Polly Fordyce, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Departments of Genetics and Bioengineering

Stanford University

Talk Title: Understanding gene regulation using high-throughput biophysics

Abstract: TBD

Host: Dr. Mike White

Host Comments: Dr. Polly Fordyce is pushing the frontier of our understanding of the biophysical principles by which transcription factors control the genome. Through innovations in microfluidics and quantitative imaging, her lab is advancing the scale and quantitative precision of key measurements that reveal the thermodynamics and kinetics of transcription factor interactions with their cofactors and with their DNA targets. Repeatedly, she has shown how quantitative in vitro measurements are critical for understanding how transcription factors behave in vivo. Dr. Fordyce’s work builds on Dr. Gary Stormo’s important contributions to the study of transcription factor specificity, and her ability to use technological innovation to yield new quantitative insights make her an especially fitting choice to be the 2026 Stormo Lecturer.