World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
Francisco Bezanilla

Francisco Bezanilla

D-Index & Metrics

Chemistry

D-Index
86
Citations
28997
World Ranking
2512
National Ranking
880

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2019 - Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • 2014 - Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
  • 2006 - Member of the National Academy of Sciences

Overview

Francisco Bezanilla is affiliated with the University of Chicago in the United States. Their research spans several intersecting fields, primarily within Neuroscience and Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology. Their work focuses particularly on ion channel regulation and function, neuroscience and neural engineering, and cardiac electrophysiology and arrhythmias.

The scientist's extensive publication record demonstrates active contributions to multiple specialized areas. Main research topics include:

  • Ion channel regulation and function
  • Neuroscience and Neural Engineering
  • Cardiac electrophysiology and arrhythmias
  • Electrochemical Analysis and Applications
  • Photoreceptor and optogenetics research
  • Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research
  • Advanced Memory and Neural Computing

Subfields of study that frequently appear in their research are:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience
  • Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine
  • Electrochemistry
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Their publication venues show a strong presence in journals with a focus on biophysics and neuroscience:

  • Biophysical Journal
  • bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
  • Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
  • Nature Communications
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Recent papers authored or coauthored by Francisco Bezanilla include:

  • "Remote nongenetic optical modulation of neuronal activity using fuzzy graphene," 2020, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
  • "Loss-of-function BK channel mutation causes impaired mitochondria and progressive cerebellar ataxia," 2020, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
  • "Noncanonical electromechanical coupling paths in cardiac hERG potassium channel," 2023, Nature Communications
  • "A mechanistic reinterpretation of fast inactivation in voltage-gated Na+ channels," 2023, Nature Communications
  • "Molecular basis for functional connectivity between the voltage sensor and the selectivity filter gate in Shaker K+ channels," 2021, eLife

Frequent coauthors collaborating with Francisco Bezanilla are:

  • Bernardo I. Pinto
  • Carlos A Z Bassetto
  • Carlos Alberto Z. Bassetto
  • Ramón Latorre
  • Carlo Guardiani

Francisco Bezanilla has been recognized with several honors including:

  • Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2019
  • Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), 2014
  • Member of the National Academy of Sciences, 2006

Best Publications

  • Inactivation of the sodium channel. I. Sodium current experiments.

    Francisco Bezanilla;Clay M. Armstrong

  • The Voltage Sensor in Voltage-Dependent Ion Channels

    Francisco Bezanilla

  • Inactivation of the sodium channel. II. Gating current experiments

    Unknown

  • Charge Movement Associated with the Opening and Closing of the Activation Gates of the Na Channels

    Clay M. Armstrong;Francisco Bezanilla

  • Currents Related to Movement of the Gating Particles of the Sodium Channels

    Clay M. Armstrong;Clay M. Armstrong;Francisco Bezanilla;Francisco Bezanilla;Francisco Bezanilla

  • Voltage-Sensing Residues in the S2 and S4 Segments of the Shaker K+ Channel

    Sang-Ah Seoh;Daniel Sigg;Diane M Papazian;Francisco Bezanilla

  • Destruction of sodium conductance inactivation in squid axons perfused with pronase.

    Clay M. Armstrong;Francisco Bezanilla;Eduardo Rojas

  • Infrared light excites cells by changing their electrical capacitance

    Mikhail G. Shapiro;Kazuaki Homma;Sebastian Villarreal;Claus Peter Richter

  • Negative Conductance Caused by Entry of Sodium and Cesium Ions into the Potassium Channels of Squid Axons

    Francisco Bezanilla;Clay M. Armstrong

  • Atomic scale movement of the voltage-sensing region in a potassium channel measured via spectroscopy

    Albert Cha;Gregory E. Snyder;Paul R. Selvin;Francisco Bezanilla

  • How membrane proteins sense voltage

    Francisco Bezanilla

  • Twitches in the presence of ethylene glycol bis(β-aminoethyl ether)-N,N′-tetraacetic acid

    C.M. Armstrong;F.M Bezanilla;P. Horowicz

  • A proton pore in a potassium channel voltage sensor reveals a focused electric field

    Dorine M. Starace;Francisco Bezanilla

  • Characterizing Voltage-Dependent Conformational Changes in the ShakerK+ Channel with Fluorescence

    Albert Cha;Francisco Bezanilla

  • Photosensitivity of Neurons Enabled by Cell-Targeted Gold Nanoparticles

    João L. Carvalho-de-Souza;Jeremy S. Treger;Bobo Dang;Stephen B.H. Kent

  • Tracking voltage-dependent conformational changes in skeletal muscle sodium channel during activation.

    Baron Chanda;Francisco Bezanilla

  • Gating currents from a nonconducting mutant reveal open-closed conformations in Shaker K+ channels.

    Eduardo Perozo;Roderick MacKinnon;Francisco Bezanilla;Enrico Stefani

  • Gating charge displacement in voltage-gated ion channels involves limited transmembrane movement

    Baron Chanda;Osei Kwame Asamoah;Osei Kwame Asamoah;Rikard Blunck;Benoît Roux

  • Gating of Shaker K+ channels: II. The components of gating currents and a model of channel activation

    F. Bezanilla;E. Perozo;E. Stefani

  • Histidine Scanning Mutagenesis of Basic Residues of the S4 Segment of the Shaker K+ Channel

    Dorine M. Starace;Francisco Bezanilla

  • A Method for Determining the Unitary Functional Capacity of Cloned Channels and Transporters Expressed in Xenopus Laevis Oocytes

    G. A. Zampighi;M. Kreman;K. J. Boorer;D. D. F. Loo

Frequent Co-Authors

Eduardo Perozo
Eduardo Perozo University of Chicago
Benoît Roux
Benoît Roux University of Chicago
Enrico Stefani
Enrico Stefani University of California, Los Angeles
Stephen B. H. Kent
Stephen B. H. Kent University of Chicago
Clay M. Armstrong
Clay M. Armstrong University of Pennsylvania
Maurizio Taglialatela
Maurizio Taglialatela University of Naples Federico II
Bozhi Tian
Bozhi Tian University of Chicago
James R. Heath
James R. Heath California Institute of Technology
Claus Peter Richter
Claus Peter Richter Northwestern University
Isabel Llano
Isabel Llano Centre national de la recherche scientifique, CNRS

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