MCS Faculty Members Recognized With Chairs

Five Mellon College of Science faculty members have been honored with named professorships to support their work in biological sciences, chemistry and physics.

Aryn Gittis, Katelyn Breivik, Olexandr Isayev, Zheng Kuang and Huaiying Zhang were recognized at a reception Sept. 4 in the Mellon Institute.

“Endowed professorships represent one of the highest academic honors a faculty member can receive,” said James H. Garrett Jr., provost and chief academic officer. “They not only grant recipients well-deserved recognition but also provide vital resources to expand their research and amplify its impact.”

Gittis and Isayev received endowed professorships that will support their work at Carnegie Mellon. Breivik, Kuang and Zhang received career development professorships that support scientists at the beginning of their careers.

“These are some of our most dynamic and innovative thinkers. They’re pushing boundaries in life sciences and physical sciences, and they’re doing it through interdisciplinary approaches that reflect the spirit of CMU,” said Barbara Shinn-Cunningham, the Glen de Vries Dean of the Mellon College of Science. “Coming together to recognize the achievements of our exceptional scientists serves as a reminder of the foundational importance of basic science not just for MCS and CMU, but for society.”

Dr. Frederick A. Schwertz Distinguished Professorship of Life Sciences

Aryn H. Gittis is a neuroscientist who studies the neural basis of motor control and neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease. Using techniques like optogenetics and electrophysiology, her lab investigates how specific neuron subtypes influence movement and how targeted interventions can restore function. Her work has led to breakthroughs in developing deep brain stimulation therapies for Parkinson's disease. Gittis earned her Ph.D. in neuroscience from the University of California, San Diego, and completed postdoctoral training at the Gladstone Institute for Neurological Disease.

Falco DeBenedetti Career Development Professorship in Physics

Katelyn Breivik is a member of the McWilliams Center for Cosmology and Astrophysics and works at the interface of theory, simulations and data to understand how binary stars evolve. She develops open-source software tools — that already have been cited in dozens of papers — that simulate binary star populations and their observable properties in electromagnetic and gravitational-wave surveys. Breivik earned her Ph.D. at Northwestern University. Prior to joining CMU, she was a Flatiron Research Fellow at the Flatiron Institute’s Center for Computational Astrophysics and a CIT Fellow at the Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics.

Carl and Amy Jones Professorship in Interdisciplinary Studies

Olexandr Isayev works at the interface of theoretical chemistry, pharmaceutical sciences and computer science. Using machine learning and neural networks, Isayev is developing technology that has rapidly accelerated the pace at which new molecules are being discovered. He earned his Ph.D. in computational chemistry in 2008. He was a postdoctoral research fellow at Case Western Reserve University, a scientist at a government research lab and a faculty member at UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Isayev received the “Emerging Technology Award” from the American Chemical Society and the GPU computing award from NVIDIA.

Eberly Family Career Development Professorship of Biological Science

Zheng Kuang researches how gut microbiota regulate mammalian metabolism and immunity. Focusing on host-microbial interactions within 24-hour circadian cycles, he has uncovered mechanisms by which microbes influence food absorption and mucosal immunity. His work informs fields such as malnutrition, obesity, gastrointestinal inflammation and infections. Kuang received the NIH New Innovator Award for his pioneering work. He earned his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology and Genetics from Johns Hopkins University and held postdoctoral positions at NYU Langone Health and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.

Eberly Family Career Development Professorship of Biological Science

Huaiying Zhang’s research focuses on the spatial and temporal organization of biomolecules like proteins, DNAs and RNAs within human cells. She aims to understand how these processes function normally and how their dysregulation contributes to diseases like cancer. She earned her Ph.D. in chemical engineering from McGill University and was a postdoctoral researcher at Dartmouth College, Princeton University and the University of Pennsylvania. She has received notable recognition for her research, including an NSF CAREER Award and a Charles E. Kaufman Foundation New Investigator Award.