Kenneth A. Jacobson, PhD '72

Kenneth A. Jacobson, PhD '72, is Kenan Professor of Cell Biology and Physiology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Jacobson has made key contributions to the understanding of how the cell membrane is organized. He was one of the earliest developers of the FRAP technique to measure lateral mobility in membranes and digitized fluorescence microscopy and its application to cell biology.

Over the course of his career, Jacobson has published more than 170 papers in leading journals. After earning an MS in physics from the University of Wisconsin and working for Dow Corning Corporation, he obtained a PhD in biophysical sciences at UB. He then worked at Roswell Park Cancer Institute and, since 1980, for the University of North Carolina School of Medicine.

Jacobson and his group at UNC have developed novel tools and methods to study the physical principles of how cells migrate, using simple-shaped cells as a model. Working with theoreticians, their goal is to approach a major challenge for cell biology: how to integrate myriad molecular pieces into a global understanding of motile phenomena.

Jacobson is currently interested in membrane nanodomains of the C-type lectins on dendritic cells and how they function as receptors for pathogens ranging from small viruses, specifically Dengue, to yeast to initiate the innate immune response.

For the past 20 years, Jacobson has also been interested in renewable energy and has been involved in a joint effort with the Research Triangle Institute, the UNC Center for Global Health and North Carolina State University to develop a small solar powered vaccine cooler based on semiconductor thermoelectric principles to significantly reduce vaccine wastage where refrigeration is unavailable.