Molecular BIOLOGY - Michigan State University

©2002 Michigan State University Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Editor: John E. Wilson

Design by: Media Graphics, Inc., Williamston, MI

2002

BIOLOGY& Molecular

BIOCHEMISTRY

A Message from the Chairperson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Donors: Thank You! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Overview of the Department . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

John A. Boezi Memorial Alumnus Award . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Faculty - Student Honors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

In Memoriam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Feature: Healthier Eating: Vitamins Made Simple?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Former Spartan Fritz Rottman Returns to Michigan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

New Faculty Member . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Lillevik Family Gathering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Gene Expression Focus Group Marks One Year Milestone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

MSU Grad Establishes Viral Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

2001 - 2002 Graduates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

A Bright, New Light for Biochemistry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Profiles: Charles C. Sweeley, Professor Emeritus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Loran Bieber Retirement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

The Ties That Bind: Dr. Robert W. Gee Remembers the Department. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Alumni News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Opportunities for Contributions to the Department. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Alumni Update: We Want to Hear from You . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Biochemis t ry and Molecu lar Bio logy • 20022

Contents

A Message From Dear Friends and Alumni,

This year has seen many posi-tive changes in the Depart-

ment of Biochemistry andMolecular Biology including theopening of the connecting Bio-Physical Sciences Building, therecruitment of an exceptional newfaculty member and a large andpromising group of new graduatestudents, and the well-deservedrecognition of the accomplish-ments of several of our studentsand faculty. Sadly, however, theyear has also been marked by thedeaths of two individuals whohad made pioneering contribu-tions to the department.

During the past year construc-tion of the new Bio-PhysicalSciences Building was completed,and it is now occupied by facultyand students from the Depart-ment of Physiology and theDepartment of Microbiology andMolecular Genetics, both of whichhad been housed in the centuryold Giltner Hall, and the Depart-ment of Physics and Astronomywhich had been located in thePhysics Building. The new Bio-Physical Sciences building runsnorth and south parallel to FarmLane on the west side andperpendicular to the BiochemistryBuilding. There are skywalks aswell as connectors linking the newbuilding to both the Biochemistry

Building and the Chemistry Build-ing. A new biological and physicalscience library is located conve-niently on the ground floor of afive story atrium in the middle ofthe Bio-Physical Sciences Build-ing. This atrium is a very pleasant,centrally located high traffic area,and it is just one example of howthe new building is facilitatinginteractions among scientists oncampus.

Also on the construction front,plans are in place to do a major($15 million) renovation of theventilation system in theBiochemistry Building. The planinvolves making appropriatechanges in the fans and exhaustsystems on the roof and in thepenthouse and then replacing thehoods and duct work in four verti-cal quadrants. This much neededwork will be started in January 1,2003, and is scheduled forcompletion by October 1, 2004.Professor Kroos is providing facul-ty oversight of this operation andwill be helped by Joyce Robinsonand Ron Norris.

The Department of Biochem-istry and Molecular Biology hascontinued to focus its researchefforts and recruiting into thethree broad areas of StructuralBiology, Biochemistry of the CellNucleus, and Plant Biochemistry.

Biochemis t ry and Molecu lar Bio logy • 2002 3

the Chairperson

Continued on page 2

BMB Mission Statement:

The goal of the Department

of Biochemistry and

Molecular Biology is to

improve the research

stature of the department

while maintaining quality

instruction in our

undergraduate, graduate,

and medical school programs.

William L. Smith, Professor and ChairWeb Site: http://www.bch.msu.eduEmail: [email protected]

A Message From You will read more about theefforts of some of the faculty whowork in the areas of transcription-al regulation and plant biochem-istry later in this magazine. Ourefforts in the Structural Biologyarea also continue to lead topositive outcomes, notably thebeginning of the construction ofthe synchrotron beamline at theArgonne National Laboratory (seepage 24). I would also like to notethe efforts of faculty and staff inthe department, particularly DavidDeWitt and Joe Leykam, who havebeen very successful in guidingthe continued development of theGenomics Technology SupportFacility. This facility provides serv-ices for sequencing and synthesiz-ing peptides and nucleic acidsand for bioinformatics. Morerecently the proteomics facilityhas come under the auspices ofthe GTSF.

In the New Things andChanges category, we are pleasedto welcome Dr. Charles Hoogstrat-en as a new Assistant Professor.Dr. Hoogstraten uses NMR tech-niques to determine nucleic acidand protein structures and was aunanimous choice of our facultyfor a position in the area of struc-tural biology. More informationabout Dr. Hoogstraten can befound later in this magazine.

In the Special Recognition cate-gory, Dr. John Blenis, Professor ofCell Biology at Harvard University,was our Boezi Award winner for2002. Dr. Glenn Davis, the newDean of the College of HumanMedicine, gave a lively afterdinner talk at the Awards Banquet

last April. I encourage you toforward nominations for BoeziAward candidates to me, and Iwill refer them to our AwardsCommittee. I am also pleased tonote that Dr. Lee McIntosh fromBiochemistry and Molecular Biol-ogy and the Plant Research Labo-ratory received an MSUDistinguished Faculty Award. Dr.Mark Fielden was recognized withthe Outstanding GraduateStudent Award and Ms. JanelFunk received the OutstandingUndergraduate Student Award.

Sadly, Dr. R. Gaurth Hansen,the original chairperson of theDepartment of Biochemistry andMolecular Biology, passed awaythis past January. He left a greatlegacy here and at Utah StateUniversity. Dr. Allan Morris,Professor Emeritus in BMB,passed away in May of 2001. Dr.Morris was a good friend to manyof us. Professionally, Dr. Morriswas recognized for his researchon the effects of mRNA second-ary structure on translation. Final-ly, I am sorry to report that Dr.Allen Jacobs, the Dean of theCollege of Osteopathic Medicineand a strong supporter of BMB,passed away in the Fall of 2001.Dr. William Strampel has beennamed as his successor.

Dr. Kevin Struhl from theDepartment of Chemistry andMolecular Biology at HarvardMedical School gave the WellsLecture and Dr.Ulf-Ingo Flügge ofthe Botanisches Institut, Universi-ty of Cologne, Germany, deliveredthe Tolbert Lecture this year. Thecontributions made by many of


I am stepping down as

departmental chairperson on

December 31, 2002, after

over eight years of service as

chair. During that time I have

come to appreciate even more

than I had previously, the

wonderful group of faculty,

staff, students and graduates

who make up the Department

of Biochemistry and

Molecular Biology.

the Chairpersonyou provided the funding forthese endowed lectureships. Thefaculty and students in thedepartment benefit enormouslyfrom visits of distinguished scien-tists such as these individuals andare very grateful to our alumni fortheir financial contributions tothese endowments. As I havementioned previously, the State ofMichigan has been exceptionallysupportive of the universities inthe state including MSU, butevery year a greater proportion ofuniversity costs need to becovered by endowment funding.Your contributions are whatprovide these endowments andare absolutely essential for main-taining the quality of the institu-tion. We hope that you will keepBMB in mind when you makecharitable contributions this year.

I am stepping down as depart-mental chairperson on December31, 2002, after over eight years ofservice as chair. During that timeI have come to appreciate evenmore than I had previously, thewonderful group of faculty, staff,students and graduates whomake up the Department ofBiochemistry and Molecular Biol-ogy. At the time of this writing, weanticipate that my replacementwill come from within the presentfaculty ranks where there areseveral individuals with exception-al leadership skills. We hope thatwe can entice one of them tolead us over the next 5-10 years.At the risk of insulting the manyothers who have been very help-ful to me during my tenure aschair, I want to take this opportu-

nity to offer special thanks to Dr.Ferguson-Miller who has servedpatiently and skillfully as theAssociate Chair, Dr. Bieber whoshepherded all the faculty movesduring the most recent buildingrenovations (and provided theearly leadership in developing thecampus-wide Genomics Technolo-gy Support Facility) and tomembers of the staff, particularMrs. Carol VanderJagt and Mrs.Julie Oesterle. I have been veryfortunate to have been surround-ed and helped by such exception-al people.

Finally, let me end by askingyou to continue to keep usinformed of happenings in yourworld by completing the formprinted at the end of this maga-zine. We highlight this informationin the Alumni News section ofthis magazine each year, and thisis one of our most popularfeatures.

Best wishes to all of you for ahappy and prosperous holidayseason and 2003.

Best personal regards,

William L. Smith

P.S. And please visit andbookmark our web site (http://www.bch.msu.edu/). It is a goodsite and an excellent way to keepup on what is happening in MSUBiochemistry and MolecularBiology.


http://www.bch.msu.edu

VISITt h e

Website

✓ Updates on Research

✓ Faculty

✓ Facilities

✓ Info. on Graduate & Undergraduate Programs

✓ Job Opportunites

✓ Weekly Seminar Information

✓ WeeklyNewsletter

✓ Photos of Recent Events

✓ And Much More!

