Systems Biology & Biomedical Data Science

microscope photo of retina next to model

Tackling complex challenges in human health requires the systematic analysis of molecular, cellular, and multi-cellular processes in a quantitative framework. Rich datasets emerge from the development and application of cutting-edge experimental methods that deeply interrogate cell-tissue-organ physiology. Integration of these big data can only be achieved through predictive computational models that are scalable, flexible, and quantitatively rigorous.

BME Primary Faculty in this Area

Sameer Bajikar

Assistant Professor, Departments of Cell Biology and Biomedical Engineering
Sameer Bajikar, Ph.D., uses multidisciplinary techniques to study the biological processes that go awry in brain development in neurodevelopmental disorders, like autism spectrum disorders and intellectual disability. His group is developing novel human stem cell and genetically engineered mouse…

Philip E. Bourne

Founding Dean, School of Data Science Professor, Biomedical Engineering
Philip E. Bourne leads a range of initiatives to encourage and facilitate the use of big data in large-scale research across the scientific and technological disciplines, with special emphasis on structural bioinformatics and systems pharmacology. He is the Founding Dean of the School of Data…

Mete Civelek

Associate Professor, Biomedical Engineering Resident Faculty, Center for Public Health Genomics
Mete Civelek uses big data analytics to understand the molecular pathways of disease and develops personalized medicine approaches to cardiovascular and metabolic disorders. He is an assistant professor of Biomedical Engineering and a resident faculty at the Center for Public Health Genomics at the…

Sepideh Dolatshahi

Assistant Professor, Biomedical Engineering
Research in the Dolatshahi lab combines multiplex experimental measurements with computational methods (including statistical machine learning, network inference, information theory, signal processing and kinetic-dynamic modeling) to solve problems in the context of cancer, infectious disease and…

Mohammad Fallahi-Sichani

Associate Professor, Biomedical Engineering

Dr. Fallahi-Sichani leads a Systems Biology research program aiming to discover the fundamental mechanisms through which human cancer cells respond heterogeneously to environmental and therapeutic perturbations.

Jason Papin

Professor, Biomedical Engineering Harrison Distinguished Teaching Professor

Jason Papin, Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, develops computational models of cellular networks and performs experiments to characterize biological systems relevant to human disease. After his training in Bioengineering at University of California, San Diego, Jason Papin joined the faculty at University of Virginia in 2005.

Gustavo Kunde Rohde

Professor, Biomedical Engineering and Electrical and Computer Engineering

Dr. Rohde, Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Electrical and Computer Engineering, develops computational predictive models with applications in pathology, radiology, systems biology, and mobile sensing. He earned a B.S. degree 1999, M.S. degree in in 2001 from Vanderbilt University, and a doctorate in 2005 from the University of Maryland.

Jeff Saucerman

Professor, Biomedical Engineering

Jeff Saucerman, PhD, Professor of Biomedical Engineering, combines computational models and high-throughput experiments to discover molecular networks and drugs that control cardiac remodeling.

Aidong Zhang

Thomas M. Linville Professor Computer Science, Biomedical Engineering, and Data Science

Aidong Zhang's research focuses on developing machine learning approaches to interpretable and fair learning, concept-based learning, federated learning, and generative AI. She also works on large language models for hypothesis generations for scientific discovery.

Eli Zunder

Assistant Professor, Biomedical Engineering

Eli Zunder analyzes stem cell fate using single cell mass cytometry and high-dimensional modeling of cell lineage trajectories. He received his Ph.D. in Biophysics from UCSF in 2009.

Joint Faculty in Biomedical Data Sciences and Systems Biology

Christopher Deppmann

Associate Professor of Biology Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering

Christopher Deppman has been interested in the mechanisms underlying long-distance signaling in the context of nervous system development since he was a post-doctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in the laboratory of David Ginty (now at Harvard). 

Clint Miller

Assistant Professor of Public Health Sciences Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics

Clint Miller studies the genetic and environmental risk factors for coronary artery disease and other complex cardiovascular diseases using a combination of large-scale multi-omics profiling and genetic and drug perturbations. He is an Assistant Professor in Public Health Sciences and a resident member of the Center for Public Health Genomics.

Nathan Sheffield

Associate Professor of Public Health Sciences, Biomedical Engineering, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, and Data Science
The Sheffield Lab uses computation to ask and answer biological questions. We study the non-coding DNA that encodes gene regulatory networks and enables cellular differentiation, and how these networks break down in disease like cancer. To address these biological questions, we develop scientific…

Chongzhi Zang

Associate Professor of Public Health Sciences, Biomedical Engineering, and Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics

Dr. Chongzhi Zang is an associate professor and resident faculty member in the Center for Public Health Genomics, University of Virginia. He holds faculty appointments in the Departments of Public Health Sciences, Biomedical Engineering, and Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics.

Distinctive Features

History and Vision

History and Vision for Systems Biology and Biomedical Data Science at UVA

UVA School of Data Science

Biomedical Engineering professor PHIL BOURNE is the founding dean of the School of Data Science, UVA’s 12th school and the first established since 2007. 

Training Grant is Equipping Future Leaders in Biomedical Data Sciences

Greg Medlock shares his experience

Greg Medlock honed his collaborative abilities during his two years as a participant in a National Institutes of Health training grant led by his doctoral thesis advisor, BME...

NSF REU in Multiscale Systems Bioengineering

Timothy Allen (Principal Investigator). Each summer, UVA trains undergraduates from a variety of STEM backgrounds in the exciting field of systems bioengineering.