Molecular & Cell Biology

Inferring past demographic and selective events from patterns of genetic variation in present-day or ancient populations is a central goal of population genetics. My research combines theoretical and computational approaches to develop methods that reconstruct how populations have diverged, exchanged genetic material, and been shaped by natural selection over time. By building new tools and analyzing genomic data, I aim to better understand the evolutionary forces that shape genetic variation within and between species.

Host: Priya Moorjani

Ph.D. Institution: Brown University

The Nomura Research Group is focused on reimagining druggability using chemoproteomic platforms to develop transformative medicines. One of the greatest challenges that we face in discovering new disease therapies is that most proteins are considered “undruggable,” in that most proteins do not possess known binding pockets or “ligandable hotspots” that small-molecules can bind to modulate protein function. Our research group addresses this challenge by advancing and applying chemoproteomic platforms to discover and pharmacologically target unique and novel ligandable hotspots for disease...

Lin He is a Professor of Cell Biology, Development and Physiology Division in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology at UC Berkeley. Her lab studies the functional importance of the non-protein-coding elements in the mammalian genomes. One particular area of interest is the role of transposon elements, which were historically viewed as degenerated “parasitic” DNAs resulting from ancient invasions by foreign DNAs. However, transposons yield numerous functional elements for the host mammalian genomes, conferring new mechanisms of gene regulation, generating new gene functions, and...

Hernan Garcia is an Associate Professor in the Departments of Molecular & Cell Biology and of Physics. His goal is to reach a predictive understanding of how single cells in a developing embryo choose their fates by decoding the regulatory DNA that controls when, where, and how genes are expressed. Using fruit flies as a model, he builds theoretical models that generate testable predictions, then designs experiments to validate them—mirroring the theory-experiment cycle of physics. As a Miller Professor, Hernan will develop technology to dramatically increase the throughput of his genomic...

Jim Hurley is known for using structural biology approaches to understand the endolysosomal network of eukaryotic cells. An elaborate dance of proteins and lipids directs the uptake of materials from both inside and outside the cell and their decomposition in lysosomes, which de Duve described as “the digestive tract of the cell”. Like the digestive tract of a human, this vital pathway is also a window of vulnerability to pathogens and toxins. In neurons and allied cells in the central nervous system, the endolysosomal pathway is vital to maintain cellular health. Yet this pathway is also is...

Gary Karpen is a Professor in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, and a Senior Faculty Scientist at Berkeley Lab. His research leverages interdisciplinary approaches to understand how nanoscale molecular interactions generate dynamic nuclear domains and genomic compartments, and how this mesoscale organization impacts cellular and organismal functions. His lab’s recent work on biocondensates, membraneless ‘bodies’ formed by phase separation or similar biophysical mechanisms, has benefitted from integrating experimental biology with collaborators’ expertise in physics theory. His...

Rebecca Heald’s research in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology addresses fundamental questions of cell division and size control during vertebrate development. Leveraging frogs of the genus Xenopus, which span in genome size from diploid (2N, Xenopus tropicalis) to dodecaploid (12N, Xenopus longipes) her laboratory investigates how the conserved relationship between genome size and cell size influences embryogenesis and biological scaling. A unique advantage of Xenopus systems is the ability to reconstitute meiotic and mitotic spindle assembly in vitro using cytoplasmic extracts...

David Bilder studies cancer from a comparative and evolutionary perspective. While most cancer research focuses on humans or mice, his lab discovered that the fruit fly Drosophila can form tumors that recapitulate systemic ‘paraneoplasias’ that kill human cancer patients, including cachexia (wasting) and coagulopathy (excessive clotting). He is now using the fly’s powerful genetics to uncover the molecular mechanisms underlying these tumor-host interactions. As a Miller Professor, Bilder will pursue two aims: dissecting the ancient origins of the therapeutically transformational phenomenon of...

The goal of our research is to understand how metabolic status is sensed and responded to by cells. We are taking multiple biochemical, genetic and cellular approaches to this problem.

Host: Andrew Dillin
Home Institution: University of Utah

Executive Committee
Molecular & Cell Biology

Vance Lab at UC Berkeley
Innate Immunity and Bacterial Pathogenesis