Group Members

Current Members

Metallopeptide Project

	Melissa Zastrow \| PhD Candidate \| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: University of Connecticut Research Interests: Metalloenzymes
	Jefferson Plegaria \| PhD Candidate\| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: La Salle University Research Interests: Protein Design, Metalloproteins and Redox Active Proteins
	Leela Ruckthong \| PhD Candidate \| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: Kasetart University (Bangkok, Thailand) Research Interests: Alternative amino acids
	Fangting Yu \| PhD Candidate\| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: Peking University Research Interests: I received my B. S. in Chemistry from Peking University, China, where I worked on studying the influence of metal ions on the solubility of cholesterol in the aggregates of phospholipids and bile salts. My current research focuses on creating a De Novo designed metallopeptide as a mimic for a Type II copper center, which could potentially act as an oxygen-activating center. I also work on synthesizing dinuclear manganese complex to mimic the oxygen-evolving center in photosystem II. Other Interests: You can find me singing in the University of Michigan Arts Chorale if I am not working in lab. Besides that, I like drawing, ice-skating and reading.
	Ginny Cangelosi \|Post-Doc\| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: Albion College PHD Insitution: Unversity of Oregon (Dr. Darren W. Johnson) Research Interests: I received my BA from Albion College in 2005 and my Ph. D. in chemistry from the University of Oregon in 2010. Under the direct from Dr. Darren W. Johnson, I studied supermolecular chemistry of the Group 15 ions as an NSF GK12 fellow. My research interests include protein design, self-assembly and heavy-metal toxicity.
	Cathy Mocny \| PhD Candidate\| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: Kalamazoo College Research Interests: I am interested in the interface of inorganic chemistry and biology and the roles inorganic elements play in biology. Currently I am working on synthesizing a heteromeric three stranded coiled-coil using both bio-organic and bio-inorganic approaches in attempt to construct an asymmetrical metal-binding site. Other Interests: I enjoy running, kayaking, and other modes of being active, spending time with family and friends, and good food and wine. I also really enjoy reading, especially those rare chances when I have the opportunity to stray from science related text.
	Alison Tebo \| PhD Candidate \| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: University of California, Los Angeles Research Interests: metallobiochemistry, metals in biology, electron transfer and redox reactions, design of electron transfer and metalloproteins. I am currently working on designing an rubredoxin-type electron transfer protein based on a well-characterized, designed scaffold, a3DIV. Other Interests:being a foodie and a bit of a beer and wine nerd, keeping up with current events, photography, running and swimming, backpacking
	Sara Caruso \| Undergraduate \| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: University of Michigan, Ann Arbor Research Interests: Metalloenzymes Other Interests:

Metallacrown Project

	Evan Trivedi \| Post-Doc \| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: Purdue University PHD Insitution: Northwestern University Research Interests: Synthetic chemistry is the basis of my research with applications in homogeneous catalysis, molecular imaging, and medicine
	David Chow \| Ph.D. Candidate \| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: Western Washington University Research Interests: He is currently working on the metallacrown project, studying the role of electron spin and magnetic anisotropy in single-molecule magnets. Other Interests: he enjoys tennis, running, Michigan football games and keeping it real.
	Kitty\| Undergraduate \| E-mail Undergraduate Institution:Peking University (Beijing, China) and University of Michigan, Ann Arbor Research Interests: Metallacrown Other Interests:

Former Members

Metallopeptide Project (degree received), current position:

Dr. Saumen Chakraborty (Ph. D. ), postdoc, Univ. of Illinois at Urbana Champaign.
Dr. Kosh Neupane (postdoc), postdoc, Tufts University.
Dr. Kimber Clark-Baldwin (postdoc), Research Scientist, Univ. Cincinnati Medical School.
Dr. Carol M. Gorst (postdoc), Application Scientist at MSI.
Dr. Gregg Dieckmann (Ph.D.), Associate Professor, University of Texas at Dallas.
Joel Galang (MS).
Susan L. Heilman (MS).
Jan Kosinski (MS).
Dr. Ryan Fields (BS), M.D.
Kirk Jobe (BS Honors), M.D.
Kristen Balchus (research rotation).
Nzinga Harris (REU).
Zikiya Norton (research rotation), Graduate Student, University of Michigan.
Melissa Hindenlang (research rotation), Graduate Student, University of Michigan.
Soumya Mitra (research rotation), Gradute Student Ohio State University.
Dr. Brian Farrer (Postdoc), Senior Research Chemist, Merck.
Dr. Wojciech Lesniak (Postdoc) Research Associate, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Department of Radiation Medicine.
Dr. Manolis Matzapetakis (Graduate Student), Post Doc, Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute.
Dr. Kyung Hoon Lee (Postdoc), Assistant Professor, University of South Alabama.
Dr. Chris Cabello (Graduate Student), University of Arizona, College of Pharmacy Medicinal Chemistry Program.
Dr. Debdip Ghosh (Graduate Student), Post Doc, National Institues of Health (NIH / NIDDK).
Dr. Debbie Touw (Graduate Student), Post Doc, Program in Molecular Medicine, University of Massachussetts Medical School.
Dr. Marek Luczkowski (Postdoc), Faculty of Chemistry, University of Wroclaw, Poland .
Dr. Olga Iranzo (Postdoc), Research Scientist, Bioinorganic Chemistry and Peptide design Division, Instituto de Tecnologia Quimica e Biologica Av. da Republica Estacao Agronomica Nacional (EAN).
Dr. Anna Peacock (Postdoc), Lecturer in Chemistry, University of Birmingham,UK.

