40 faculty and 0 courses in Biology at University of Pittsburgh.
- Graham Hatfull, Eberly Family Professor of Biotechnology, HHMI Professor h-index 92
Mycobacteria are among some of the worst pathogens of humankind. Mycobacterium tuberculosis – the causative agent of human TB – infects a substantial portion of the world’s population and is responsible for over 1.5 millions deaths a year.
Notable: “DNA sequence and expression of the B95-8 Epstein—Barr virus genome” (1984) · 2,058 citations
- Jeffrey L. Brodsky, Avinoff Professor of Biological Sciences h-index 79
Our work focuses on understanding how misfolded proteins are recognized and destroyed in the cell, how molecular chaperones mediate protein quality control “decisions”, how cellular stress impacts protein homeostasis ("proteostasis"), and h
Notable: “Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy in higher eukaryotes” (2008) · 2,040 citations
- Kirill Kiselyov, Professor h-index 77
Fig 1: Monitoring membrane traffic in the endocytic pathway. Research in our lab is focused on the integrative function of the cell – its ability to gauge the functional status of its components and work as a complete, coordinated system. A
Notable: “Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy in higher eukaryotes” (2008) · 2,040 citations
- Tia-Lynn Ashman, Distinguished Professor h-index 65
Current work in the lab revolves around three major foci: 1) The contribution of polyploidy to functional and genomic biodiversity; 2) Ecological and evolutionary studies of separate sexes and sex chromosomes; and 3) The factors that shape
Notable: “TRY plant trait database – enhanced coverage and open access” (2019) · 2,082 citations
- James M. Pipas, Herbert W. and Grace Boyer Professor in Molecular Biology h-index 59
Viral Manipulation of Cellular Systems BKV and JCV are human polyomavirus that infect and persist in most humans for a lifetime. These infections are usually harmless. However, both viruses can cause severe, even fatal, diseases in immunoco
Notable: “SV40-encoded microRNAs regulate viral gene expression and reduce susceptibility to cytotoxic T cells” (2005) · 609 citations
- Kevin Kohl, Associate Professor h-index 44
While broadly interested in ecology and evolution, Dr. Kohl’s research tends to focus on the physiological ecology and microbial ecology of the digestive system. He is especially interested in how hosts' ecology and evolutionary history sha
Notable: “Phylosymbiosis: Relationships and Functional Effects of Microbial Communities across Host Evolutionary History” (2016) · 660 citations
- Jeffrey Lawrence, Professor and Department Chair h-index 39
Notable: “Lateral gene transfer and the nature of bacterial innovation” (2000) · 3,878 citations
- Jacob Durrant, Associate Professor h-index 38
Petascale, GPU, and cloud computing are transforming computational biology into an even more powerful tool for both medical and basic-science research. The mission of the Durrant lab is to develop broadly applicable, innovative computer-aid
Notable: “Molecular dynamics simulations and drug discovery” (2011) · 1,393 citations
- Jeffrey Hildebrand, Associate Professor h-index 35
How is it that cells manage to regulate their shape and organization during embryonic development in order to form the various tissues and diverse body plans seen in adult organisms? Figure 1. Wildtype E8.5 mouse embryo was stained to
Notable: “Autophosphorylation of the Focal Adhesion Kinase, ppl25FAK, Directs SH2-Dependent Binding of pp60src” (1994) · 1,145 citations
- Nathan Clark, Associate Professor h-index 35
We are a combined computational and experimental lab. We study the process of adaptive evolution, during which species adopt novel traits to overcome challenges. We retrace the evolutionary histories of genomic elements to determine the cha
Notable: “Evolution of reproductive proteins from animals and plants” (2005) · 376 citations
- Justin Kitzes, Associate Professor h-index 34
Research in the Kitzes Lab focuses on measuring, understanding, and predicting biodiversity loss on a planet increasingly dominated by human activities. The central question that guides
Notable: “Approaching a state shift in Earth’s biosphere” (2012) · 1,951 citations
- Corinne Richards-Zawacki, Professor and PLE Director h-index 34
My research lies at the intersection of ecology and evolutionary biology, in that I approach questions about how changes in climate and habitat shape organisms and communities in a way that considers their evolutionary implications. My work
Notable: “Amphibian fungal panzootic causes catastrophic and ongoing loss of biodiversity” (2019) · 1,369 citations
- Karen Arndt, Professor h-index 32
