James M. Berger
Dr. James M. Berger is a Professor of Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry at Johns Hopkins University Medical School. Throughout his career, Berger has integrated structural, biochemical, and biophysical methods to define the architecture, function, evolution, and regulation of biological complexes, particularly in DNA replication. Dr. Berger discovered how ATP turnover triggers cascades of conformational changes that result in motion and force generation in other enzymes involved in various DNA transactions (e.g., hexameric helicases), and how clinically valuable small-molecule inhibitors interfere with these systems. He was the first to determine a high-resolution structure for the superhelical assembly formed by DNA replication initiation factors, providing a general mechanism for how the double helix is opened up for assembly of replication complexes.
The Berger lab utilizes a two-fold approach of first imaging different conformational states and substrate-bound complexes, and then testing structural insights obtained with directed biochemical and enzymological studies. This has proven powerful for reconstructing dynamic mechanistic models that explain how nucleic-acid motors move and remodel DNA and RNA segments, and how they interact with and are regulated by critical partner proteins. Using this model, Berger has provided insights into the mechanisms of topoisomerases, one of the central enzymes responsible for accurate DNA replication and chromosome partitioning. The Berger lab's ongoing projects focus on: (1) Determining mechanisms of origin processing, primer synthesis, and macromolecular assembly during DNA replication across the bacterial, archaeal, and eukaryl domains of life; and (2) Understanding how DNA and RNA-dependent motor proteins interact with nucleic acids and use ATP to drive structural changes during transcription and replication.
Dr. Berger received his B.S. from University of Utah, his PhD from Harvard University, and has received widespread recognition, including a National Academy of Sciences (NAS) award in Molecular Biology (2011) and election to the NAS (2013). His articles have been published in Cell, Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, and Science.