Molecular Biology Major

Study how biological macromolecules such as DNA and proteins, regulate the chemical processes of cells affecting gene expression, and cell structure and function.

In order to understand how cells function at the molecular level a solid foundation in chemistry, biology, math and physics is necessary. In addition, gaining first-hand research experience is a goal of our major, which is why some of our core courses incorporate investigative research into the curriculum.

In the past five years, graduates of the Molecular Biology Program have gone on to Ph.D. programs at Stanford, Harvard, MIT, Berkeley, UCLA, and others.

In class with Professor Daniel Martinez
In class with Professor Daniel Martinez

What You’ll Study

    • Cell structure, function and biochemistry
    • Genetics and Genomics
    • General, Organic and Physical Chemistry
    • Molecular biology research approaches and tools
    • Fundamental math and physics
80
More than 80 percent of majors have participated in at least one summer research project.

Researching at Pomona

Essi Logan ’24

Animal Egg Coats

Under the guidance of Dr. Sara Olson, Essi Logan ’24 is working to determine the structure of PERM-2, a protein on the C. elegans eggshell, through protein crystallization. Her senior thesis combines findings from developmental biology, biochemistry, and structural biology.

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Emmie Appl '25
Emmie Appl ’25

In Biology 41C (Introductory Cell Chemistry and Cell Biology with Laboratory) with Professor Johnson, we did a lot of work with case studies and hypotheticals. What if something was not doing what we expected it to? And we had to work backwards with the knowledge we learned in class and figure out what was happening, why it was happening, and how to fix it.

Faculty & Teaching

This interdisciplinary major is supported by faculty from the Biology, Chemistry, Neuroscience and Physics Departments. Their wide range of expertise includes genetics, developmental genetics, biochemistry, surface chemistry, chemical biology, molecular biology, molecular evolution, aging, membrane biophysics, organic chemistry, neurobiology, structural biology, medicinal chemistry, molecular genetics, genomics and computational biology.

Professor M. Cristina Negritto

Finding out how things work at the molecular level is something that is fascinating, and once you understand a cellular mechanism then you can manipulate it or fix it if needed. The goal is to apply the experimental methods from molecular biology to examine complex phenomena such as development, aging, cancer, the nervous system, or any other discipline of interest to elucidate how things work at the molecular level. This is what molecular biology is all about, and because of its interdisciplinary nature, a good foundation in chemistry, biology and physics is needed.