Balyn Zaro

Overview

Balyn Zaro, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) School of Pharmacy. His research focuses on chemical biology and proteomics to study innate immunity and drug discovery. He leads the Zaro Lab, which develops novel techniques to investigate macrophage biology, host-pathogen interactions, and covalent inhibitors.

Education and Background

Zaro earned his PhD in chemical biology from the University of Southern California (USC), followed by postdoctoral training at Scripps Research Institute and Stanford University. His work spans chemical reporter development, innate immunity mechanisms, and the molecular basis of disease.

Research Interests

Key areas include:

• Covalent inhibitor design using chemical proteomics
• Pathogen-encoded 'don’t eat me' signals (e.g., Borrelia burgdorferi’s P66)
• Tumor-associated macrophage dysfunction in cancer
• Proteomic analysis of immune cell function

Publications and Trends

Recent work highlights discoveries like the CD47 mimic P66 and macrophage phagocytosis mechanisms. His lab’s proteomic approaches reveal novel insights into immune signaling and drug targets.

Awards and Funding

Recipient of the 2020 Mary Anne Koda-Kimble Seed Award for Innovation, supporting early-stage research. Collaborations span immunology, structural biology, and translational medicine.

Lab and Mentoring

Zaro mentors graduate students and postdocs in interdisciplinary research. Current lab members include Regan Volk, José Montaño, and Sara Casebeer. The lab emphasizes innovation and collaboration, with projects addressing both fundamental and applied biomedical questions.

Labs and Teams

The Zaro Lab is part of UCSF’s Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, leveraging cutting-edge facilities for proteomics, chemical synthesis, and cell biology. Collaborations include work on EMC chaperones and Lyme disease pathogenesis.