The rockefeller university

Scientists study how molecules interact to drive biological processes such as gene regulation, signal transduction, and enzymology. Their work involves delineating the properties of molecules, molecular complexes, and cells; using chemistry tools to manipulate disease mechanisms; and determining the structures of molecular assemblies at near-atomic resolution.

Work in this area focuses on the processes by which cancers arise, progress, and respond to therapy. Researchers seek to understand how cancer cells transform, metastasize, and interact with their microenvironment; study the mechanisms that drive disease; and develop innovative strategies to control cancer processes.

A host of diseases are spurred by disruptions in the processes by which cells propagate or die, or perform other basic functions. Scientists working in this area dissect the genes and molecular pathways that control the cell cycle, apoptosis, protein trafficking, and many other cellular events.

Fundamental to all bioscience is the study of how genes and gene-regulatory processes contribute to development, behavior, and disease. Researchers working in this area employ genetic sequencing technology, bioinformatics, and animal models to pursue genome-wide comparisons, population genetics, functional studies, and more.

Investigations into the workings of the immune system are yielding progress against diseases such as cancer, autoimmune disorders, HIV, hepatitis C, and Zika. Work in this area covers the basic mechanisms of immunity, the biology of disease-causing agents, and new treatment approaches from vaccines and antibiotics to personalized immunotherapies.

Many labs are conducting research to understand the root causes of both rare and common diseases, and developing new therapies based on their insights. Clinical science is enhanced by access to The Rockefeller University Hospital, which enables translational research involving human patients earlier than might otherwise be possible.

To understand how the nervous system develops and produces behaviors and cognition, neuroscientists need to study the brain from many perspectives, focusing on neuronal cells and circuits as well as high-level functions. In addition, labs are working on treatments for Alzheimer’s, drug addiction, obesity, and other diseases.

In studying biological processes from the perspective of entire organisms, populations, and ecosystems, scientists seek to reveal how complex traits and behaviors develop, and how diseases manifest. Their work covers the biology of vertebrate and invertebrate organisms and plants, the evolution of species, and other topics.

Research in this area is aimed at understanding the complex properties of biological and other systems, and at applying sophisticated analytic techniques to model phenomena from biological networks to weather patterns. Areas of interest to these scientists include systems theory, biological statistics and probability, population dynamics, and sensory processing.

In researching how pluripotent stems cells differentiate, how embryos develop, how tissues replenish themselves, and how organisms age, scientists are laying the groundwork for broad progress toward tomorrow’s medicines. Their work holds promise for the development of new disease models as well as innovative therapeutic interventions.