Graduate Study at the
Chemistry-Biology Interface
Washington University School of Medicine and Department of Chemistry
augmented by a
"Chemistry-Biology Interface" (CBI) Training Grant
awarded by the National Institutes of Health 2T32GM008785
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Training faculty (alphabetical)
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Trainees (current and former)
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Contact and Application Forms
Introduction
Chemistry and biology have evolved during
the past fifty years in what might be considered "opposite"
directions. Chemistry has long been concerned with atomic and molecular detail.
As the level of chemical understanding has increased, so has the ability of
chemists to approach or address larger problems. A major field of chemical
endeavor is currently "supramolecular" chemistry in which molecular
assemblies rather than individual bonds or molecules are the focus.
Correspondingly, the study of biology has increasingly focused on individual
proteins, nucleic acids, or amino acids. Technology is currently available to
the biologist that permits site-directed changes of amino or nucleic acids
within a larger structure. Thus, these two branches of science now appear to be
on a convergent path.
A major accomplishment of modern biology is
gene sequencing. In the fullness of time, genetic codes for all organisms will
be recorded and this will permit us to understand and identify the range of
proteins for which these sequences code. Increasingly, chemical science will be
a critical tool for the sophisticated biologist. The need for enhanced
interactions between biology and chemistry is obvious. Indeed, the future of
the biomedical enterprise depends on access to effective collaborations with
chemists. The study of science at the chemistry-biology interface is designed
to help meet this future need.
Washington University offers a graduate
student an opportunity to undertake cutting-edge research that involves
analytical, inorganic, organic, and physical chemistry with a direct interface
to biology. The Washington University School of Medicine is one of the top
medical schools in the country and hundreds of faculty, medical residents, post
doctoral fellows, graduate students, technicians, and undergraduates are
involved in research projects at the forefront of science. The chemical
sciences within the Medical School are expanding and already present a student
the opportunity to obtain a graduate degree in analytical, inorganic, organic,
or physical chemistry while working in a stimulating biological environment.
Students wanting a classical chemical
background can expand their horizons by exposure to biology and biochemistry
courses. Those students primarily interesting in biochemistry or biophysics can
gain direct experience in chemistry but a combination of coursework and a brief
"sabbatical" to work in a chemical laboratory.
The community of students enrolled in the "CBI Pathway" on both campuses are brought together by two joint, student-run programs: a monthly seminar and a bi-weekly journal club. The outside speaker for the monthly seminar program is invited by the CBI Pathway students, who host and entertain him or her. Likewise, the journal club is student organized. Primary responsibility for the programs is assumed by the NIH Training grantees as an additional part of that honor.
Faculty Associated with the CBI program
Faculty Grouped According to General Research Areas (* = Secondary Research Mentor)
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Biochemical
mechanisms of disease: |
R.
Gross, S. Hultgren, T. Pandita*, J. Roti Roti, Emil Unanue |
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Biomolecular
spectroscopy: |
J.
Ackerman, M. Gross, D. Holten, J. Schaefer |
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Bioinorganic
Chemistry |
C.
Anderson, G. Gokel, D. Holten, J. Kappock, H. Pakrasi |
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Biomedical
Imaging |
S.
Achilefu,* J. Ackerman, C. Anderson, J. Lewis,* B. Rogers,* M. Welch |
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Bioorganic
and Pharmaceutical Chemistry: |
C.
Anderson, D. Covey, D. Elbert, G. Gokel, G. Marshall, J. Maurer, K. Moeller,
B. Rogers,* S. Sakiyama-Elbert, J. Taylor, M. Welch, K. Wooley |
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Biomaterials
and Nanochemistry |
D.
Elbert, J. Maurer, S. Sakiyama-Elbert, K. Wooley |
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Computational
Chemistry and Molecular Modeling: |
J.
Ponder, G. Marshall |
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Enzymology,
Regulation and Signaling: |
C.
Frieden, Joe Kappock, J. M. Petrash, H. Pakrasi, C. Pikaard, R. Quatrano, J.
Roti Roti, P. Schlesinger, J.-S. Taylor,
J. Turk, O. Yu* |
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Ion
channels and membranes: |
G.
Gokel, R. Gross, J. Maurer, J. Schaefer, P. Schlessinger, J. Turk, K. Wooley |
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Macromolecular
Interactions, Molecular Recognition and Design: |
S.
Achilefu,* J. Baenziger, D. Covey, G. Gokel, S. Hultgren, J. Lewis,* G. Marshall,
J. Mauer, K. Moeller, J.-S. Taylor, K. Wooley |
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Natural
Products Synthesis and Biosynthesis |
V.
Birman, D. Covey, K. Moeller, O. Yu* |
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Neurochemistry
and Neurobiology |
T.
Holy. J. Maurer, S. Sakiyama-Elbert |
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Nucleic
Acid Biochemistry and Gene Expression: |
T.
