2001 - California State University, Long Beach Department of ...

Fall 2001 • Number 26by Glenn NagelDean • College of Natural Sciences and MathematicsIrecently attended a conferenceof college and university presidentsand deans at Fermi NationalLaboratory outside of Chicago. Theconference was sponsored by fiveprivate foundations (Camille andHenry Dreyfus, W. M. Keck, M. J.Murdock, Research Corp. andRobert A. Welch Foundation) thathave been strong supporters of undergraduatestudent research.The purpose of the conferencewas to release the results (539pages) of a study undertaken toprovide a basic understanding ofthe environment for research inthe natural sciences at predominatelyundergraduate colleges anduniversities. CSULB was one of136 institutions invited to contributedata and opinions to thestudy. Other institutions includedliberal arts colleges (e.g., Bates,Carleton, Harvey Mudd, Knox,Middlebury, Mount Holyoke, Occidentaland Pomona Colleges) aswell as larger colleges and universities(e.g., William and Mary,Western Washington, NorthernArizona and Rochester Institute ofTechnology). Three CSU campuseswere represented (CSULB, CalPoly SLO and San Jose State). Inthe words of Dr. Michael Doyle,vice president of Research Corp.,“These institutions have served asa national resource for a significantproportion of students whoundertake professional careers inthe sciences and a primary reasonfor their output has been the researchexperiences of undergraduatestudents with faculty mentors.”The foundations were concerned,however, that the number of proposalsfrom science faculty wasdecreasing and that the opportunitiesfor external funding wereshrinking.I am happy to report that theconcerns of the organizers did notapply to our institution. CSULBranked #9 of 136 in the numberof research grants awarded and #4in the number of baccalaureate degreesconferred in the sciences. Inaddition, 87 students earningbachelor’s degrees in the sciencesfrom CSULB were granted PhD degreesbetween 1991 and 1999.While we are very proud ofthese accomplishments, there wassome room for concern. One calculationmade from the study wasthat it takes, on the average, morethan $35,000 in funding to producea published paper in a firstratescience journal. We stronglybelieve that student co-authorshipof a research paper is a real markof the quality of the work beingdone in our laboratories. Our costat CSULB was actually somewhathigher than the $35,000 figure,indicating that we either need tobe more aggressive in publishingwork or that we need to attractmore funding in order to increaseour publication rate with students.I believe strongly we must doboth. What can you as alumni andfriends of CSULB Chemistry andBiochemistry do to help us in ourquest of Academic Excellence? Thefirst is all important: promote ourprogram to your peers and associatesand encourage talented studentsto apply for admission here.Second, we are always in need offunds to support student-facultyresearch. Your contributions canhelp support student researchfellowships, lab materials andsupplies, or costs associated withthe presentation and publicationof results.If you wish to let us knowof a student who is interested inapplying or has applied to CSULB,you can reach me by calling562/985-1521 or by e-mail(gnagel@csulb.edu). Donations tosupport undergraduate researchin Chemistry and Biochemistrymay be made via Dr. Marsi as isdescribed elsewhere in thisnewsletter.Your support and continuinginterest in science at CSULB isdeeply appreciated. ■EditorialB o xC S U L BChemistry and BiochemistryDepartment NewsletterFall 2001, Number 26An annual publication of theDepartment of Chemistry and Biochemistryfor past and present studentsand friends of the department.News items, feature articles,photos and comments are eagerlyinvited. All articles not signed inthis issue of the Newsletter wereresearched and written by theEditor. The Newsletter and otherdepartmental news and informationmay be accessed on the Internet atthe following address:http://www.chemistry.natsci.csulb.edu.To send information about yourselfelectronically for publication in theNewsletter, (1) open up the Website indicated above, (2) click onNewsletter, (3) click on the Fall2001 logo, (4) on the side bar,scroll to Alumni Response.Kenneth L. Marsi, Editor562/985-4941e-mail: kmarsi@csulb.eduAllergan Distinguished Visiting Lecturerby Tom MaricichCollege of Natural Sciences and MathematicsAppreciation is extended toConnie Lane, Publications Office,for the Newsletter layout and toBob Freligh, Audio Visual Services,for many of the photographs containedin this Newsletter.The 22nd Annual DistinguishedVisiting Lecturer was Dr.Catherine Fenselau, professor ofchemistry at the University ofMaryland. Dr. Fenselau received anAB from Bryn Mawr College, andher PhD from Stanford University,where she worked with Dr. CarlDjerassi. She is a former presidentof the American Society of MassSpectroscopy. She is also the recipientof the Garvan Metal of theAmerican Chemical Society, theMaryland Chemist Award and theMerit Award of the National Institutesof Health. Dr. Fenselau is thenewly elected chair of the AnalyticalDivision of the AmericanChemical Society. Since she trainedas an organic chemist, the widescope of her expertise isreflected in the breadth of her recentpublications, appearing inAnalytical Chemistry and in Cellularand Molecular Biology.While at CSULB, Dr. Fenselaupresented two lectures to studentsand faculty, at times with standingroom only. In her first, a generallecture, titled “How Much DoThings Weigh?,” she presented thecapability of mass spectrometry toweigh individual molecules, molecularcomplexes and even smallviruses. Dr. Fenselau illustratedhow the determination of molecularmasses provided answers toimportant questions in biology,medicine and space travel.After an interactive luncheonwith students, Dr. Fenselau gavea more technical talk, titled“Chemistry of Zinc-Binding ProteinsStudied with ElectrosprayMass Spectrometry” to a crowd ofchemists and biologists. Her revolutionarytechniques for accurateanalysis of high molecular weightproteins (greater than 30K Daltons)is paving the way for betterunderstanding of these proteins.Dr. Fenselau and her co-workershave used electrospray MS at pH8.0 in combination with accuratemass measurements to confirm themultiplicity of insulin in stablenon-covalent complexes with zincions. They showed that the natureand number of ligands involved inchelation agrees with resultsfrom crystal andsolution structures.Counting the numberof ligands participatingin each centerallowed deductionof the geometricconfiguration of theligand field and gaveindirect information about theconformational state of the insulinmonomers in solution.An enthusiastic discussionensued, which has led to newdialog between our universitiesand between differentdisciplines.The lecture was followedby a receptionand dinner at Andiamo’sRestaurant in Long Beach.This lectureship issponsored by a generousgift from Allergan Pharmaceuticals,Inc. ■3