About the Lab
Established in August 1997, the Zechiedrich laboratory at Baylor College of Medicine is located in the Texas Medical Center, the largest medical center in the world, in Houston, Texas, USA. The work in the laboratory centers around DNA structure/function and the essential enzymes that modulate DNA structure/function, the DNA topoisomerases. Human topoisomerases are the targets of several classes of anti-cancer drugs while bacterial topoisomerases are targeted by fluoroquinolone antibiotics. Because the essential topoisomerases modulate DNA, the work in the laboratory has broadened to include creating tiny circles of DNA to study DNA supercoiling and how it affects topoisomerases and how drugs inhibit topoisomerases. These supercoiled DNA nanoparticles have important materials science applications, including as non-viral gene therapy delivery vectors.
Affiliated Graduate Training Programs
- Cancer and Cell Biology (CCB)
- Chemical, Physical, and Structural Biology (CPSB)
- Clinical Scientist Training Program (CSTP)
- Houston Area Molecular Biophysics (HAMBP)
- Immunology and Microbiology (IY)
- Infection and Immunity (I&I)
- MD/PhD Program (MSTP)
- Molecular Basis for Infectious Diseases (MBID)
- Training Interdisciplinary Pharmacology Scientists (TIPS)
Lab Funding
- Burroughs Welcome Fund New Investigator Award
- National Science Foundation Grant
- National Institutes of Health Grants
- Program in Mathematics and Molecular Biology (funded by the NSF and BWF)
- Genome Sequencing Award from Applied Biosystems
- John S. Dunn Foundation Collaborative Research Award
- Human Frontier Science Program Grant
- Northwest Genome Engineering Consortium in Seattle Seed Funding
- Baylor–UT Houston Center for AIDS Research Seed Funding
- Alkek Center for Metagenomics Microbiome Research Pilot Award
Opportunities and Accomplishments
Training Opportunities
The multidisciplinary research in the Zechiedrich laboratory provides ample opportunity for training. Dr. Zechiedrich has trained 10 previous postdoctoral fellows, 17 former and 1 current graduate students, 5 post-baccalaureate students, 27 former and one current undergraduate students, and 9 high school students in addition to hosting 3 visiting professors.
Alumni Success
Former trainees from the Zechiedrich laboratory contribute to science in multiple different capacities. They are college professors, company scientists and CEO's, medical doctors, science writers, postdoctoral fellows, and leaders in K12 education (view the Zechiedrich laboratory alumni).
Mentoring Success
Dr. Zechiedrich has published and lectured nationally on mentoring and was Baylor College of Medicine's BRASS Mentor of the Year in 2013. In 2018, she was named a Baylor College of Medicine Woman of Excellence based upon her dedication to inclusive excellence and diversity, and in 2020 she received the highest education honor given at Baylor College of Medicine, the Barbara and Corbin J. Robertson, Jr. Presidential Award for Excellence in Education.
Primary Investigator
Lynn Zechiedrich is a Kyle and Josephine Morrow chair and professor in the Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology.
Lab Members
View a listing of the Zechiedrich Lab members along with links to their bios.
