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Biochemical Mechanisms

What are Biochemical Mechanisms?

Research into biochemical mechanisms focuses on understanding the functions of a cell at the molecular level, and how changes to the building blocks that make up cells lead to human disease.

What is the impact of our research in Biochemical Mechanisms?

  • A new pathway for treating autoimmune diseases is heading towards clinical trials thanks to research that began in our department. Find out more from the Thompson Lab.
  • The molecular bases of two rare diseases (the DNA repair disorder “PARD” and a form of severe congenital neutropenia) were discovered in our department. Find out more from the Kelch Lab and here in the Munson Lab.
  • The molecular and genetic mechanisms that define how antibiotics kill bacteria are being elucidated in our department, holding promise for the development of next-generation anti-bacterial medication. Find out more here.

Who's studying Biochemical Mechanisms?

  • Daniel Bolon

    Daniel Bolon , PhD

    Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Cellular Biochemistry, Computational Biochemistry

    Category: CLIM/Ldb cofactors,disease prevention

    Research Interest: The Bolon Lab investigates relationships between protein sequence, structure and function.

    Broader Impact: COVID-19, cancer, HIV

    Office Location: LRB 922
    Lab Location: LRB 960 E-D
    Phone: 508-856-3588

    Lab Page

  • Josué Flores Kim

    Josué Flores Kim , PhD

    Assistant Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology.

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Cellular Biochemistry, Gene Expression & Epigenetics

    Research Interest: The Flores Kim lab studies how bacteria build their cell envelopes and how antimicrobials disrupt these processes.

    Key Words: bacterial cell envelope; antibiotic resistance; antibiotic tolerance

    Research Tools: We use a combination of classical, modern and chemical genetic screens with biochemical and high-resolution imaging analyses. 

    Broader Impact: drug resistant and tolerant bacterial infections

    he/him/his
    Office Location: LRB 915
    Lab Location: LRB 970 U
    Phone: 508-856-6260

    Lab Page

  • Julia Flynn

    Julia Flynn , PhD

    Assistant Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology; Member of the Bolon Lab.

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Cellular Biochemistry, Computational Biochemistry

    Research Interest: Dr. Flynn investigates how changes in DNA sequence impact protein function.

    Key Words: drug resistance, protein adaptation, protein folding, evolution, mutagenesis, deep mutational scanning

    Research Tools: S. cerevisiae (yeast)

    Broader Impact: cancer, SARS-CoV2

    she/her/hers
    Lab Location: LRB 960 D
    Phone: 508-856-4418

  • Gang Han

    Gang Han , PhD

    Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Cellular Biochemistry, Chemical Biology

    Research Interest: The Han lab uses a multidisciplinary approach to develop nanomaterials for use in chemistry and biology research and in drug delivery.

    Office Location: LRB 806
    Lab Location: LRB 870 U
    Phone: 508-856-3297


    Lab Page

  • Anthony Imbalzano

    Anthony Imbalzano , PhD

    Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology; Associate Dean of Academic Affairs in the Morningside Graduate School for Biomedical Sciences; Associate Dean in the Office for Postdoctoral Scholars

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Cellular Biochemistry, Gene Expression & Epigenetics

    Research Interest: The Imbalzano Lab studies the role of chromatin remodeling in cell fate specification and maintenance.

    Key Words: Chromatin remodeling, gene expression, development, cancer, mesenchymal cells, myogenesis, adipogenesis

    Research Tools: Cell Culture, M. musculus (mouse)

    Broader Impact: Breast Cancer

    he/him/his
    Office Location: LRB 813
    Lab Location: LRB 870 H
    Phone: 508-856-1029

    Lab Page

  • Brian Kelch

    Brian Kelch , PhD

    Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Biophysics & Macromolecular Structures, Cellular Biochemistry

    Research Interest: The Kelch Lab utilizes structural biology and biochemistry to reveal the workings of large macromolecular complexes, with a special focus on those involved in DNA replication/repair and virus assembly. 

    Research Tools: E. coli (bacteria), S. cerevisiae (yeast), T. thermophilus (bacteria), H. sapiens (human)

    Broader Impact: cancer, PARD, infectious disease

    he/him/his
    Office Location: LRB 923
    Lab Location: LRB 970 H-G
    Phone: 508-856-8322

    Lab Page

     

  • William R. Kobertz

    William R. Kobertz , PhD

    Professor Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Cellular Biochemistry, Chemical Biology

    Research Interest: The Kobertz Lab develops new tools to study the roles of glycosylation in ion channel localization and function. 

