MCO Faculty

Developing approaches to aid neuronal regeneration in the context of neurodegenerative diseases of the cortical output circuitry; modulating neuronal function in psychiatric diseases affecting cortical microcircuitry

Elucidation and study of biosynthetic pathways and enzymes as well as the development of synthetic methods that are compatible with microbial chemistry.

Sensory biology and cell physiology

(Not Accepting Graduate Students for 2026-2027) The molecular and neural circuit basis of behavioral individuality.

Gene regulation, epigenetics and single-cell technologies

(Not Accepting Graduate Students for 2026-2027) Ecology and evolution of microbial symbioses.

Cellular fat metabolism and inter-organelle communication

Real-time systems analysis of signal transduction and genetic networks at the single cell level

Combining optics, protein engineering, chemistry, electrophysiology, simulation, and theory, at the levels of individual molecules, single cells, and whole, genetically modified, organisms.

Molecular mechanisms underlying viral genomic RNA – host interactions

Mechanisms of membrane-associated cell biological processes.

Evolutionary dynamics, experimental evolution, population genetics

Molecular and neural architecture of social behavior circuits

Computational and quantitative biology

Mechanisms of parasitic behavior manipulation across molecules, cells and circuits.

Synaptic plasticity: cellular mechanisms, development of functional networks and links to behaviour

(Not Accepting Graduate Students for 2026-2027) Evolution of molecular and developmental mechanisms controlling cell fate decisions

High resolution dynamic and spatial studies of prokaryotic cellular organization

Structural biology of signaling and transport through biological membranes

Microbial eco-systems biology; Microbial physiology; Marine biogeochemistry

Collective cell behaviors that build tissues in live embryos

Physics, dynamics, and evolution of proteins; microbial cell physiology.

Experience-dependent brain development; critical periods

(Not Accepting Graduate Students) The genetic basis of adaptive morphology and behavior.

(Not Accepting Graduate Students for 2026-2027) Evolutionary, ecological, and genetic basis of speciation

Development and Regeneration of the Mammalian Skin

C. elegans genetics of intercellular RNAi signaling

Mechanisms of antibiotics and antibiotic resistance

Chromosomes: motion, mechanics, DNA dynamics and spatial patterning

(Not Accepting Graduate Students for 2026-2027) Evolution of floral developmental genetic pathways

Development of chemical and molecular biology tools to allow new measurements and perturbations in biological systems; study mechanisms of gene regulation and dysregulation in cancer.

Synaptic structure and competition

Chemical and synthetic biology, molecular evolution

mathematical sciences

(Not Accepting Graduate Students for 2026-2027) Study evolution, hybridization, and speciation - mainly in butterflies

Virus biophysics; imaging techniques for studying self-assembly

Reproductive and regenerative biology

Neuronal cell biology, neural circuits and olfaction

Immunology, microbiome, and diet.

Quantitative studies of biological self-organization, and the architecture and dynamics of subcellular structures

Force-induced denaturation of DNA, sequence heterogeneity and the dynamics of motor proteins, population growth and mutation in disordered media

Understanding and harnessing the complexity of plant chemistry and metabolism

(Not Accepting Graduate Students for 2026-2027) Neural mechanisms underlying motor sequence learning

Theoretical and experimental studies of self-assembly, DNA/chromosome structure, homology recognition, Roles for Mechanical Force Probes Using Single Molecules

Multicolor and time-resolved electron microscopy of cell signaling

Human development, Stem cell biology, Neuroscience, Computational Biology

Evolutionary forces in humans and pathogens

Circuits and Behavior

Biology of aging through the lens of developmental timing and lifespan evolution.

Small molecule probes and therapeutics controlling gene expression, epigenetics, and cell states

Development, Regeneration, Evolutionary Biology

Neurobiology of perception and decision making

Uncovering the intrinsic and extrinsic regulators of stem cell function, and revealing how changes in stem cell activity impact tissue regeneration throughout life

Non-coding RNA biology, imprinted gene expression regulation, neurobiology

Discovering principles governing regenerative success in tetrapods

Development and application of chemical proteomic methods to study the interactions of therapeutics, natural products, and metabolites within the cellular proteome

Molecular and circuit mechanisms underlying behavior and plasticity

Single-molecule and super-resolution studies of cellular processes

Development of the nervous system, synaptic plasticity, behavior and evolution

Chromosome segregation, yeast sex, and evolution

Computational methods to identify functional genomic sequences and structures. Quest for conserved RNA structures