Joan Steitz

Joan Steitz is the Sterling Professor of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry at Yale School of Medicine, where she has made groundbreaking contributions to RNA biology. She leads the Steitz Lab, which is affiliated with multiple Yale research centers including the Yale Cancer Center, Yale Stem Cell Center, and the Center for RNA Science and Medicine.

• Yale School of Medicine, Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry (Primary)
• Yale Cancer Center
• Yale Stem Cell Center
• Yale Combined Program in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS)
• Center for RNA Science and Medicine

Dr. Steitz earned her BS from Antioch College (1963) and PhD from Harvard University (1967), followed by postdoctoral work at the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, England. She joined Yale as an assistant professor and progressed to become a Sterling Professor, one of Yale's highest academic honors.

Her research focuses on RNA-protein complexes, particularly small nuclear ribonucleoproteins (snRNPs) that play critical roles in pre-mRNA splicing. The lab investigates how these complexes recognize intron signals and assemble into functional spliceosomes. Recent work has explored stress-induced transcriptional readthrough, RNA stability mechanisms involving poly(A) tails, and the functions of viral noncoding RNAs from herpesviruses.

Analysis of Dr. Steitz's recent publications reveals a strong emphasis on RNA structure-function relationships, viral-host interactions, and the molecular mechanisms of RNA processing. Her work spans structural biology, virology, and molecular genetics, with applications to understanding human diseases including cancer.

• Warren Alpert Prize (2021)
• Wolf Prize in Medicine (2021)
• Watson Prize (2021)
• Medal Prize Lecture (2021)
• Honorary Doctor of Science (2021)

Dr. Steitz actively mentors students and postdocs, with numerous trainees appearing as co-authors on her publications. Her lab maintains strong collaborations across Yale and with international researchers, as evidenced by her extensive publication record. She has also been a prominent advocate for gender diversity in STEM fields, co-authoring influential papers on improving representation of women in science.

The Steitz Lab maintains active research programs in RNA structure, splicing mechanisms, viral noncoding RNAs, and stress responses, with ongoing projects examining how RNA-protein interactions govern gene expression in both normal and disease states.