Chemical Biology Program

A central tenet at Broad is that integrating chemical biology and genome biology will overcome traditional obstacles by shining a bright light on human biology and providing powerful new means to create novel therapeutics to treat human disorders.

The Chemical Biology Program, which collaborates with many facets of genome biology at Broad, comprises researchers in our community who study and alter the physiology of cells and organisms with small molecules. Small molecules are used in living systems to convey dynamic information (as distinct from heritable information), e.g., hormones and neurotransmitters, and they are used in medicine, e.g., antibiotics and cholesterol-lowering statins, for the treatment of human disorders.

Chemical biology is the science of small molecules in the context of living systems, and so it connects to the study of memory and cognition, sensing and signaling, and the understanding and modulation of cell circuitry with the goal of treating disease.

The Program's major scientific aspirations fall within several project areas, which include: