Karen Fleming

Karen Fleming is a Professor of Biophysics at Johns Hopkins University. Her research focuses on membrane protein biophysics and folding mechanisms, with special emphasis on transmembrane helix-helix interactions, chaperone networks in bacterial periplasms, and energetics of protein-protein interactions in membranes.

Her research interests include:

• Membrane protein thermodynamics and folding
• Chaperone-assisted protein folding
• Transmembrane beta-barrel stability
• Hydrophobicity scales in lipid bilayers
• Computational modeling of membrane systems

Dr. Fleming's laboratory combines experimental biophysics with computational approaches to study protein folding in membranes, having developed novel hydrophobicity scales and quantitative models for protein sorting mechanisms. Her work on outer membrane protein biogenesis has revealed key functions of chaperone networks in bacterial systems.

Scientific awards include:

• Arne Tiselius Young Investigator Award (inaugural recipient)
• Department of Defense Career Award
• Thomas E. Thompson Award from the Biophysical Society (2016)
• Johns Hopkins Diversity Leadership Council Awards (2015, 2017)
• Provost's Prize for Faculty Diversity (2019)

Her lab maintains active collaborations and develops computational tools including HullRad for hydrodynamic calculations. Current work addresses bias mitigation in STEM fields alongside core biophysics research.