Dr. Zhijian ("James") Chen is professor of molecular biology at UT Southwestern and a Howard Hughes Medical Investigator. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) is a philanthropic organization that promotes biomedical research. Dr. Chen was elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) in April of 2014, after having received the NAS Award in Molecular Biology for 2012. Election to the NAS is one of the highest honors attainable by a scientist. Dr. Chen's research on focuses cellular signaling in the immune system, particularly the protein ubiquitin, so named because it is ubiquitously, or universally, found in all cells. In addition, Dr. Chen has found that mitochondria, intracellular organelles that produce energy, also contribute to the body's immune response. Dr. Chen joined the faculty in 1997. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2014 and to the National Academy of Medicine in 2022.