Donors


Mr. Judson T. Bradford and Mrs. Catherine D. Bradford

Dr. Zachary F. Burton and Dr. Ann B. Finkelstein

Dr. Robert J. Holmes and Mrs. Remedios Holmes

Dr. H. David Husic and Dr. Diane W. Husic

Dr. Paul K. Kindel and Mrs. Judith A. Kindel

Dr. Leslie A. Kuhn

Mr. John M. Lacika and Mrs. Nancy J. Lacika

Mr. Patrick M. McPharlin andMrs. Victoria I. McPharlin

Mr. Robert F. Merski and Mrs. Karen Merski

Dr. Edward B. Nelson and Mrs. Kirsten R. Nelson

Mr. Gary A. Neudahl and Mrs. Sandra L. Neudahl

Dr. Fritz M. Rottman and Dr. Carol J. Rottman

Mr. Yoshihiro Shiraiwa

Dr. Jack Preiss and Ms. Karen S. Smelker

Dr. William L. Smith and Mrs. Andrea K. Smith

Mr. George Stinnett and Mrs. Barbara J. Stinnett

Mrs. Eleanor D. Tolbert

Dr. Steven J. Triezenberg andMrs. Laura V. Triezenberg

Mr. William H. Voige

Dr. Jack Throck Watson and Mrs. Shirley A. Watson

Dr. William W. Wells and Mrs. Helen W. Wells

Dr. Peter C. White, Jr., and Mrs. Deborah L. White

Dr. David K. Young and Mrs. Jill M. Young

Thank You!Thank You!

The Department of

Biochemistry and Molecular

Biology is grateful to the

following donors who have

contributed to the Department

during the period of May 1,

2001, to June 30, 2002.

(Donor list provided by

College of Natural Science

Development Office. Please

notify the Department of any

inadvertent omissions.)

Thank You!


An Overview

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Michigan State University

Administration (% Funding): College of Natural Science (Lead Dean; 51%), College of Human Medicine (18%), Michigan Agricultural ExperimentStation (17%), College of Osteopathic Medicine (14%)

Faculty: 27 wholly appointed in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology,and 9 jointly appointed in other units 6 University Distinguished Professors 9 MSU Distinguished Faculty Awardees 2 NIH MERIT Awardees

Specialists: 3 (Laboratory, Bioinformatics and Structure Facilities)

Staff: 14 (secretarial, accounting, Biochemistry Instrument Shop, Biochemistry Stores, Animal Room)

Undergraduate Majors: 220

Graduate Students: 55

Postdoctoral Fellows: 45

University Facilities: Macromolecular Structure, Mass Spectrometry, Genomics,Bioinformatics/Computer Graphics, Proteomics, Cytometry

Centers: REF Center for Biological ModelingMLSC Center for Structural Biology

Research Emphases: Structural BiologyPlant BiochemistryBiochemistry of Cell Nucleus

‘02 GrantSupport (52): 26 NIH, 8 NSF, 3 USDA, 2 DOE, 5 Industrial, 8 Other; Approximately $7.5 million in extramural support for 27 facultywholly supported by BMB.

Teaching: Undergraduates (lectures, labs, independent study)Graduate students (core Biochemistry and Mol. Biology)Medical Schools (BCH514, Problem-based Learning, SystemsBiology)

John A. Boezi Memorial Alumnus Award


The John A. Boezi MemorialAlumnus Award is given annu-

ally to a former undergraduate orgraduate student from thisdepartment who has gone on toa distinguished career. The recipi-ent of the 2002 Boezi Award, Dr.John Blenis (http://cellbio.med.harvard.edu/faculty/blenis), isbeing recognized for his manycontributions to understandingthe role of protein kinases insignal transduction. To those notfamiliar with this area ofbiochemistry/cell biology - andperhaps even to those who arefamiliar with it - delving intosignal transduction can result inan almost overwhelmingconfrontation with a complexarray of protein kinases andkinase substrates, each generallyknown by a somewhat bewilder-ing acronym (e.g., ERK, MAP,Akt/PKB) or abbreviation (some-times more than one!) that hasmeaning only to those conver-sant with the jargon of the field.John Blenis has focused on aparticular subset of these, knownas the ribosomal S6 kinases(Rsks). Two structurally distinctsubfamilies of Rsks have beencharacterized, these being pp70-S6K and pp90rsk. Seminal workfrom the Blenis lab has definedthe role of these Rsks in regula-tion of cell growth and differenti-

ation and other aspects of cellphysiology. The importance of Dr.Blenis’ work is reflected in theresearch support he has receivedfrom the Leukemia ResearchFoundation and the NationalInstitutes of Health. He has alsoheld a Junior Faculty ResearchAward from the American CancerSociety, and an EstablishedInvestigator Award from theAmerican Heart Association.

John came to Michigan StateUniversity in 1978, after complet-ing his B.A. in Biochemistry atthe University of California,Berkeley. His Ph.D. thesis mentorwas Dr. Susan Hawkes, then anadjunct faculty member whoselaboratory was located at theMichigan Molecular Institute inMidland. John also carried out

some of his research in EastLansing, in the laboratory ofProfessor John Wang. As requiredof all graduate students in theDepartment, John was assigned arole as a teaching assistant aspart of his training. It happenedthat he was serving as a TA forDr. John Boezi in the undergradu-ate molecular biology courseduring spring of 1980. Sadly, Dr.Boezi’s unexpected deathoccurred during this time. JohnBlenis, along with fellow TA,Calvin Roff, were asked to takeover teaching duties for the restof the course. Thus, John Blenishad a rather unique relationshipwith John Boezi, whose passingwas marked by his many friendsand colleagues with establish-ment of the award now bestowedon Dr. Blenis.

Subsequent to completion ofhis Ph.D. work, Dr. Blenis didpostdoctoral work at HarvardUniversity (1983-1987), then joinedthe faculty at NorthwesternUniversity Medical School for ashort period (1987-1989). He wassoon recruited back to Harvard,where he has remained since,and currently holds the rank ofProfessor of Cell Biology inHarvard Medical School.

2002 Boezi Award Recipient, John Blenis

Dr. John Blenis

Remembered & Honored


1983 Donald W. Carlson Ph.D. 1961

1984 Allen T. Philips Ph.D. 1964

1985 John A. Gerlt B.S. 1969

1986 George H. Lorimer Ph.D. 1972

1987 Lawrence B. Dumas B.S. 1963

1988 Douglas D. Randall Ph.D. 1970

1989 Ronald C. Desrosiers Ph.D. 1975

1990 George M. Stancel Ph.D. 1970

1991 Raymond J. Dingledine B.S. 1971

1992 Howard C. Towle Ph.D. 1974

1993 A. Stephen Dahms Ph.D. 1969

1994 Sherwood R. Casjens M.S. 1967

1995 Friedhelm Schroeder Ph.D. 1973

1996 Philip L. Felgner Ph.D. 1978

1997 Arlyn Garcia-Perez Ph.D. 1984

1998 Ann E. Aust Ph.D. 1975

1999 Peter Steck Ph.D. 1981

2000 Sally Camper Ph.D. 1983

2001 Tony Serianni Ph.D. 1980

Past Recipients of the Boezi Award

In the many years that have passed since establishment of this award,

the number of degree recipients from this department has continued to

grow steadily. Communications being imperfect, the Department recog-

nizes that it may not be aware of some graduates whose accomplish-

ments since leaving MSU would make them worthy candidates for the

Boezi Award. We thus solicit your assistance in identifying past gradu-

ates of this department, undergraduate or graduate, who would merit

consideration. Please send suggestions and pertinent information to Dr.

William L. Smith, Chairperson, Department of Biochemistry and Molec-

ular Biology or e-mail us at [email protected].

Professor John A. Boezi joined the newly formed Department of Biochemistry in 1963.

Together with colleagues like Fritz Rottman and Allan Morris, John represented the emerging

field of “molecular biology” and played a major role in shaping the research and teaching

program in the early days of the Department. John’s sudden death in 1980 was deeply felt

by his students and faculty colleagues alike. In his memory, they established an award to be

given annually to a recipient of a B.S., M.S., or Ph.D. degree from this department who had

gone on to a distinguished career that reflects the qualities personified by John Boezi.John A. Boezi

In Recognition


In addition to presentation ofthe Boezi Award to Dr. John

Blenis, the annual departmentalAwards Banquet (April 18, 2002)was the occasion for notingrecent honors accorded to vari-ous faculty members. Chairper-son Bill Smith recalled thatZachary Burton had been namedas recipient of the 2002Outstanding Undergraduate Advi-sor Award from the College ofNatural Science Dean’s StudentAdvisory Committee, while LaurieKaguni received the College ofNatural Science 2002 Distin-guished Faculty Award. Duringthe past year, Jack Preiss and BillSmith had been designatedUniversity Distinguished Profes-sors, while Lee McIntosh hadreceived a 2002 University Distin-guished Faculty Award. In addi-tion, Dr. Smith noted thatSynthon Chiragenics, the compa-ny founded by Dr. RawleHollingsworth, had received the

“Private Company of the Year”award from the New Jersey Tech-nology Council.

