Dr. Natasha Zachara is an associate professor of Biological Chemistry and Oncology at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. Her research focuses on identifying the molecular mechanisms by which the sugar O-GlcNAc prevents cyrotoxicity, determining how cells regulate O-GlcNAc during times of stress, and how the O-GlcNAc-mediated stress response can be harnessed to reduce tissue death. 

Dr. Zachara received her undergraduate degree in biotechnology (with honors) from Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia. Her dissertation, completed at Macquarie University, focused on developing new technologies to map and quantify site-specific changes in protein glycosylation. She completed postdoctoral studies in glycobiology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Zachara joined the Johns Hopkins faculty in 2007.

Dr. Zachara serves as the director of the K12 training program Immersive Training in the Glycosciences. She is a member of several professional organizations, including the American Society of Biochemists and Molecular Biologists, and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Biological Chemistry. Her work has been recognized with numerous awards and honors, including the Lorne Protein Structure and Function Young Scientist Award in 2006.