Jasper Rine joined the UC Berkeley faculty in 1982. His research spans the fields of genetics, molecular biology, and biochemistry. He was the director of the LBL Human Genome Center from 1991 to 1994, and more recently was the director of the Center for Computational Biology. His research accomplishments include the construction of the first genetic map of the dog genome, discovery of biochemical links between cholesterol biosynthesis and cancer-causing genes and the discovery of a mechanism of epigenetic inheritance. Most recently, his research focuses on understanding the impact of human genetic variation.

Rine is a recipient of the University Distinguished Teaching Award and is a professor of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Among his honors are election to the National Academy of Science and to the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He is also a fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.