Professor Varun Gadkari earned his B.S. and Ph.D. in Biochemistry from The Ohio State University in 2012 and 2017, respectively. His doctoral research focused on the biochemical and biophysical characterization of DNA replication proteins using both ensemble and single-molecule approaches. Seeking innovative techniques to explore protein structure and dynamics, he transitioned into the field of native mass spectrometry for his postdoctoral training. From 2017 to 2022, he was a postdoctoral researcher in the laboratory of Professor Brandon Ruotolo at the University of Michigan, where he advanced and applied native ion mobility-mass spectrometry to characterize complex biomolecular targets, including intrinsically disordered proteins, chaperones, biotherapeutic antibodies, and noncoding RNA. In 2022, Dr. Gadkari joined the University of Minnesota’s Department of Chemistry as an Assistant Professor. The Gadkari Research Group develops and applies native mass spectrometry, cyclic ion mobility-mass spectrometry, and charge detection mass spectrometry to investigate biomolecular structure and stability. Building on this foundation, the group is now advancing gas-phase unfolding methods and charge detection mass spectrometry to tackle longstanding analytical challenges in biomolecular characterization. Current projects encompass a diverse array of biologically relevant systems, including intrinsically disordered proteins, nucleotide repeat expansion DNAs/RNAs, and key biotherapeutic molecules such as antibodies and mRNAs. The group’s research integrates analytical method development, fundamental chemical science, and biologically relevant applications, with a strong emphasis on improving human health. Professor Gadkari was recognized by the American Society for Mass Spectrometry as an “Emerging Talent in Academia” in 2020, and awarded the society’s early career Research Award in 2025.