
Zhang, Tian
Biochemistry
Zimmer, Jochen
Transport of biopolymers across biological membranes with a particular interest in polysaccharide and protein translocation.
Zunder, Eli
Single Cell Analysis