    Broader Impact: Cardiac arrythmias, hearing loss

    Office Location: LRB 804
    Lab Location: LRB 840 C
    Phone: 508-856-8861

    Lab Page

  • Nese Kurt Yilmaz

    Nese Kurt Yilmaz , PhD

    Associate Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Biophysics & Macromolecular Structures, Computational Biochemistry

    Research Interest: Biological function, enzyme inhibition and drug resistance.
     

    Key Words:
    protein structure, biomolecular complexes, conformational dynamics, enzyme inhibition

    Research Tools: viral proteases, deaminases, renalase

    Broader Impact: Viral infections (HIV-1, HCV, coronaviruses, influence, dengue), cancer, type I diabetes

    Office Location: LRB 919
    Phone: 508-856-1867

    Lab Page 

  • Francesca Massi

    Francesca Massi , PhD

    Associate Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Biophysics & Macromolecular Structures, Computational Biochemistry

    Research Interest: The Massi lab uses their expertise in NMR Spectroscopy to understand the dynamics of protein-RNA interactions.

    Office Location: LRB 925
    Lab Location: LRB 960 B, 970 N
    Phone: 508-856-4501

    Lab Page

  • Dannel McCollum

    Dannel McCollum , PhD

    Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology; Vice Chair of Faculty Advancement for the Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology Department

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Cellular Biochemistry

    Research Interest: The McCollum Lab studies how cells sense mechanical forces through the Hippo pathway.

    Key Words:
    Cancer, mechano-signaling, Hippo pathway, YAP/TAZ

    Research Tools: Cell culture

    Broader Impact: cancer, wound repair

    Office Location: LRB 823
    Lab Location: LRB 870 N
    Phone: 508-856-8767

    Lab Page

  • Stephen Miller

    Stephen Miller , PhD

    Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Cellular Biochemistry, Chemical Biology

    Research Interest: The Miller Lab develops optical imaging probes, ranging from the design of new fluorescent molecules to engineered luciferins and luciferases for in vivo bioluminescence imaging. 

    Key Words: bioluminescence, fluorescence, near-infrared, imaging, probes, chemical biology 

    Research Tools: fluorescence microscopy, synthetic organic chemistry, bioluminescence imaging, AAV transduction, mouse models, mammalian cell culture, spectrophotometry, NMR, mammalian cell culture, M. musculus (mouse)

    Broader Impact: optical probes are broadly applicable to study many different diseases

    he/him/his
    Office Location: LRB 805
    Lab Location: LRB 870 X
    Phone: 508-856-8865

    Lab Page

  • Mary Munson

    Mary Munson , PhD

    Professor and Vice Chair for Diversity, Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology; Associate Vice Provost for Equity in Science, Office of Health Equity; co-leader of the Investigator Career Advancement Program (iCAP); Co-investigator for the American Society for Cell Biology's MOSAIC Program; Co-chair of the ASCB’s Women in Cell Biology Committee (WICB); incoming ASCB President in 2025; Faculty Advisor, UMass Chan-SACNAS student chapter

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Biophysics & Macromolecular Structures, Cellular Biochemistry

    Research Interest: The Munson lab studies vesicle trafficking machinery and how specificity in vesicle targeting and fusion is achieved. 

    Key Words: membrane trafficking, exocytosis, endocytosis, exocyst, VPS45, SNAREs, vesicle fusion, neutropenia

    Research Tools: protein and membrane biochemistry, biophysics, cryoEM, yeast and mammalian cell biology, immunology, mouse models of disease

    Broader Impact: immune dysfunction, cancer, neurological disorders

    she/her/hers
    Office Location: 
    LRB 905
    Lab Location: LRB 970 P, Q, R
    Phone: 508-856-8318

    Lab Page

  • Peter Pryciak

    Peter Pryciak , PhD

    Associate Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Cellular Biochemistry, Gene Expression & Epigenetics

    Research Interest: Dr. Pryciak studies how protein kinases regulate cell signaling and the cell cycle.

