People

Our Team

Assistant Professor

Levent Sari, Ph.D.

Post-Doc., University of Michigan and UT-Southwestern
Ph.D., Physical Chemistry, University of Georgia
B.S., Chemistry & Physics, Bogazici University

I received my Ph.D. in Computational Quantum Chemistry from the University of Georgia, where I worked with Henry F. Schaefer, and subsequently completed my postdoctoral training at the University of Michigan with Ioan Andricioaei, working on DNA topology & topoisomerases. Before joining UH, I spent approximately nine years as a Senior Research Scientist in the Department of Bioinformatics at UT Southwestern Medical Center. At UTSW, my research centered on protein aggregation and amyloid formation in neurodegenerative diseases. I worked primarily with Milo Lin and collaborated with Lukasz Joachimiak and Marc Diamond at the Center for Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases, as well as with Jose Rizo-Rey in the Department of Biophysics. I continue to collaborate with several of these colleagues on some of the ongoing research projects.

I like tea, drinking tea, and having tea! Other than this, watching Messi and camping with my family and friends seem to make sense..:))

UH Faculty Profile Google Scholar

Ph.D. Student

Ilayda Engin

I am a Ph.D. student in the Biology and Biochemistry program at the University of Houston. I received my B.S. in Biology from Hacettepe University and my M.Sc. in Biotechnology at Ankara University. My master’s research focused on targeting glutamine metabolism by developing monoclonal and chimeric antibodies against the glutamine transporter ASCT2 and investigating their effects on tumor cell growth. I am now expanding my research into computational protein science in the Sari Lab, exploring protein structure and dynamics in the context of neurodegenerative diseases. Outside the lab, you’ll probably find me somewhere online as TheProteinBender or writing stories and building fictional worlds, because apparently the world we live in isn’t enough..

Undergraduate Student

Sara Laroussi

I am an undergraduate biochemistry student at the University of Houston. I am interested in developing my computational and experimental research skills and learning more about how biochemical research can contribute to our understanding of human health and disease. Outside of academics, I enjoy playing video games, baking, and trying new foods!

Open position

Postdoctoral Researcher

An immediate postdoctoral research position is available. We are seeking a motivated postdoctoral researcher who will play a key role in developing and leading the wet-lab component of our research program while working closely with a team of computational scientists.

Future lab members

Graduate Undergraduate Students

Prospective students interested in computational biophysics, structural biology, machine learning, protein aggregation, or experimental biophysics are encouraged to contact us.