A critical question to ask, particularly in this genomic era, is how organisms interpret the vast amounts of information encoded in their genomes. The Arndt lab studies the first step in gene expression, the synthesis of mRNA by RNA polymer
Notable: “The Paf1 complex physically and functionally associates with transcription elongation factors in vivo” (2002) · 329 citations
- Craig Kaplan, Professor h-index 31
Our lab uses model eukaryotes for understanding transcription mechanisms, from initiation to elongation to co-transcriptional mRNA processing. We are particularly interested in how alterations to RNA Polymerase II activity affects gene expr
Notable: “Transcription Elongation Factors Repress Transcription Initiation from Cryptic Sites” (2003) · 586 citations
- Jon P. Boyle, Professor h-index 30
Toxoplasma gondii is an intracellular pathogen that has infected over a billion people worldwide. This parasite sets up a chronic infection in its host that cannot be cured with currently available chemotherapies. Chronically infected human
Notable: “Differences among the three major strains of Toxoplasma gondii and their specific interactions with the infected host” (2005) · 344 citations
- Mark Rebeiz, Professor h-index 30
One of the greatest puzzles in evolutionary biology is to understand how the spectacular array of organismal forms on our planet arose. Research in evolutionary developmental biology (evo-devo) aims to molecularly characterize evolutionary
Notable: “The Evolution of Gene Regulation Underlies a Morphological Difference between Two Drosophila Sister Species” (2008) · 313 citations
- Andrew VanDemark, Associate Professor h-index 28
We use a variety of biochemical and structural techniques including X-ray crystallography to discover the molecular mechanisms that describe how proteins functions and how their activities are disrupted in the disease state. We have active
Notable: “PEBP1 Wardens Ferroptosis by Enabling Lipoxygenase Generation of Lipid Death Signals” (2017) · 922 citations
- Burhan Gharaibeh, Teaching Professor h-index 26
Dr. Burhan Gharaibeh is an Appointment Stream faculty member at the Department of Biological Sciences, and an adjunct faculty member in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh and a Research Ass
Notable: “Prospective identification of myogenic endothelial cells in human skeletal muscle” (2007) · 349 citations
- Martin Turcotte, Associate Professor h-index 25
My research focus is Evolutionary Community Ecology, which means I study the dynamic interplay between ecological and evolutionary processes over very rapid timescales. Using a variety of complementary approaches, especially experimental ev
Notable: “Plant domestication through an ecological lens” (2015) · 275 citations
- Deborah L. Chapman, Associate Professor h-index 24
Figure 1. Errors in somite formation lead to fusions of the ribs (arrows) Birth defects result from errors made during embryonic development. Normal development involves careful orchestration of multiple events, including changes in gene tr
Notable: “Increased apoptosis and early embryonic lethality in mice nullizygous for the Huntington's disease gene homologue” (1995) · 794 citations
- Sarah Hainer, Assistant Professor h-index 24
Figure 1. Diagram of promoter and enhancer regulatory regions. Promoter proximal antisense RNA (asRNA), coding gene (mRNA), enhancer RNAs (eRNAs) and nucleosome depleted regions (NDR) are labeled. Pink circles are nucleosomes and purple cir
Notable: “High-Resolution Mapping of Chromatin Packaging in Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells and Sperm” (2014) · 257 citations
- Cara Haney, Associate Professor h-index 23
Members of the bacterial genus Pseudomonas form mutualistic, commensal, and pathogenic associations with diverse hosts. The prevalence of host association across the genus suggests that symbiosis may be a conserved ancestral trait and that
Notable: “Associations with rhizosphere bacteria can confer an adaptive advantage to plants” (2015) · 490 citations
- Andrea J. Berman, Associate Professor h-index 22
My research focuses on understanding how non-coding RNA directs gene expression. My current research goals are to understand how RNA conformational change within ribonucleoprotein complexes regulates translation. To do this, we utilize comp
Notable: “X-Linked TEX11 Mutations, Meiotic Arrest, and Azoospermia in Infertile Men” (2015) · 344 citations
- Miler T. Lee, Associate Professor h-index 19
Potential Ph.D. students interested in gene regulation, development, evo-devo and/or computational genomics are encouraged to apply here For most animals and plants, the genetic instructions that guide early embryogenesis are i
