Chair: Vojo Deretic, Ph.D.

MGM research spans areas from the fundamental aspects of molecular genetics, cell biology, virology and immunology to applied aspects of vaccine development, cancer, nanomedicine and clinical trails. We are a technologically advanced environment with some of the latest and most sophisticated technologies and equipment available directly within the Department. The MGM department is organized in 4 sections:

(i) Genetics and Cancer Section, with faculty studying fundamental cellular processes such as genomics, molecular biology, transcription, DNA repair, oncogene regulation and function, and protein-nucleic acid interactions, with a strong emphasis on cancer-related topics.

(ii) Immunology and Microbial Pathogenesis Section includes faculty investigating fundamental and applied aspects of immune and infectious diseases encompassing areas of immunology, vaccines, autoimmunity, microbial and viral systems, host-pathogen interactions, and cell biology of the host.

(iii) Translational Research Section, with investigators specializing in clinical studies and expanding roles in the context of NIH translational research initiatives.

(iv) Nanomedicine and Biotechnology Section includes investigators studying fundamental biological processes at the nanoscale, including molecular biology of RNA splicing and viral encapsidation, and multidisciplinary approaches to nanotechnology applications in medicine, biology, and nanomaterials while strengthening ties with the main campus, schools of engineering, and Sandia National Laboratories.

Faculty in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology:

Bryce Chackerian, Ph.D. – Autoantibodies, vaccines, virus-like particles, autoimmunity

Vojo Deretic, Ph.D. (Chair) – Phagosome, endosome, trans-Golgi network, membrane trafficking, macrophage, respiratory epithelial cells, tuberculosis, cystic fibrosis, autophagy

Jeremy S. Edwards, Ph.D. – Spatial temporal modeling, epidermal growth factor receptor, functional genomics technologies, polony sequencing

Hattie Gresham, Ph.D. – Phagocytosis, Staphylococcus aureus, negative regulation of signal transduction

Carolyn Mold, Ph.D. – Autoimmunity, complement, Fc receptors, innate immunity, C-reactive protein

Scott A. Ness, Ph.D. – Oncogenes, stem cells, hematopoiesis, gene regulation, differentiation, cancer biology, cell cycle control, leukemia, signal transduction, genomics

Jac A. Nickoloff, Ph.D. – Recombination, DNA repair, mismatch repair

Mary Ann Osley, Ph.D. – Chromatin remodeling; histone ubiquitination; transcription; DNA repair

Michelle A. Ozbun, Ph.D. – Human papillomaviruses, animal papillomaviruses, cervical cancer,  skin cancer, epithelial biology, cancer biology, virology

Antonito Panganiban, Ph.D. – Virology, HIV, RNA structure, assembly

David Peabody, Ph.D. – RNA-protein interactions, translational regulation, virus assembly

Robert L. Rubin, Ph.D. – T cell tolerance and autoimmunity, T cell development in the thymus, chromatin antigenicity, systemic and drug-induced lupus

Stephanie Ruby, Ph.D. – RNA splicing, snRNPs, spliceosome, regulation of gene expression, DNA-damage response, cancer biology, genomics

Cosette Wheeler, Ph.D. – Human papillomaviruses, cervical cancer, molecular epidemiology, vaccine development

Research Faculty in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology:

John P. O'Rourke Jr., Ph.D. – Alternative splicing; hematopoiesis, leukemogenesis; mammary gland biology; viral vectors

Isabelle Vergne, Ph.D. – Mycobacterium tuberculosis, macrophages, phagosome maturation, lipids, autophagy.

Emeritus Faculty in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology:

Roger Radloff, Ph.D. – UV spectroscopy, microorganism detection, structure and replication of RNA bacteriophage

Jesse Summers, Ph.D. – Hepatitis B virus, virus replication and pathogensis

Faculty with Secondary Appointments in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology:

Arthur Bankhurst, M.D., UNM Department of Internal Medicine
C. Jeffrey Brinker, Ph.D., Sandia National Laboratories and UNM Department of Chemical and Nuclear Engineering
Thomas Byrd, M.D., UNM Department of Internal Medicine
Larry Davis, M.D., Veterans Administration, Albuquerque
Terry DuClos, M.D., Ph.D., UNM Department of Internal Medicine
Jeffery Griffith, Ph.D., UNM Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Brian Hjelle, M.D., UNM Department of Pathology
Robert Hromas, M.D., UNM Department of Internal Medicine
C. Richard Lyons, M.D., Ph.D., UNM Department of Internal Medicine
Margaret Werner-Washburn, Ph.D., UNM Department of Biology
Stephen Young, Ph.D., UNM Department of Pathology

Adjunct Faculty in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology:

David Faguy, Ph.D., NM Department of Health
Debra Horensky, M.D., NM Department of Health
Adriana E. Kajon, Ph.D., Lovelace Respiratory Research Institute
Roberto Rebeil, Ph.D., Sandia National Laboratories
Zhiyuan Shen, Ph.D., Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, UMDNJ

The faculty, students, fellows and staff in our Department have a strong commitment toward education, mentoring and research.  Graduate students and post-doctoral fellows participate in Department seminars and retreats in order to gain experience presenting their research projects, to improve critical thinking skills, and to learn about the work of others.  These activities play an important role in furthering the Department's research and educational missions. 

Students and post-doctoral fellows are strongly encouraged to particpate in Journal Clubs.

Faculty and graduate students in our Department are part of the Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program.

Faculty in our Department are responsible for the Keck-UNM Genomics Resource, a Microarry, Genomics and Bioinformatics facility in the Cancer Research and Treatment Center.

Some Faculty in our Department participate in the UNM NIEHS Center.