Uriel Jean-Baptiste successfully defended his dissertation, titled “New Frontiers in Lipase Regulation: Apolipoprotein J as a Chaperone for Endothelial Lipase,” on April 8, 2026, under the direction of Dr. Saskia B. Neher.
Uriel received his B.S. in Biochemistry from Florida State University (FSU) in 2018. While at FSU, he was a member of the FSU Center for Academic Retention & Enhancement (CARE), a bridge program providing preparation, orientation, and academic support for first-generation college students. He also conducted research under the supervision of Dr. Hong Li, with whom he co-authored a publication.
Following his time at FSU, Uriel joined the lab of Dr. Vince Luca at the Moffitt Cancer Center (2018–2019) before participating in an NIH-funded post-baccalaureate program (STAR-PREP) at the University of Maryland, Baltimore (2019–2020). During his time at STAR-PREP, Uriel conducted research under the supervision of Dr. Alexandros Poulopoulos.
Uriel began his studies at UNC in 2020, subsequently joining the Biochemistry and Biophysics program and the Molecular Cellular Biophysics training program. His graduate research in Dr. Neher’s group focused on the function of lipid-hydrolyzing enzymes. He utilized a wide range of biochemical and biophysical techniques to investigate the interaction between endothelial lipase, an HDL-metabolizing enzyme, and the newly discovered chaperone Apolipoprotein J.
While at UNC, Uriel mentored three undergraduates and technicians, as well as fellow graduate students. He served as the Director of Alumni Relations for the Graduate Business Careers Club (GBCC) and participated in multiple consulting experiences. Uriel is currently exploring careers as a scientist in industry, as well as roles at the intersection of science and business, such as life science consulting, technology transfer, and technology commercialization.
Jean-Baptiste, U. L., Singh, S., Wu, M., Rodriguez, K., Kim, Y.-B., & Neher, S. ApoJ regulates endothelial lipase activity and stability. Protein Science. https://doi.org/10.1002/pro.70518
Hand, T. H., Das, A., Roth, M. O., Smith, C. L., Jean-Baptiste, U. L., & Li, H. (2018). Phosphate Lock Residues of Acidothermus cellulolyticus Cas9 Are Critical to Its Substrate Specificity. ACS synthetic biology, 7(12), 2908–2917. https://doi.org/10.1021/acssynbio.8b00455