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Faculty listed by research interest

You can skip quickly down this list by choosing one of the categories below:
Cell Cycle,   Cell Biophysics,   Developmental Bio,   Enzymology,   Genetics,   Immunology,   Membranes & Organelles,   Microbiology & Virology,   Molecular Structure,   Neurobiology,   Plants,   Replication, Transcription and RNA Processing,   Secretion,   Signal Transduction
Cell Cycle and Cell Growth Control
Faculty Name Primary Research Department Brief Research Description
Maki Asano Assistant Research Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Regulation of DNA replication and the cell cycle.
Darrell Bigner Professor of Pathology Neuropathology; viral oncology; chemical carcinogenesis.
Perry Blackshear Adjunct Professor of Biochemistry Protein phosphorylation and biosynthesis in the action of hormones and cell growth.
Gerard Blobe Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology The role of transforming growth factor beta in cancer biology and vascular biology.
Steve Haase Assistant Professor of Biology Genetic, genomic, molecular, and cellular approaches to understanding cell cycle regulation in yeast. Cyclin dependent kinase control of centrosome duplication.
Randy Jirtle Professor of Pathology Epigenetic basis of human disease.
Sally Kornbluth Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Regulation of apoptosis and control of mitotic entry.
Daniel Lew Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Cell cycle control and the control of cell polarity.
David MacAlpine Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Genomic approaches to understanding how the molecular architecture of
the chromosome regulates DNA replication.
Jeffrey Marks Assistant Professor of Pathology Investigation of the etiology and progression of breast and ovarian cancer.
Anthony Means Nanaline H. Duke Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Intracellular signalling pathways that affect cell cycle progression; calcium receptor functions.
Paul Modrich James B. Duke Professor of Biochemistry Mechanisms of DNA repair and recombination; DNA repair defects in tumor development and drug resistance.
R. Bruce Nicklas Arthur S. Pearse Professor of Biology Chromosome movement in mitosis.
Jeffrey Rathmell Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Molecular and metabolic mechanisms of lymphocyte growth and apoptosis.
Jeremy Rich Assistant Professor of Neurobiology Signal transduction in brain tumors. The contribution of cancer stem cells to therapeutic resistance.
David Sherwood Assistant Professor of Biology

Genetic and molecular analysis of cell-invasion in C. elegans

Robert Wechsler-Reya Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Role of Sonic Hedgehog Signaling in Neural Development and Cancer.
Michael Zalutsky Assistant Professor of Pathology

 Endoradiotherapeutics.
Cellular Biophysics
Faculty Name Primary Research Department Brief Research Description
Vann Bennett James B. Duke Professor of Cell Biology Membrane-cytoskeletal interactions in mammalian brain and other tissues.
Perry Blackshear Adjunct Professor of Biochemistry Protein phosphorylation and biosynthesis in the action of hormones and cell growth.
Sharyn Endow Professor of Cell Biology Microtubule motor proteins involved in spindle function; chromosome movement in meiosis and mitosis.
Harold Erickson Professor of Cell Biology Cytoskeleton and cell motility in eukaryotes and bacteria; cell adhesion and extracellular matrix.
Sally Kornbluth Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Regulation of apoptosis and control of mitotic entry.
William Kraus Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Skeletal muscle gene regulation in exercise physiology and disease. In vivo (human and animals) and in vitro work. Human genetics.
Terry Lechler Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Development and morphogenesis of two highly proliferative tissues, the skin and the intestine.
Thomas McIntosh Professor of Cell Biology Membrane structure; membrane rafts; peptide-lipid interactions.
Christopher Nicchitta Associate Professor of Cell Biology Protein and mRNA trafficking. Chaperone immunobiology.
R. Bruce Nicklas Arthur S. Pearse Professor of Biology Chromosome movement in mitosis.
Terrence Oas Associate Professor of Biochemistry Protein folding; folding-related determinants of protein function, statistical mechanical modelling of conformational transitions, ribonucleoprotein assembly.
Fred Schachat Associate Professor of Cell Biology Molecular biology of contractile protein expression and function.
