New biochemistry faculty members to focus on microbes, proteins

A car mechanic would have a hard time building a car if he or she didn’t know anything about the car’s parts. The same holds true for scientists who want to design or program proteins and microbes. They must first understand the structure, complexity, and interactions of the system they are interested in. For Philip Romero and Ophelia Venturelli — two new assistant professors who joined the Department of Biochemistry on July 11 — this idea is what drives their research.