Ting's lab invented proximity-dependent enzymatic labeling technologies (APEX, TurboID) that map the spatial proteome and transcriptome of living cells with organelle-level resolution, and develops genetically encoded fluorescent/voltage biosensors -- engineering biology's own molecular machinery into quantitative optical reporters.
Uses ultrafast multidimensional spectroscopy to study structural dynamics of biomolecules. Directions: (1) 2D IR spectroscopy of protein folding, water dynamics, and membrane systems with sub-100-fs time resolution; (2) single-molecule FRET for resolving conformational heterogeneity in proteins and nucleic acids; (3) development of ultrafast mid-IR laser sources and pulse shaping for 2D spectroscopy. Resolves dynamics inaccessible to other methods.
Upadhyayula (trained with Eric Betzig at Janelia) develops multifunctional adaptive-optical super-resolution microscopy and the large-scale computational pipelines needed to reconstruct terabyte- to petabyte-scale 3D subcellular dynamics datasets. The group is actively recruiting postdocs.
Vafabakhsh uses single-molecule FRET to resolve the conformational dynamics of membrane receptors and channels -- including class C GPCRs, adhesion GPCRs, and potassium channels -- as they gate and signal, and applies related single-molecule methods to viral DNA packaging motors and synaptic protein complexes, aiming to build a quantitative, multi-scale picture of synaptic protein organization from the single-molecule to the synapse level.
Willem Vanderlinden uses high-resolution biophysical tools to study protein-nucleic acid interactions. Research: (1) magnetic tweezers for pN-scale force and torque measurements on single DNA molecules and nucleoprotein complexes during retroviral integration, DNA supercoiling, and chromatin remodelling; (2) high-speed AFM imaging of nucleoprotein complexes and chromosomal organisation; (3) quantitative single-molecule statistical analysis of DNA topology. His approach provides cutting-edge spatial resolution to study chromatin biophysics and mobile DNA elements at the single-molecule level.
Vandsburger develops molecular and functional cardiac MRI methods, including CEST-based sensors, to noninvasively image myocardial metabolism, fibrosis, and remodeling with the specificity usually associated with molecular probes rather than conventional anatomical MRI. The lab is actively recruiting postdocs.
Waigh's group applies advanced optical and biophysical techniques to study complex biological fluids and single molecules. Research directions: (1) Microrheology — diffusing wave spectroscopy and optical trapping microrheology to measure viscoelastic properties of biopolymer networks and cytoplasm; (2) Antibody / protein dynamics — tracking single-molecule diffusion of antibodies and receptors in complex biological environments using fluorescence; (3) Non-linear flows of antibodies — studying anomalous diffusion and aggregation of therapeutic antibodies; (4) Neutron and X-ray scattering — structural characterization of complex biofluids at PSI facilities. Bridges soft matter physics and single-molecule biosensing.
Wang develops giant-magnetoresistance (GMR) spin-valve biosensor chips that detect magnetic-nanoparticle-tagged biomolecules with high sensitivity and multiplexing for protein and nucleic-acid diagnostics -- a solid-state magnetic-sensing approach to biosensing that sits alongside NV-ensemble and OPM-based approaches at a very different sensitivity/format tradeoff.
Develops ultrasensitive, amplification-free nucleic-acid biosensors and molecular barcodes for high-resolution, multiplexed biosensing and diagnostics, alongside targeted drug/mRNA delivery platforms.
Weingärtner's Magnetic Resonance Systems (Mars) Lab develops new MRI signal models and pulse sequences to non-invasively resolve the brain and heart microvasculature down to the capillary scale, using hydrogen nuclei as 'microscopic spies' on their surrounding tissue microstructure; the work is validated with in-vivo human studies (e.g., microvascular disease, cardiac imaging) and supported by an ERC Starting Grant. The lab is actively recruiting PhD students/postdocs to push quantitative MRI biomarkers into new disease areas.