Congratulations to Biochemistry and Biophysics faculty Qi Zhang who was promoted from associate professor to full professor effective November 10, 2023.
Qi Zhang, PhD, Professor
Dr. Zhang received his Ph.D. degree in Chemistry from the University of Michigan under the guidance of Prof. Hashim M. Al-Hashimi and completed his postdoctoral training with Prof. Juli Feigon at UCLA as a Baltimore Family Fellow of the Life Sciences Research Foundation. In 2011, he was recruited to UNC as a visiting assistant professor and subsequently an assistant professor of biochemistry and biophysics. He then became a tenured associate professor of biochemistry and biophysics in 2018. His promotion to full professor with tenure is effective November 10, 2023, and is based upon excellence in research. Dr. Zhang is also co-director of the UNC RNA Discovery Center, co-director of the UNC Biomolecular NMR Core, and a full member of the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center.
The research in the Zhang lab involves the development and application of biophysical, biochemical, and computational techniques, including NMR spectroscopy, cryo-electron microscopy, and next-generation sequencing, to visualize the dynamic conformational ensembles of nucleic acids and nucleic acid-sensing proteins involved in gene regulation and innate immune responses. His ongoing work aims to develop a quantitative and predictive understanding of how RNAs and their regulatory proteins harness conformational dynamics to drive cellular activities and apply this knowledge in drug discovery and synthetic biology. Please visit the Zhang lab website to learn more
