Jim Hurley
jimhurley [at] berkeley.edu
Grad Students
Post-Docs
Zhicheng Cui
zhicheng.cui {at} berkeley.edu
Zhicheng(Chen) received his Ph.D. from Texas A&M University under the guidance of Junjie Zhang. He used cryoEM to study ssRNA phage and translational regulation of Mycobaterium tuberculosis. In the Hurley lab, he focuses on the lysosomal biogenesis and lysosome mitochondria crosstalk. Outside the lab, he enjoys spending time with his family and biking.
Eric Herrmann
eric.herrmann {at} berkeley.edu
Eric received his Ph.D. in the lab of Daniel Kuemmel at the University of Münster in Germany. His dissertation focused on the recruitment mechanisms of GEFs to membranes to mediate nucleotide exchange of small GTPases. He is currently working on the structural analysis of the autophagy maturation pathway. Outside of the lab, Eric enjoys weightlifting, progressive metal, and anime.
Yongjia Duan
duanyj2024 {at} berkeley.edu
Yongjia received his Ph.D. from Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, under the guidance of Yanshan Fang. He then worked as a postdoctoral researcher in Baoxue Ge’s lab at Tongji University. His previous research focused on the role of phase separation in the pathogenesis of ALS and tuberculosis. He joined the Hurley lab in 2024 and is currently working on the regulation of autophagy initiation by protein condensation. Outside the lab, he enjoys playing basketball and traveling.
Yuchao Zhang
yuchao_zhang {at} berkeley.edu
Yuchao received his Ph.D. from Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, CAS under the guidance of Lifeng Pan. He used crystallography to study the mechanism of glycophagy and studied on the quality control of glycogen. In Hurley lab, he is currently working on the regulation of membrane sealing process by using structural biology techniques. Outside of lab, he enjoys staying with his family and playing with his cat.
Jared Smothers
jaredsmothers {at} berkeley.edu
Jared completed his Ph.D. at UT Southwestern, where he was mentored by Arun Radhakrishnan. His thesis research focused on how membrane cholesterol regulates the activity of cholesterol-sensing proteins. More broadly, he is interested in how membrane platforms organize protein complexes. When not in the lab, Jared is usually trying to get lost in the woods.
Rick Hooy
rhooy1 [at] berkeley.edu
Ruth Kirschstein Fellow
Rick completed his Ph.D. work in the lab of Jungsan Sohn at the Johns Hopkins University. His research strives to understand the molecular basis for immunity, including mechanisms used by pathogens to thwart the immune system. Rick, a native Californian, has a love/hate relationship with the Giants and Niners, and spends as much time as possible outdoors.
Minghao Chen
minghao.chen {at} berkeley.edu
Minghao received his Ph.D. at Hokkaido University in Japan and learned cryo-EM at the Max-Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology / University of Münster in Germany. He joined Hurley Lab in 2022 and is currently working on the investigation of the autophagy initiation pathway from a structural aspect. In his off time, he is an enthusiastic player of table tennis.
Bin Xie
xbin {at} berkeley.edu
Bin earned his Ph.D. in Biophysics from UC Davis in the Sivasankar lab, where he studied antibody regulation of cell adhesion. Now in the Hurley lab, he uses Cryo-EM to examine protein complexes in the mTORC pathway. Outside the lab, he’s an avid Celtics basketball fan.
Shuixia Tan
shuixiatan2024 {at} berkeley.edu
Shuixia got her Ph.D. in cell biology from Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Then, she received postdoctoral training at Fudan University in China. In 2024, She joined the Hurley lab, where her research focuses on lysosome repair and Tau spread. Outside the lab, she finds pleasure in listening to music and taking leisurely strolls in the park.
Ye Lu
luye {at} berkeley.edu
Ye earned her Ph.D. from Tsinghua University under the mentorship of Hong-Wei Wang, where she developed various functionalized graphene grids to optimize sample preparation for Cryo-EM. In 2025, she joined the Hurley Lab, focusing her research on observing native membrane structures during autophagy. Outside the lab, Ye enjoys reading, hiking, running, and practicing yoga. She is a passionate marathon enthusiast.
Staff
Kevin A Tran
kevin.a.tran [at] berkeley.edu
Originally from Minnesota, Kevin received a BA in Biological Sciences from Carleton College. His previous research involved exploring epigenetic gene regulation in plants. Now in the Hurley lab he serves as the lab manager. In his free time he enjoys baking, games, and the rule of threes.