Various student awards werealso presented at the AwardsBanquet. Mark Fielden was recog-nized with the Outstanding Grad-uate Student Award, presented byhis mentor, Tim Zacharewski.Janel Funk received the Outstand-ing Undergraduate StudentAward, presented by ZachBurton, with whom she had doneundergraduate research. Dr.Burton also noted Janel’s activerole as President of the Under-graduate Biochemistry Club aswell as her efforts in establishinga tutorial service for studentsenrolled in undergraduatebiochemistry courses. Elena Braywas recognized with theOutstanding Graduate StudentTeaching Award for her exempla-ry efforts as a Teaching Assistantin an undergraduate biochemistrylaboratory course.

In addition, Justin Barnes wasnamed recipient of a $2,000Undergraduate Research Award,which will support his continuedwork with Christoph Benning.Aaron Kosinski (Min-Hao Kuolaboratory), Cassandra Campbell(Laurie Kaguni laboratory), IreneFlick (David Arnosti laboratory),Jay Sage (Jon Kaguni laboratory),and Shanna Ashley (Jack Preisslaboratory) received $1,000Undergraduate Research Awardsto support continuation of theirundergraduate research in theindicated laboratories. Under-graduate Research Awards arefunded from contributions to theDepartment, and are awarded tostudents with financial need; theintent is to provide them withfunding that will allow them tospend time in the research labo-ratory in lieu of alternativeemployment.

Faculty-Student Honors

Honors 2002Honors 2002Honors 2002

In Memoriam


R.Gaurth Hansen, Distin-guished Professor Emeritus

at Utah State University, passedaway in January, 2002. Dr. Hansenwas the first Chairperson of theDepartment of Biochemistry (nowDepartment of Biochemistry andMolecular Biology) when it wasorganized as a separate academ-ic unit in the early 1960s. He wasinstrumental in securing the fund-ing for construction of theBiochemistry Building, which wascompleted in 1964. The foresightand careful planning by Dr.Hansen, together with that of hiscolleagues, Professors WillisWood and Ed Tolbert, ensuredthat the new building was - andremains - a remarkable exampleof blending architecture and func-tion in support of teaching andresearch activities. As foundingChairperson, Dr. Hansen was alsoresponsible for hiring the facultymembers that were critical forexpansion and development ofthe new department. Many ofthose faculty members arementioned elsewhere in this orprevious issues of this magazine.

Dr. Hansen started his under-graduate work at Utah StateUniversity, but moved for his finalyear at the University of Wiscon-sin, receiving his B.S. degree inChemistry from that institution in1944. He stayed on for graduatework at Wisconsin, earning boththe M.S. (1946) and Ph.D. (1948)in Biochemistry. He immediately

joined the faculty in the Depart-ment of Biochemistry at theUniversity of Utah, but in 1950,moved to the University of Illinoisas an Associate Professor andsubsequently Professor. He cameto Michigan State University asProfessor of Biochemistry in1957, and began his role in theestablishment and nurturing ofthe new Department. Dr. Hansenremained at Michigan State until1968, when he returned to UtahState University as Provost andAcademic Vice President, remain-ing there for the duration of hisacademic career. Throughout histenure at Utah State, Dr. Hansenalso held faculty appointments inthe Department of Chemistry andBiochemistry as well as theDepartment of Nutrition andFood Sciences.

Widely known for his work innutritional biochemistry, Dr.Hansen held numerous appoint-ments to various governmentaland international agency commit-tees. His research dealt withmetabolic reactions of centralimportance in human nutritionand disease. Particular researchinterests were focused on therole of the vitamin, pantothenicacid, in lipid and carbohydratemetabolism, and on glycogensynthesis. His laboratory was thefirst to isolate and crystallizeUDPG-pyrophosphorylase, theenzyme responsible for “activa-tion” of glucose units necessary

for their incorporation into glyco-gen. A characteristic of Dr.Hansen was to choose basicresearch topics that were closelylinked to practical applications.He was instrumental in develop-ing nutritional guidelines for bothdomestic and internationalprograms, and for evaluation ofthe nutritional benefits of food-stuffs.

There is a declining number ofstill-active faculty in the Depart-ment who can claim to have beena friend and colleague of R.Gaurth Hansen during his time atMichigan State - indeed, it issobering that, upon reflection,the writer of this article findshimself alone in that regard.However, all faculty and students,past and present, of this Depart-ment owe R. Gaurth Hansen animmense debt of gratitude for hisforesight and hard work in layingthe foundations upon which thisDepartment was built.

Remembering R. Gaurth Hansen, Founding Chairperson of the Department

Dr. R. Gaurth Hansen

In Memoriam


Dr. Allan J. Morris passed awayin May, 2001. Dr. Morris

joined the Department as anAssistant Professor in 1963. Thiswas shortly after the Departmenthad been established as a sepa-rate academic unit. Thus, themid-1960s were a time in which,under the leadership of foundingChairperson R. Gaurth Hansen,there was a marked expansion inthe number of faculty membersand the laying of a firm founda-tion for subsequent develop-ments in the teaching andresearch programs of the Depart-ment. Dr. Morris played animportant role in this, includingdevelopment and teaching BCH402 and BCH 802, which werecore courses of the undergradu-ate and graduate curricula,respectively.

Dr. Morris’ major researchinterest was in protein biosynthe-sis, one of several areas ofbiochemistry that comprise whathas come to be known as“molecular biology.” Sparked bythe discovery of the “doublehelix” by Watson and Crick a fewyears before, numerous youngscientists were actively investigat-ing the relationship betweenstructure of nucleic acids andbiological functions. Thus, Dr.Morris was particularly interestedin the secondary structure ofmessenger RNA and its effect on

“translation” of the message intoprotein. Other work in his labora-tory was concerned with defini-tion of the mechanism of variousprotein synthesis inhibitors, andwith metabolism of purines andpurine analogs. Throughout mostof his research career, hisresearch was supported by grantsfrom the National Institutes ofHealth. Ten students receivedtheir Ph.D. under his direction,and he was the author or coau-thor of more than 25 papers inrefereed journals as well as sever-al book chapters.

Dr. Morris was born and raisedon the family farm in Linn Grove,Iowa, graduating from Linn GroveHigh School in 1944. Immediatelyafter graduation, he enteredWorld War II service in the U.S.Navy, including postwar assign-ment in China; he receivedhonorable discharge in 1946. In1954, he completed his under-graduate degree, with honors, inChemistry at Iowa State Universi-ty. He then did graduate work atthe University of Utah, receivingthe M.S. in 1957 and the Ph.D. inBiochemistry in 1959. This wasfollowed by postdoctoral work atthe City of Hope MedicalResearch Center in Duarte, CA,and the University of Wisconsin,Madison, prior to his joining theMSU faculty. He was promoted toAssociate Professor in 1968, and

to Full Professor in 1972. In thecourse of his academic career,Dr. Morris spent sabbaticals orresearch visits at ColumbiaUniversity, the Jackson Laborato-ry (Bar Harbor, ME), and theUniversity of Alberta. After hisretirement in 1988, Dr. Morristraveled extensively in CentralAmerica and the Southwest ofthe United States, pursuing hisinterests in native Americancultures.

In Memoriam:

Allan J. Morris, Professor Emeritus

Dr. Allan J. Morris

In Memoriam

On April 21, 2001, Dr. MarkBieber suffered a fatal heart

attack while on a business trip toGermany. Mark (no relation toProfessor Emeritus Loran Bieber)received his Ph.D. in Biochem-istry from Michigan State Univer-sity in 1973, with Dr. Charles C.Sweeley as his major professor.Mark then spent four years as apostdoctoral fellow at the Nation-al Institutes of Health before join-ing Bestfoods for a career thatlasted 24 years. At the time of hisdeath, Mark served as NutritionResearch Associate for this compa-ny; his responsibilities includedkeeping abreast of advances innutritional science and providingscientific advice as well as moni-toring pertinent governmentalregulatory proposals.

In addition to his duties withBestfoods, Mark was active inseveral professional organiza-tions, including the AmericanHeart Association and the Insti-tute of Food Technologists. Hewas particularly active in theAmerican Oil Chemist’s Society(http://www.aocs.org/), and wasserving as Secretary of AOCS at

the time of his death. He was afounding member of the Healthand Nutrition Division of AOCS,and served as Chairperson ofthis division in 1993-1995. Hiscolleagues in the AOCS havehonored his memory by estab-lishing a Mark Bieber SymposiumFund, which will support anannual symposium on “DietaryFat and Health,” a topic of centralinterest to Mark Bieber. Theinitial Mark Bieber Symposiumtook place on May 7, 2002,during the 93rd annual meeting ofAOCS in Montreal, Quebec.

Those of us who knew Markduring his days here at MichiganState will certainly remember hissense of humor as one of hisoutstanding qualities. Togetherwith fellow graduate student, thesharp-witted Mark Roseman,Mark Bieber organized the firstdepartmental “Christmas Party,”featuring skits that skeweredmany a faculty member andfellow student. (In retrospect, itseems interesting that the first“Christmas Party” should havebeen organized by the twoMarks, both of Jewish heritage.)

