Michael Brodsky

Michael Brodsky, PhD, is an Assistant Professor at the UMass Chan Medical School in the Department of Molecular, Cell and Cancer Biology. His research focuses on understanding how Drosophila p53 regulates DNA damage-induced apoptosis and cell cycle arrest, with implications for cancer biology and developmental processes.

Education:

• BA in Biochemistry, University of California, Berkeley (1989)
• PhD in Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1996)
• Post-doctoral Fellow at UC Berkeley (1996–2001), supported by American Cancer Society and Howard Hughes Medical Institute fellowships.

Research Interests center on the conservation of p53 function across species, using Drosophila as a model to study apoptosis regulation, genetic networks, and DNA repair pathways. His lab employs genetics, microarrays, and informatics to identify p53 targets like reaper and TNF homologs.

Selected Publications span topics in Drosophila genetics, CRISPR applications, neurodegenerative diseases, and food safety methods, reflecting interdisciplinary work across molecular biology, neuroscience, and public health.

Scientific Awards include:

• American Cancer Society Fellowship
• Howard Hughes Medical Institute Fellowship

Advising and Grants: Dr. Brodsky mentors graduate students in genetic screens, RNAi, and homologous recombination projects. His lab has secured grants for CRISPR research, neurodevelopmental models, and microbial detection methods.

Labs and Teams: He leads a lab at UMass Chan Medical School, collaborating with interdisciplinary programs in Bioinformatics and Integrative Biology, NeuroNexus Institute, and Neuroscience Graduate Program.