Principal Investigator

Dr. Bethel studied under Michael Grabe at UCSF as a biophysics PhD student. Using computational techniques such as molecular dynamics, enhanced sampling, and numerical integration, he investigated membrane remodelling transmembrane proteins. As an HHMI Hanna Gray Postdoctoral Fellow and under the mentorship of David Baker at the Institute of Protein Design, he utilized deep learning, Rosetta and electron microscopy to design and validate a new family of highly modular protein oligomers. The Bethel lab builds on many of these approaches to investigate protein conformational change, allostery and to build new molecular switches for cell biology applications

Graduate Student, Bioinformatics & Systems Biology

Zinnia is a first-year PhD student in the Bioinformatics & Systems Biology (BISB) program at UCSD, where she also recently earned her MS degree in Bioengineering. Her research focuses on applying machine learning to drug design, particularly in protein design and method development. Outside of her academic work, she enjoys playing the guzheng, drawing, reading, badminton, and skiing.

Graduate Student, Biochemistry & Molecular Biophysics

Co-mentored with Professor Adrian Jinich

Sarah obtained her bachelor’s at the University of Vermont, where she studied glia in fruit flies. As a research tech at Duke University, she investigated mechanisms of synaptogenesis and behavior. She is now developing multi-targeting protein binders to combat antibiotic resistance. Sarah enjoys improving her Spanish, Mandarin, and Japanese, playing piano, listening to progressive rock, and drawing.

Graduate Student, Chemistry & Biochemistry

Leyi completed her bachelor’s degree at Fudan University, studying biochemistry and biophysics. Her research focuses on utilizing physics-based simulation for protein conformation prediction and de novo protein design. In her free time, she likes playing the piano and reading literary fiction.

Graduate Student, Biochemistry & Molecular Biophysics

Devlin graduated from Colorado College in 2024 with a BA in Biochemistry, where he studied phase separation in the glucocorticoid receptor and tau. His research focuses on designing proteins that can switch their structure in response to stimuli. In his free time, he enjoys trail running, biking around San Diego, and listening to music.

Graduate Student, Biochemistry & Molecular Biophysics

Luke earned his BS in Biochemistry from Boston College in 2021. He then worked in the structural biology core at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, where he purified recombinant proteins and characterized them using X-ray crystallography. His research focuses on modifying TALE nucleases to target various forms of DNA, aiming to develop a more robust gene editing system. Outside the lab, Luke studies Japanese, explores different resturants around San Diego, and enjoys playing video games.

Graduate Student, Biochemistry & Molecular Biophysics

Co-mentored with Professor Alex Guseman

Enrico earned his bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry from UCLA, where he studied mitochondrial protein import mechanisms linked to rare metabolic diseases. His current research focuses on leveraging de novo protein design to develop novel binders for the TrkA receptor. Beyond the lab, he is a competitive powerlifter and enjoys cooking, as well as playing volleyball, tennis, and pickleball.