    Key Words: MAP kinases (MAPKs), cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs), short linear motifs (SLiMs)

    Research Tools: S. cerevisiae (yeast)

    Office Location: LRB 822
    Lab Location: LRB 870 P
    Phone: 508-856-8756
     
    Lab Page

  • Sy Redding

    Sy Redding , PhD

    Assistant Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Biophysics & Macromolecular Structures, Gene Expression & Epigenetics

    Research Interest: The Redding Lab seeks to discover general physical principles that affect how genetic information is organized and accessed.

    Key Words: Chromatin organization, protein-DNA interactions, Epigenetics, single molecule biophysics, phase separation

    Research Tools: single molecule techniques, TIRF microscopy, confocal microscopy.

    he/him/his
    Office Location: LRB 926
    Lab Location: LRB 960 B
    Phone: 774-455-6635
     
    Lab Page

  • Nick Rhind

    Nick Rhind , PhD

    Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Cellular Biochemistry, Gene Expression & Epigenetics

    Research Interest: The Rhind lab studies cell size regulation and temporal coordination of DNA replication

    Key Words: DNA replication, cell cycle, cell size, replication kinetics

    Research Tools: S. cerevisiae (yeast)

    Broader Impact: Cancer

    Office Location: LRB 904
    Lab Location: LRB 940 E-D
    Phone: 508-856-8316

    Lab Page

  • William E. Royer

    William E. Royer , PhD

    Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Biophysics & Macromolecular Structures, Chemical Biology

    Research Interest: The Royer lab uses their expertise in X-Ray Crystallography to study how the assembly of macromolecules regulates biological function.
     

    Key Words: Structural Biology, X-ray Crystallography, Protein Assembly and regulation.

    Research Tools: X-Ray Crystallography

    Broader Impact: Cancer

    he/him/his
    Office Location: LRB 921
    Lab Location: LRB 970 G, W
    Phone: 508-856-6912

    Lab Page

  • Mohan Somasundaran

    Mohan Somasundaran , PhD

    Associate Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology; Member of the Schiffer Lab

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Biophysics & Macromolecular Structures, Cellular Biochemistry

    Research Interest: The Somasundaran team studies how cells and viruses interact with each other to develop molecular diagnostics and new antiviral therapies. 

    Research Tools: cell culture, M. musculus (mouse)

    Broader Impact: HIV, EBV, infectious mononucleosis, influenza, SARS-CoV1, SARS-CoV2, cancer

    Office Location: LRB 960 E
    Phone: 508-856-4408

    Lab Page

     

  • Paul Thompson

    Paul Thompson , PhD

    Endowed Chair in Biochemistry and Molecular Biotechnology II; Director of the Program in Chemical Biology; Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Biophysics & Macromolecular Structures, Chemical Biology

    Research Interest: The Thompson lab is a leader in the field of chemical biology and exploits these techniques to study biomedically-important enzymes and proteins including the Protein Arginine Deiminases, STING and SARM1.

    Key Words:
    Drug discovery, deimination, autoimmunity, rheumatoid arthritis, citrullination, enzymology

    Research Tools: Enzymology, medicinal chemistry, chemical biology, proteomics, inhibitor design

    Broader Impact: rheumatoid arthritis, sepsis, lupus, STING-associated vasculopathy in infancy, ALS, peripheral neuropathies, cancer.

    Office Location: LRB 825
    Lab Location: LRB 860 B, C, E
    Phone: 508-856-8492
     
    Lab Page

  • Zuoshang Xu

    Zuoshang Xu , PhD

    Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Cellular Biochemistry

    Research Interest: the Xu lab studies the mechanism of and therapy for ALS using mouse and other models.

    Research Tools: M. musculus (mouse)

    Broader Impact: ALS

    Office Location: LRB 817
    Lab Location: LRB 870 J, K
    Phone: 508-856-3309
     
    Lab Page


  • Qing Yu

    Qing Yu , PhD

    Assistant Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology

    Type: Primary

    Areas of Research: Biochemical Mechanisms, Cellular Biochemistry, Chemical Biology

    Research Interest: The Yu Lab builds multiplexed, intelligent proteomics platforms to systematically understand protein function in health and disease and to advance therapeutic development. 

    Key Words: Multiplexed proteomics, mass spectrometry, post-translational modification, bioinformatics, chemical biology, cell signaling, systems biology, drug discovery 

    Research Tools: Mass spectrometry, mammalian cell culture, mouse model

    Broader Impact: Drug resistance, cancer, aging



    Office Location: LRB 815
    Lab Location: LRB 870 D, E
    Phone: 508-856-2174
      
    Lab Page

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