Such skits were a standard, andmuch anticipated (and perhapsfeared?), feature of this annualgathering for many years. Buttime marches on, the “ChristmasParty” has become the “HolidayParty,” and skits have given wayto alternative diversions. Forthose who shared the laughs withthe two Marks, fond memoriesremain.


In Memoriam:

Dr. Mark Bieber

Dr. Mark Bieber

Good nutrition is universallyrecognized as a key to good

health. Unfortunately, goodnutrition is beyond the means ofmany in this world. And even inmore affluent communities,adequate supplies of essentialnutrients are not always thenorm. Take Vitamin E, forexample. This is one of the “lipid soluble” vitamins, mostcommonly obtained from foodsources such as spinach orvegetable oils. However, largesegments of the population donot obtain the “recommendeddaily allowance” (RDA) of VitaminE in their diet. Moreover, toobtain additional health benefitsfrom Vitamin E, it has beensuggested that one needs toingest at least five times the RDA,which translates into eating fourpounds of spinach or twopounds of soybean oil a day. Notlikely, right? The result is thateven typical American dietsprovide less than optimalsupplies of Vitamin E. Is there amore palatable solution thanchoking down four pounds ofspinach or two pounds ofsoybean oil? Dean DellaPenna

(http://www.bch.msu.edu/faculty/dellapenna.htm) thinks so.

DellaPenna and his colleaguesseek to engineer higher VitaminE levels in common food sources,providing an easier - and tastier -way to avoid Vitamin Edeficiency. He coined the term“nutritional genomics” for hisapproach to this task. Nutritionalgenomics draws on the moretraditional methods ofbiochemistry, physiology,genetics, and molecular biologybut weaves them together withgenomics as the common thread. A universally-accepted definitionof “genomics” seems to be ratherhard to come by, but what iscertainly central to the field iseffective utilization of thetremendous amount ofinformation made available byrecent successes in sequencingthe genomes of many differenttypes of organisms, including thewidely-heralded publication ofthe human genome. The work ofDellaPenna and his colleaguesprovides an outstanding exampleof the power of this approach.

To understand this story, wemust begin with a little


Healthier Eating:Vitamins Made

Simple?

Feature

Previous issues of this magazine

have noted the retirements of

Professors Kindel, Suelter, and Wells,

and the passing of Professor

Tolbert. The present issue notes the

retirement of Professor Bieber and

the passing of Professors Hansen

and Morris. Those readers familiar

with the history of this Department

will recognize these, and others

such as John Boezi and Fritz

Rottman, as the names of people

whose ability, enthusiasm, and dedi-

cation were critical for the develop-

ment of Biochemistry and Molecular

Biology at Michigan State University.

While remembering them with grati-

tude and affection, we also recog-

nize those who have come after and

continue to build the stature of this

Department. Some of these younger

faculty members have been featured

in previous issues of this magazine,

and others are featured elsewhere in

the present issue.

The Pioneers - and TheirSuccessors


background on the biochemistryof Vitamin E. Actually, Vitamin Eis not a single compound, butrather a class of compoundscalled tocopherols. The severalmembers of the tocopherolfamily differ in their Vitamin Eactivity, the most potent being α-tocopherol. However, thepredominant tocopherol incommon dietary sources, such

as vegetable oils, is not α-tocopherol but itsimmediate precursor, γ-tocopherol. The enzymethat converts γ-tocopherol to α-tocopherol is called γ-tocopherol methyl

transferase (γ-TMT).Hypothesizing that the

relatively low amount of α-tocopherol resulted from alimitation in the activity of γ-TMT,DellaPenna and his postdoctoralassociate, David Shintani, set outto engineer increased levels ofthis enzyme in plants, hoping fora corresponding increase in α-tocopherol levels. However,conventional genetic engineeringrequires a gene, and DellaPennaand Shintani didn’t have a genefor γ-TMT. So the first step was toget one! More specifically, theywanted the γ-TMT gene fromArabidopsis thaliana, the widelyused model system that has beendescribed as the “laboratory rat”of plant biochemistry.

But no one had isolated ordetermined the sequence forArabidopsis γ-TMT - so where tobegin? Here’s where DellaPennaand Shintani used genomics togreat advantage. While thesequence for the Arabidopsis γ-TMTwas not known, the sequence forthe Arabidopsis “HPPDase,” theenzyme catalyzing the first stepin the pathway of tocopherolsynthesis was known. Andfurthermore, the genomicsequence of Synechocystis, aphotosynthetic bacterium thatwas also known to synthesizetocopherols, had also beendetermined. Moreover, in

bacteria, it is commonly the casethat genes encoding enzymescatalyzing sequential steps in ametabolic pathway are located ina contiguous genetic unit calledan “operon.” DellaPenna andShintani reasoned that if theycould find the gene for theSynechocystis HPPDase, the genefor the γ-TMT might lie nearby. Sothey searched the Synechocystisgenomic sequence for somethingsimilar to the known sequence ofthe Arabidopsis HPPDase. Bingo!They found it, and searchingnearby they found the sequencecoding for what was suspected tobe the desired γ-TMT gene.Further work confirmed this tobe the case. Then, using thesequence of the gene for theSynechocystis γ-TMT, they returnedto the genomic sequence ofArabidopsis, which had also beendetermined by this time, andquickly found the correspondingsequence, the gene for theArabidopsis γ-TMT.

Using genetic engineeringmethods, Shintani andDellaPenna then overexpressedthe gene for γ-TMT in Arabidopsisseeds. Because of the limitationof this enzyme in normal (“wildtype”) Arabidopsis, the seedsnormally contain >95% γ-tocopherol and only about 1% α-tocopherol. But theengineered Arapidopsis plants, withthe overexpressed γ-TMT,produced seeds with 85-95% α-tocopherol, a greater than 80-fold increase in this morebioactive form of Vitamin E.While Arabidopsis is a marvelousexperimental system, it is notcultivated as a food crop. Thus,

Continued on page 36


Dr.DellaPenna received a B.S.in Cellular Biology from

Ohio University in 1984, followedby graduate work leading to thePh.D. in Plant Physiology, whichwas awarded in 1987 by theUniversity of California, Davis. Dr.DellaPenna remained at UC Davisfor a year’s postdoctoral work,then spent 3 months as a VisitingScientist/Lecturer in the Depart-ment of Scientific and IndustrialResearch, Auckland, New Zealand.During the latter period, he taughta course on molecular biologytechniques and provided adviceon the establishment a laboratoryand program focused on molecu-lar studies of postharvest biologyof New Zealand crops. He contin-ued postdoctoral work as aMcKnight Postdoctoral Fellow atWashington State University, 1989-1990, before accepting his firstfaculty appointment as an Assis-tant Professor in the Departmentof Plant Sciences at the Universityof Arizona. He moved to theUniversity of Nevada, Reno, as anAssociate Professor of Biochem-istry in 1995, and was recognizedwith that university’s “Researcherof the Year Award” in 1999. Hejoined the faculty of the Depart-ment of Biochemistry and Molec-ular Biology, Michigan StateUniversity, as an Associate Profes-

sor in April, 2000, and waspromoted to Full Professor in2002.

Dr. DellaPenna describes hisresearch interests as the use ofmolecular, genetic, and biochemi-cal approaches to understandfundamental processes in plantbiology. His specific areas of inter-est include: 1) structure, function,and regulation of synthesis ofplant cell wall proteins, 2) synthe-sis and function of cartotenoids,and 3) synthesis and function oftocopherols, especially α-toco-pherol (Vitamin E). He currentlyhas grant support from theNational Science Foundation, theUnited States Agency for Interna-tional Development, and the

United States Department of Agri-culture.

An avid fisherman and golfer,Dr. DellaPenna is taking advan-tage of the opportunities forthese activities that are availablein East Lansing and elsewhere inMichigan. He and his wife, Dr.Kathy Osteryoung (AssociateProfessor, Department of PlantBiology), reside in a rural settingnear Williamston, MI.

Dean DellaPenna

Dr. Dean DellaPenna

Feature


Those readers who were affili-ated with the Department

during the 1960-1980 time framewill remember Dr. Fritz Rottman.Fritz was one of several youngfaculty members hired by the firstChairperson, R. Gaurth Hansen,shortly after the Department wasestablished as an independentacademic unit. Fritz Rottman,John Boezi, and Allan Morriswere the first “molecular biolo-gists” in the Department, andadded a critical dimension to theresearch and teaching programsof the Department. Dr. Rottmanjoined the Department as anAssistant Professor in 1966, afterreceiving his Ph.D. from theUniversity of Michigan (1963) andpostdoctoral work with NobelPrize winner, Dr. Marshall Niren-berg, at the National Institutes ofHealth. Dr. Rottman establishedan active research programfocused on post-transcriptionalregulation of eukaryotic geneexpression, particularly the rolesof alternative splicing and methy-lation of mRNA. He advancedthrough the professorial ranks,attaining the rank of Professor ofBiochemistry in 1974.