Vanadium Project (degree received), current position:

Professor Charles A. Root (visiting faculty), Professor Emeritus, Bucknell University.
Dr. Gerard J. Colpas (postdoc), Research Scientist, Ethicon, Inc.
Dr. Carla Slebodnick (postdoc), Instuctor, Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University.
Dr. Charles R. Cornman (postdoc), Director of R&D, Formulated Products, Grace Construction Products.
Dr. Joseph Bonadies (postdoc), Dow Chemical.
Dr. Xinhua Li (Ph.D), Research Scientist, Department of Pharmacology, University of Alberta, Edmonton.
Dr. Brent Hamstra (Ph.D.), Professor, Southern Adventist University.
Dr. Brian R. Gibney (Ph.D.), (Postdoc, University of Pennsylvania) Associate Professor, Columbia University.
Jason Walter Kieltyka (BS), Post Doc, University of Michigan
Roneil Malkani (BS), M.D.
Daniel Stein.
Dr. Thomas Smith II (PhD.) Research Chemist, Henkel Surface Technologies.
Dr. Joslyn Yudenfreund Kravitz (Ph.D.) AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow, Office of the Director, NIH.
Dr. Tamas Jakusch (Postdoc).
Dr. Curtis Schneider (Ph.D.) Postdoctoral fellow, Caltech

Manganese Project (degree received), current position:

Dr. Michael J. Baldwin (postdoc), Associate Professor, University of Cincinnati.
Dr. M. Tyler Caudle (postdoc), Research Scientist, Engelhard Corp., New Jersey.
Dr. Joseph Bonadies (postdoc), Dow Chemical.
Dr. Sylvia Daunert (MS), Profesor, University of Kentucky, Lexington.
Dr. Andrew Gelasco (Ph.D), Assistant Professor, Department of Nephrology, Medical University of South Carolina.
Dr. Erlund J. Larson (Ph.D), M.D.
Dr. Neil A. Law (Ph.D.),Assistant Professor, St. Lawrence University .
Dr. Xinhua Li (Ph.D), Research Scientist, Department of Pharmacology, University of Alberta, Edmonton.
Dr. Salman M. Saadeh (Ph.D), Assistant Professor, Islamic University of Gaza.
Mike Baker (BS).
Ira Finkelstein (BS).
Tim Machonkin (BS Honors), Assistant Professor, University of Rochester
Joel McGorman (BS), M.D.
Stephen Bensiek (Bielfeld, Germnay), Graduate Student, University of Bielefeld.
Anke Askenas (Bielefeld, Germany).
Kristen Balchus (summer student).
Dr. Ika A. Setyawati (post doc). Research Scientist, Berlex Diagnostic Imaging, Diatide Research Laboratories
Michael Triller (Muenster, Germany). Research Scientist, BASF.
Nicole Redding (Muenster, Germany)
Suranjana Haldar (research rotation), Graduate Student, University of Michigan
Dr. Wen-Yuan Hsieh (Ph.D.) PostDoc. Purdue University
Michael Mccormick (BS) Graduate Student, M.I.T., Chemistry
Subhashis Biswas (MS) Graduate Student, University of Michigan, Geology
Dr. T. M. Rajendiran (Visiting Scholar), Post Doc, University of Michigan, Medical School
Amy Wu (M.S.) Medical Student, Wayne State University Medical School
Dr. Panagiotis Angaridis (Post-Doc)
Dr. Marciela Scarpellini (Post-Doc), Assistant Professor, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.
Chris Cornelio (Undergraduate Student).
Dr. Kristof Meelich (Postdoc).
Dr. Jessica Gaetjens (Post-Doc), Postdoc, University of Vienna, Institute of Inorganic Chemistry.
Dr. Christopher Mullins (Post-Doc), Assistant Professor of Chemistry, Division of Natural Sciences, Campbellsville University, KY.

