Christopher Peter Hill

Christopher Peter Hill, DPhil, BA

Languages spoken: English

Academic Information

Departments Primary - Biochemistry

Academic Office Information

chris@biochem.utah.edu

Lab

Christopher Hill (D.Phil). Vice Dean of Research for the School of Medicine since 12/2019. Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry.

Department of Biochemistry Co-Chair 7/2009 -11/2019

The Hill Lab uses structural and biochemical approaches to study how proteins function. This approach is applied to numerous biological pathways, including HIV architecture and host interactions, ubiquitin-proteasome system, chromatin regulation, ESCRT pathway, insulin signaling, fundamental questions of biological mechanism, and the development of novel therapeutics.

Hill received his BA and D.Phil. from the University of York, England. He then completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California at Los Angles. Hill presents and publishes widely and has received numerous research fellowships and grants. He is the recipient of the Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin Award for "exceptional contributions in protein science which profoundly influence our understanding of biology" and is an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Education History

Undergraduate University of York
 BA
Doctoral Training University of York
 DPhil
Postdoctoral Fellowship University of York
 Postdoctoral Fellow
Postdoctoral Fellowship University of California at Los Angeles
 Postdoctoral Fellow

Selected Publications

Journal Article

  1. Clinton TR, Weinstock MT, Jacobsen MT, Szabo-Fresnais N, Pandya MJ, Whitby FG, Herbert AS, Prugar LI, McKinnon R, Hill CP, Welch BD, Dye JM, Eckert DM, Kay M (2015). Design and characterization of ebolavirus GP prehairpin intermediate mimics as drug targets. Protein science, 24(4), 446-63. (Read full article)
  2. Kessler JL, Kang G, Qin Z, Kang H, Whitby FG, Cheatham TE 3rd, Hill CP, Li Y, Yu S (2021). Peptoid Residues Make Diverse, Hyperstable Collagen Triple-Helices. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 143(29), 10910-10919. (Read full article)
  3. Stadtmueller BM, Kish-Trier E, Ferrell K, Petersen CN, Robinson H, Myszka DG, Eckert DM, Formosa T, Hill C (2012). Structure of a proteasome Pba1-Pba2 complex: implications for proteasome assembly, activation, and biological function. The Journal of biological chemistry, 287(44), 37371-82. (Read full article)
  4. Kemble DJ, Whitby FG, Robinson H, McCullough LL, Formosa T, Hill C (2013). Structure of the Spt16 middle domain reveals functional features of the histone chaperone FACT. The Journal of biological chemistry, 288(15), 10188-94. (Read full article)
  5. Han H, Monroe N, Votteler J, Shakya B, Sundquist WI, Hill C (2015). Binding of Substrates to the Central Pore of the Vps4 ATPase Is Autoinhibited by the Microtubule Interacting and Trafficking (MIT) Domain and Activated by MIT Interacting Motifs (MIMs). The Journal of biological chemistry, 290(21), 13490-9. (Read full article)
  6. Hemmis CW, Heard SC, Hill C (2019). Phosphorylation of Tyr-950 in the proteasome scaffolding protein RPN2 modulates its interaction with the ubiquitin receptor RPN13. The Journal of biological chemistry, 294(25), 9659-9665. (Read full article)
  7. VanderLinden RT, Hemmis CW, Yao T, Robinson H, Hill C (2017). Structure and energetics of pairwise interactions between proteasome subunits RPN2, RPN13, and ubiquitin clarify a substrate recruitment mechanism. The Journal of biological chemistry, 292(23), 9493-9504. (Read full article)
  8. Han H, Schubert HL, McCullough J, Monroe N, Purdy MD, Yeager M, Sundquist WI, Hill C (2020). Structure of spastin bound to a glutamate-rich peptide implies a hand-over-hand mechanism of substrate translocation. The Journal of biological chemistry, 295(2), 435-443. (Read full article)
  9. Liu L, Tang M, Pragani R, Whitby FG, Zhang YQ, Balakrishnan B, Fang Y, Karavadhi S, Tao D, LeClair CA, Hall MD, Marugan JJ, Boxer M, Shen M, Hill CP, Lai K, Patnaik (2021). Structure-Based Optimization of Small Molecule Human Galactokinase Inhibitors. Journal of medicinal chemistry, 64(18), 13551-13571. (Read full article)
  10. Close D, Johnson SJ, Sdano MA, McDonald SM, Robinson H, Formosa T, Hill C (2011). Crystal structures of the S. cerevisiae Spt6 core and C-terminal tandem SH2 domain. Journal of molecular biology, 408(4), 697-713. (Read full article)
  11. Monroe N, Han H, Gonciarz MD, Eckert DM, Karren MA, Whitby FG, Sundquist WI, Hill C (2014). The oligomeric state of the active Vps4 AAA ATPase. Journal of molecular biology, 426(3), 510-25. (Read full article)
  12. Zhai Q, Landesman MB, Robinson H, Sundquist WI, Hill C (2011). Identification and structural characterization of the ALIX-binding late domains of simian immunodeficiency virus SIVmac239 and SIVagmTan-1. Journal of virology, 85(1), 632-7. (Read full article)