Sidney Simon Professor of Neurobiology Mechanisms of chemical induced pain, inflammation and taste; molecular peptide-lipid interactions.
Antonius VanDongen Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Physiological regulation and structure/function relationships of ion channels.
Steven Vigna Associate Professor of Cell Biology Gastrointestinal hormones and neuropeptides.
A. Richard Whorton Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Biochemistry and pharmacology of nitric oxide; cellular redox staus and nitric oxide mediated cell signalling.
Jo Rae Wright Professor of Cell Biology Innate host defense in the lung. Mechanisms of pathogen subversion of lung host defense.
Developmental Biology
Faculty Name Primary Research Department Brief Research Description
Amy Bejsovec Associate Professor of Biology Cell fate specification and cell-to-cell communication during embryonic development.
Philip Benfey Professor of Biology Plant Developmental Genetics and Genomics
Blanche Capel Associate Professor of Cell Biology Sex determination; ovary and testis organogenesis; germ cell biology; vascular development.
Brigid Hogan Professor of Cell Biology Mammalian development and organogenesis; primordial germ cells and stem cells.
Daniel Kiehart Professor of Biology Mechanism and regulation of cellular movements and shape changes during metazoan development (morphogenesis).
John Klingensmith Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Molecular genetics of mammalian development and birth defects.
Motonari Kondo Assistant Professor of Immunology Commitment of hematopoietic stem cells, lymphocyte development, cytokine receptor signaling.
Terry Lechler Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Development and morphogenesis of two highly proliferative tissues, the skin and the intestine.
Elwood Linney Professor of Microbiology at the Nicholas School of the Environment Molecular approaches to retinoic acid and estrogen signaling during zebrafish embryonic development; 3D immaging of gene expression; environmental biosensing using embryos.
David McClay Arthur S. Pearse Professor of Biology Germ layer specification, gene regulatory networks, adhesion at gastrulation, and patterning cues during morphogenesis.
Erik Meyers Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Genetic signals that pattern the early verterbrate embryo with emphasis on cardiovascular and neural development as they relate to congenital malformations.
Richard Mooney Associate Professor of Neurobiology Neural mechanisms of learning and memory, especially the regulation at the cellular level for learned vocalizations in songbirds.
Ann Marie Pendergast Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Role of tyrosine kinases and associated adaptor proteins in the regulation of normal development and pathological conditions, including cancer, bacterial pathogenesis, muscular dystrophies, and immune deficiencies.
Kenneth Poss Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Modeling disease and regeneration in zebrafish.
Tannishtha Reya Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Regulation of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Self-renewal and Commitment.
Theodore Slotkin Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Developmental neurobiology, neuropharmacology and neurotoxicology.
Tai-ping Sun Associate Professor of Biology Molecular genetics of plant growth hormones; environmental and developmental regulation of gibberellin biosynthesis and signal transduction.
Fan Wang Professor of Cell Biology Neural circuit development in mouse somatic sensory system.
Anne E. West Assistant Professor of Neurobiology

Molecular Mechanisms of Neuronal Activity-dependent Synapse Development
Robin Wharton Associate Professor of Genetics Molecular mechanism of pattern formation in the Drosophila embryo.
Yuan Zhuang Associate Professor of Immunology Transcriptional regulation of lymphocyte differentiation and development. Animal models for autoimmune diseases.
Enzymology
Faculty Name Primary Research Department Brief Research Description
Michael Been Professor of Biochemistry Hepatitis Delta Virus Self-cleaving RNA.
Celia Bonaventura Professor of Cell Biology at the Nicholas School of the Environment Structure/function relationships of oxygen and electron-transport proteins.
Arno Greenleaf Professor of Biochemistry Enzymology of gene expression: 1) CTD kinase and RNA polymerase II hyperphosphorylation; 2) PhosphoCTD-associating proteins and organization of nuclear functions.
Tao-shih Hsieh Professor of Biochemistry Chromosome structure and function; structure, function, and mechanism of DNA topoisomerase.
William Kane Associate Professor of Pathology Molecular biology of blood coagulation factor V and thrombosisT. Structure, function and regulation of the prothrombinase complex.
