Annual 2006 - Hauptman Woodward Institute - University at Buffalo

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SENIOR RESEARCH SCIENTISTS Robert H. Blessing, Ph.D. Position: Senior Research Scientist Appointments: Dr. Blessing holds two positions at the University at Buffalo, Professor in the Department of Structural Biology and Research Professor in the Department of Chemistry. He is also Director of Graduate Studies in the Structural Biology Department. Research: Dr. Blessing’s research focuses on experimental and computational techniques for attaining high accuracy in both crystallographic diffraction measurements and crystal structure analyses. His interests include electron density distributions and chemical bonding in molecules and crystals and the crystallographic phase problem. Education: He received his B.S. in Chemistry from King’s College and his Ph.D. in Inorganic and Physical Chemistry from Ohio University. Noteworthy Contributions: Dr. Blessing has been an invited lecturer at universities in Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy and Spain. His publications include more than 130 abstracts, reviews, chapters, and peer-reviewed research papers. Daniel T. Gewirth, Ph.D. Position: Senior Research Scientist Appointments: He is an Associate Professor in the Department of Structural Biology at the University at Buffalo. Research: Dr. Gewirth is interested in structural studies of Hsp90 chaperones, drug design, protein folding; nuclear hormone receptors and basal transcription factors. Education: He received his B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Chicago and earned his Ph.D. in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry from Yale University. Noteworthy Contributions: Dr. Gewirth’s publications include more than 20 papers and reviews. Debashis Ghosh, Ph.D. Position: Senior Research Scientist Appointments: He is an Associate Professor in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biophysics, Roswell Park Graduate Division of the University at Buffalo and an Associate Professor in the University’s Department of Structural Biology. Research: Dr. Ghosh is interested in the structural endocrinology of estrogen synthesis and metabolism as well as breast cancer drug design. Currently, he is investigating three enzymes that play a critical role in controlling the active level of estrogen in breast tissue, vital targets for anti-breast cancer drugs. Education: He received his B.S. in Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics from St. Xavier’s College and earned his M.S. in Physics and his M.Sc. in Biophysics from the Indian Institute of Technology and the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, respectively. Upon leaving India, he completed his Ph.D. at the University of Pittsburgh in Crystallography and his post-doctoral work at Carnegie-Mellon University. Noteworthy Contributions: Dr. Ghosh is a Cancer Research Scientist and Associate Member at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute. David A. Langs, Ph.D. Position: Senior Research Scientist Appointments: He serves as an Associate Professor in the Department of Structural Biology. Research: Longtime interests include both the structure and function of ion channels and methods of crystal structure determination. His specialty lies in solving structures others have previously found intractable. Currently he is developing methods for ab initio, and SIR and SAS phasing at low resolution. Education: Dr. Langs received his B.S. in Chemistry from St. Bonaventure University and his Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry from the University at Buffalo. Noteworthy Contributions: He helped solve the crystal structure and mode of action of the antibiotic gramicidin A, and published the first detailed molecular-level model for the nifedipine binding site of the voltage-gated Calcium channel. His publications include more than 200 papers, chapters and abstracts. Vladimir Z. Pletnev, Ph.D. Position: Senior Research Scientist Appointments: Dr. Pletnev serves as Head of the X-ray Laboratory at the Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry in Moscow. Research: Dr. Pletnev’s research interests include studying the three-dimensional organization, structure-function relationship, and molecular mechanism of protein-peptide nature compounds using x-ray, molecular mechanics/dynamic/graphics, and bioinformatics methods. Current proteins under examination include short chain dehydrogenases, antibodies, and florescent proteins. Education: He received his M.S. in Chemistry from the Mendeleev Institute of Chemistry and Technology in Moscow and his Ph.D. in Bioorganic Chemistry and D.Sc. in Crystallography from the USSR Academy of Sciences in Moscow. Noteworthy Contributions: His publications include over 250 papers, chapters, and abstracts. Charles M. Weeks, Ph.D. Position: Senior Research Scientist Appointments: Dr. Weeks is a Professor in the Department of Structural Biology at the University at Buffalo. Research: His research includes the refinement of direct methods to determine the structure of macromolecules. He has developed the computer programs SnB and BnP that implement the Shake-and-Bake method for solving molecular structures from crystallographic data. Education: Dr. Weeks received his B.S. in Biochemistry from Cornell University and his Ph.D. in Biophysics from the University at Buffalo. Noteworthy Contributions: Publications include over 280 papers, abstracts, and chapters. He has also been an invited lecturer at over 35 national and international meetings and symposia. 6 7
