AWARDS
Marc Baldus Receives Founders Medal
Nauta Award Goes To Philip Portoghese
M
P
ARC BALDUS, GROUP LEADER AT MAX
Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Gôttingen, Germany, received the Founders Medal of the International Conference on Magnetic Resonance in Biological Systems (ICMRBS) at its meeting in Gôttingen in August. Baldus has become a leader in developing solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) methods into a reliable tool for answering biological questions. He has applied novel N M R pulse sequences to completely labeled membrane proteins, fibrils, and membrane protein complexes that could not be investigated by other biophysical techniques. He solved one of the first structures of a globular protein in the solid state, and his group has determined for the first time the structure of a ligand when bound to a G-protein-coupled receptor. He also determined recently the first structure of a complex between a toxin and the hybridion channel KcsA. The Founders Medal carries an honorarium of $3,000 and is given to a scientist under age 41 who has made exceptional contributions to developments in magnetic resonance in biological systems.
Tibbetts Award To Cancer Researchers
J
AMES BASHKIN AND CHRIS FISHER, TWO
scientists from both the University of Missouri, St. Louis, and NanoVir, a Kalamazoo, Mich.-based biotechnology company, have been honored with the Tibbetts Award in recognition of their work in identifying a potential treatment to fight the virus that causes cervical cancer. Bashkin and Fisher have been seeking antiviral compounds that specifically target human papillomavirus (HPV) 16, the viral type most often associated with cervical cancer. Targeting the D N A of H P V rather than more traditional antiviral targets, the scientists identified a series of compounds that dramatically reduce the viral DNA load of cells harboring the virus. T h e T i b b e t t s Award is given annually by the Small Business Innovation Research program of the Small Business Administration to small firms, projects, organizations, and individuals judged to exemplify the very best in SBIR achievement. Fisher and Bashkin will receive the award at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 26. 120
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25, 2006
HILIP S. PORTOGHESE, OF THE DEPART-
ment of medicinal chemistry at the University ofMinnesota and editor-inchief ofACS'sJournal of Medicinal Chemistry, is the recipient of the 2006 Nauta Award in Pharmacochemistry, the highest recognition presented by the European Federation for Medicinal Chemistry. The award, which recognizes outstanding achievements in the field of medicinal chemistry, was presented at the International Symposium on Medicinal Chemistry in Istanbul, Turkey, in August. Portoghese was the first to propose the existence of multiple opioid receptors from analysis of the structure-activity relationship of analgesics. Over the years, his group has designed and synthesized numerous ligands that are employed widely as research tools.
Shanlin Pan Named Irving S. Sigal Fellow
S
HANLIN PAN, W H O WILL J O I N ALLEN
J. Bard's group in the department of chemistry and biochemistry at the University of Texas, Austin, was awarded the 2 0 0 6 - 0 8 Irving S. Sigal Postdoctoral Fellowship by ACS. Pan is completing his doctoral studies this fall, working with Lewis J. Rothberg in the department of chemistry at the University of Rochester. Pan's research under the fellowship will focus on the enhancement of imaging resolution and detection sensitivity of the scanning electrochemical microscope (SECM) using time-dependent techniques and SECM tips modified with molecular wires. H e then will apply the improved SECM techniques to study single-metalloprotein electrochemistry and cross-linking with nucleic acids of metalloproteins. T h e fellowship stipend is currently $50,000 a year for two years. It is named for Irving S. Sigal, a chemist who applied sitedirected mutagenesis to study the structure and function of enzymes and proteins.
SBS Honors Two Society Scientists
T
WO SCIENTISTS HAVE RECEIVED SO-
ciety for Biomolecular Sciences Accomplishment & Achievement Awards. T h e presentations were made d u r i n g t h e 12th a n n u a l SBS Confer-
ence & Exhibition in Seattle on Sept. 21. Robert S. Pearlman, Coulter R. Sublett Regents Chair in Pharmacy and director of the Laboratory for the Development of Computer-Assisted Drug Discovery Software at the University of Texas, Austin, received the SBS Accomplishment Award for the development of DiverseSolutions software, widely used in the pharmaceutical and agrochemical industries to guide and assess general compound collections, projectoriented screening sets, and design of both diverse and focused libraries. T h e award consists of $1,000, recognition in the Journal of Biomolecular Screening, and a plaque. It is presented annually to an SBS member who has distinguished him/herself in advancing the art and science of drug discovery. Christopher A. Lipinski, scientific adviser, Melior Discovery, received the SBS Achievement Award for innovation in highthroughput screening. This award is given in recognition of his pioneering research, identification and application of druglike physicochemical and structural features, comparison of druglike and nondruglike characteristics in drug discovery, and investigations and analyses of how druglike features relate to clinical success. Lipinski will receive a $5,000 honorarium, a plaque, and recognition in ûve Journal of Biomolecular Screening.
FASEB Award To Frances H. Arnold
F
RANCES H. ARNOLD, DICK & BARBARA
Dickinson Professor of Chemical Engineering & Biochemistry at California Institute of Technology, has been awarded the 2007 Excellence in Science Award by the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB). The award is presented each year to a woman scientist whose outstanding career achievements have contributed significantly to furthering understanding of a particular discipline through her excellence in research. Arnold is credited with establishing a novel conceptual framework for biochemical engineering called directed evolution, based on the concept that any desired biological trait can be generated through iterative rounds of mutation and screening. A leader in the burgeoning field of synthetic biology, Arnold has been elected to both the National Academy of Engineering and the Institute of Medicine. She will receive a $10,000 unrestricted research grant funded by Eli Lilly & Co. and will present a lecture at the 2007 annual meeting of the Protein Society in Boston. • WWW.CEN-0NLINE.ORG