Salvatore Pizzo Professor of Pathology Fibrinolysis; antigen presentation; proteinase inhibitors.
Christian Raetz George B. Geller Professor of Biochemistry Membrane biochemistry; molecular genetics and bioinformatics of lipid synthesis; structure, biosynthesis and function of bacterial endotoxins; structural lipidomics.
David Richardson Professor of Biochemistry X-ray crystallography of globular proteins; design of protein structure.
Jane Richardson Professor of Biochemistry Patterns of protein folding; X-ray crystallography; design of protein structure.
Leonard Spicer Professor of Biochemistry Structure-function studies of proteins using high field NMR techniques; Biophysical characterization of the MetJ transcription regulation complex and the excision nuclease, DNA repair assembly.
Genetics
Faculty Name Primary Research Department Brief Research Description
Alejandro Aballay Assistant Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Innate Immunity and Microbial Pathogenesis.
Hubert Amrein Assistant Professor of Genetics Role and function of roX RNAs in Drosophila dosage compensation and functional analysis of Drosophila odorant receptor proteins.
Blanche Capel Associate Professor of Cell Biology Sex determination; ovary and testis organogenesis; germ cell biology; vascular development.
Maria Cardenas-Corona Associate Research Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Mechanisms of Signaling by the targets of rapamycin: the TOR kinases.
Jen-Tsan Ashley Chi Assistant Professor f Molecular Genetics & Microbiology

Genomic approaches to analyze biological systems and disease
Christopher Counter Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Molecular mechanism of tumorigenesis.
Bryan Cullen Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Molecular genetics of HIV gene regulation.
Fred Dietrich Assistant Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology
 Genetics and Genomics of fungal pathogens and of Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
Xinnian Dong Professor of Biology Response of plants to pathogens; molecular and genetic investigation of the signal transduction pathways activating plant defense genes.
Sharyn Endow Professor of Cell Biology Microtubule motor proteins involoved in spindle function; chromosome movement in meiosis and mitosis.
Mariano Garcia-Blanco Professor of Genetics Synthesis and maturation of messenger RNAs in the nucleus of cells.
Steve Haase Assistant Professor of Biology Genetic, genomic, molecular, and cellular approaches to understanding cell cycle regulation in yeast. Cyclin dependent kinase control of centrosome duplication.
Joseph Heitman James B. Duke Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Signaling cascades regulating filamentous growth and virulence of yeast and pathogenic fungi. Genetic analysis of immunosuppressive drug action.
Michael Hershfield Professor of Biochemistry Genetic and biochemical studies of inherited diseases of purine metabolism.
Brigid Hogan Professor of Cell Biology Mammalian development and organogenesis; primordial germ cells and stem cells.
Randy Jirtle Professor of Pathology Epigenetic basis of human disease.
Daniel Kiehart Professor of Biology Mechanism and regulation of cellular movements and shape changes during metazoan development (morphogenesis).
John Klingensmith Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Molecular genetics of mammalian development and birth defects.
Virginia Kraus Associate Professor of Pathology Molecular pathogenesis of arthritis; genetics of osteoarthritis; metalloproteinases.
Ken Kreuzer Professor of Biochemistry Mechanisms of DNA replication, recombination and repair, and the interconnections between these processes.
Meta Kuehn Assistant Professor of Biochemistry Biochemical and genetic analysis of secretory membrane vesicles produced by pathogenic bacteria.
Daniel Lew Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Cell cycle control and the control of cell polarity.
Douglas Marchuk Associate Professor of Genetics Molecular genetics and cell biology of inherited human disease, with particular emphasis on the cardiovascular system.
Hiroaki Matsunami Assistant Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology Molecular mechanisms underlying odorant and pheromone recognition in mammals
John McCusker Associate Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Genetic and molecular analysis of fungal pathogenesis.
Erik Meyers Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Genetic signals that pattern the early verterbrate embryo with emphasis on cardiovascular and neural development as they relate to congenital malformations.
Paul Modrich James B. Duke Professor of Biochemistry Mechanisms of DNA repair and recombination; DNA repair defects in tumor development and drug resistance.
