Wolberger Lab
Welcome to the laboratory of Cynthia Wolberger, located in the Department of Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry. Our research is focused on the structural and mechanistic basis of transcriptional regulation and ubiquitin signaling. We use a combination of cryo-EM, x-ray crystallography, and a variety of biophysical and biochemical approaches to gain insights into the fundamental mechanisms underlying these processes. Please follow the links on this page to learn more about our research and lab members.
Recent News
Fan Zhao received Young Investigators’ Day Award
Congratulations to Fan Zhao, who will receive the Albert Lehninger Award at the Young Investigators’ Day symposium on April 14, 2025. Congratulations, Fan!
Lab Info
Prospective graduate students…
should visit the following web sites:
- Program in Biochemistry, Cellular and Molecular Biology
- Program in Molecular Biophysics
- XDbio
- Chemistry-Biology Interface Program
Interested in a postdoctoral position?
Please see the Join Our Team page for information.
Looking for a plasmid?
Many of our plasmids are available through Addgene. View the list of available plasmids.
Selected Recent Publications
Hicks CW, Rahman S, Gloor SL, Fields JK, Husby NL, Aup Vaidya A, Maier KE, Morgan M, Keogh MC, Wolberger C. (2024) Ubiquitinated histone H2B as gatekeeper of the nucleosome acidic patch. bioRxiv 2024.02.22.581437.
Zhao F, Hicks CW, Wolberger C (2023) Mechanism of histone H2B monoubiquitination by Bre1 (2023) Nat Struct Mol Biol. 30(11):1623-1627. doi: 10.1038/s41594-023-01137-x.
Rahman S, Hoffmann NA, Worden EJ, Smith ML, Namitz KEW, Knutson BA, Cosgrove MS, Wolberger C. (2022) Multistate structures of the MLL1-WRAD complex bound to H2B-ubiquitinated nucleosome. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 20;119(38):e220569111. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2205691119
Lombardi PM, Haile S, Rusanov T, Rodell R, Anoh R, Baer JG, Burke KA, Gray LN, Hacker AR, Kebreau KR, Ngandu CK, Orland HA, Osei-Asante E, Schmelyun DP, Shorb DE, Syed SH, Veilleux JM, Majumdar A, Mosammaparast N, Wolberger C. (2022) The ASCC2 CUE domain in the ALKBH3-ASCC DNA repair complex recognizes adjacent ubiquitins in K63-linked polyubiquitin. J Biol Chem. 28:101545. doi: 10.1016/j.jbc.2021.101545.
Morgan MT, Ikenoue T, Suga H, Wolberger C. (2022) Potent macrocycle inhibitors of the human SAGA deubiquitinating module. Cell Chem Biol 29(4):544-554.e4 doi: 10.1016/j.chembiol.2021.12.004