Biochemistry Faculty

Xiaodong Cheng, Ph.D.
Professor
xcheng@emory.edu
Faculty Research Page            

My research interests are mainly focused on epigenetic modifications of DNA methylation and histone modifications.

Graeme L. Conn, Ph.D.  
Associate Professor
gconn@emory.edu
Faculty Research Page

RNA-protein interactions in bacterial antibiotic resistance and the mammalian anti-viral response; mammalian sweet taste receptor and sweet protein structure, function and interaction.

Anita Corbett, Ph.D.
Professor
acorbe2@emory.edu
Faculty Research Page

The Corbett lab seeks to understand the movement of macromolecules between the nucleus and the cytoplasm with a primary focus on understanding how mRNA processing the nucleus is coupled to export to the cytoplasm to ensure accurate gene expression. Current studies are focused on elucidating the function of ubiquitously expressed RNA binding/processing factors that are linked to human disease ranging from intellectual disability to muscular dystrophy and cancer.

Richard D. Cummings, Ph.D.
William Patterson Timmie Professor and Chair
rdcummi@emory.edu
Faculty Research Page

Glycoconjugate structure/function/biosynthesis; cell adhesion involving lectins and glycoproteins in human inflammation, tumor metastasis and schistosomiasis.

Paul W. Doetsch, Ph.D.
Professor
medpwd@emory.edu
Faculty Research Page

Molecular biology of DNA damage, repair, and mutagenesis. Genetic instability and cancer.

Christine Dunham, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
christine.m.dunham@emory.edu
Laboratory Site         

Ribosome function and structure; mechanism of viral mRNA frameshifts; structure and function of RNA-binding proteins involved in mRNA processing and transport.

Williams S. Dynan, Ph.D.  
Professor
wdynan@emory.edu
Laboratory Site

Dr. Dynan, a Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar, will focus his research on repairing double-strand breaks that occur in DNA from ionizing radiation. Such studies hold promise in cancer treatment because selective inhibition of DNA repair in tumor cells provides a strategy to increase the effectiveness of radiation therapy, while limiting normal tissue damage. Dynan’s research also has applications for gene correction for sickle cell disease.

Dale E. Edmondson, Ph.D.
Professor
deedmon@emory.edu
Faculty Research Page

Flavin chemistry and flavoenzyme catalysis, mechanism of action of metalloflavoenzymes, phosphoprotein structure and function.

Richard A. Kahn, Ph.D.
Professor
rkahn@emory.edu
Faculty Research Page

The research focus in my laboratory is the family of 21 kDa GTP binding proteins, termed ADP- ribosylation factors of Arfs.

Ichiro Matsumura, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
imatsum@emory.edu
Faculty Research Page

My objective is to understand the adaptive evolution of protein structure and function. I recapitulate the evolutionary process in the laboratory, and identify the correlations between specific changes in tertiary structure and improvements in fitness. These experiments often yield proteins with enhanced industrial or pharmaceutical utility.

Eric Ortlund, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
eric.ortlund@emory.edu
Laboratory Site       

The lab will use structural biology to focus on nuclear receptor mediated transcription, on complexes between specific lipid transporters and their cognate nuclear receptor recipients and will utilize structure and ancestral gene resurrection to understand the evolution of novel function within proteins.

David C. Pallas, Ph.D.  
Associate Professor
dpallas@emory.edu
Faculty Research Page

The primary purpose of the research in my laboratory is to understand the molecular basis of the control of cell proliferation and of mechanisms by which this control is circumvented in neoplastic cell growth. This knowledge will be applied to help identify new targets for small molecule drug therapy for cancer and other diseases in which aberrant cell proliferation is involved.

Daniel Reines, Ph.D.
Professor
dreines@emory.edu
Faculty Research Page

Current research is focusing on the biochemistry and molecular biology of gene expression.

Nicholas T. Seyfried, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
nseyfri@emory.edu
Laboratory Site

We use a quantitative mass spectrometry approach to define protein aggregation and post-translational modification events observed in neurodegenerative disease.

Keith D. Wilkinson, Ph.D.
Professor and Associate Chair
genekdw@emory.edu
Faculty Research Page

Our laboratory concentrates on the regulation of protein amount and location in the cell. We are studying the ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis system that is responsible for regulated degradation of intracellular proteins as well as the role of ubiquitin and ubiquitin-like proteins as a targeting signal.

 Research Faculty

Tatiana Chernova, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Wilkinson Lab
tcherno@emory.edu

Natasha Degtyareva, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Doetsch Lab
ndegtya@emory.edu

Tongzhong Ju, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Cummings Lab
tju@emory.edu

David F. Smith, Ph.D.
Professor and Director, Core H
Cummings Lab
dfsmith@emory.edu

Xuezheng Song, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Cummings Lab
xsong2@emory.edu

Research Interests

Xiaodong Sun, Ph.D.
Instructor
Cummings Lab
xsun3@emory.edu

Yingchun Wang, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Cummings Lab
ywang49@emory.edu