Joseph Nevins James B. Duke Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Gene regulation during cell growth and oncogenesis.
Thomas Petes Professor and Chair of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology Genetic regulation of genome stability in yeast; meiotic recombination
Kenneth Poss Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Modeling disease and regeneration in zebrafish.
Sue Robertson Associate Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology Regulation of genome stability in yeast; homologous recombination and mutagenesis.
Howard Rockman Associate Professor of Cell Biology Molecular mechanisms of hypertrophy and heart failure using transgenic and gene targeted mouse models.
Laura Rusche Assistant Professor of Biochemistry Formation and function of repressive chromatin.
Patrick C. Seed Assistant Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology Elucidating the Molecular Pathogenesis of Urinary Tract Infections.
David Sherwood Assistant Professor of Biology

Genetic and molecular analysis of cell-invasion in C. elegans

Deborah Steege Professor of Biochemistry Posttranscriptional control; translational regulation and coupling; mRNA processing and decay.
Bruce Sullenger Associate Professor of Genetics Development of RNA-based therapeutics.
Beth Sullivan Assistant Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology

Epigenetic/epigenomic mechanisms of chromosome structure and function, centromere and heterochromatin organization, and genome stability.
Dennis Thiele Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Molecular biology and genetics of iron and copper in growth and development; stress gene expression in diseases of protein folding.
Daniel Tracey Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Isolation of genes required for sensory processing: touch detection (mechanotransduction), heat detection (thermotransduction), processing of RNA in neuronal dendrites, animal behavior, nociception.
Rytas Vilgalys Professor of Biology Phylogenetic biology and natural history of fungi, including molecular phylogeny and population genetics of medically important species.
Robin Wharton Associate Professor of Genetics Molecular mechanism of pattern formation in the Drosophila embryo.
Tso-Pang Yao Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Functional dissection of the role of protein acetylation and deacetylation in signal transduction pathways, particularly in the context of cancer formation.
Immunology
Faculty Name Primary Research Department Brief Research Description
Soman Abraham Professor of Pathology Mechanisms and consequences of the molecular interactions occurring between pathogenic bacteria and inflammatory cells.
Jen-Tsan Ashley Chi Assistant Professor f Molecular Genetics & Microbiology

Genomic approaches to analyze biological systems and disease
Laura Hale Assistant Professor of Pathology Thymic biology. Immune function in normal aging, cancer, and autoimmunity.
Barton Haynes Professor of Immunology Study of human T cell maturation and thymus biology; biology of human retroviruses; autoimmune disease.
You-Wen He Assistant Professor of Immunology T lymphocyte development and apoptosis. Innate immune response. T lymphocyte memory formation.
Michael Krangel Professor of Immunology V(D)J recombination; chromatin structure; developmental regulation of T cell receptor genes.
Marcella Sarzotti-Kelsoe Assistant Research Professor of Immunology The manipulation of immune responses to virus in the neonatal susceptible host which can induce long-lasting immunity.
Herman Staats Associate Professor of Pathology Identifying and characterizing novel mucosal adjuvants and their mechanism of action, defining the mechanisms that control the specificity of vaccine-induced serum igg and mucosal iga, and optimizing nasal immunization in non-human primates.
Thomas Tedder Alter Geller Professor of Immunology Structure and function of human leukocyte adhesion molecules; B lymphocyte activation.
Jo Rae Wright Professor of Cell Biology Innate host defense in the lung. Mechanisms of pathogen subversion of lung host defense.
Yiping Yang Assistant Professor of Immunology Innate immunity to viruses, Immune suppression by regulatory T cells and Formation of long-lived memory T cells.
Weiguo Zhang Assistant Professor of Immunology Antigen receptor-mediated signaling; Lymphocyte development; Mast cell function
Yuan Zhuang Associate Professor of Immunology Transcriptional regulation of lymphocyte differentiation and development. Animal models for autoimmune diseases.
Membrane, Cytoskeleton, and Organelle Structure and Function
Faculty Name Primary Research Department Brief Research Description
Vann Bennett James B. Duke Professor of Cell Biology Membrane-cytoskeletal interactions in mammalian brain and other tissues.
