Ales Vancura, Ph.D., is a Professor of Biological Sciences and Chairman of the Department of Biology at St. John's University in New York. Dr. Vancura is the author of more than 60 peer-reviewed publications. His research focuses on understanding of the interdependency between metabolism, chromatin structure and transcriptional regulation. One of the current research efforts in his laboratory is directed at the role of chromatin structure in regulation of mitochondrial biogenesis and respiration. Dr. Vancura has trained many doctoral and undergraduate students and his research is funded by the National Institutes of Health.