Nathan Nicely

Nathan Nicely, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacology at the UNC School of Medicine. He serves as Director of the UNC Macromolecular Crystallography & Protein Expression and Purification Core Facilities, providing state-of-the-art infrastructure for structural biology projects. His work supports researchers at UNC and external institutions through advanced techniques including mass photometry, crystallization, and X-ray diffraction.

• Role: Faculty member with dual responsibilities in research and core facility leadership
• Key collaborations: UNC Center for Structural Biology, Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center

Research interests focus on structural biology methodologies, particularly macromolecular crystallography and protein purification. The core facility under his direction enables three-dimensional molecular structure determination through X-ray diffraction, offering services from sample analysis to structure refinement. Specialized expertise includes handling complex biomolecules, optimizing crystallization conditions, and training researchers in crystallographic techniques.

Supported by NIH Grant P30CA016086, his facility requires proper acknowledgment in publications and compliance with the NIH Public Access Policy. The core maintains partnerships with SER-CAT (sector 22 at Advanced Photon Source) for synchrotron access, providing 288 annual beamtime hours. Equipment highlights include a Bruker Venture D8 diffractometer with dual sealed sources and photon-counting detector.

• Training: Expert mentoring in crystallographic strategies and data analysis
• Technical support: Full service for structural projects from crystallization screening to diffraction data collection
• Instrumentation: State-of-the-art X-ray diffraction systems and mass photometry capabilities