Michael Ehlers Associate Professor of Neurobiology Protein trafficking and turnover in neuronal dendrites; Cell biology of the postsynaptic membrane; Molecular regulation of excitatory synaptic transmission.
Madan Kwatra Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Signal transduction through G Protein-coupled receptors; aging.
Thomas McIntosh Professor of Cell Biology Membrane structure; membrane rafts; peptide-lipid interactions.
Christopher Nicchitta Associate Professor of Cell Biology Protein and mRNA trafficking. Chaperone immunobiology.
Fred Schachat Associate Professor of Cell Biology Molecular biology of contractile protein expression and function.
James Siedow Professor of Biology Biochemical & molecular studies of oxidative processes in plants using the cyanide-resistant, alternative oxidase associated with plant mitochodria; effect of the fungal phytotoxins on the structure and permeability of mitochondrial membranes.
Antonius VanDongen Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Physiological regulation and structure/function relationships of ion channels.
Xiao-Fan Wang Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology TGF-ß signaling mechanisms and animal model systems; Tumor angiogenesis and metastasis; DNA damage checkpoint.
Microbiology and Virology
Faculty Name Primary Research Department Brief Research Description
Alejandro Aballay Assistant Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Molecular mechanisms of bacterial pathogenesis; C. elegans-S. enterica pathogenesis model; host defense response.
Soman Abraham Professor of Pathology Mechanisms and consequences of the molecular interactions occurring between pathogenic bacteria and inflammatory cells.
Maria Cardenas-Corona Associate Research Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Mechanisms of Signaling by the targets of rapamycin: the TOR kinases.
Bryan Cullen Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Molecular genetics of HIV gene regulation.
Matthias Gromeier Assistant Professor of Microbiology Translation Control, Internal Ribosomal Entry, Virology, Vaccine Development, Neuro-Oncology, Cancer, Therapeutics, Oncolytic Viruses, Hepatitis C Virus.
You-Wen He Assistant Professor of Immunology T lymphocyte development and apoptosis. Innate immune response. T lymphocyte memory formation.
Jack Keene Professor of Microbiology Functions of RNA-binding proteins in coordinating the global regulation of gene expression during homeostasis and disease.
Daniel Kenan Assistant Professor of Pathology Tumor vascular biology, regulation of gene expression, tissue engineering.
Meta Kuehn Assistant Professor of Biochemistry Biochemical and genetic analysis of secretory membrane vesicles produced by pathogenic bacteria.
Micah Luftig Assistant Professor, Molecular Genetics and Microbiology Mechanisms of viral oncogenesis and host response to oncogenic virus infection
John McCusker Associate Professor of Microbiology Genetic and molecular analysis of fungal pathogenesis.
Thomas Mitchell Associate Professor of Microbiology Medical mycology; molecular mechanism of fungal pathogenesis; populaiton genetics of pathogenic yeasts.
David Pickup Associate Professor of Microbiology Molecular mechanisms of viral pathogenesis, particularly viral modification of host cytokine-responses to infection.
Marcella Sarzotti-Kelsoe Assistant Research Professor of Immunology The manipulation of immune responses to virus in the neonatal susceptible host which can induce long-lasting immunity.
Patrick C. Seed Assistant Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology Elucidating the Molecular Pathogenesis of Urinary Tract Infections.
Joseph W. St. Geme Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology Molecular and cellular determinants of bacterial pathogenesis, bacterial adherence and invasion, bacterial protein secretion, Haemophilus and Kingella pathogenicity, vaccine development.
Raphael Valdivia Assistant Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Endosome dynamics and microbial pathgenesis.
Yiping Yang Assistant Professor of Immunology Innate immunity to viruses, Immune suppression by regulatory T cells and Formation of long-lived memory T cells.
Molecular Structure
Faculty Name Primary Research Department Brief Research Description
Michael Been Professor of Biochemistry Hepatitis Delta Virus Self-cleaving RNA.
