Sua Myong

Dr. Sua Myong is a Professor at Harvard Medical School and Principal Investigator in the Program for Cellular and Molecular Medicine (PCMM) at Boston Children's Hospital. She previously served as a full Professor in the Biophysics Department at Johns Hopkins University, where she began as an Associate Professor in 2015 after rising from Assistant Professor in the Bioengineering Department at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign starting in 2009.

Her educational background includes a Ph.D. from University of California, Berkeley with Barry Shane, followed by postdoctoral work at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with Taekjip Ha. Dr. Myong transitioned from molecular biology to single-molecule biophysics during her postdoctoral training.

Dr. Myong's research program focuses on quantitative understanding of biological processes at the single-molecule level, with particular emphasis on nucleic acid structures and their roles in human disease. Her laboratory develops and applies single-molecule fluorescence assays combined with biochemical, biophysical, and cellular approaches to study G-quadruplexes, R-loops, telomere regulation, and biomolecular condensation. Current research directions include investigations of G-quadruplex mediated gene expression (NIGMS), telomere regulation with focus on alternative lengthening of telomere (NCI), molecular mechanisms of liquid-liquid phase separation in neurodegenerative diseases (NINDS), and poly(ADP-ribose) regulation in RNA binding proteins (NIA).

Analysis of her recent publications reveals a strong emphasis on molecular mechanisms of phase separation in neurodegenerative diseases, particularly focusing on FUS protein dynamics in ALS/FTLD, alongside continued work on G-quadruplex and R-loop structures in transcriptional regulation. Her research increasingly integrates single-molecule techniques with cellular models to bridge molecular mechanisms with disease pathology.

• NIH Director's New Innovator Award (2012)
• Human Frontier Science Research Award (2012)
• Outstanding Advisor of the Year Award, University of Illinois (2014)
• NIH-funded research across NIGMS, NCI, NINDS, and NIA
• Editorial Board service for Molecular Cell, Biophysical Journal, and Scientific Reports

Dr. Myong has mentored numerous graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and staff scientists, with several trainees receiving prestigious awards including NIH F31 grants. Her laboratory at Boston Children's Hospital currently comprises over 15 researchers investigating diverse aspects of nucleic acid biology and protein phase separation. She serves as Chair-elect of the FASEB Helicase and Nucleic Acid-Based Machine Conference (2025) and Gordon Conference on Nucleic Acid (2027), reflecting her leadership in the field of nucleic acid research.