Ronald Breaker

Ronald R. Breaker, Ph.D. (born 1964) is the Henry Ford II Professor of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology at Yale University. He earned his B.S. in Biology and Chemistry from the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point and his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Purdue University. He was a postdoctoral fellow at The Scripps Research Institute under the supervision of Gerald Joyce. While at Scripps, he isolated the first DNA enzyme (deoxyribozyme). He then began his independent career at Yale University. Among his major accomplishments is the discovery of riboswitches. His current research is focused on understanding advanced functions of nucleic acids, including the discovery and analysis of riboswitches and ribozymes. He has been a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Investigator since 2005.

Breaker is a member of the JASON defense advisory group, and was elected to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences in 2013.

Awards