Ron Kopito

Ron Rieger Kopito
Born1954 (1954)
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)Cell biologist and academic
Academic background
Alma materBowdoin College (AB)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (PhD)
Academic work
DisciplineCell biology
InstitutionsStanford University

Ron Rieger Kopito (born 1954) is an American cell biologist and academic holding the position of Professor in the Department of Biology at Stanford University.[1] He is most known for his work on proteostasis, particularly the role of ubiquitin and UFMylation in protein and ribosome quality control in the mammalian secretory pathway. Kopito is a Lifetime Fellow of the American Society for Cell Biology.

Education

Kopito earned an A.B. in biochemistry from Bowdoin College in 1976. He then received his Ph.D. in nutritional biochemistry and metabolism from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1982.[2]

Career

Kopito was an NIH postdoctoral fellow and Lucille P. Markey Scholar at MIT and the Whitehead Institute from 1982 to 1986 under the mentorship of Harvey F. Lodish.[3] In 1987, he joined the faculty of the Department of Biological Sciences (now the Department of Biology) at Stanford University, and became a full professor in 1996.[4]

His research work has included genetics, cell physiological characterization of SLC4A anion transporters and the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator, CFTR, defining the role of the ubiquitin proteasome system (UPS) in endoplasmic reticulum (ER) associated degradation (ERAD).[5] He coined the term aggresome[6] to describe intracellular inclusions that collect aggregated proteins and demonstrated that protein aggregates derived from the Huntington's disease gene product impair cellular proteostasis and can propagate between cells in a prion-like manner.[7] He discovered that UFMylation of the large ribosomal subunit is required for ribosome-associated quality control and translocon recycling at the ER,[8] resolving a 50-year-old cell biological mystery.[9]

Awards and honors

Bibliography

References

  1. ^ "Stanford Profiles–Ron Kopito". Stanford University. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  2. ^ "Stanford University Department of Biology–Ron Kopito". Stanford University. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  3. ^ Voboril, Mary (February 28, 1985). "Markey fellows get research awards". The Miami Herald. p. 629.
  4. ^ "Ron Reiger Kopito CV". Stanford University. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  5. ^ "Research - The Kopito Laboratory". Kopito Lab.
  6. ^ Behl, Christian (1 August 2016). "Breaking BAG: The Co-Chaperone BAG3 in Health and Disease". Trends in Pharmacological Sciences. 37 (8): 672–688. doi:10.1016/j.tips.2016.04.007. ISSN 0165-6147. PMID 27162137.
  7. ^ "Infectious Hereditary Illness? Insights on Huntington's Disease - Innovations Report". Innovations Report. 10 February 2009.
  8. ^ Munich, Ludwig Maximilian University of. "Researchers reveal how cells regenerate protein factories at the endoplasmic reticulum". Phys Org.
  9. ^ "Enzyme discovery helps unravel decades-old ribosome mystery". Stanford University. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  10. ^ Teltsch, Kathleen (10 February 1985). "16 Are Given Markey Research Scholarships". The New York Times. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  11. ^ "NSF Presidential Young Investigator Award". National Science Foundation. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  12. ^ "American Society for Cell Biology–Ron Kopito". American Society for Cell Biology. Retrieved May 5, 2025.