Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry
Chair
Kimberly Mowry, PhDThe Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry is a basic science department within the Brown University Division of Biology and Medicine. Its core areas of scholarship are broad and encompass biochemistry, cell biology, developmental biology, and genetics. The department supports undergraduate, graduate, and medical education in these fields, offering a large variety of courses from introductory to highly specialized levels. The department currently houses 28 primary faculty whose research programs cover a wide array of biological questions, model systems, and methodological approaches. The biological phenomena under investigation span from embryonic and neuronal development, reproduction and genetics of behavior to neurodegeneration and aging. The biological mechanisms being addressed include DNA replication, recombination and transcription, RNA processing and transport, protein translation, protein folding and turnover, vesicular transport, and numerous aspects of molecular signaling. Model systems range from prokaryotic, through plant and several metazoan species to mammals including humans. Classical biochemical and genetic approaches are used alongside cutting edge technologies including genomics, proteomics, X-ray crystallography, and mouse transgenics. The department is also the centerpiece of an interdisciplinary and interdepartmental graduate program in Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry leading to the PhD degree.
