Department News

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Yi Zhang receives the Battle Distinguished Cancer Research Award

Congratulations to Dr. Yi Zhang, Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics, who was awarded the first Hyman L. Battle Distinguished Cancer Research Award

Scott Lujan Awarded the First Annual "Diane Harris Leadership Award"

Congratulations to Scott Lujan, recently graduated doctoral student in Biochemistry and Biophysics, who was awarded the Diane Harris Leadership Award.

Clumps of red and white blood cells may contribute to sickle cell disease

Research in the Dept. of Biochemistry and Biophysics at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, by Dr. Julia Brittain, Research Assitant Professor and Dr. Leslie Parise, Professor and Chair have shown that blood from sickle cell patients also contains clumps, or aggregates, of red and white blood cells that may contribute to the blockages.

Recent Research Provides New Interpretations of the Genetic Code

Dr. Charles Carter, Professor of Biochemistry & Biophysics, in the April issue of the Nature journal Heredity, reviews two recent papers that present new insights on the codon table and provide an alternative view on the origins of the genetic code.

Yi Zhang Ranked by Thomson Scientific in Top Ten Authors with High Impact Papers

Congratulations to Dr. Yi Zhang, Professor of Biochemistry & Biophysics, who ranked 7th worldwide in a study performed by Thomson Scientific assessing high-impact research in molecular biology and genetics.

For the Paper Trail of Life on Mars or Other Planets, Find Cellulose

Looking for evidence of life on Mars or other planets? Finding cellulose microfibers would be the next best thing to a close encounter, according to new research from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The cover story for the April issue of the journal Astrobiology, the new research also pushes back the earliest direct evidence of biological material on Earth by about 200 million years.

Arrel Toews is an Invited Lecturer for USMLE Review

Dr. Arrel Toews, Research Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics, has been invited by second year medical students at UNC-Chapel Hill to provide a review of Biochemistry to prepare them for their USMLE Step I exams.

Thomas Mullen receives 2008 Dean's Distinguished Dissertation Award

Congratulations to Thomas Mullen, a graduate student of Biochemistry & Biophysics, for receiving the 2008 Dean's Distinguished Dissertation Award in the area of Biological and Life Sciences.

Computer Simulations Point to Key Molecular Basis of Cystic Fibrosis

Dr. Nikolay Dokholyan, Assistant Professor of Biochemistry & Biophysics and colleagues at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have identified a key molecular mechanism that may account for the development of cystic fibrosis.

Discovery of "Overdrive" Protein Could Broaden Drug Design Options

New research from scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, by graduate student Michael Lee, Pharmacology, and Dr. Henrik Dohlman, Professor & Vice Chair of Biochemistry & Biophysics, shows for the first time that an important family of proteins known to function at the cell surface also functions at a site within the cell.