Alexia Puerta Cordova
alexiascordova [at] berkeley.edu
Alexia earned her B.A. in Molecular and Cell Biology from UC Berkeley in 2025. She studies the structural and mechanistic regulation of the ESCRT pathway to support the development of targeted molecular therapeutics. Outside the lab, she enjoys knitting, board games, and exploring the Bay Area.
Undergraduates
Shriprithi Vel Murugan
shriprithi [at] berkeley.edu
Bakar Ignite Scholar
Shriprithi is an undergraduate researcher majoring in Molecular and Cell Biology with a CDP emphasis. Working with Dr. Sankalp Shukla, she is excited to learn more about lab techniques such as protein purification as well as the cellular mechanisms that contribute to neurodegenerative disease. Outside of the lab, Shriprithi enjoys listening to music, reading, and playing tennis.
Haeyoon Cheong
hy.cheong [at] berkeley.edu
Haeyoon is an undergraduate researcher working with Dr. Bin Xie. She is especially interested in how protein structure relates to function, with a current focus on investigating GAP activity and its role in cellular signaling pathways. Haeyoon enjoys connecting concepts from class to hands-on lab work, and finds troubleshooting experiments both challenging and rewarding. Outside of research, she loves swimming and binge watching her favorite shows.
Azhahini Krishnamoorthy
azhahini [at] berkeley.edu
Azhahini is an undergraduate researcher majoring in Molecular and Cell Biology with a CDP emphasis. Working with Dr. Eric Herrmann, she is excited to learn more about how cells detect and respond to damaged membranes, with a current focus on specific proteins and their role in autophagy. Outside the Hurley Lab, Azhahini enjoys dancing, painting, and going on hikes.
Karla Tapia
karla.tapia [at] berkeley.edu
Karla is intended MCB interested in exploring the different fields in molecular biology especially through the Hurley Lab. During her free time, she likes going to escape rooms, reading, and just watching random shows.
Qingyang Ni
qingyangni [at] berkeley.edu
Qingyang is an undergraduate researcher exploring the initiation pathway of autophagy from a structural perspective. As she works with Dr. Minghao Chen, she learns various techniques and intends to explore more interdisciplinary approach through the Hurley lab. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling to different cities and watching shows.
Isaac Jackson Allen
isaac44m15 [at] berkeley.edu
Isaac is an undergraduate researcher majoring in Molecular and Cell Biology. He is interested in how subtle changes in protein structure can give rise to neurodegenerative disease. Working with Dr. Yongjia Duan, he’s excited to explore the cellular mechanisms that facilitate autophagy initiation. In his free time, he enjoys playing the saxophone, watching the Giants, and rock climbing.
Alumni
Sankalp Shukla – Assistant Professor, UT Dallas
Aaron Joiner – Assistant Professor, University of Cincinnati
Rachel Jansen – Boston Consulting Group
Kevin Rose – Postdoc, Stanford
Annan Samuel Isaac (Zeke) Cook – Postdoc, Regeneron, New York
Wonjae Lee
Selina Wu
Grace Yang
Xuefeng (Snow) Ren
Dan Alexandru Tudorica – Velocity Bio
Kevin Larsen – Scientist, Kieft Lab, New York Structural Biology Center
Isabella Alfonso – Lab Technician, Kortemme Lab, UCSF
Isabella Murray – Student Assistant, Mutalik Lab, Berkeley Lab (LBNL)
Yuichiro Iwamoto – Scientist, Vitra Labs
Owen Ong
Liv Jensen – Postdoc, Brunger Lab, Stanford
Chenxi Ou – Graduate Student, MIT
Albert Tran
Lisa Strong – Scientist, Neomorph
Emma Garst – Scientist I, Vir Biotechnology
King Cada – Postdoc, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute
Adam Yokom – Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry, University of Missouri
Cosmo Buffalo – Principal Scientist, Novartis
Chunmei Chang – Assistant Professor, Institute of Metabolism and Integrative Biology, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Ming-Yuan Su – Associate Professor, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