Pandita,* C. Pikaard, R. Quatrano, J. Roti Roti, Shelly Sakiyama-Elbert, J.
Taylor, O. Yu* |
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Photosynthesis |
D.
Holten, H. Pakrasi |
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Plant
Biochemistry |
H.
Pakrasi, C. Pikaard, R. Quatrano, O. Yu* |
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Protein
folding, stability and assembly: |
C.
Frieden, M. Gross, S. Hultgren, J. Kappock, J. Ponder, J. Schaefer |
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Protein
structure-function relationships: |
J.
Gordon, D. Holten, S. Hultgren, J. Kappock, J. M. Petrash, J. Schaefer, J.
Taylor |
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Tissue
Engineering |
Don
Elbert, Shelly Sakiyama-Elbert |
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Training Faculty
Listed Alphabetically SC = steering committee,
PM = primary, or SM = secondary
research mentor.
CBI Pathway NIH
Trainees
Current CBI Pathway
Members
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Program of Training in the CBI Pathway
The supplemental training in the CBI Pathway is designed to enhance the student's exposure to parts of the chemistry-biology interface that are removed from the primary focus of their research and training. For example, chemistry students involved in organic synthesis might gain experience in cloning, mutagenesis, cell culture assays, protein purification, binding assays or enzymology. Conversely, Division students may gain experience in techniques or approaches such as mass spectrometry, solid-state NMR, polymer chemistry or organic synthesis. The rich research environment at Washington University provides many opportunities for such training.
The requirements of the CBI Pathway
CBI Electives
The elective courses most suitable for students in the CBI Pathway will be decided on an individual basis with the primary goal of enhancing their interdisciplinary education. In most cases, students will choose CBI Electives at the end of the first graduate year during an advising session with the CBI Governing Committee, and the courses will be taken in the second graduate year. The courses will be selected from the extensive offerings of the Chemistry Department and the Division of Biology and Biomedical Sciences. It is anticipated that many Department of Chemistry Ph.D. students in the pathway with an undergraduate background in biology will take Bio 5068: Fundamentals of Molecular Cell Biology as a CBI Elective. This course covers a broad range of important biological systems and processes at the molecular and cellular level. The CBI Governing Committee agrees that this course is the ideal single-most appropriate course for chemistry students in the pathway. This course is offered in the fall semester. Chemistry students with little training in biology may be advised to sit in on the undergraduate cell biology course during the summer or to read an introductory cell biology text prior to taking Bio 5068. Some chemistry students, depending on their research interests, may benefit from taking a different biology course, such as Advanced Genetics (Bio 5491), Nucleic Acids and Protein Biosynthesis (Bio 548) or Foundations of Immunology (Bio 5051).
Students in the Biochemistry and other DBBS Program might be advised to take Chem 451: Organic Chemistry III. This course provides the exposure to graduate level training in synthetic and mechanistic chemistry. The goal of the CBI elective requirement is to entice students to gain training in an area they ordinarily do not pursue. Other possible CBI Electives for DBBS students include Chem 555 (Chemical Biology), Chem 520 (Nucleic Acids Chemistry), Chem 557 (Advanced Organic Synthesis) Chem 453 (Bioorganic Chemistry), Chem 476 (Chemistry of Biological Membranes), Chem 562 (Statistical Thermodynamics) and Chem 571 (Quantum Chemistry and Spectra).
CBI Research Internship
The research internship is the most novel feature of the CBI Pathway. The
primary goal of the internship is to broaden the student's thesis research
experience. The research internship is designed to occur at a later stage of
their training - a time when it will have a greater impact on their thesis work
and career choices. This internship would take place in the third or fourth
year of graduate school. In a favorable scenario, the research internship would
be a natural outflow of the student's thesis research project and conducted in
the laboratory of a collaborator. For example, a student in a chemistry
laboratory may join the laboratory of a biological collaborator for up to three
months to gain direct experience with a biological assay or technique
complementary and relevant to the student's thesis research.
The internship is intended to serve as a tool for enhancing the research of students motivated for interdisciplinary training. Once the student has gained momentum on a thesis project and realizes that a technique in a different laboratory could benefit his/her work, the connection would be established with a CBI faculty member who specializes in the field of interest. This sets the internship apart from the laboratory rotations conducted by Division students. (Chemistry Department students do not participate in first year laboratory rotations.) The first-year rotations serve primarily as a screening tool for sampling and choosing potential thesis laboratories. In contrast, the CBI Research Internship serves as an educational tool for significant research advancement. The CBI Governing Committee feels strongly that this internship should be viewed as a central feature of an interdisciplinary, collaborative research project.
CBI Seminar Series and the Annual Retreat
The centerpiece of the program is a monthly
CBI seminar is organized and hosted by students in the CBI training program
which brings all the students any many of the faculty together 4 times/year.