In 1981, Dr. Rottman wasrecruited as Professor and Chair-man of the Department of Molec-ular Biology and Microbiology atCase Western Reserve UniversitySchool of Medicine in Cleveland,OH. He spent the rest of hisacademic career at CWRU, ulti-

mately being named as the Rein-berger Endowed Professor ofMolecular Biology in 1998. Duringhis latter years at CWRU, he alsobecame involved with the devel-opment of technology transferwithin the University and its inter-face with the Cleveland communi-ty. Dr. Rottman notes that, afterall those wonderful years ofresearch, it was somewhat diffi-cult to shut down his laboratory,but he treasures the memories ofhis associations with paststudents, postdoctoral associatesand faculty colleagues at bothMSU and CWRU. Effective June,2002, Dr. Rottman became CWRUProfessor Emeritus.

In retirement, Dr. Rottman andhis wife, Carol, returned to theirnative Michigan, where they nowreside in their new homeconstructed on a 53 acre plotnear Grand Rapids. They enjoyproximity to their three childrenand eight grandchildren who allreside in the Grand Rapids area.Dr. Rottman has not severed hisconnections to science, however,since he serves as a Trustee forthe Van Andel Research Institutein Grand Rapids and as aconsultant for a genomicsbiotech company, Athersys, inCleveland. He notes that one ofthe advantages of retirement isincreased time to read morewidely in areas of science notspecifically related to his previousresearch area. In addition, he

values the time available for hisother interests, which includegardening, beekeeping, fishing,and other recreational pursuits,including his annual hunting tripwith Loran Bieber, back to theBieber family farm in NorthDakota - see page 28. Fritz andCarol Rottman have also pursuedtheir interest in “macrobiology”and ecology. They are workingwith biology professors at CalvinCollege in Grand Rapids (Dr.Rottman’s alma mater) and BillSchneider, a landscape architectfrom Mason, MI, who makesextensive use of native plants, toreturn a substantial portion oftheir land to a native grass/wild-flower prairie.

Former Spartan Fritz Rottman Returns to Michigan

Fritz Rottman

Charles G. Hoogstratenreturned to familiar territory

when he assumed his new posi-tion as Assistant Professor ofBiochemistry and Molecular Biol-ogy in August. Charlie had donehis undergraduate work at Michi-gan State, receiving dual B.S.degrees in Biochemistry andChemistry in 1990. His outstand-ing undergraduate record meritedrecognition with the AmericanChemical Society’s Robert ClarkKedzie Award as OutstandingChemistry Major, as well as theMSU Board of Trustee’s Scholar-ship Award. During his under-graduate days, Charlie didresearch with Professor ShelaghFerguson-Miller in Biochemistry(studies on proton pumping incytochrome oxidase) and the lateProfessor Jerry Babcock in Chem-istry (theoretical studies of reso-nance Raman spectroscopy).

Charlie went on to graduate workas a Howard Hughes MedicalInstitute Predoctoral Fellow at theUniversity of Wisconsin. His Ph.D.work, completed in 1995, wasdone with Professor JohnMarkley, and dealt with develop-ment of improved NMR tech-niques for distancemeasurements in macromole-cules and their application toprotein structure.

Supported by a Helen HayWhitney Postdoctoral Fellowship,Charlie moved to the Universityof Colorado where his interestsshifted to application of highresolution NMR to studies on thestructure of catalytic RNAs(ribozymes). This work was donewith Professor Arthur Pardi in1995-1998. Subsequently, Charliedid further postdoctoral workwith Professor R. David Britt inthe Department of Chemistry atUniversity of California, Davis,focused on the application ofelectron paramagnetic resonancespectroscopy to studies of metalion-nucleic acid interactions. Ashe embarks on his career as anindependent faculty member,Charlie indicates that he intendsto continue his focus on applica-tion of spectroscopic methods toprotein and ribozyme structuralstudies, including dynamics ofconformational changes, and towork on protein-nucleic acidinteractions.

Charlie has an excellent back-ground in the application of vari-ous spectroscopic techniques to

structural studies of biomole-cules, and will complement exist-ing faculty expertise in the areaof structural biology. The latter isan area of emphasis both in theDepartment as well as, morebroadly, through developmentsrelated to the Michigan LifeSciences Corridor (MLSC). TheMLSC has fostered interactionsbetween major research universi-ties and institutions in Michigan.One result has been establish-ment of the Center for StructuralBiology, headed by MSU Profes-sors Shelagh Ferguson-Miller andJack Preiss (see related articleelsewhere in this magazine).

Charlie and wife Rebeccareturned to East Lansing withnew daughter, Sarah Eileen, bornJuly 19, 2002. New father, newfaculty member - clearly Charlie isgoing to be a busy guy. Welcomeaboard, Charlie - and welcomeback to MSU!


Our Newest Faculty Member, Charles Hoogstraten

Dr. Charles G. Hoogstraten

Sarah Hoogstraten

Professor Emeritus Hans Lille-vik and his wife, Connie,

enjoyed a family reunion in June.All four of their children and allbut two of their grandchildrenmade it to East Lansing for thefestivities. Together with theirfamilies, daughters Nancy (fromTacoma, WA), Anita (fromRedwing, MN), and Kristi (fromSan Diego, CA) joined son, Sig(from Portland, OR), for thememorable event. Some of youmay remember Sig, who workedin the Biochemistry InstrumentShop for a time, before proceed-ing on to graduate school andultimately his present position asa faculty member in the Depart-ment of Electrical Engineering atthe University of Portland.

Together with others like JimFairley, Dick Luecke, Harold Sell,

and Dick Byerrum, Hans Lillevikwas one of the original facultymembers when the Departmentwas first organized, bringingtogether faculty members fromvarious other departments toform the Department ofBiochemistry as a distinctacademic unit. Though trained asa classical protein biochemist,prior to his retirement Hansdeveloped expertise in clinicalchemistry and served as coordi-nator of the clinical chemistrycourse that, in those days,provided laboratory training forthe medical technology program.Hans and Connie continue toreside in the family home (708Knoll Road) in East Lansing, andwe’re sure they’d love to hearfrom old friends.

Lillevik Family Gathering

Visit Our Web Site

Point your browser to http://www.bch.msu.edu andyou will find information about many aspects of

the department. Get current information about facultymembers you may remember, and meet facultymembers who have joined the department since yourtime with us. Find out about on-going research activi-ties, and about departmental support facilities such asthe computer graphics facility, transgenic Drosophilafacility, and others. Information about current gradu-ate and undergraduate programs is available throughthe web site. Should you have a specific question, youmay e-mail the Department at [email protected],which will quickly provide the answer to your ques-tion.

http://www.bch.msu.edu

Dr. Hans Lillevik


Contributed by BMB AssociateProfessor David Arnosti

The transcriptional regulationof gene expression is a critical

control point in biologicalsystems, and changes in geneexpression underlie many humanailments, such as cancer,diabetes, and infectious diseases.To bolster a growing strength atMSU in the area of transcription-al regulation, six laboratories ofthe Department of Biochemistryand Molecular Biology, as well aslaboratories in the Department ofMicrobiology and MolecularGenetics and the Department ofChemistry, joined forces inlaunching the Gene Expression inDevelopment and Disease(GEDD) Focus Group last year.With initial support provided by a$1 million grant from the MSUFoundation, the Focus Groupbrings the interdisciplinarystrengths of the member labora-tories to bear on a range of newtopics. Postdoctoral fellows havebeen recruited for new researchinitiatives in the area of geneexpression in development anddisease, and the first fruits oftheir efforts were described at asymposium in June at the KelloggCenter in which new researchfindings were presented to overfifty scientists from the participat-ing research groups.

Transcription involves thebasal transcriptional machinery,which can be compared to anautomobile’s engine, and regula-

tory factors, which function asthe brakes and accelerator.Communication between thesetwo classes of proteins is criticalto regulation of gene expression.Postdoctoral researcher StacyHovde, working with the labora-tories of Jim Geiger and BillHenry, has focused on one suchinteraction by solving the struc-ture of the DNA binding domainof the Oct-1 transcription factorcomplexed with DNA and aprotein component of the basaltranscription machinery,SNAP190. Her high resolutionmolecular structures reveal criti-cal contacts between the twoproteins that allow Oct-1 todiscriminate between sequencescontrolling expression of protein-coding genes transcribed by RNAPolymerase II and small nuclearRNA genes transcribed by RNAPolymerase III.

