Dr. Breaker is a Sterling Professor of the Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology at Yale University, and is jointly appointed in the Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry where he serves as Chair. He received his B.S. degree (biology, chemistry) from the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point and his Ph.D. (nucleic acids synthesis) from Purdue University. As a postdoctoral researcher with Dr. Gerald Joyce at The Scripps Research Institute, Dr. Breaker pioneered various “test-tube evolution” strategies to engineer nucleic acids and created the first examples of catalytic DNAs or “deoxyribozymes” using this technology.
Since 1995, Dr. Breaker has continued to pursue the discovery and analysis of noncoding nucleic acids in his laboratory at Yale. His research has led to the discovery and validation of five natural ribozyme classes and numerous classes of designer ribozymes and deoxyribozymes. His laboratory established the first experimental proofs that metabolites are directly bound by messenger RNA elements called riboswitches. These discoveries add support for the hypothesis that some modern riboswitches and ribozymes are ancient but sophisticated relics from life forms that thrived before the evolutionary emergence of proteins. His current research efforts involve the discovery and analysis of unusual, structured nucleic acids and their roles in the biological and biochemical processes of organisms from all three domains of life.
Dr. Breaker served as Chair of the Yale MCDB Department from 2010 to 2016 and has twice served as Chair of the Yale Tenure Appointments Committee in the Biological Sciences (TACBS). He has served as Chair of the Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry since 2023. He currently participates on several scientific advisory boards including the JASON Defense Advisory Group.