Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Chemical Biology

Stevens prime location next to New York City and within the New Jersey research corridor attracts Chemical Biology students from across the country and around the world to benefit from the university's collaborative relationships with industry and academic partners throughout the region. Nuclear Pore Research Leads to Progeria Discovery: Researchers in the Glavy Lab study the nuclear pore complex at the molecular level in the pursuit of the unknown or unexpected in the well-studied but not always well-understood nuclei of living cells. Faculty and student scientists from the lab have published on their discovery of the Werner Helicase Interacting Protein 1 (WHIP) outside its known range. WHIP's moniker derives from its interaction with Werner protein, which maintains genome stability and conversely is responsible for the progeria disease Werner's syndrome. This adult-onset disease causes premature aging and increased susceptibility to other old-age diseases such as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes. Dr. Joseph Glavy expects this discovery to be the first step towards a solution to premature aging diseases.Gene Therapy, Disease, and Viral Mimics: Fundamental research in chemical biology has been leading to some of the most exciting discoveries in health and medicine. In the Leopold Lab, experiments are aimed at creating and assembling novel biochemical entities that will display the characteristics of viral proteins. The experimental approach includes evaluation of peptides, lipids, and carbohydrates, both novel and well known, using assembly methods inspired by viruses. Dr. Philip Leopold, Department Director for Biomedical Engineering, Chemistry, Biological Sciences, has won many teaching awards and external funding for his gene therapy research. Cell Behavior, Healing, and Disease: Cell-extracellular matrix interactions are essential for normal biological processes and pathological processes. Research conducted by Dr. Jiahua Xu has the goal to isolate and investigate the basic mechanism by which extracellular matrix microenvironment in tissue regulates cell behavior in normal tissue maintenance, tissue repair, and tumor tissue progression. Studying critical aspects of cell-matrix interactions will give us a better understanding of the progression of some diseases and the methods by which the body effectively heals.