Retinoblastoma (Rb) proteinsare transcriptional repressors that


Gene Expression Focus Group marks one year milestone

Transcriptional regulation in

David Arnosti,Associate Professor,Biochemistry andMolecular Biology

Zachary Burton,Professor, Biochemistryand Molecular Biology

Bill Henry, Assistant Professor,Biochemistry andMolecular Biology

Lee Kroos,Professor, Biochemistryand Molecular Biology

Min-Hao Kuo,Assistant Professor,Biochemistry andMolecular Biology

Steve Triezenberg,Professor, Biochemistryand Molecular Biology

Jim Geiger,Associate Professor,Chemistry

Michele Fluck,Professor, Microbiologyand Molecular Genetics

FACULTYI n v o l v e d I n

GEDD

Dr. David Arnosti


control expression of geneslinked to the cell cycle, and muta-tions in Rb occur frequently inhuman cancers. The Henry labo-ratory has been studying the roleof mammalian Rb in regulating aclass of small nuclear RNA genes.Combining the biochemical skillsof the Henry laboratory and theArnosti laboratory’s expertisewith development and transcrip-tion in the fruitfly Drosophilamelanogaster, postdoctoralresearchers Scott Keller and ZakirUllah have been analyzing thefunction of Rb proteins inDrosophila, where their role indevelopment can be more readilyassessed. They have shown thatthe fly expresses two proteins ofthe Rb family, and that theseproteins are likely to have distinctactivities based on their comple-mentary expression patterns andformation of complexes ofdistinct sizes. This research seeksto functionally characterize theactivities of the proteins usingbiochemical and molecular genet-ic means, with the ultimate aimof better understanding the roleof Rb proteins in cancer.

Chromatin is the form in whichDNA is packaged within the tightconstraints of the nucleus. Cova-lent and non-covalent modifica-tions of histones and otherchromatin proteins are integralevents associated with gene acti-vation and repression, and areknown to play important roles indevelopment and disease. Toidentify novel factors that associ-

ate with histone proteins andmay play a role in modification ofchromatin structure, postdoctoralresearcher Asha Acharya in theKuo laboratory is using advancedgenomic techniques to identifyfactors in the yeast Saccharomycescerevisiae that bind to modifiedhistone “tails,” the portions ofthese proteins that are subject tomodification with resulting effecton gene expression. Anotherproject related to chromatinmodification is being pursued bypostdoctoral researcher AmyHark in the Triezenberg laborato-ry. Amy is examining the struc-ture of promoters subject toregulation by the ADA2 andGCN5 proteins, both involved inmodification of histones in theplant Arabidopsis thaliana. Theseproteins have been found toregulate many aspects of devel-opment in this plant, and mayprovide an effective means tomodulate expression of stress-tolerance genes in plants, a topicof substantial commercial impor-tance.

Recent X-ray crystallographicanalysis has afforded unprece-dented views of the core enzymeof transcription, RNA polymerase.However, like a still photo, thesestructural images do not conveythe dynamic aspects of theenzyme in operation. Using anovel “running-start” kineticapproach to transcriptional initia-tion, Xue Qian Gong in theBurton laboratory has been track-ing the movements of human

RNA polymerase II on a millisec-ond scale, to understand themolecular transitions that allowthis enzyme to work rapidly andaccurately. In collaboration withthe Geiger and Yan laboratories,they have proposed a novel kinet-ic pathway in which RNA poly-merase prealigns its NTPsubstrates by base pairing to theDNA template prior to movementinto the active site. This studyhas medical relevance in that themolecular actions of the deadlyfungal toxin a-amanitin and thehepatitis delta antigen have beenintegrated into this picture toshow how these factors inhibitand stimulate transcription,respectively.

While multicellular develop-ment is often thought to be theprovince of eukaryotic organisms,

development and disease

By combining MSU’s

strengths in basic

mechanisms of

transcriptional regulation,

the GEDD Focus Group

aims to make the

Department

a nationally-recognized

center for gene expression

research.



the lifestyle of some bacteria,such as Myxococcus xanthus,involves formation of elaboratemulticellular structures known asfruiting bodies. Gene regulationduring development of thisbacterium is the focus ofresearch by Durairaj Srinivasan inthe Kroos laboratory. Workingwith the Kuo laboratory, novelregulatory factors are beingsought using yeast-based geneticscreens, and the binding ofknown transcription factors topromoters in vivo is being stud-ied to better understand howgenes are activated in responseto cell-cell signaling during devel-opment.

The initial support of theGEDD Focus Group, provided bythe MSU Foundation, is for athree year period. At this point,the research will have developedto a stage at which successfulapplications for extramuralsupport, e.g., from NIH, may beexpected. In addition to attract-ing additional individual grantsupport to MSU, the GEDDFocus Group plans to apply for atraining grant, based on theongoing graduate and postdoc-toral training provided by theweekly research forum andweekly transcription journal clubattended by members of theGEDD laboratories. To comple-

ment these activities, three inten-sive graduate courses have beendeveloped. These cover chro-matin and transcription, develop-ment and transcription, andtranscriptional mechanisms.

With the explosion in genomicinformation, it is increasinglyimportant to understand themolecular basis for regulation ofgene expression. The GEDDFocus Group initiative ensuresthat MSU researchers will play animportant role in elucidation ofbasic mechanisms of transcrip-tional regulation relating to devel-opment and disease.

Gene Expression Focus Group marks one year milestoneContinued from page 21

As noted by Onodera andMelcher (Nucl. Acids Res. 30, 203-204, 2002), viral specific oligonucleotides play an indis-pensable role in identificationand detection of viruses by thePolymerase Chain Reaction(PCR) and Southern blottingprocedures. According to theseauthors, more than 8000 articlesdescribing virus-specific PCRhave been published since theadvent of PCR as a major tool incontemporary science. However,these reports have beenpublished in a wide variety ofjournals, many not readily acces-sible (e.g., not available on the

Internet). Onodera and Melcherhave established the VirOligodatabase (http://viroligo.okstate.edu/) to provide readyaccess to this information. Theinitial sequences deposited inthe database were for virusesassociated with bovine respirato-ry diseases, but the intent is toextend this greatly. Submissionof additional sequences fromother investigators is encour-aged, and instructions forsubmission are available at theviroligo site.

Ulrich Melcher (http://opbs.okstate.edu/~melcher/UM.html)received his Ph.D. from Michigan

State University in 1970, withProfessor Joe Varner (jointlyappointed in the Department ofBiochemistry and the PlantResearch Laboratory) serving ashis mentor. After postdoctoralwork at the University of Aarhus(Aarhus, Denmark), New YorkUniversity Medical School, andUniversity of Texas SouthwesternMedical School, Dr. Melcherjoined the faculty in the Depart-ment of Biochemistry, OklahomaState University, in 1975. Heremains at Oklahoma State,where he presently is RobertSirny Professor of AgriculturalBiochemistry.

MSU Grad Establishes Viral Database

Congratulations!


PhD and MS Degrees

Hien Thi (Jackie) Dao Ph.D.Mark Fielden Ph.D.Prashanti Franklin M.S.Jeremiah Frueauf M.S.Tong Hao Ph.D.James Kastenmayer Ph.D.Philip Kilanowski-Doroh M.S.Su-Yin Li M.S.Hongyan Liang Ph.D.Jason Matthews Ph.D.Paul Sanschagrin Ph.D.Michael Theisen Ph.D.Otis Vacratsis Ph.D.Hemant Varma Ph.D.Sridhar Venkataraman Ph.D.Yi Yang M.S.

BS Undergraduate Degrees

Fall, 2001Christopher Eakin BMBKristen England BMBJoseph Mmwirichia BMB/BTRyan Shannon BMB

Spring, 2002Jessica Apostol BMBRobert Bauman BMBJanel Funk BMBMatthew Goddeeris BMB/BTDanielle Grondin BMBC. Matthew Hawkins BMBRuth Helmus BMB/BTJennifer Kornosky BMBScott Loiselle BMBMichael Maile BMBTimothy McKnight BMBJan Mincarelli BMB/BTMatthew Sekedat BMBKate Shores BMB/BTNatasha Tasheva BMBJelani Thomas BMBDouglas Whitten BMBSarah Zawacki BMBAndrew Zimolzak BMB

Summer, 2002Kathryn Bembas BMB/BTRobin Goodwin BMB/BT

Graduates during the 2001-2002 Academic Year

20012002

CongratulationsGraduate s

Life Sciences Collaborative Access Team


Contributed by:R. Michael Garavito

On May 24, 2002, theAdvanced Photon Source at

Argonne National Laboratory inIllinois signed a Memorandum ofUnderstanding with 4 Michiganinstitutions and NorthwesternUniversity to establish the LifeSciences Collaborative AccessTeam (or LS-CAT). This simpletwo-page document was theculmination of over two years ofeffort by Michigan State Universi-ty, the University of Michigan,and Wayne State University toprovide life scientists in Michiganwith unparalleled access tocutting-edge synchrotron radia-tion facilities for structural biolo-gy. For many faculty members inthe Department of Biochemistryand Molecular Biology, LS-CATmay soon begin to alter the waywe perceive and do biochemicalscience.

