Email

ftsai@bcm.edu

Positions

Professor

Biochemistry & Molecular Pharmacology
Baylor College of Medicine

Professor

Molecular & Cellular Biology
Baylor College of Medicine

Professor

Molecular Virology & Microbiology
Baylor College of Medicine

Member

Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center
Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, Texas United States

Member

Center for Drug Discovery
Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, Texas United States

Addresses

Department of Biochemistry (Office)

Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, TX 77030-3498
United States

Education

Advanced Training from Yale University / HHMI

10/2000 - New Haven, Connecticut United States

D.Phil. from University of Oxford

10/1997 - Oxford, Oxon United Kingdom

BSc from Univ. of London (Imperial College)

08/1993 - London, South Kensington United Kingdom

Honors & Awards

Georgia Cancer Center Distinguished Guest Lecturer

01/2019

Norman Hackerman Award in Chemical Research

02/2008

Research Scholar of the American Cancer Society

01/2008 - 12/2011

Scientist of the American Heart Association

01/2001 - 12/2004

Wellcome Trust International Prize Travelling Postdoctoral Fellow

01/1997 - 12/1999

NIH NRSA (F32) Individual Postdoctoral Fellowship (declined)

11/1996

Associate of the Royal College of Science, United Kingdom

08/1993

Professional Interests

• Protein Structure-Function and Protein Folding
• Structural Biology and Macromolecular Assemblies
• Cryo-electron Microscopy and Tomography
• Membranes and Membrane Proteins
• Enzymology
• Gene Expression and Regulation
• Cancer
• Antibiotic Resistance
• Nano Medicine and Drug Design
• Bacteria and Phage
• Yeast and Dictyostelium

Professional Statement

Mitochondria degeneration and dysfunction are hallmarks of aging-related human diseases including cancer and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and related dementias. Our laboratory uses cutting-edge structural biology methods, as well as biochemistry, molecular, and chemical biology to understand how protein quality control machines maintain proteostasis under normal and pathological conditions, and to identify factors that selectively induce apoptosis, for instance, of cancer cells. A key objective is to dissect the molecular interactions between stress chaperones and energy-dependent proteases, and how protein machines harness metabolic energy to assist in protein folding as well as unfolding, and selectively degrade excess and damaged proteins. We are motivated to better understand mechanisms regulating proteostasis in cells originating from all domains of life, and to exploit our molecular understanding to restore proteostasis balance in disease states.

We value diversity in all its forms, including race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, ability, and nationality, and strive to cultivate a diverse and inclusive environment for research.

Websites

Selected Publications

• Lee S, Lee SB, Sung N, Xu WW, Chang C, Kim HE, Catic A, Tsai FTF "Structural basis of impaired disaggregase function in the oxidation-sensitive SKD3 mutant causing 3-methylglutaconic aciduria." Nature Commun. 2023;14:2028. Pubmed PMID: 37041140
• Lee G, Kim RS, Lee SB, Lee S, Tsai FTF "Deciphering the Mechanism and Function of Hsp100 Unfoldases from Protein Structure." Biochem. Soc. Trans. 2022;50:1725-36. Pubmed PMID: 36454589
• Mercado JM, Lee S, Chang C, Sung N, Soong L, Catic A, Tsai FTF "Atomic structure of the Leishmania spp. Hsp100 N-domain." Proteins. 2022;90:1242-6. Pubmed PMID: 35122310
• Tsai JT, Sung N, Lee J, Chang C, Lee S, Tsai FTF "Crystal structure of the YcjX stress protein reveals a Ras-like GTP-binding protein." J. Mol. Biol. 2019;431:3179-90. Pubmed PMID: 31202886