Lorena Beese Professor of Biochemistry Structure and mechanism of proteins and macromolecular assemblies central to DNA replication, DNA repair, and cellular signaling. X-ray crystallography. Structure-based drug design. Cancer biology.
Celia Bonaventura Professor of Cell Biology at the Nicholas School of the Environment Cell Biology: Equilibria & Reaction Kinetics in Red Cells & Hemoglobins. Biochemistry: Structure- Function Relationships in Respiratory Proteins. Structural Biology: Protein Dynamics & Protein Engineering.
Patrick Casey James B. Duke Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Cellular signalling mediated through GTP-binding proteins; lipid modifications of proteins.
Harold Erickson Professor of Cell Biology Cytoskeleton and cell motility in eukaryotes and bacteria; cell adhesion and extracellular matrix.
Rodney Folz Assistant Research Professor of Cell Biology Molecular and cellular biology of oxidant and antioxidant systems with an emphasis on extracellular compartments and lung biology / physiology.
Homme Hellinga Professor of Biochemistry Combined theoretical and experimental approaches to protein and drug design; molecular simulation; protein engineering.
Tao-shih Hsieh Professor of Biochemistry Chromosome structure and function; structure, function, and mechanism of DNA topoisomerase.
Terrence Oas Associate Professor of Biochemistry Protein folding; folding-related determinants of protein function, statistical mechanical modelling of conformational transitions, ribonucleoprotein assembly.
Edward Patz Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Development of new molecular diagnostics including protein biomarkers and molecular imaging approaches.
David Richardson Professor of Biochemistry X-ray crystallography of globular proteins; design of protein structure.
Jane Richardson Professor of Biochemistry Patterns of protein folding; X-ray crystallography; design of protein structure.
Leonard Spicer Professor of Biochemistry Structure-function studies of proteins using high field NMR techniques; Biophysical characterization of the MetJ transcription regulation complex and the excision nuclease, DNA repair assembly.
Joseph W. St. Geme Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology Molecular and cellular determinants of bacterial pathogenesis, bacterial adherence and invasion, bacterial protein secretion, Haemophilus and Kingella pathogenicity, vaccine development.
Beth Sullivan Assistant Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology

Epigenetic/epigenomic mechanisms of chromosome structure and function, centromere and heterochromatin organization, and genome stability.
John York Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Nuclear Inositol Signaling, Phosphatase Regulation of Inositol Lipid Messengers, and Lithium Pharmacology.
Pei Zhou Assistant Professor of Biochemistry Protein interactions in neuro-degenerative disease; molecular recognition and conformation switch during the assembly of PGC-1 transcription complex.
Neurobiology
Faculty Name Primary Research Department Brief Research Description
Hubert Amrein Assistant Professor of Genetics Genetic control and the molecular mechanisms of dosage compensation in Drosophila.
George Augustine George Barth Gellar Professor of Neurobiology Neuronal signaling pathways; molecular mechanisms of synaptic exocytosis and plasticity.
Rose-Mary Boustany Professor of Neurobiology Mechanisms of apoptosis in neurodegeneration and cancer.
Nicole Calakos Assistant Professor of Neurobiology Molecular basis of synaptic plasticity; presynaptic function; basal ganglia function and pathology.
Marc Caron Professor of Cell Biology Molecular mechanisms of hormone and neurotransmitter actions and regulation of cellular responsiveness.
Dona Chikaraishi Professor of Neurobiology Molecular regulation of catecholamine neurotransmitter biosynthesis and function.
Michael Ehlers Associate Professor of Neurobiology Protein trafficking and turnover in neuronal dendrites; Cell biology of the postsynaptic membrane; Molecular regulation of excitatory synaptic transmission.
Guoping Feng Assistant Professor of Neurobiology Molecular mechanisms regulating the formation, stability and plasticity of synapses.
Cynthia Kuhn Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Gonadal steroid action in the brain.
Wolfgang Liedtke Assistant Professor of Neurobiology Molecular mechanisms of neuro-sensory transduction in response to osmotic and mechanical stimuli.
Robert Lefkowitz James B. Duke Professor of Neurobiology Elucidation of the molecular properties and regulatory mechanisms controlling the function of G protein-coupled receptors.