Notable: “Ribosome Profiling Shows That miR-430 Reduces Translation Before Causing mRNA Decay in Zebrafish” (2012) · 736 citations
- Anthony Schwacha, Associate Professor h-index 17
Cancer is caused by defects in the normal genetic code. Emerging evidence suggests that regulatory mishaps during DNA replication are often the causative event for this dreadful disease. To address the fundamental relationship b
Notable: “Identification of double holliday junctions as intermediates in meiotic recombination” (1995) · 495 citations
- Anne Carlson, Associate Professor h-index 17
Ion Channels and Fertilization Our lab using biophysical tools to study excitable cells. We currently have two research directions, uncovering the earliest events of fertilization, and studying how ion channels are regulated. Fertiliza
Notable: “CatSper1 required for evoked Ca 2+ entry and control of flagellar function in sperm” (2003) · 381 citations
- Allyson F. O'Donnell, Associate Professor h-index 17
Nearly half of all prescription drugs alter G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR) signaling, including treatments for asthma, hypertension, neurodegenerative disorders and depression. β-arrestins are critical regulators of GPCRs: they act as tr
Notable: “De novo emergence of adaptive membrane proteins from thymine-rich genomic sequences” (2020) · 157 citations
- Laty Cahoon, Assistant Professor h-index 16
Gram-positive bacteria are causative agents of serious and often fatal infections in both hospital and community settings, however many fundamental aspects of their physiology and pathogenesis remain poorly studied in comparison to their Gr
Notable: “An Alternative DNA Structure Is Necessary for Pilin Antigenic Variation in Neisseria gonorrhoeae” (2009) · 303 citations
- Gerard Campbell, Associate Professor h-index 13
The development of multicellular animals requires precise regulation of gene activity and cell behavior to control patterns of cell differentiation and final size and shape. We use the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster , to answer question
Notable: “Transducing the Dpp Morphogen Gradient in the Wing of Drosophila” (1999) · 284 citations
- Tera Levin, Assistant Professor h-index 11
The Levin lab studies the evolution of infectious diseases, seeking to understand how evolutionary “arms races” between hosts and pathogens dynamically shape the biology of immunity and pathogenesis. We approach these questions using a comb
Notable: “Cell differentiation and morphogenesis in the colony-forming choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta” (2011) · 292 citations
- Yiluan Song, Assistant Professor h-index 9
How is global change altering phenology and biodiversity, and how are these changes impacting human activities? These are the overarching questions driving
Notable: “Montane species track rising temperatures better in the tropics than in the temperate zone” (2021) · 125 citations
- Kristen Butela, Teaching Professor, Co-Director of Undergraduate Studies h-index 8
Notable: “An inclusive Research Education Community (iREC): Impact of the SEA-PHAGES program on research outcomes and student learning” (2017) · 219 citations
- Young Ahn, Teaching Assistant Professor h-index 5
Ed on the characterization of heme-copper oxygen reductases from a range of microorganisms. As terminal oxidases in the respiratory chain, these enzymes are essential to any organism that depends on aerobic respiration, including many human
Notable: “Parallel Induction of Heme Oxygenase-1 and Chemoprotective Phase 2 Enzymes by Electrophiles and Antioxidants: Regulation by Upstream Antioxidant-Responsive Elements (ARE)” (1995) · 304 citations
- Lesley Ashmore, Teaching Associate Professor h-index 3
Notable: “Novel Insights into the Regulation of the Timeless Protein” (2003) · 69 citations
- Jennifer Grousd, Teaching Assistant Professor h-index 3
Notable: “Host-Pathogen Interactions in Gram-Positive Bacterial Pneumonia” (2019) · 100 citations
- Becky Gonda, Teaching Associate Professor and Director of Outreach
- Kotdaji Ha, Assistant Professor
- Ping An, Teaching Assistant Professor
- Rachel Davenport, Teaching Professor
- Rory Carroll, Teaching Assistant Professor
Ed on how anthropogenic impacts such as urbanization, habitat fragmentation, and altered wildlife communities changed the genetic structure, foraging behavior, and physiology of bobcat populations. Previously, he was an assistant professor
Roster/catalog compiled from the college’s public directory. Faculty counts are directory headcounts; the named list may be a subset. h-index shown only for ORCID-backed or high-confidence OpenAlex matches. Data as of 2026-07-02.