Elisa Pieri

Assistant Professor

Computational/Theoretical Chemistry, Photochemistry, Protein Engineering

Our research develops and leverages the tools of computational and theoretical chemistry to advance the field of photoreaction discovery. We seek to understand and predict the events triggered by photon absorption in small molecules and proteins, and develop rational design principles to build bio-imaging and optogenetics agents. In particular, we focus on tuning the fluorescence and photochromic properties of molecules and proteins using hypothesis-free frameworks and high throughput methods, to scan tens of mutants and molecules without any a priori knowledge of their photochemistry. Members of the group will build a strong interdisciplinary STEM portfolio by living at the interface of chemistry, physics, biology and computer science.

Elisa Pieri is an Assistant Professor of Chemistry. She received B.Sc. (2012) and M.Sc. (2014) degrees from the University of Siena, Italy, and her Ph.D. (2018) in Computational Chemistry from the Aix-Marseille University, France. Before joining University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in summer 2023, she was a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University in the Martinez group (2019-2023).