Melanie D Ohi PhD
Rowena G Matthews Collegiate Professor in the Life Sciences
Research Professor
Life Sciences Institute and Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
[email protected]

Available to mentor
Melanie D Ohi PhD
Research Professor
  • About
  • Center Memberships
  • Research Overview
  • Recent Publications
    • About

    The Ohi lab is interested in understanding how dynamic protein and protein-nucleic acid complexes organize and function in cells. We use a combination of single particle cryo-electron microscopy, biochemistry, and molecular biology approaches to determine 3D structures of biologically important complexes. We work on pore-forming complexes, bacterial secretion systems, membrane sculpting proteins, and protein-nucleic acid complexes.

    Center Memberships
    • Center Member
      Rogel Cancer Center
    Research Overview

    -structural biology
    -cryo-electron microscopy
    -host-pathogen interactions
    -membrane proteins
    -protein-nucleic acid complexes

    Recent Publications See All Publications
    • Journal Article
      Correction: Subdomains of the Helicobacter pylori Cag T4SS outer membrane core complex exhibit structural independence.
      Roberts JR, Tran SC, Frick-Cheng AE, Bryant KN, Okoye CD, McDonald WH, Cover TL, Ohi MD. Life Sci Alliance, 2024 Aug; 7 (8): DOI:10.26508/lsa.202402801
      PMID: 38740433
    • Journal Article
      Structural Studies of Helicobacter pylori’s Cag Type IV Secretion System
      Salmen W, Frick-Cheng A, Roberts J, Cover T, Ohi M. Microscopy and Microanalysis, 2024 Jul 24; 30 (Supplement_1): ozae044.375 DOI:10.1093/mam/ozae044.375
    • Journal Article
      Iron limitation induces motility in uropathogenic E. coli CFT073 partially through action of LpdA.
      Frick-Cheng AE, Shea AE, Roberts JR, Smith SN, Ohi MD, Mobley HLT. mBio, 2024 Jul 17; 15 (7): e0104824 DOI:10.1128/mbio.01048-24
      PMID: 38874412
    • Journal Article
      Subdomains of the Helicobacter pylori Cag T4SS outer membrane core complex exhibit structural independence.
      Roberts JR, Tran SC, Frick-Cheng AE, Bryant KN, Okoye CD, McDonald WH, Cover TL, Ohi MD. Life Sci Alliance, 2024 Jun; 7 (6): DOI:10.26508/lsa.202302560
      PMID: 38631913
    • Preprint
      Structural basis for catalysis and selectivity of phospholipid synthesis by eukaryotic choline-phosphotransferase
      Roberts J, Horibata Y, Kwarcinski F, Lam V, Raczkowski A, Hubbard A, White B, Sugimoto H, Tall G, Ohi M, Maeda S. 2024 bioRxiv, DOI:10.1101/2024.05.09.593427
    • Journal Article
      A mechanistic model of primer synthesis from catalytic structures of DNA polymerase α-primase.
      Mullins EA, Salay LE, Durie CL, Bradley NP, Jackman JE, Ohi MD, Chazin WJ, Eichman BF. Nat Struct Mol Biol, 2024 May; 31 (5): 777 - 790. DOI:10.1038/s41594-024-01227-4
      PMID: 38491139
    • Journal Article
      Structural Analysis of Membrane-associated Forms of Helicobacter pylori VacA Toxin.
      Connolly SM, Erwin AL, Sabb M, Hanks JL, Chang L, Torrez RM, Caso GC, Campbell AM, Mosalaganti S, Cover TL, Ohi MD. J Mol Biol, 2024 Feb 15; 436 (4): 168432 DOI:10.1016/j.jmb.2023.168432
      PMID: 38161000
    • Preprint
      A mechanistic model of primer synthesis from catalytic structures of DNA polymerase α-primase.
      Mullins EA, Salay LE, Durie CL, Bradley NP, Jackman JE, Ohi MD, Chazin WJ, Eichman BF. 2023 Sep 28; DOI:10.1101/2023.03.16.533013
      PMID: 36993335
    Featured News & Stories
    Department News
    New Publication from the Melanie Ohi Lab in collaboration with the Mosalaganti Lab
    "Structural Analysis of Membrane-associated Forms of Helicobacter pylori VacA Toxin," has been published in the Journal of Molecular Biology