Donald Lo Associate Professor of Neurobiology Molecular approaches to retinoic acid and estrogen signaling during zebrafish embryonic development; 3D immaging of gene expression; environmental biosensing using embryos.
Hiroaki Matsunami Assistant Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology Molecular mechanisms underlying odorant and pheromone recognition in mammals
James McNamara Professor of Neurobiology Molecular mechanisms of epileptogenesis.
Richard Mooney Associate Professor of Neurobiology Neural mechanisms of learning and memory, especially the regulation at the cellular level for learned vocalizations in songbirds.
Sidney Simon Professor of Neurobiology Mechanisms of chemical induced pain, inflammation and taste; molecular peptide-lipid interactions.
J.H. Pate Skene Associate Professor of Neurobiology Neuronal development and axon growth; regulation of transcription; protein palmitoylation as a regulatory mechanism.
Theodore Slotkin Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Developmental neurobiology, neuropharmacology and neurotoxicology.
Scott Soderling Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Signaling mechanisms that regulate cell migration, neurite outgrowth, synapse formation, animal behavior; roles of Rho GTPase Activating Proteins in signaling to the actin cytoskeleton.
Daniel Tracey Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Isolation of genes required for sensory processing: touch detection (mechanotransduction), heat detection (thermotransduction), processing of RNA in neuronal dendrites, animal behavior, nociception.
Fan Wang Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Neural circuit development in mouse somatic sensory system.
Robert Wechsler-Reya Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Role of Sonic Hedgehog Signaling in Neural Development and Cancer.
Anne E. West Assistant Professor of Neurobiology

Molecular Mechanisms of Neuronal Activity-dependent Synapse Development
Fulton Wong Professor of Neurobiology Cellular mechanisms of retinal degeneration.
Plant Genetics and Biology
Faculty Name Primary Research Department Brief Research Description
Philip Benfey Professor of Biology Plant Developmental Genetics and Genomics.
Xinnian Dong Professor of Biology Response of plants to pathogens; molecular and genetic investigation of the signal transduction pathways activating plant defense genes.
Zhen-Ming Pei Assistant Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Calcium and nitric oxide signaling in Arabidopsis.
James Siedow Professor of Biology Biochemical & molecular studies of oxidative processes in plants using the cyanide-resistant, alternative oxidase associated with plant mitochodria; effect of the fungal phytotoxins on the structure and permeability of mitochondrial membranes.
Tai-ping Sun Associate Professor of Biology Molecular genetics of plant growth hormones; environmental and developmental regulation of gibberellin biosynthesis and signal transduction.
Rytas Vilgalys Professor of Biology Phylogenetic biology and natural history of fungi, including molecular phylogeny and population genetics of medically important species.
Replication, Transcription and RNA Processing
Faculty Name Primary Research Department Brief Research Description
Lorena Beese Professor of Biochemistry Structure and mechanism of proteins and macromolecular assemblies central to DNA replication, DNA repair, and cellular signaling. X-ray crystallography. Structure-based drug design. Cancer biology.
Dona Chikaraishi Professor of Neurobiology Molecular regulation of catecholamine neurotransmitter biosynthesis and function.
Mariano Garcia-Blanco Professor of Genetics Synthesis and maturation of messenger RNAs in the nucleus of cells.
Arno Greenleaf Professor of Biochemistry Enzymology of gene expression: 1) CTD kinase and RNA polymerase II hyperphosphorylation; 2) PhosphoCTD-associating proteins and organization of nuclear functions.
Jack Keene Professor of Microbiology Functions of RNA-binding proteins in coordinating the global regulation of gene expression during homeostasis and disease.
Daniel Kenan Assistant Professor of Pathology Tumor vascular biology, regulation of gene expression, tissue engineering.
Ken Kreuzer Professor of Biochemistry Mechanisms of DNA replication, recombination and repair, and the interconnections between these processes.
Michael Krangel Professor of Immunology V(D)J recombination; chromatin structure; developmental regulation of T cell receptor genes.
