Dr. Cornelius Gati is a distinguished structural biologist specializing in advanced molecular imaging techniques and their application to neurobiological systems. He currently serves as an Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Quantitative and Computational Biology, and Pharmacology at the University of Southern California's Bridge Institute within the Michelson Center for Convergent Bioscience. Dr. Gati received his PhD in Chemistry from the German Synchrotron Light Source (DESY) where he developed serial crystallography techniques at X-ray free-electron lasers, followed by postdoctoral training at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge with Dr. Sjors Scheres, where he mastered single particle cryo-electron microscopy. After establishing himself as an independent group leader at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford School of Medicine starting in 2018, he joined USC in 2021 to further advance structural biology capabilities.
His pioneering research has significantly advanced the field through the integration of complementary structural biology methodologies including X-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy to determine high-resolution structures of challenging membrane proteins. Dr. Gati's laboratory focuses specifically on membrane proteins involved in synaptic transmission, making groundbreaking contributions to understanding neurotransmitter transporters, G protein-coupled receptors, and other neurobiological targets that mediate neuronal communication. His work has provided critical structural insights into how these proteins function and how their activities are modulated by pharmacological agents including antidepressants and recreational drugs, as evidenced by his publications in leading journals such as Nature Structural & Molecular Biology and Nature Communications. The ultimate vision driving his research program is to develop methods capable of capturing atomic-resolution images of biomolecules within their native cellular environments, which would revolutionize our understanding of biological function in context.
As a key contributor to USC's state-of-the-art cryo-EM facility, Dr. Gati has established a collaborative research environment that serves investigators across diverse disciplines from engineering to medicine and beyond. His leadership has positioned the Michelson Center as a hub for structural biology research, attracting scientists interested in atomic-scale understanding of biological processes ranging from bacterial function to human hormone secretion mechanisms. Dr. Gati's innovative approaches continue to push methodological boundaries with the goal of visualizing dynamic molecular processes within living systems, potentially transforming drug discovery and therapeutic development. Through his commitment to advancing structural biology techniques and applying them to neurobiological questions, he remains at the forefront of efforts to bridge molecular structure with physiological function in complex biological systems.
