Fred Mast, PhD
Acting Assistant Professor
Dr. Mast’s research focuses on understanding peroxisome function and dysfunction in pediatric infectious diseases and childhood developmental disorders. Peroxisomes are critical for lipid metabolism, reactive oxygen species (ROS) regulation, and immune signaling. Their dysfunction underlies severe conditions such as Zellweger Spectrum Disorders, leading to neurological, hepatic, and developmental abnormalities in children. Dr. Mast has pioneered synthetic lethal strategies to combat viral infections and developed high-affinity synergistic nanobodies for betacoronaviruses. His work combines advanced microscopy, biochemical assays, structural modeling, and machine learning to uncover peroxisome-mediated cellular mechanisms and their roles in childhood development and immune response. Dr. Mast’s overarching goal is to reveal fundamental biological principles that can be leveraged to address pediatric infectious diseases and peroxisome-related disorders.