  13. Zhai Q, Landesman MB, Chung HY, Dierkers A, Jeffries CM, Trewhella J, Hill CP, Sundquist W (2011). Activation of the retroviral budding factor ALIX. Journal of virology, 85(17), 9222-6. (Read full article)
  14. Chun Y, Joo YJ, Suh H, Batot G, Hill CP, Formosa T, Buratowski (2019). Selective Kinase Inhibition Shows That Bur1 (Cdk9) Phosphorylates the Rpb1 Linker In Vivo. Molecular and cellular biology, 39(15), (Read full article)
  15. Schubert HL, Wittmeyer J, Kasten MM, Hinata K, Rawling DC, Héroux A, Cairns BR, Hill C (2013). Structure of an actin-related subcomplex of the SWI/SNF chromatin remodeler. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 110(9), 3345-50. (Read full article)
  16. Cooney I, Han H, Stewart MG, Carson RH, Hansen DT, Iwasa JH, Price JC, Hill CP, Shen P (2019). Structure of the Cdc48 segregase in the act of unfolding an authentic substrate. Science (New York, N.Y.), 365(6452), 502-505. (Read full article)
  17. Vander Linden RT, Hemmis CW, Schmitt B, Ndoja A, Whitby FG, Robinson H, Cohen RE, Yao T, Hill C (2015). Structural basis for the activation and inhibition of the UCH37 deubiquitylase. Molecular cell, 57(5), 901-911. (Read full article)
  18. Kemble DJ, McCullough LL, Whitby FG, Formosa T, Hill C (2015). FACT Disrupts Nucleosome Structure by Binding H2A-H2B with Conserved Peptide Motifs. Molecular cell, 60(2), 294-306. (Read full article)
  19. Nielson JR, Fredrickson EK, Waller TC, Rendón OZ, Schubert HL, Lin Z, Hill CP, Rutter (2017). Sterol Oxidation Mediates Stress-Responsive Vms1 Translocation to Mitochondria. Molecular cell, 68(4), 673-685.e6. (Read full article)
  20. VanderLinden RT, Hemmis CW, Schmitt B, Ndoja A, Whitby FG, Robinson H, Cohen RE, Yao T, Hill C (2016). Structural Basis for the Activation and Inhibition of the UCH37 Deubiquitylase. Molecular cell, 61(3), 487. (Read full article)
  21. Zhang H, Constantine R, Vorobiev S, Chen Y, Seetharaman J, Huang YJ, Xiao R, Montelione GT, Gerstner CD, Davis MW, Inana G, Whitby FG, Jorgensen EM, Hill CP, Tong L, Baehr (2011). UNC119 is required for G protein trafficking in sensory neurons. Nature neuroscience, 14(7), 874-80.
  22. Zhang H, Constantine R, Vorobiev S, Chen Y, Seetharaman J, Huang YJ, Xiao R, Montelione GT, Gerstner CD, Davis MW, Inana G, Whitby FG, Jorgensen EM, Hill CP, Tong L, Baehr (2011). UNC119 is required for G protein trafficking in sensory neurons. Nature neuroscience, 14(7), 874-80. (Read full article)
  23. Tian G, Park S, Lee MJ, Huck B, McAllister F, Hill CP, Gygi SP, Finley (2011). An asymmetric interface between the regulatory and core particles of the proteasome. Nature structural & molecular biology, 18(11), 1259-67. (Read full article)
  24. Smith AR, Weinstock MT, Siglin AE, Whitby FG, Francis JN, Hill CP, Eckert DM, Root MJ, Kay M (2019). Characterization of resistance to a potent D-peptide HIV entry inhibitor. Retrovirology, 16(1), 28. (Read full article)
  25. Zhai Q, Landesman MB, Robinson H, Sundquist WI, Hill C (2011). Structure of the Bro1 domain protein BROX and functional analyses of the ALIX Bro1 domain in HIV-1 budding. PloS one, 6(12), e27466. (Read full article)
  26. Zurita Rendón O, Fredrickson EK, Howard CJ, Van Vranken J, Fogarty S, Tolley ND, Kalia R, Osuna BA, Shen PS, Hill CP, Frost A, Rutter (2018). Vms1p is a release factor for the ribosome-associated quality control complex. Nature communications, 9(1), 2197. (Read full article)
  27. Zheng Y, Schubert HL, Singh PK, Martins LJ, Engelman AN, D'Orso I, Hill CP, Planelles (2021). Cleavage and Polyadenylation Specificity Factor 6 Is Required for Efficient HIV-1 Latency Reversal. mBio, 12(3), e0109821. (Read full article)
  28. Xiong X, Blakely A, Karra P, VandenBerg MA, Ghabash G, Whitby F, Zhang YW, Webber MJ, Holland WL, Hill CP, Chou D (2019). Novel four-disulfide insulin analog with high aggregation stability and potency. Chemical science, 11(1), 195-200. (Read full article)
  29. Sarabia I, Novis CL, Macedo AB, Takata H, Nell R, Kakazu JC, Furler RL, Shakya B, Schubert HL, Hill CP, DePaula-Silva AB, Spivak AM, Trautmann L, Planelles V, Bosque (2021). Activation of the Anti-Oxidative Stress Response Reactivates Latent HIV-1 Through the Mitochondrial Antiviral Signaling Protein Isoform MiniMAVS. Frontiers in immunology, 12, 682182. (Read full article)
  30. Han H, Fulcher JM, Dandey VP, Iwasa JH, Sundquist WI, Kay MS, Shen PS, Hill C (2019). Structure of Vps4 with circular peptides and implications for translocation of two polypeptide chains by AAA+ ATPases. eLife, 8, (Read full article)
  31. Han H, Monroe N, Sundquist WI, Shen PS, Hill C (2017). The AAA ATPase Vps4 binds ESCRT-III substrates through a repeating array of dipeptide-binding pockets. eLife, 6, (Read full article)
