Research Facilities

The Department of Molecular Physiology and Biological Physics has seven new faculty members recruited since 1989 and ranging in expertise from X-ray crystallography to molecular biology. The department is located in a modern basic sciences building, with a new wing completed in 1995, on the grounds of the University of Virginia, facilitating collaboration between faculties of the College and the Medical School.

Training and research are enhanced by modern departmental equipment and facilities for state-of-the-art

  • electron microscopy,
  • X-ray crystallography,
  • NMR spectroscopy,
  • electron probe analysis,
  • electron paramagnetic resonance,
  • electron energy loss and total internal reflection fluorescence spectroscopy,
  • confocal microscopy,
  • atomic force microscopy,
  • laser flash photoysis,
  • cell culture and molecular biology facilities,
  • DNA synthesizers,
  • gene amplication systems, and
  • patch-clamp instrumentation
  • as well as
  • conventional physiological biochemical and biophysical instrumentation.
The research capability of the department is enhanced by shared School of Medicine facilities, including a
  • protein sequencing center,
  • hybridoma laboratory,
  • molecular biology laboratory,
  • cell-sorting facility, and a
  • biomolecular mass spectrometry equipped for
    • sophisticated biomolecular mass analysis,
    • high-sensitivity peptide sequencing, and
    • elucidation of post-translational protein modification.

Members of the faculty are international leaders in their respective fields and for several years the department has ranked among the top five physiology departments in NIH-sponsored research.

Faculty, visiting scientists, postdoctoral fellows and graduate students from several continents create a stimulating international environment for our program.