Zhe Chen, Ph.D.: 30 Years
Professor
Department of Biophysics
First UTSW job: I started as a graduate student in the Molecular Biophysics Graduate Program back in 1995.
Best part about my job: The greatest part is working alongside the outstanding team at the Structural Biology Laboratory, and collaborating with colleagues across and beyond campus, to advance a broad range of research initiatives.
How co-workers describe me: I hope they’d describe me as someone who’s genuinely kind, always willing to lend a hand, and brings a steady can‑do spirit to the team.
Best UTSW memory: It was listening to an impromptu Christmas choir performance by faculty and staff in the Y4 building hallways and then hopping onto the Secret Santa’s lap – played, to my great amusement, by my Ph.D. mentor.
My proudest UTSW accomplishment: Building on my early-career work investigating the molecular mechanisms of G‑protein signaling pathways, I later helped establish and expand the cryo‑electron microscopy service at the Structural Biology Core facility, where I now serve as co‑Director.
I’m really good at: Photography, which I love. I also seem to be good at many sports, whether it’s a team effort or a solo adventure.
Hobbies: These days, I’m happily bouncing between hobbies – experimenting with digital photography, plotting my next travel adventure, or chasing down tennis balls with more enthusiasm than technique.
Surprising fact: I have something close to perfect pitch, yet somehow can’t play a single musical instrument – a truly unhelpful superpower. I’m also an avid Lego Star Wars minifigure collector, which at least is a talent I can proudly demonstrate.