Lucas Farnung
| Lucas Farnung | |
|---|---|
| Born | 16 September 1990 Dortmund, West Germany |
| 🏳️ Nationality | German |
| 💼 Occupation | |
| Known for | Structural biology of chromatin complexes |
| 🏅 Awards | Karl-Lohmann-Preis (2018), Milton E. Cassel Scholar, Rita Allen Foundation (2023), HHMI Freeman Hrabowski Scholar (2025) |
| 🌐 Website | farnunglab |
Lucas Farnung (born 1990) is a German biochemist, and structural biologist. Currently, he is an Assistant Professor of Cell Biology at Harvard Medical School.
Early life and education
Farnung studied biochemistry at University College London from 2010 until 2013.[1] As a research student he also worked at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology in Dortmund, Germany and in the lab of Seth Darst at The Rockefeller University in New York City, US. Farnung is a first-generation college student.
From 2013 until 2017 he worked as a fast-track PhD student in the laboratory of Patrick Cramer at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry (now: Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences) in Göttingen, Germany. He obtained his PhD in natural sciences (Dr. rer. nat.) from Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich in 2017 with summa cum laude.[2] In 2019, Farnung received the Karl-Lohmann-Prize[3] for his PhD research.
Career in research
Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, 2013–2021
From 2017 until 2021, Farnung continued working as a postdoctoral researcher and project leader in the laboratory of the later Max Planck President Patrick Cramer at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Germany.[4]
Harvard Medical School, 2021–present
In 2021, Farnung moved to the US, where he obtained an Assistant Professorship of Cell Biology in the Department of Cell Biology at Harvard Medical School.[5] In 2025, Farnung was named a HHMI Freeman Hrabowski Scholar.[6][7]
Achievements
Farnung conducts basic research at the intersection of transcription, chromatin, and DNA replication by employing structural biology, biochemistry, and AI approaches.[8] During his PhD research with Patrick Cramer, Farnung determined the first full-length structure of the chromatin remodeler Chd1 in complex with a nucleosome[9], elucidated the structural basis of promoter-proximal pausing[10], and provided first high-resolution cryo-EM structures into the mechanism of transcription through chromatin[11][12][13]. In 2020, Farnung also contributed to the first "3D structure of the corona polymerase"[14] for the COVID-19 virus.
Farnung's laboratory investigates the molecular mechanisms and principles of gene transcription, DNA replication and chromatin structure in eukaryotic cells. The laboratory uses structural biology methods, including X-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy, biochemical tools, and AI approaches.[15] In 2024, the Farnung lab described for the first time the structural basis and molecular mechanism of co-transcriptional deposition of the histone mark H3K36me3.[16]
Awards
- 2019 Karl-Lohmann-Preis
- 2023 NIH Director's New Innovator Award[17][18]
- 2023 Milton E. Cassel Scholar, Rita Allen Foundation[19]
- 2025 HHMI Freeman Hrabowski Scholar
References
- ↑ "CV Farnung" (PDF).
- ↑ "CV Farnung" (PDF).
- ↑ "Karl Lohmann Prize - Homepage der Gesellschaft für Biochemie und Molekularbiologie e.V." gbm-online.de.
- ↑ "Lab Alumni". www.mpinat.mpg.de.
- ↑ "Cell Biology welcomes new faculty members | Cell Biology". cellbio.hms.harvard.edu. 26 January 2021.
- ↑ "Cell Bio faculty member appointed as a HHMI Freeman Hrabowski Scholar | Cell Biology". cellbio.hms.harvard.edu. 18 June 2025.
- ↑ "The 2025 Freeman Hrabowski Scholars | HHMI". www.hhmi.org.
- ↑ "Farnung Lab Website". Farnung Lab.
- ↑ Farnung, L; Vos, SM; Wigge, C; Cramer, P (26 October 2017). "Nucleosome-Chd1 structure and implications for chromatin remodelling". Nature. 550 (7677): 539–542. doi:10.1038/nature24046. PMID 29019976.
- ↑ Vos, SM; Farnung, L; Urlaub, H; Cramer, P (August 2018). "Structure of paused transcription complex Pol II-DSIF-NELF". Nature. 560 (7720): 601–606. doi:10.1038/s41586-018-0442-2. PMID 30135580.
- ↑ Farnung, L; Ochmann, M; Garg, G; Vos, SM; Cramer, P (1 September 2022). "Structure of a backtracked hexasomal intermediate of nucleosome transcription". Molecular cell. 82 (17): 3126–3134.e7. doi:10.1016/j.molcel.2022.06.027. PMID 35858621 Check
|pmid=value (help). - ↑ Farnung, L; Ochmann, M; Engeholm, M; Cramer, P (April 2021). "Structural basis of nucleosome transcription mediated by Chd1 and FACT". Nature structural & molecular biology. 28 (4): 382–387. doi:10.1038/s41594-021-00578-6. PMID 33846633 Check
|pmid=value (help). - ↑ Farnung, L; Vos, SM; Cramer, P (21 December 2018). "Structure of transcribing RNA polymerase II-nucleosome complex". Nature communications. 9 (1): 5432. doi:10.1038/s41467-018-07870-y. PMID 30575770.
- ↑ "Researchers Solve Structure of SARS-CoV-2 Viral Copy Machine". from Technology Networks. Retrieved 29 April 2020.
- ↑ "How Machine Learning Is Propelling Structural Biology". hms.harvard.edu.
- ↑ Markert, JW; Soffers, JH; Farnung, L (31 January 2025). "Structural basis of H3K36 trimethylation by SETD2 during chromatin transcription". Science. 387 (6733): 528–533. doi:10.1126/science.adn6319. PMID 39666822 Check
|pmid=value (help). - ↑ "Funded Research". commonfund.nih.gov.
- ↑ "NIH Awards Grants to Eight Harvard Med Researchers for 'High Risk, High Reward' Research | News | The Harvard Crimson". www.thecrimson.com.
- ↑ "Lucas Farnung". Rita Allen Foundation.
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