Metallacrown Project (degree received), current position:

Dr. Joseph Jankolovits (Ph. D.), postdoc, University of California, Berkeley.
Dr. Thaddeus Boron (Ph. D.)
Joseph Grant (BS), University of Michigan
Dr. Curtis M. Zaleski (Ph. D.), Associate Professor, Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, PA.

Gentamicin Project (degree received), current position:

Debdip Ghosh (research rotation)
Dr. Wojciech Lesniak (Postdoc) Research Associate, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Department of Radiation Medicine.

Metallopeptide Precursor Projects (degree received), current position:

Dr. Linda M. Briggs (Ph.D.): Cloning and Regulation of Synechocystis PCC 6803 Plastocyanin, Research Scientist, Ford Motor Company.
Dr. David J. Detlefsen (Ph.D.): Protein-Protein and Protein-Metal Interactions, Senior Research Scientist, Novatia.
Mary Taylor (B.S.), M.D.

Visiting Faculty

Metallacrown Project:

Prof. Dimitris Kessissoglou, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece

Vanadium Project:

Prof. Charles Root, Bucknell University

Research Collaborators

Professor Thomas V. O'Halloran , Northwestern University
Professor James E. Penner-Hahn, University of Michigan
Professor R. David Britt, University of California, Davis
ProfessorWilliam DeGrado, University of Pennsylvania
Professor Wayne Frasch, Arizona State university
Professor Martin L. Kirk, University of New Mexico.
Professor Barry Rosen, Wayne State University
Professor Bernt Krebs, Westfalische Wilhelms-Universitat Munster
Professor Martha Ludwig University of Michigan
Professor Heather Carlson , College of Pharmacy, University of Michigan.
Professor Luca Di Gioia, University of Milan-Bicocca, Italy.
Professor Sun Un, CEA Saclay, France.
Professor Dimitris P. Kessissoglou, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
Dr. Matteo Tegoni, University of Parma, Italy.

	Melissa Zastrow \| PhD Candidate \| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: University of Connecticut Research Interests: Metalloenzymes
	Jefferson Plegaria \| PhD Candidate\| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: La Salle University Research Interests: Protein Design, Metalloproteins and Redox Active Proteins
	Leela Ruckthong \| PhD Candidate \| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: Kasetart University (Bangkok, Thailand) Research Interests: Alternative amino acids
	Fangting Yu \| PhD Candidate\| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: Peking University Research Interests: I received my B. S. in Chemistry from Peking University, China, where I worked on studying the influence of metal ions on the solubility of cholesterol in the aggregates of phospholipids and bile salts. My current research focuses on creating a De Novo designed metallopeptide as a mimic for a Type II copper center, which could potentially act as an oxygen-activating center. I also work on synthesizing dinuclear manganese complex to mimic the oxygen-evolving center in photosystem II. Other Interests: You can find me singing in the University of Michigan Arts Chorale if I am not working in lab. Besides that, I like drawing, ice-skating and reading.
	Ginny Cangelosi \|Post-Doc\| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: Albion College PHD Insitution: Unversity of Oregon (Dr. Darren W. Johnson) Research Interests: I received my BA from Albion College in 2005 and my Ph. D. in chemistry from the University of Oregon in 2010. Under the direct from Dr. Darren W. Johnson, I studied supermolecular chemistry of the Group 15 ions as an NSF GK12 fellow. My research interests include protein design, self-assembly and heavy-metal toxicity.
	Cathy Mocny \| PhD Candidate\| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: Kalamazoo College Research Interests: I am interested in the interface of inorganic chemistry and biology and the roles inorganic elements play in biology. Currently I am working on synthesizing a heteromeric three stranded coiled-coil using both bio-organic and bio-inorganic approaches in attempt to construct an asymmetrical metal-binding site. Other Interests: I enjoy running, kayaking, and other modes of being active, spending time with family and friends, and good food and wine. I also really enjoy reading, especially those rare chances when I have the opportunity to stray from science related text.
	Alison Tebo \| PhD Candidate \| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: University of California, Los Angeles Research Interests: metallobiochemistry, metals in biology, electron transfer and redox reactions, design of electron transfer and metalloproteins. I am currently working on designing an rubredoxin-type electron transfer protein based on a well-characterized, designed scaffold, a3DIV. Other Interests:being a foodie and a bit of a beer and wine nerd, keeping up with current events, photography, running and swimming, backpacking
	Sara Caruso \| Undergraduate \| E-mail Undergraduate Institution: University of Michigan, Ann Arbor Research Interests: Metalloenzymes Other Interests: