Dr Navid Bavi

Dr Navid Bavi is a mechanobiologist and engineer whose research sits at the intersection of bioengineering, biophysics and structural biology. His work investigates how sensory membrane proteins – including mechanosensitive channels, molecular motors and transporters – respond to mechanical forces.

Using time-resolved cryo-electron microscopy, patch-clamp electrophysiology and molecular simulations, Dr Bavi seeks to understand mechanoelectrical feedback in sensory tissues, with a particular focus on the cochlea and heart. His research aims to translate molecular insights into a deeper understanding of human physiology and new clinical applications.

Dr Bavi established his laboratory in the Department of Physiology at the David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA, in 2023. Prior to this, he completed his PhD in the Martinac Lab, undertook postdoctoral research in the Poole Lab, and was a Chicago Fellow in the Perozo Lab. During this time, he led pioneering research on Prestin, the inner-ear motor protein, producing high-resolution cryo-EM structures that revealed the molecular basis of cochlear amplification.

His achievements have been recognised through a University of Chicago Fellowship, an ARC DECRA Fellowship, NIH/NIDCD funding and selection as a 2026 Pew Biomedical Research Scholar. As a Green Fellow, Dr Bavi will bring his cutting-edge research program in mechanobiology and diverse skill set to the School of Biomedical Sciences, creating new opportunities for collaboration with partners across the School