RESEARCH SCIENTISTS Barnali (Neel) Chaudhuri, Ph.D. Position: Research Scientist Appointments: She serves as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Structural Biology at the University at Buffalo. Research: Dr Chaudhuri's research is aimed at understanding the enzymatic processing of the anticodon domains of the tRNAs. Given the central role of decoding events in cellular physiology, very little is understood about the enzymatic targeting and processing of the tRNA anticodons. Therefore, Dr. Chaudhuri’s lab is studying the mechanism of these molecular recognition events. She also is interested in designing nano-sized molecular assemblies using protein modules as building blocks. Education: She received her Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from Uppsala University in Sweden. Andrew M. Gulick, Ph.D. Position: Research Scientist Appointments: He serves as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Structural Biology at the University at Buffalo. Research: Dr. Gulick uses X-ray crystallography to determine the molecular mechanisms that enzymes use to catalyze, or speed up, chemical reactions. His current research focuses on a family of large multi-domain enzymes that synthesize peptides that have antibiotic and anti-cancer activities. Members of this family also work with other proteins to make important molecules that bacteria need to establish an infection in a susceptible host. An understanding of the structures and functions of these proteins will provide insights that may lead to the development of novel inhibitors that could be used as anti-infective agents. Education: He received his B.S. in Biochemistry from Brown University and his Ph.D. in Experimental Oncology and Biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Noteworthy Contributions: Dr. Gulick has over twenty publications. He holds a patent on "Mutant Glutathione S-Transferase Isoforms" that were engineered to metabolize an anticancer drug. Peter J. Horn, Ph.D. Position: Research Scientist Appointments: He serves as an Assistant Professor for the Department of Structural Biology at the University at Buffalo. Research: His current work is centered on heterochromatin organization and its regulation by a cullin-dependent ubiquitin ligase. This cullin family is widely conserved in many species, plays diverse nuclear roles, and is over-expressed or mis-regulated in some human cancers and genetic disorders. The current focus is on identifying its structural composition, what its substrates might be, and how those substrates are recognized by the enzyme. These studies will be critical to understanding how this enzyme participates in chromosome segregation, DNA repair, and the progression of cancer. Education: Dr. Horn received a B.A. and M.S. in Biochemistry from Case Western Reserve University and his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Michigan State University. Noteworthy Contributions: He was the first to show that ubiquitinylation regulates heterochromatin formation. Joseph R. Luft Position: Research Scientist Appointments: He serves as an Research Instructor in the Department of Structural Biology at the University at Buffalo. Research: His current work deals with development of new crystallization methods and techniques which include designing equipment for enhancing crystal growth capabilities and crystallizing proteins for use in various research projects. Education: He received his B.A. in Chemistry from D’Youville College. Noteworthy Contributions: He is co-inventor of two patented devices for growing crystals. The most recent high throughput robotics work has earned his group partnerships in two genomics consortium, Northeast Structural Genomics and Structural Genomics of Pathogenic Protozoa. He also leads the Crystal Growth effort within the Center for High Throughput Structural Biology. Michael G. Malkowski, Ph.D. Position: Research Scientist Appointments: He is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Structural Biology at the University at Buffalo. Research: Dr. Malkowski's research interests focus on structure and functional studies of integral membrane proteins involved in lipid metabolism, fatty acid desaturation, and enzymatic mechanisms of fatty acid oxygenation. He serves as the project manager of the Center for High Throughput Structural Biology. Education: Dr. Malkowski received his B.Sc. and Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Detroit and Wayne State University, respectively. L. Wayne Schultz, Ph.D. Position: Research Scientist Appointments: Dr. Schultz is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Structural Biology at the University at Buffalo. Research: He is currently investigating the SARS virus and coronavirus replication and virus-host protein interactions, bioluminescence and cellular oxygen sensing. Education: Dr. Schultz received his B.A. in Chemistry from the College of Wooster and his M.S. and Ph.D., respectively in Analytical Chemistry and Biophysical Chemistry from Cornell University. Noteworthy Contributions: He holds a patent for “Engineered Cytotoxic Ribonuclease A.”
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Page 4 and 5: FINANCIAL STATEMENTS HAUPTMAN-WOODW
Page 6 and 7: LEADERSHIP Herbert A. Hauptman, Ph.
Page 10 and 11: RESEARCH SCIENTISTS POST-DOCTORAL F
Page 12 and 13: GRADUATE STUDENTS William Bauer Pos
Page 14 and 15: CAPITAL CAMPAIGN DONORS DONOR HIGHL
Page 16: RECENT PUBLICATIONS • Brucz K, Mi

Annual 2006 - Hauptman Woodward Institute - University at Buffalo

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