Structural Biology Program

The Stephen Long Lab

Research

Stephen B. Long, PhD

Member, Structural Biology Program

Our laboratory uses a combination of structural biology and biophysical techniques to discover how ion channels and membrane-embedded enzymes function at the atomic level. The proteins we study are crucial for the function of the immune system, vision, cell differentiation, and embryonic development, and they are potential targets for diseases including immune disorders and cancer. Our discoveries lead to new understandings of the fundamental mechanisms of the ion channels and enzymes. These understandings also guide our efforts to develop and evaluate small molecule and biologic modulators for therapeutic potential for cancer and other diseases.

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Voltage-dependent potassium channel and Two-pore domain potassium channel

X-ray structures of eukaryotic calcium, potassium, and chloride channels determined in the lab

Pictured: Stephen B Long Lab — Long Lab circa 2021

Featured News

In the Lab

Structural biologist Stephen Long in his lab

High-Tech Microscope Reveals Inner Workings of Protein Assembly Machinery

Sloan Kettering Institute investigators have learned how Hedgehog proteins, which are important in both development and cancer, are assembled.

Ankita Dhar and Jason De La Cruz at work in MSK's cryo-EM facility

How MSK's Newest Cryo-EM Microscope Reveals An Atom's-Eye View the Universe Inside Our Cells

How cryo-electron microscopy is providing scientists at MSK with an unprecedented view of the wild and wiggly microcosm inside our cells.

In the Lab

A gray blob marked RAS linked to colorful rods marked ICMT

Deciphering How Membrane Enzymes Work, with a Little Help from Beetles

The atomic structure of an elusive type of membrane protein has finally been solved by scientists at the Sloan Kettering Institute.

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Publications Highlights

Pant, S., Tam, S. W., & Long, S. B. (2025). The pentameric chloride channel BEST1 is activated by extracellular GABA. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 122(16). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Khanra, N. K., Wang, C., Delgado, B. D., & Long, S. B. (2025). Structure of the human TWIK-2 potassium channel and its inhibition by pimozide. bioRxiv, 2025.02.24.639991. bioRxiv

Delgado B.D. & Long S.B. (2022). Mechanisms of ion selectivity and throughput in the mitochondrial calcium uniporter. Science Advances

Wang, C.*, Polovitskaya, M.M.*, Delgado, B.D., Jentsch, T. J., & Long, S.B. (2022). Gating choreography and mechanism of the human proton-activated chloride channel ASOR. Science Advances

Jiang, Y., Benz, T. L., & Long, S.B. (2021). Substrate and product complexes reveal mechanisms of Hedgehog acylation by HHAT. Science

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People

Stephen B. Long, PhD

Member, Structural Biology Program

The Long laboratory investigates the molecular mechanisms of ion channels and enzymatic membrane proteins and seeks to use these discoveries to benefit humanity.
BA, Physics, Amherst College, 1994
PhD, Biochemistry, Duke University, 2001
Postdoc, Rockefeller University, 2007

longs@mskcc.org: Email Address
212-639-2903: Office Phone

Members

Kaitlin Abrantes

Graduate Research Assistant

Nandish Kumar Khanra

Senior Research Scientist

Stephen Long

Member, Structural Biology Program; Director of Cryo-Electron Microscopy Innovation Laboratory (CEMIL), Chair of Oversight Committee

Swati Pant

Graduate Research Assistant

Jin Shuai

Research Associate

Stephanie Tam

Graduate Research Assistant

David J. Van Dongen

Graduate Research Assistant

Stephanie Woods

Assistant and Lab Coordinator

Qing Zhang

Research Scholar

Veronica Kane-Dickson

Postdoctoral Fellow

David Kerr

Undergraduate Researcher

Rozbeh Baradaran

Postdoc

Thomas Benz

Research Technician

Shana Burstein

Research Technician

Bryce D. Delgado

Graduate Student

Melinda Diver

Graduate Student

Xiaowei Hou

Senior Research Scientist

Agata Jacewicz

Senior Research Scientist

Yiyang Jiang

Research Scholar

Alexandria N. Miller

Assistant Professor, University of Iowa - Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Iowa City, IA

Ian Outhwaite

Research Technician

Leanne Pedi

Senior Research Assistant

Nicole Trezza

Research Technician

George Vaisey

Graduate Student

Chongyuan Wang

Postdoctoral Fellow & Senior Research Scientist

Achievements

Louise and Allston Boyer Young Investigator in Basic Research, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (2016)
Burroughs Wellcome Career Award in the Biomedical Sciences (2006-2014)

Open Positions

To learn more about available postdoctoral opportunities, please visit our Career Center

To learn more about compensation and benefits for postdoctoral researchers at MSK, please visit Resources for Postdocs

Postdoctoral Fellow Positions

Apply now

Get in Touch

longs@mskcc.org

Lab Head Email
212-639-2903

Office Phone
212-639-2959

Lab Phone

Disclosures

Members of the MSK Community often work with pharmaceutical, device, biotechnology, and life sciences companies, and other organizations outside of MSK, to find safe and effective cancer treatments, to improve patient care, and to educate the health care community. These activities outside of MSK further our mission, provide productive collaborations, and promote the practical application of scientific discoveries.

MSK requires doctors, faculty members, and leaders to report (“disclose”) the relationships and financial interests they have with external entities. As a commitment to transparency with our community, we make that information available to the public. Not all disclosed interests and relationships present conflicts of interest. MSK reviews all disclosed interests and relationships to assess whether a conflict of interest exists and whether formal COI management is needed.

Stephen B. Long discloses the following relationships and financial interests:

No disclosures meeting criteria for time period

The information published here is a complement to other publicly reported data and is for a specific annual disclosure period. There may be differences between information on this and other public sites as a result of different reporting periods and/or the various ways relationships and financial interests are categorized by organizations that publish such data.

This page and data include information for a specific MSK annual disclosure period (January 1, 2024 through disclosure submission in spring 2025). This data reflects interests that may or may not still exist. This data is updated annually.

Learn more about MSK’s COI policies here. For questions regarding MSK’s COI-related policies and procedures, email MSK’s Compliance Office at ecoi@mskcc.org.

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