The birth of LS-CAT, in manyways, began with the faculty inBMB. Structural biology has notonly become an importantresearch area, but also a techno-logical resource for the lifesciences. Three-dimensionalstructures provide the essentialunderpinning for research thatdeals with biological phenomenaat the molecular level. Atomicstructures, as provided by macro-molecular X-ray crystallography,convert the information encodedin DNA sequences into detailedpictures of the biological macro-

molecules that are the key tounderstanding life. Once thestructures of the components ofbiological machines or pathwaysare known, we can begin to posenew, and more refined questionsin our research. Thus, thedemand for structural informationin all molecular fields of biologycontinues to grow rapidly, partic-ularly as genome sequencesproliferate. Structural biology nowimpacts such diverse fields ascell biology, immunology, molecu-lar biology, neurobiology, phar-macology, physiology, virology,and medicine. A wide array of lifescientists found themselves form-ing collaborations with X-ray crys-tallographers as part of their owncomprehensive research efforts.

To exploit this new researchsynergism, faculty in BMB andthroughout MSU began aconcerted effort to acquire fund-ing from the Michigan LifeScience Corridor (MLSC) toestablish state-of-the-art facilitiesfor X-ray crystallography, multidi-mensional NMR, and other struc-tural methodologies. These new,but very expensive facilitieswould not only have immenseimpact on research at MSU, butalso throughout Michigan. Thus,we joined other like-mindedresearchers at the University ofMichigan, Wayne State University,and the Van Andel Institute inGrand Rapids to make a coordi-nated push for an unprecedentedleap in research infrastructure inMichigan. Our efforts were

rewarded with the establishmentof MLSC Core TechnologyAlliance, which is composed of 5new research centers includingthe Michigan Center for Structur-al Biology (MCSB) here at MSU.

The largest and most ambi-tious goal of the MCSB is the$10.5 million dollar project tobuild a synchrotron beamline aspart of LS-CAT consortium ofinstitutions. This sounds veryimpressive and many people,from geneticists to the governorof Michigan, have bandied aboutthe words “synchrotron” and“beamline” in conversations. Butwhat is a synchrotron beamlineand what can it do? As an X-raycrystallographer, I have usedsynchrotron facilities for over 20years, but to many life scientists,a synchrotron is still not a famil-iar research tool. Thus, a littleprimer on what a synchrotron isand why it is an important tool inX-ray crystallography is needed.

A Bright, New Light for Biochemistry

Mike Garavito


Moreover, the storybehind how thesynchrotron became atool for the life sciencesillustrates how trulyinterdisciplinary sciencecan be.

The synchrotronarose from the earlydays of particle physicsand atom smashers. Thesearch for elementalparticles required thatelectrons, positrons,alpha particles, andeven large atomic ionsbe whirled around andslammed into eachother. Physicists soonfound that the particlesneeded to reach higherand higher energies totest their theories.Higher energies meanhigher speeds. Soon,electrons and positronswere whizzing aroundthe accelerator rings atvelocities approachingthe speed of light. Theparticles’ high speedshave two undesirableconsequences for theexperimentalist. First, toturn a charged particlearound in a circle impos-es a change in the parti-cle’s acceleration through eachturn. Every time a charged parti-cle accelerates or decelerates, itemits electromagnetic radiation.As the speed of the particleincreases, the energy of the emit-ted radiation increases and itswavelength decreases. Second,the emission of radiation

becomes more intense andfocused as relativistic speeds (i.e.,approaching the speed of light)are reached. In a modern particleaccelerator, particles travelingnear the speed of light emit asearing, pencil-thin ray of electro-magnetic radiation (synchrotronradiation) that can burn through

solid lead in seconds.Thus, very heavy shield-ing is needed on theoutside of a particleaccelerator to protectthe experimenters.

During the lateSixties and early Seven-ties, physicists andchemists realized thatsimply punching a smallhole through the shield-ing would give themaccess to this intensesource of ultraviolet andsoft X-ray radiation, radi-ation that would makepossible novel experi-ments in materialphysics, spectroscopy,geochemistry, and envi-ronmental science.Unfortunately, theseexperiments were para-sitic to the work of thehigh-energy physicists:the beam of synchrotronradiation would sudden-ly disappear themoment the physicistsallowed the particles tocollide with each other.However, the wealth ofinformation from theseearly, “first generation”synchrotron experimentsconvinced the physics

and chemistry communities thatparticle accelerators dedicated tothe production of synchrotronradiation would be an importantscientific resource. Moreover, assynchrotrons began to producehard X-ray radiation, technologieslike X-ray lithography andmicroscopy, medical X-ray imag-

Figure 1The Advanced Photon Source. The upper panel shows an aerial view of the APS; a schematic of the synchro-tron facility and the participating CATs is seen in the lower panel. For more information, see the APS website at http://www.aps.anl.gov. The photograph and illustration are from the APS photograph gallery. Fora color version of this figure, see back cover.



ing, and X-ray crystallogra-phy began to rely onsynchrotron radiation.

What attracted X-ray crys-tallographers to synchrotronbeamlines is the simple abili-ty to obtain intense andspectrally pure radiation at awide range of wavelengths.Solving a protein’s structurewas an endeavor lastingmonths and years; theprocess can now be done inweeks, days, or even hours,using the intense synchro-tron radiation. Using suchhot beams of X-rays forcedus to change radically theway we prepare the proteincrystals for analysis. Now, wehave to flash freeze the crys-tals and keep them at liquidnitrogen temperatures toprevent them from decayingin seconds. Synchrotronradiation also allowed us touse new methods to deter-mine the structure of a novelprotein and this has resultedin another quantum leap intechnology for X-ray crystal-lography. The pharmaceuti-cal industry has alreadyembraced synchrotronbeamlines as a way to do“high-throughput” structure deter-mination for drug discovery anddesign. Thus, by the beginning ofthe 1990’s, macromolecular X-raycrystallographers heartily agreedthat access to dedicated sourcesof synchrotron radiation was vitalto their research.

The unanimity among such adiverse group of scientists helpedthe establishment of a “second

generation” of dedicated synchro-trons in Europe and the UnitedStates. These synchrotrons wereoften refurbished particle acceler-ators inherited from the high-energy physicists. In the late1980’s, a push was also made todevelop even more powerful“third generation” synchrotrons,instruments specifically designedfor generating synchrotron radia-

tion. At Argonne National Labora-tory, the Advanced PhotonSource was brought on line in1994 as the premier “third gener-ation” synchrotron in the UnitedStates. Through support from theU.S. Department of Energy, theAPS operates as a nationalresearch facility and source forsynchrotron radiation that isopen to researchers from acrossthe United States and around theworld.

Although the APS is oftencalled a particle accelerator forelectrons, it is actually composedof four separate instruments(Figure 1). The generation of apulse of electrons begins at theelectron gun, much like one in atelevision. One or more short (30nanosecond) pulses of electronsare raised to 450 million electronvolts (MeV) by a linear accelera-tor (or linac). The pulses or“bunches” of electrons are theninjected into a 368 meter long,ring-shaped booster synchrotronthat raises electron energies by32 keV on every turn. Within aquarter of a second, electronshave increased their energy to 7billion electron volts and are trav-eling at approximately the speedof light. The electrons are theninjected into the main, kilometerlong storage ring where theycircle around the storage ring atmore than 271,000 times persecond. The storage ring, whichis an interconnected system of240 vacuum chambers and 1097electromagnets, is actually a poly-gon with forty sides or “sectors”.Each sector has a 5.2 meter long“straight” section preceded by a

A synchrotron beamline. The synchrotron radiation comes through the radiationshielding (arrow in upper panel) and travels through a beam pipe to the opti-cal system (monochromators, mirrors, shutters, etc.). After beam conditioning,the X-ray enter the experiment “hutch” (lower panel) where the diffractiondata is measured. During the collection of data, the heavily shielded doors ofthe hutch are closed. Dow-Northwestern-DuPont-CAT (DND-CAT) will be subcon-tracted to build LS-CAT. Photographs are courtesy of Denis Keane.

Figure 2

A Bright, New Light for BiochemistryContinued from page 25



“bending” magnet section, whereelectromagnets turn and focusthe electrons into the straightsection. As an electron bunchdecelerates into this turn, it emitssynchrotron radiation. The elec-tron bunches will continually emitsynchrotron radiation for 10-20hours before more electronsneed to be added to the storagering.

Of the forty “sectors” aroundthe APS storage ring, 35 sectorsare available for synchrotron radi-ation experiments. To date,experimental stations have beenor are being built in 28 sectors(Figure 1). Researchers from

across North America haveorganized at the APS asmembers of Collaborative AccessTeams (or CATs). A CAT is aconsortium of universities and/orcompanies with commonresearch objectives. Each CATenters into an agreement withthe APS to design, construct,fund and operate beamlinesdesigned to take synchrotronradiation from the storage ringand tailor it to meet specificexperimental needs (Figure 2).The excellent APS website(http://www.aps.anl.gov) givesyou a virtual tour of the synchro-tron and the research objectives

of the working CATs. LS-CAT (aresearch consortium composedof Michigan State University, theUniversity of Michigan, WayneState University, the Van AndelInstitute, and NorthwesternUniversity) is now responsible forthe development of experimentalstations for macromolecular X-raycrystallography in sector 21(Figure 1).

