Siegfried Musser

Dr. Siegfried Musser is a Professor in the Department of Cell Biology and Genetics at Texas A&M University's School of Medicine. He holds a PhD from Caltech and joined Texas A&M in 2001 after postdoctoral work at UC Davis and Brandeis University. His research focuses on biophysical mechanisms of protein translocation and biomolecular condensates, using advanced microscopy techniques like single-molecule fluorescence and super-resolution imaging. Key projects include studying nuclear pore complexes, the bacterial Tat machinery, and phase-separated FUS condensates linked to neurodegenerative diseases.

Education: AB in Biochemistry from UC Berkeley (1990), PhD in Chemistry from Caltech (1996), postdoctoral training at UC Davis (1996-1999) and Brandeis University (1999-2001).

Research Interests: Protein translocation systems (Nuclear Pore Complex, Tat machinery), biomolecular condensates, ALS/FTD pathogenesis, and single-molecule imaging technologies. Current work explores transport pathways in nuclear pores, Tat translocation energetics, and FUS phase maturation using MINFLUX and polarization-PALM approaches.

Awards: Junior Faculty Research Excellence Award (Texas A&M Health Science Center).

Lab Roles: Mentors graduate students (e.g., Thom Weidman) and postdocs (e.g., Abhishek Sau). Ongoing funding includes grants from the Edward Mallinckrodt Foundation. The lab seeks postdocs, graduate students, and undergraduates for biophysics and cell biology projects.

Labs/Teams: Musser Lab at Texas A&M Health Science Center, specializing in single-molecule biophysics and cellular transport mechanisms.