Congratulations to Dr. Franceine Welcome on her Thesis Defense

The Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology congratulates Franceine Welcome on the successful defense of her PhD dissertation, “Mechanisms of Substrate Recognition, Catalysis and Regulation of Lipin Phosphatidic Acid Phosphatase,” on Tuesday, May 5, 2026.

Franceine’s research provided important mechanistic insights into how lipin phosphatidic acid phosphatases recognize substrates, catalyze reactions, and are regulated within the cell. Her work integrates biochemical and structural approaches to address fundamental questions in lipid metabolism and enzymatic regulation.

Franceine performed her graduate work in the Biochemistry and Structural Biology (BSB) graduate program, under the mentorship of Dr. Michael Airola. Franceine’s accomplishments reflect the strength of interdisciplinary training within the BSB program and the research excellence of the Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology.

The department congratulates Franceine on this significant achievement and wishes her continued success in her future scientific endeavors.