Alireza Ghanbarpour (Principal Investigator)
Education
Postdoc, MIT
NRSA F32 postdoc fellow, Yale School of Medicine
Ph.D., Michigan State University
Hobbies:
Traveling, hiking, writing poems, cooking
Email: alirezag@wustl.edu
Phone: 314-362-4117
Office: 254 McDonnell Medical Sciences Building
About the PI: I’ve always been captivated by molecular structures and their ability to reveal underlying functions. As an undergraduate, I studied the crystal engineering of small molecules, identifying how weak intermolecular interactions drive crystal packing. During my master’s, I studied inorganic catalysis, investigating structure-function relationships of small molecules and their catalytic properties. My PhD research further expanded my focus to protein chemistry, where I engineered protein model systems, determined crystal structures, and conducted biochemical studies to demonstrate how nature can develop complex mechanisms—such as photoactivity and allosteric regulation—within a “naive” protein fold.
As an NRSA F32 postdoctoral fellow at Yale, I discovered how lipid scramblases interact with lipid transfer proteins during autophagosome formation—a process that enables cells to degrade proteins and organelles by engulfing them within a double membrane—and proposed a new model for organelle biogenesis. Later, at MIT, I used cryo-EM and biochemistry to study bacterial AAA proteases, uncovering key insights into substrate engagement, recognition, and adaptor interactions within these intricate molecular machines. In my lab, I am excited to further investigate how bacterial and mitochondrial AAA proteases recognize substrates, interact with adaptors, and enable cells to adapt to environmental stress through precise proteome remodeling mechanisms
Lab members
Naseer Iqbal (Staff Scientist)
Education and research Experience:
Postdoc, Anschutz Medical campus, University of Colorado, Denver
Ph.D., All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
Research Interests:
Structural biology, biochemistry
Hobbies:
Playing Cricket, traveling, hiking
Yifei Lyu (Research Technician)
Education and research experience:
MS, Applied Chemical Science and Technology, University of Washington.
BS, Chemistry, Genetics, and Chemistry, Emory University.
Research interests:
Biochemistry, structural Biology, drug Discovery
Hobbies:
Video games, traveling
Email: ylyu@wustl.edu
Lily Felipe (Undergraduate Student)
Education and research experience:
Undergraduate student, Biological Neuroscience and Psychology, Washington University in St. Louis
Research interests:
Biochemistry, medication and drug discovery, molecular biology, ecology
Hobbies:
cooking and baking, reading and poetry, travelling, horseback riding.
Email: f.lily@wustl.edu
We are actively recruiting new lab members. Please check opportunities for more information.