People

Meet the people behind our science.
Matjaž Barborič

Principle Investigator

Matjaž received his PhD in Molecular Biology from University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, and did his graduate work and postdoctoral training on controlling Pol II elongation with 7SK snRNP and P-TEFb with B. Matija Peterlin at University of California, San Francisco, USA. Read more on his work . In his free time, he is doing the laundry.

E-mail:

Monika Mačáková

Doctoral Researcher

Doctoral Programme in Integrative Life Science

Monika received her Master's degree in Biotechnology from the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava. Her work on engineering yeasts for production of high value chemicals brought her to study transcription and gene regulation. Her current research focuses on combinatorial targeting of transcriptional CDKs in cancer and the significance of RNA Pol II elongation factor for SARS-CoV-2 replication. When she is not weighing which mistery to solve in the lab, she can be spotted lifting weights in the gym. 

E-mail:

Tina Lenasi

Senior Researcher

Tina received her PhD in Molecular Biology from University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, and did her postdoctoral training on the transcriptional form of HIV-1 latency with B. Matija Peterlin at University of California, San Francisco, USA. Her research focuses on understanding how local topology of Pol II transcription machinery couples gene transcription with maturation of nascent RNA. In her free time, she practices atheism.

E-mail:

Yuqing Bai

Doctoral Researcher

iCANDOC Doctoral Education Pilot in Precision Cancer Medicine

E-mail:

Houqing Yin

Doctoral Researcher

Programme in Biomedicine

Houqing earned his Master's degree in Pharmacology from Peking University in China, where his research on circadian rhythm gene and resistance in lung cancer further sparked a deep interest in investigating gene regulation. His current research focuses on mechanisms  by which transcriptional kinases regulate gene expression and how this new knowledge could be exploited for combinatorial targeting of transcriptional CDKs in cancer. When he isn't immersed in the complexities in the lab, he can be found lifting heavy at the gym, hiking scenic trails, or heading off as a backpacker to discover new destinations.

E-mail:

Nicholas Downes

Postdoctoral Fellow

E-mail:

This Could Be You

Doctoral Researcher

Programme in Biomedicine

E-mail:

Barborič Lab Alumni
  • Ashwini Kumar, Ph.D. (has graduated at , Helsinki, Finland)
  • Kingsley Mokube Ekumi, M.Sc.
  • Petra Kukanja, M.Sc. (now a doctoral student in at Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden)
  • Alexandre JC Quaresma, Ph.D. (now at State University of Campinas - Unicamp, Brazil)
  • Neja Sirc, M.Sc. (now a doctoral researcher in at Univeristy of Helsinki, Finland)
  • Andrii Bugai, Ph.D. (now a postdoctoral fellow in at Aarhus University, Denmark)
  • Zhijia Wang, Ph.D.