Principal Investigator

Hanein’s research is at the interfaces between structural biology, cell biology, systems biology, and engineering science.  Hanein is leading efforts in combining light microscopy with cellular tomography to permit the placement of dynamics multimolecular protein complexes into their functional context in whole mammalian cells.  Through these efforts, she made seminal contributions to our knowledge of the structure, assembly and regulation of actin cytoskeleton and its associated macromolecular assemblies, to the development of  techniques and protocols for correlative light and in-situ cellular tomography of protein structures in intact hydrated mammalian cells at cryogenic temperatures, and to the evolution of quantitative  cryogenic electron  microscopy.  This workflow is tied to high-resolution, live-cell fluorescence imaging that are used to pinpoint the location of single proteins. With the advent of the new generation of cryo-electron microscopy equipment, including direct detection technology, phase plate devices, and automation capabilities, these efforts place Dr. Hanein research at the forefront of exciting new developments at the interface between cryo-EM, cell biology, and systems biology. The resulting quantitative integration of scales between macroscopic cellular behavior and high-resolution structural changes carries high impact in both medicine and basic biological research.

Dr. Hanein was educated at the Weizmann Institute, Israel. Dr. Hanein completed training as a Fulbright postdoctoral fellow at Brandeis University with David DeRosier, the founding father of three-dimensional image reconstruction techniques via electron microscopy. Dr. Hanein holds a joint appointment with Institut Pasteur and the Scintillon Institute and is a PEW Innovation Fund Investigator.