  32. Sdano MA, Fulcher JM, Palani S, Chandrasekharan MB, Parnell TJ, Whitby FG, Formosa T, Hill C (2017). A novel SH2 recognition mechanism recruits Spt6 to the doubly phosphorylated RNA polymerase II linker at sites of transcription. eLife, 6, (Read full article)
  33. Monroe N, Han H, Shen PS, Sundquist WI, Hill C (2017). Structural basis of protein translocation by the Vps4-Vta1 AAA ATPase. eLife, 6, (Read full article)
  34. Xu Y, Han H, Cooney I, Guo Y, Moran NG, Zuniga NR, Price JC, Hill CP, Shen P (2022). Active conformation of the p97-p47 unfoldase complex. Nature communications, 13(1), 2640. (Read full article)
  35. Xiong X, Blakely A, Kim JH, Menting JG, Schäfer IB, Schubert HL, Agrawal R, Gutmann T, Delaine C, Zhang YW, Artik GO, Merriman A, Eckert D, Lawrence MC, Coskun Ü, Fisher SJ, Forbes BE, Safavi-Hemami H, Hill CP, Chou D (2022). Symmetric and asymmetric receptor conformation continuum induced by a new insulin. Nature chemical biology, 18(5), 511-519. (Read full article)
  36. Ramiro IBL, Bjørn-Yoshimoto WE, Imperial JS, Gajewiak J, Salcedo PF, Watkins M, Taylor D, Resager W, Ueberheide B, Bräuner-Osborne H, Whitby FG, Hill CP, Martin LF, Patwardhan A, Concepcion GP, Olivera BM, Safavi-Hemami (2022). Somatostatin venom analogs evolved by fish-hunting cone snails: From prey capture behavior to identifying drug leads. Science advances, 8(12), eabk1410. (Read full article)
  37. Connell Z, Parnell TJ, McCullough LL, Hill CP, Formosa (2022). The interaction between the Spt6-tSH2 domain and Rpb1 affects multiple functions of RNA Polymerase II. Nucleic acids research, 50(2), 784-802. (Read full article)
  38. Song A, Hazlett Z, Abeykoon D, Dortch J, Dillon A, Curtiss J, Martinez SB, Hill CP, Yu C, Huang L, Fushman D, Cohen RE, Yao (2021). Branched ubiquitin chain binding and deubiquitination by UCH37 facilitate proteasome clearance of stress-induced inclusions. eLife, 10, (Read full article)
  39. Hicks KG, Cluntun AA, Schubert HL, Hackett SR, Berg JA, Leonard PG, Ajalla Aleixo MA, Zhou Y, Bott AJ, Salvatore SR, Chang F, Blevins A, Barta P, Tilley S, Leifer A, Guzman A, Arok A, Fogarty S, Winter JM, Ahn HC, Allen KN, Block S, Cardoso IA, Ding J, Dreveny I, Gasper WC, Ho Q, Matsuura A, Palladino MJ, Prajapati S, Sun P, Tittmann K, Tolan DR, Unterlass J, VanDemark AP, Vander Heiden MG, Webb BA, Yun CH, Zhao P, Wang B, Schopfer FJ, Hill CP, Nonato MC, Muller FL, Cox JE, Rutter (2023). Protein-metabolite interactomics of carbohydrate metabolism reveal regulation of lactate dehydrogenase. Science (New York, N.Y.), 379(6636), 996-1003. (Read full article)
  40. Espino-Sanchez TJ, Wienkers H, Marvin RG, Nalder SA, García-Guerrero AE, VanNatta PE, Jami-Alahmadi Y, Mixon Blackwell A, Whitby FG, Wohlschlegel JA, Kieber-Emmons MT, Hill CP, Sigala P (2023). Direct tests of cytochrome c and c(1) functions in the electron transport chain of malaria parasites. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 120(19), e2301047120. (Read full article)
  41. Kim HS, Sanchez ML, Silva J, Schubert HL, Dennis R, Hill CP, Christian J (2025). Mutations that prevent phosphorylation of the BMP4 prodomain impair proteolytic maturation of homodimers leading to lethality in mice. eLife, 14, (Read full article)
  42. Cooney I, Schubert HL, Cedeno K, Fisher ON, Carson R, Price JC, Hill CP, Shen P (2024). Visualization of the Cdc48 AAA+ ATPase protein unfolding pathway. Nature communications, 15(1), 7505. (Read full article)
  43. Goodell DJ, Whitby FG, Mellem JE, Lei N, Brockie PJ, Maricq AJ, Eckert DM, Hill CP, Madsen DM, Maricq A (2024). Mechanistic and structural studies reveal NRAP-1-dependent coincident activation of NMDARs. Cell reports, 43(2), 113694. (Read full article)
  44. Schubert HL, Li F, Hill CP, Schmidt E (2025). The structure of full-length AFPK supports the ACP linker in a role that regulates iterative polyketide and fatty acid assembly. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 122(6), e2419884122. (Read full article)
  45. Paine EL, Skalicky JJ, Whitby FG, Mackay DR, Ullman KS, Hill CP, Sundquist W (2023). The Calpain-7 protease functions together with the ESCRT-III protein IST1 within the midbody to regulate the timing and completion of abscission. eLife, 12, (Read full article)
  46. Cooney I, Schubert HL, Cedeno K, Lin HL, Price JC, Hill CP, Shen P (2023). Visualization of the Cdc48 AAA+ ATPase protein unfolding pathway. bioRxiv, (Read full article)
  47. Wienkers H, Han H, Whitby F, Hill C (2025). Substrate binding and coupled mechanisms of Vps4p substrate recruitment and release from autoinhibition. Scientific reports, 15(1), 25024. (Read full article)
  48. Giesler RJ, Woodham PCS, Draper SRE, Spaltenstein P, Whitby FG, Hill CP, Kay M (2025). Protein chirality as a determinant of ligand affinity: insights from l- and d-streptavidin. Chemical science, 16(48), 23342-23350. (Read full article)

