Research

Faculty members of the Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics at UCI School of Medicine are cutting-edge molecular biologists with research interests in the regulation of gene expression and host-pathogen interactions. The long-term goals of our research efforts are to understand the fundamental biological principles that mediate programmed cellular responses to infection or disease, so that effective therapeutic treatments can be developed.

Research in the Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics is both comprehensive and interdisciplinary. While our faculty members invest most of their efforts in basic research, they also extend their work towards translational studies and clinical applications.

Research in our department is divided into two major categories:

Molecular Genetics

• Cancer genetics and tumor suppressors (Lee, Shi, Waterman)
• Functional genomics and bioinformatics (Hertel, Lee, Shi)
• Regulation of eukaryotic gene expression (Hertel, Lee, Semler, Shi, Waterman)
• mRNA splicing and processing (Hertel, Lee, Shi)
• Nuclear-cytoplasmic transport and intracellular signaling (Sandri-Goldin, Waterman)
• Dopamine mediated brain functions and ion channel expression (Borrelli, Goldin)

Microbiology

• Bacterial gene expression and host interactions (Barbour, McClelland, Tan)
• Bacterial pathogenesis (Barbour, McClelland, Tan)
• Vector-borne transmission of infectious diseases (Barbour, James)
• Malaria and dengue fever prevention (James)
• Viral gene expression and virus-host interactions (Koyuncu, Marsden, Sandri-Goldin, Semler)