Elwood Linney Professor of Microbiology at the Nicholas School of the Environment Molecular approaches to retinoic acid and estrogen signaling during zebrafish embryonic development; 3D imaging of gene expression; environmental biosensing using embryos.
David MacAlpine Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Genomic approaches to understanding how the molecular architecture of
the chromosome regulates DNA replication.
Joseph Nevins James B. Duke Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Gene regulation during cell growth and oncogenesis.
Thomas Petes Professor and Chair of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology Genetic regulation of genome stability in yeast; meiotic recombination
Sue Robertson Associate Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology Regulation of genome stability in yeast; homologous recombination and mutagenesis.
Laura Rusche Assistant Professor of Biochemistry Formation and function of repressive chromatin.
Deborah Steege Professor of Biochemistry Posttranscriptional control; translational regulation and coupling; mRNA processing and decay.
Dennis Thiele Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Molecular biology and genetics of iron and copper in growth and development; stress gene expression in diseases of protein folding.
Tso-Pang Yao Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Functional dissection of the role of protein acetylation and deacetylation in signal transduction pathways, particularly in the context of cancer formation.
Secretion, Drug Design, and Physiological Disease Processes
Faculty Name Primary Research Department Brief Research Description
Darrell Bigner Professor of Pathology Neuropathology; viral oncology; chemical carcinogenesis.
Rose-Mary Boustany Professor of Neurobiology Mechanisms of apoptosis in neurodegeneration and cancer.
Nicole Calakos Assistant Professor of Neurobiology Molecular basis of synaptic plasticity; presynaptic function; basal ganglia function and pathology.
Fred Dietrich Assistant Professorof Molecular Genetics & Microbiology
 Genetics and Genomics of fungal pathogens and of Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
Paulo Ferreira Associate Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Molecular, genetic and cellular basis of neurodystrophies and allied systemic disorders; dynamic assembly of protein complexes in signaling and trafficking pathways.
Rodney Folz Assistant Research Professor of Cell Biology Molecular and cellular biology of oxidant and antioxidant systems with an emphasis on extracellular compartments and lung biology / physiology.
Matthias Gromeier Assistant Professor of Microbiology Translation Control, Internal Ribosomal Entry, Virology, Vaccine Development, Neuro-Oncology, Cancer, Therapeutics, Oncolytic Viruses, Hepatitis C Virus.
Laura Hale Assistant Professor of Pathology Thymic biology. Immune function in normal aging, cancer, and autoimmunity.
Barton Haynes Professor of Immunology Study of human T cell maturation and thymus biology; biology of human retroviruses; autoimmune disease.
Joseph Heitman James B. Duke Professor of Molecular Genetics & Microbiology Signaling cascades regulating filamentous growth and virulence of yeast and pathogenic fungi. Genetic analysis of immunosuppressive drug action.
Homme Hellinga Professor of Biochemistry Combined theoretical and experimental approaches to protein and drug design; molecular simulation; protein engineering.
Michael Hershfield Professor of Biochemistry Genetic and biochemical studies of inherited diseases of purine metabolism.
William Kane Associate Professor of Pathology Molecular biology of blood coagulation factor V and thrombosisT. Structure, function and regulation of the prothrombinase complex.
Virginia Kraus Associate Professor of Pathology Molecular pathogenesis of arthritis; genetics of osteoarthritis; metalloproteinases.
William Kraus Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Skeletal muscle gene regulation in exercise physiology and disease. In vivo (human and animals) and in vitro work. Human genetics.
Cynthia Kuhn Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology Gonadal steroid action in the brain.
Douglas Marchuk Associate Professor of Genetics Molecular genetics and cell biology of inherited human disease, with particular emphasis on the cardiovascular system.
Jeffrey Marks Assistant Professor of Pathology Investigation of the etiology and progression of breast and ovarian cancer.
Donald McDonnell Glaxo Wellcome Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology The progesterone, estrogen and androgen receptor signaling pathways are complex and provide a wealth of opportunities for new drug discovery.
James McNamara Professor of Neurobiology Molecular mechanisms of epileptogenesis.
Thomas Mitchel