Leadership and Staff
Haiyuan Yu
Director, Center for Innovative Proteomics
Tisch University Professor
Dr. Yu led his group to develop the concept of “3D structurally-resolved interactome networks”, where they integrate multi-scale structural modeling, machine learning, and high-throughput genomics/proteomics experiments to determine protein interactions/complexes and their structures and dynamics on the whole proteome scale. The Yu group has established many cutting-edge experimental methodologies in structural proteomics, cross-linking mass spectrometry, and quantitative proteomics, and built innovative analysis pipelines using machine learning (deep learning) and rigorous statistical models in these areas.
Marcus B. Smolka
Associate Director, Center for Innovative Proteomics
Interim Director of the Weill Institute for Cell and Molecular Biology Professor- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics
Smolka pioneered the use of mass spectrometry for the study of kinase substrates and mapping of phosphorylation signaling networks. With grants and awards from the NIH, ACS, Emerson Collective and various Cornell Initiatives, his lab applies proteomic approaches, in combination with genetics and biochemistry, to investigate fundamental mechanisms of genome maintenance, and their connections to cancer and reproductive biology. The Smolka Lab has mapped the action of DNA damage signaling kinases in yeast and mammals, leading to the understanding of the mechanisms by which kinases control DNA repair, checkpoints, cell cycle and transcription. As a Research Scholar for the American Cancer Society, Smolka uncovered novel mechanisms for deactivation of DNA damage checkpoint signaling kinases, establishing novel paradigms for signaling regulation. Current work in the Smolka Lab continues to expand the network of DNA damage signaling in the context of cancer biology and meiosis. Smolka also engages in a range of collaborative efforts using quantitative proteomics to elucidate fundamental molecular mechanisms underlying metabolic control, cell polarity, protein trafficking, neurodegenerative diseases and bacteria-host interactions.