Review

  1. Hill CP, Babst (2012). Structure and function of the membrane deformation AAA ATPase Vps4. Biochimica et biophysica acta, 1823(1), 172-81. (Read full article)
  2. Han H, Hill C (2019). Structure and mechanism of the ESCRT pathway AAA+ ATPase Vps4. Biochemical Society transactions, 47(1), 37-45. (Read full article)
  3. Monroe N, Hill C (2016). Meiotic Clade AAA ATPases: Protein Polymer Disassembly Machines. Journal of molecular biology, 428(9 Pt B), 1897-911. (Read full article)
  4. Stadtmueller BM, Hill C (2011). Proteasome activators. Molecular cell, 41(1), 8-19. (Read full article)
  5. Kish-Trier E, Hill C (2013). Structural biology of the proteasome. Annual review of biophysics, 42, 29-49. (Read full article)
  6. Hill CP, Sundquist W (2013). Building a super elongation complex for HIV. eLife, 2, e00577. (Read full article)
  7. Tsai FTF, Hill C (2020). Same structure, different mechanisms?. eLife, 9, (Read full article)

Editorial

  1. Forest KT, Hill C (2015). Editorial overview: Macromolecular machines and assemblies: Rise and fall at the molecular level. Current opinion in structural biology, 31, vii-viii. (Read full article)
  2. Hill CP, Orlova E (2025). Editorial overview: Macromolecular assemblies: Technology innovations driving biological understanding. Current opinion in structural biology, 95, 103157. (Read full article)