Marriage of chemistry and biology produces new doctoral program

Updated 5:30 PM January 20, 2005

Marriage of chemistry and biology produces new doctoral program

By Nancy Ross-Flanigan
News Service

Once, the distinction was clear. Chemistry was a discipline devoted to the study of compounds and their molecular properties; biology was the science of life. But as knowledge in both areas has grown, the boundaries have blurred. Now, biologists routinely study processes at the molecular level, and chemists tackle problems with implications for living systems.

In response to that trend a new discipline called chemical biology has emerged, in which the tools of chemistry and biology are combined to probe biological problems. And this year a new, interdepartmental Ph.D. program in chemical biology will offer students training in virtually all aspects of the rapidly growing field.

"Nationally, there's a recognition that the time is ripe to marry the disciplines," says Gary Glick, the Werner E. Bachmann Collegiate Professor of Chemistry and co-director of the new chemical biology program.

"U-M has a number of faculty doing research in this area but they've been spread out in different departments. This program will bring them together in a very focused way to expose students to leading-edge scientific research. The deans and department chairs who have worked together to make this program a reality have been incredibly supportive of the idea and visionary in their efforts to find ways of capitalizing on our existing strengths."

In the program, which will begin in September 2005, students will have opportunities to do research on a wide range of questions, such as:

• How does nature catalyze the myriad chemical reactions that occur in living organisms?

• How can potential drug candidates be designed to best match their biological targets?

• How do the three-dimensional structures of proteins, nucleic acids and other large molecules that are important in living systems determine their functions?

The new program brings together faculty from seven departments and divisions within LSA, the Medical School and the College of Pharmacy, some of whom also are affiliated with the Life Sciences Institute. It draws on U-M's nationally recognized strength in chemical biology research.

"By combining faculty across campus into one unified, high-level program, we aim to develop the top training program in this field of study," Glick says. Only a handful of other institutions across the country have campus-wide chemical biology programs,and U-M's will be one of the largest, involving about 40 faculty members. In contrast to programs that cobble together chemical biology offerings from existing courses, the University will offer courses developed specifically for the new program, Glick says.

"We believe that our program will not only attract high quality graduate students, but also facilitate interactions among a large number of scientists spread throughout the University," he says. Students will have access to state-of-the-art instruments and laboratories for biomedical research, and will be prepared to do research in academic, industry or government settings.

For information visit http://www. chembio.umich.edu/.

Marriage of chemistry and biology produces new doctoral program By Nancy Ross-Flanigan News Service

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Marriage of chemistry and biology produces new doctoral program

By Nancy Ross-Flanigan
News Service