Vytas A. Bankaitis

Vytas A. Bankaitis is a Distinguished Professor and E.L. Wehner-Welch Foundation Chair in Chemistry at Texas A&M University, affiliated with the Department of Molecular & Cellular Medicine within the School of Medicine. His research focuses on lipid-mediated signal transduction and the functional roles of phosphatidylinositol/phosphatidylcholine transfer proteins (PITPs) in cellular processes.

Education:

• BS in Microbiology, Edinboro University (1978)
• MS in Microbiology, Clemson University (1980)
• PhD in Microbiology and Immunology, University of North Carolina (1984)
• Postdoctoral Fellow, California Institute of Technology (1986)

Research Interests: His lab investigates PITPs' roles in membrane trafficking, lipid signaling, and metabolic pathways. Recent work includes studying PITP-deficient mouse models linked to chylomicron retention disease and diabetes. Techniques employed include molecular biology, biochemistry, microscopy, and mouse gene knockout technology.

Awards:

• 2019 Avanti Award in Lipid Research
• 2016 Texas A&M Distinguished Professor
• Arnold Beckman Scholar (1986)

Grants & Leadership: Served as NIH review panel chair, NSF advisor, and director of the Lipid Research Division (ASBMB). Active in editorial roles for EMBO Reports and conference organization.

Labs/Teams: Leads a multidisciplinary lab divided into fungal/plant PITP studies and mammalian knockout mouse analyses. Collaborates on small molecule inhibitor development targeting PITPs.