Water is an active component of biological structure and function. Hydration layers reorganize around proteins, carbohydrates, and mineralized tissues, shaping conformational stability, molecular recognition, aggregation, transport, and chemical reactivity. Because interfacial water can behave very differently from bulk water, both its structure and its dynamics must be described explicitly.

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The Welborn group uses molecular dynamics and polarizable models to determine how local chemistry, ions, confinement, and molecular structure alter hydration. Current research investigates salt-dependent water dynamics around α-synuclein, solvent control of carbohydrate structure and reaction pathways, and hydration at biological and biomaterial interfaces. We seek molecular descriptors that connect changes in hydration to macroscopic function, aging, and disease.