Semi-Annual Notable News - Biochemistry Highlight

Dr. Charles Bou-Nader Joins Biochemistry Faculty

Biochemistry welcomes Charles Bou-Nader, PhD, as Assistant Professor effective November 1, 2023. Dr. Bou-Nader was previously a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Dr. Dr. Jinwei Zhang, NIH NIDDK.

Dr. Bou-Nader's lab will focus on understanding mechanistically how RNA and R-loop structures control gene expression and genomic integrity in the context of viral infection and neurological disorders. His lab will mainly use cryogenic electron microscopy (cryoEM), X-ray crystallography and biochemical approaches to define important molecular mechanisms of nucleic acid recognition by proteins. You can reach him at cbounad@emory.edu or on Twitter/X @CharlesBNader.

Strategic Pillars for Department Success

Venn diagram with Biochemistry Dept pillars for success

The Department of Biochemistry implemented a new Strategic Plan using 5 pillars for department success in the areas of engagement, resources, talent, development and community.

Dr. Eric Sundberg, Emory School of Medicine Endowed Professor of Biochemistry and Department Chair, appointed a committee for the 5 pillars of success that will encourage department success through engagement in the scientific community, building and nurturing a sense of community, development and growth, improved resources for for scientific research, and support for faculty development.

1. Engagement Director: Lizzy Draganova, PhD

Aims to improve how the department engages the scientific world through the department seminar series, sponsorship of scientific events, visiting scholars and sabbaticals, and department website and social media

2. Community Director: Homa Ghalei, PhD

Aims to improve how the department builds and nurtures our sense of community through Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), postdoctoral and graduate student appreciation events, and online communications via the department website

3. Development Director: Fikri Avci, PhD

Focuses on how the department grows through faculty recruitment and retention, postdoc and graduate student recruitment, and department level network and collaboration

4. Resources Director: Blaine Roberts, PhD

Focuses on how the department plans, builds and maintains resources for scientific research through shared equipment and instrumentation, physical plant, shared instrument grants, department laboratory services, and Equipment & Facilities template documents for NIH grants

5. Talent Director: Eric Ortlund, PhD

Focuses on how the department supports faculty development through equity (especially in regards to faculty salaries), faculty mentoring, faculty promotions and tenure (Department FCAP), faculty awards, faculty bridge support.

Nick Seyfried, PhD, and Colleagues on PBS's Your Fantastic Mind

Nick Seyfried, PhD, and colleagues appeared on PBS's Your Fantastic Mind discussing their research of proteomics, the study of proteins in humans, and its potential to unlock the secrets of neurodegenerative diseases.

Biochemistry Retreat 2023

The Department of Biochemistry held its departmental retreat in June 2023. After a several year hiatus, the retreat was held at the Sautee Mountain Retreat in Clarkesville, Georgia. Activities included team-building exercises and games, hiking, dining, and more. The retreat fostered inter-lab collaboration among faculty, staff, postdocs, students, and all who attended.

Watch retreat video

Promotions and Recognitions

Homa Ghalei, PhD, has been promoted to Associate Professor of Biochemistry, effective September 1, 2023.

Dr. Ghalei also received the 2023 Emory School of Medicine Dean’s IMAGINE, INNOVATE, AND IMPACT (I3) award. The SoM Dean’s I3 WOW Awards fund innovative research ideas with the potential to make a transformational impact on fundamental biomedical knowledge or translational applications. This awarded project, which is collaborative research between the laboratories of Dr. Homa Ghalei in the Department of Biochemistry and Dr. Adam Marcus from the Hematology and Medical Oncology Department, aims to establish novel non-coding RNA biomarkers for non-small cell lung cancer.

Dr. Ghalei was selected for the 2023 SOM Educator Appreciation Day. She has made extensive contributions to graduate education at Emory. In addition to providing outstanding mentorship to trainees in her research lab, Dr. Ghalei is the director of the major course taken by 1st year Biochemistry, Cell and Developmental Biology graduate students and has taught extensively in this course, developing several minicourses that emphasize scientific discussions, critical thinking, hypothesis design and testing, and application of techniques in modern biochemistry.

New NIH Grant

Elizabeth (Lizzy) Draganova, PhD, Assistant Professor of Biochemistry, received an NIH Director’s New Innovator Award from the NIH Common Fund’s High-Risk, High-Reward Research program. The project title is, "Under Pressure: Biophysical Mapping of Herpesvirus Capsid Assembly and Genome Packaging".

New Secondary Faculty

Biochemistry welcomes Shashank Shekhar, PhD, Assistant Professor of Physics at Emory University, as a secondary faculty member to the department.

New Recognition and NIH Grant

Sohail Khoshnevis, PhD, Assistant Professor, received a 5-year NIH grant, "Post-transcriptional regulation of cell plasticity." Dr. Khoshnevis was also selected for the 2023 Emory SOM Researcher Appreciation Day.

NAR Cancer Receives First Impact Factor

NAR Cancer, published by Oxford University Press, received an impact factor of 5.1. Dr. William Dynan, Professor in the Emory School of Medicine departments of Radiation Oncology and Biochemistry, is the founding Editor-in-Chief. The journal publishes at the intersection of the nucleic acids and cancer fields, with sections including DNA repair; epigenetics, chromatin, and gene regulation; and cancer-specific RNAs and RNA processing.

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