Biochemistry

Biochemists investigate the processes in living systems from a molecular perspective. We lead innovative research programs in chemical biology, nucleic acids biochemistry, molecular virology, membrane biochemistry, genomics, microbial physiology, signal transduction & more. We provide tools to develop the next generation of medicine.

Graduates of our undergraduate and PhD programs have become leaders in medicine, pharmacology, agriculture, nutrition, microbiology, cell biology, food technology, pollution control, and biotechnology.

Biochemistry News

Long-term alcohol use suspends liver cells in limbo, preventing regeneration

Excessive alcohol consumption can disrupt the liver’s unique regenerative abilities by trapping cells in limbo between their functional and regenerative states, even after a patient stops drinking, researchers at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and collaborators at Duke University and the...

The oPool+ display platform combines technologies to make and test large numbers of antibodies at once. Illinois researchers analyzed how antibodies bind to the influenza protein hemagglutinin. Image by Owen Ouyang

High-volume antibody testing platform could accelerate disease research and treatment development

Antibodies are the critical targeting agents of the immune system and the crux of immune therapy and vaccine development, but studying them is slow, expensive and labor-intensive. Now, researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have developed a new high-volume method that can...

MCB undergrads honored at campus research symposium

The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology is pleased to announce that several students won awards at the 2025 University of Illinois Undergraduate Research Symposium earlier this year. Congratulations to Arnab Roy and Anuprova...

Man in suit and tie stands in front of lab bend, Woman in Glasses and orange shirt and black blazer stands in atrium, Man in eyeglasses and blue shirt stands in atrium

Campus, College of LAS recognize outstanding MCB faculty

The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology is pleased to announce that several of its faculty members have been recognized by University of Illinois and College of Liberal Arts & Sciences for their contributions to research and education....

Colorectal cancer treated with cholesterol inhibitor in U. of I. study

University of Illinois researchers have successfully treated a common type of colorectal cancer tumor with a cholesterol inhibitor drug, demonstrating a promising treatment for the disease in animal experiments.The study,...

Members of the Lin-Feng Chen lab stand in front of a lab bench

New study reveals critical regulatory role of protein BRD4 in colorectal cancer chemotherapy resistance

School of Molecular & Cellular Biology professor Lin-Feng Chen has published new research reporting an important factor driving chemoresistance for patients with colorectal cancer. The research was published in the journal...