Xiaoshan Shi – Professor, Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Simon Fromm – Cryo-EM Specialist, EMBL Heidelberg
Thomas Flower – Head of Protein Science, NovAliX
Mark Remec Pavlin
Lindsey Young – Postdoc, Villa Lab, UCSD
Nicholas Tjahjono – Graduate Student, Rice University Materials Science and NanoEngineering Program, Yakobson Lab
Hersh Bhargava – Graduate Student, UCSF Biophysics Program, El-Samad and Lim Labs
Jamie Shiah – Graduate Student, Yale University
Johannes Schöneberg – Assistant Professor, UCSD
Felix Goerdeler – Ph.D Student, Berlin, Germany
Kyle Morris – EMDB Team Leader, EMBL-EBI
Goran Stjepanovic – Group Leader, University of Hong Kong
Ursula Schulze-Gahmen – Staff Research Scientist, Gladstone Institute
Mary Lin – Science Writer, Path AI
Eli Il-Hyung Lee – Assistant Professor, Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University
leei AT montclair DOT edu
Lars-Anders Carlson – Associate Professor, Wallenberg Centre for Molecular Medicine, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Umeå University, Sweden
lars-anders.carlson AT umu DOT se
Shiqian Qi – Professor, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, Sichuan University
qishiqian AT scu DOT edu DOT cn
Qingtao Shen – Associate Professor, SUSTech
Robin Stanley – Senior Investigator, NIEHS Intramural Program
stanleyre AT niddk DOT nih DOT gov
Michael Ragusa – Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, Dartmouth College
michael.j.ragusa AT dartmouth DOT edu
Thomas Leonard – Associate Professor, Max F. Perutz Laboratories, Vienna, Austria
thomas.leonard AT mfpl DOT ac DOT at
Evzen Boura – Group Leader, Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Academy of Sciences
of the Czech Republic, Czech Republic
evzen.boura AT gmail DOT com
Young Jun Im – Professor, Biochemistry Section, College of Pharmacy, Chonnam National University
imyoungjun AT chonnam DOT ac DOT kr
Dong Yang – University Researcher, China
Hyung Ho Lee – Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University
lee.hyungho AT gmail DOT com
Aitor Hierro – Group Leader, Structural Biology Unit, CIC BIOGUNE Ed. 800, Parque Tecnológico de Vizcaya
ahierro AT cicbiogune DOT es
Sangho Lee – Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Sungkyunkwan (“SKK”) University
sangholee AT skku DOT edu
Gali Prag – Principal Investigator, Dept. of Biochemistry, Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Israel
prag AT post DOT tau DOT ac DOT il
Gregory J. Miller – Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, Catholic University of America, Washington, DC
millergj AT cua DOT edu
Raymond Trievel – Professor, Department of Biological Chemistry, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI
rtrievel AT umich DOT edu
Saurav Misra – Scientist, Ventria Bioscience
smisra AT ventria DOT com
Gongyi Zhang – Professor, National Jewish Medical and Reseach Center, Denver, CO
zhangg AT njc DOT org
Bei Yang – Assistant Professor, Shanghai Institute for Advanced Immunochemical Studies, Shanghai, China
Do Jin Kim – Denali Therapeutics, Inc.
Sulochanadevi Baskaran – Director of Protein Science and Molecular Biology, Santa Ana Bio
Chris Davies – Manager, Business Development, Genentech
Yeon-Gil Kim – Pohang Accelerator Laboratory, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang, 7 Kyungbuk 790-784, Republic of Korea
Adriana Rojas Cardona – Platform Manager, Building 800, PARQUE TECNOLÓGICO DE BIZKAIA, Spain
arojas AT cicbiogune DOT es
Daniel Kloer – Domain Head R&D, Syngenta
Yosuke Tsujishita – Director, Izumi Hospital, Izumi Institute of Health Science, Okinawa, Japan
Jaewon Kim – Scientist, Industry, US
Michael Kostelansky – Senior Director, Commercial Planning, Pfizer
Darrell E. Hurt – Computational Biology Section Head, Bioinformatics and Computational Biosciences Branch (BCBB), OCICB/OSMO/OD/NIAID/NIH
darrellh AT niaid DOT nih DOT gov
Christine Jao – Genentech
Bertram Canagarajah – Staff Scientist, NIH
bertram AT helix DOT nih DOT gov
David Murray – Wellcome Trust and Royal Society Sir Henry Dale Fellow, School of Life Sciences, Dundee, Scotland
Thomas Wollert – Researcher, Europe