There is also a day and a half overnight yearly retreat at Trout Lodge, where
CBI students are expected to present a poster or paper. Students are also expected to present posters
and papers at National Conferences.
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April
18, 2005 |
Northeastern
University |
Mixing Chemistry and Biology: Exciting Opportunities in Multidisciplinary
Research |
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Mar. 21, 2005 |
University of
Chicago |
Tailored Materials for Cell
Biology. |
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May 10, 2004 |
Jeffrey Kelly |
Skaggs/Scripps
Institutes |
Understanding the Energetics
of AmyloIdosis and Manipulating the Landscape with Small Molecules and Trans-
Suppression to Prevent Disease |
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April 5, 2004 |
John Talley |
Microbia
Corporation |
Discovery of Cox2
Inhibitors |
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Mar. 8, 2004 |
Vladimir Torchilin |
Northeastern
University |
Drug Targeting:
Where and How? |
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Feb. 9, 2004 |
Thomas Meade |
Northwestern
University |
The Chemistry of
Biological Molecular Imaging |
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Feb. 2, 2004 |
Arthur Johnson |
Texas A&M
University |
How Does a Bacterial Protein Toxin Form Huge Holes |
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Dec. 1, 2003 |
David Corey |
University of Texas |
Controlling Cellular Processes with Oligonucleotides and PNAs |
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Nov. 4, 2003 |
Carolyn Bertozzi |
Berkeley |
Chemical Approaches to Glycobiology |
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Oct. 13, 2003 |
Steven Regan |
Lehigh University |
Supramolecular Chemistry with a
View towards Biology and Medicine |
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May 5, 2003 |
Craig Hawker |
IBM |
The Convergence of Biotechnology and Microfabrication .
A Bottom's up Approach to Nanostructures |
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Mar. 24, 2003 |
James Leighton |
Columbia |
Strained Silacycles and
Tandem Reactions in Organic Synthesis |
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Feb. 24, 2003 |
Marvin Caruthers |
Boulder |
Synthesis of DNA,
RNA, and Analogs. Chemistry and Biochemistry |
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Jan. 27, 2003 |
David Tirrell |
Cal Tech |
Novel Macromolecules via
Alternative Translations of the Genetic Code |
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Dec. 2, 2002 |
Jack Tanner |
U. Missouri -
Columbia |
Crystal Structure of the Proline Dehydrogenase Domain of the
Multifunctional PutA Flavoprotein |
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Nov. 25, 2002 |
Richard Roberts |
Cal Tech |
Trillions of Molecules, So Little Time: In Vitro Selection of
Peptides and Proteins using MRNA Display |
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Oct. 14, 2002 |
Martin Newcomb |
University of
Illinois - Chicago |
Multiple Mechanisms and Multiple Oxidation Hydroxylations Catalyzed
by Cytochrome P450 Enzymes |
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Nov. 12, 2002 |
Chad Mirkin |
Northwestern |
Nanoparticle-Based Molecular Diagnostics: A New Frontier in
Biodetection |
Career Development Workshops
Scientists from industry, government and academia are periodically invited to address relevant career issues and opportunities. Such workshops are often organized and co-sponsored by programs in the Division. The Department of Chemistry hosts at least two industrial research scientists per year to expose the students to industrial science and allow for initial contacts to made for potential employment opportunities.
CBI Pathway Calendar
May 1 of the first graduate year
Interested students submit an application to join the CBI Pathway. Students are selected and admitted to the CBI Pathway by June 1. Pathway students receive curriculum advising from the CBI Governing Committee and choose CBI ElectivesMid September of the third graduate year
Application for training grant support for the CBI students is due and begins Oct. 1, contingent upon completion of the coursework, teaching requirements and preliminary or cumulative exams for one Ph.D. program. Students must propose a plan for the Research Internship to the CBI Governing Committee and complete CBI coursework and journal club requirement.Fall of third and subsequent years
Pathway students must attend the BBB retreat and present a poster or talk on their research.Mid September of subsequent years
Pathway students must submit a yearly progress report or final report to the Steering Committee.
Outline of the CBI Pathway for typical students:
Chemistry Department graduate students in the CBI pathway:
DBBS graduate students in the CBI Pathway:
Steering
Committee Contact Information (click on name to send email)
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Hilltop Campus |
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Medical School Campus |
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935-4814 |
362-1726 |
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935-6721 |
362-9297 |
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935-7136 |
362-2223 |
CBI Program Application and Progress Forms
Application to join CBI program, (students in 2nd or 3rd yr) due
May 1, 2005.
Application for a CBI training
fellowship or renewal (students
in 3rd or 4th yr) due mid September, 2005 (recommendation
letters required for consideration).
Progress Report for members of CBI pathway and
trainees (due mid September
every year until requirements for the CBI pathway are all met), and then the
report is a final report.