The current plan for LS-CATenvisions building five beamlinesfor X-ray crystallography withinthe next 3-4 years. To achievethis ambitious goal, LS-CAT willnot only use the synchrotronradiation from the bending


2001 Anachem Award

Professor Emeritus Charles C. Sweeley received the 2001Anachem Award from the Federation of Analytical Chemistry

and Spectroscopy Societies. This prestigious award was given inrecognition of Dr. Sweeley’s pioneering contributions in theapplication of gas chromatography and mass spectrometry toanalysis and characterization of carbohydrates and lipids. Dr.

Sweeley was the major force in establishing the Mass Spectrometry Facility at MichiganState University, and served as Chairperson of the Department in 1980-1985. For the pastseveral years, he and his wife, Marilyn, have been enjoying retirement, dividing their timebetween the East Lansing area and winters in Florida.


This prestigious award was given in recognition ofDr. Sweeley’s pioneering contributions in theapplication of gas chromatography and massspectrometry to analysis and characterization ofcarbohydrates and lipids.

Charles C Sweeley, Professor Emeritus

Retirement


One of the stalwarts of theDepartment retired, effective

January 1, 2002. Loran L. Bieber isa native of Mott, North Dakota. Heearned his B.S. (1955) and M.S.(1956) in Chemistry from NorthDakota State University, and thenreceived the Ph.D. in Biochemistryfrom Oregon State University in1963. After postdoctoral work withDr. Paul Boyer at UCLA, Dr. Bieberjoined the Biochemistry faculty asan Assistant Professor in 1965,shortly after the organization ofthe Department as an independentacademic unit at Michigan StateUniversity. Together with otherfaculty members in the newly-formed department, Dr. Bieberworked to develop a strong under-graduate program in Biochemistry.At the time, this was a rathernovel undertaking, with very fewinstitutions offering an undergrad-uate curriculum leading to adegree in Biochemistry.

From the very beginning,encouraging undergraduate partici-pation in research has been a hall-mark of the program at MichiganState, and many undergraduates(including 1991 Boezi Award recipi-ent, Raymond Dingledine) becameactively involved in Dr. Bieber’slaboratory. Graduate educationwas also important, of course, andDr. Bieber served as major profes-sor for eleven Ph.D. students andfive M.S. students during hiscareer. In addition, his laboratoryhas provided research opportuni-ties for numerous postdoctoral

associates and visiting professors.Dr. Bieber developed particularlyclose interactions with colleaguesat the Medical Academy of Pecs inHungary. Several faculty membersfrom that institution have been inhis laboratory for various periods,and Dr. Bieber has in turn madeextended research visits to Pecs,as a Fogarty Fellow in 1991 and asa Visiting Scientist supported bythe Hungarian National Academyof Science in 1992-1993. He wasalso a Distinguished Visiting Schol-ar at the University of Adelaide(Australia) in 1983.

Dr. Bieber’s primary researchinterest was in the area of fattyacid metabolism, particularly therole of carnitine and carnitine acyl-transferases. For various reasons,the common housefly was a usefulorganism for the study of carnitinemetabolism, and in his early daysat Michigan State, Dr. Bieber main-tained an active fly colony in thebasement of Biochemistry. Butaccidents do happen, and theoccasional escape was inevitable.Thus, Dr. Bieber’s colleaguesfound it useful to keep an “anti-Bieber machine” (a flyswatter)handy. But research soonprogressed to mammaliansystems, and in later years, Dr.Bieber focused his interest on thefunction of carnitine in cardiacmitochondrial function and inlymphocyte proliferation (the latterin collaboration with ProfessorPamela Fraker). Through the years,his research was supported by

Dr. Loran Bieber

Loran Bieber Retirement

Dr. Bieber’s primary

research interest was in

the area of fatty acid

metabolism, particularly

the role of carnitine and

carnitine acyltransferases.


grants from the National Insti-tutes of Health, the MichiganHeart Association, the JuvenileDiabetes Association, and theUnited States Department ofAgriculture. He has contributedmore than 100 refereed papers tothe scientific literature, along withnumerous book chapters, andwas widely recognized for hiswork on carnitine function.

In addition to his active role inresearch and teaching, Dr. Bieberhas been highly regarded for hisextensive and exemplary servicein committee and administrativeroles. For many years, he servedas Associate Dean for Researchin MSU’s College of HumanMedicine, and he has also servedin various capacities in the Officeof the Vice President forResearch and Graduate StudiesOVPRGS). Most recently, Dr.Bieber was instrumental in organ-izing the funds, staffing, equip-ment, and laboratory space forthe Genomics TechnologySupport Facility (see article inlast year’s issue of this magazine,and other information elsewherein the present issue). Dr. Bieberhas indicated that he will contin-ue to assist the OVPRGS withspecial assignments after hisretirement.

Within the Department, Dr.Bieber has served in manycommittee and administrativeroles, including service as Associ-ate Chair (1977-1984). Perhapsmany former graduate students

and faculty colleagues willconsider one of his “unofficial”duties most memorable. Formany years, Dr. Bieber mannedthe charcoal grill at the annualdepartmental picnic each Fall,welcoming the incoming class ofgraduate students with “Bieberburgers.”

Dr. Bieber also is well knownfor his passion for outdoor activi-ties, including gardening (theearliest and the biggest tomatoesin East Lansing!), fishing, andhunting. Many friends andacquaintances can attest to hisskills in the preparation ofsmoked duck breast, smokedsalmon, and other tasty creationsthat utilize the harvest from hisfishing and hunting trips.

Loran Bieber has held manydifferent titles over the course ofhis more than 35 years of serviceto Michigan State University. Butthose who know him well will tellyou that one of the titles that hetreasures most is “Grandpa.” Weare confident that much of theadditional personal time madepossible by retirement will befilled with Loran and his wife,Marion, enjoying their grandchil-dren. Loran and Marion - mayyou have a long and happy retire-ment, and thank you for all yourcontributions to making theDepartment a great place to beover these many years.

Loran and Marion Bieber

The Ties That Bind

Those who were in the Depart-ment in the 1970s and 1980s

will remember Dr. Robert W. Gee.Bob received his Ph.D. inBiochemistry from the Universityof Southern California in 1967,and joined the MSU laboratoryof Professor Ed Tolbert in 1972.That became a long-standingrelationship, and Bob remainedformally associated with theDepartment until 1992. Duringthe last few years of that workingrelationship, Bob and Ed wereinvolved in a collaborative projectwith Dr. Richard Byerrum, whohad returned as a facultymember in the Department afterhis many years of service asDean of the College of NaturalScience. Bob, Ed, and Dick Byer-rum were interested in variousaspects of glycerol production inplants, a topic of both fundamen-tal interest as well as potentialcommercial importance. Unfortu-nately, physical disabilities neces-sitated that Dr. Gee end hisactive scientific work. He saidthat, after hip replacementsurgery, “everything that could gowrong did go wrong,” with theresult that he was unable toreturn to the laboratory.Nonetheless, he continued to

interact with Ed Tolbert, withfrequent telephone conversationsin which they discussed theirshared scientific interests untilEd’s death in December, 1999.

Now retired, Dr. Gee continuesto reside in Lansing, and pursueshis long-standing interest inphotography. Many mayremember that, during Bob’sformal affiliation with theDepartment, he was a regularfixture at departmental events,snapping pictures that showedup in many venues and were animportant part of documentingdepartmental history.

Dr. Gee has been a previouscontributor to MSU and theDepartment, including a contribu-tion to the Tolbert Lectureshipthat was established in EdTolbert’s memory. Dr. Gee hasalso worked with the MSU Devel-opment Office (www.givingto.msu.edu) to incorporate abequest to the University and theDepartment in his will. In recogni-tion of his generous support toMSU and the Department ofBiochemistry and Molecular Biol-ogy, Dr. Gee is enrolled as amember of The Hannah Societyand The Landon Legacy Society.


Dr. Robert W. Gee

Remembers the Department

In recognition of his generous

support to MSU and the

Department of Biochemistry

and Molecular Biology, Dr.

Gee is enrolled as a member

of The Hannah Society and

The Landon Legacy Society.

Bariola, Pauline A. - PhD ‘96

Pauline earned her degree in thelaboratory of Dr. Pam Green, andsubsequently did postdoctoral workat the Institute d’Ecologie, Universitede Lausanne, in Switzerland. Shereturned to the US in early 2001, andaccepted a position with EDENBioscience Corp. in Bothell, WA.Pauline can be contacted at [email protected].

Borders, Jeffrey S. -BS ‘92After graduating from MSU, Jeffrey

spent 3 years doing research inmolecular biology at Wayne StateUniversity, earning an MS degree. Hesubsequently enrolled in Wayne StateSchool of Medicine, from which hereceived the MD degree. Jeffrey andhis wife, Andrea, were married in1999, and at last report, were expect-ing their first child in June, 2002.Andrea also holds two degrees andis a critical care nurse. Jeff can becontacted by mail at 22510 HeinzeSt., Dearborn, MI 48128, phone (313)

792-8015, or e-mail [email protected].

Cress, W. Douglas - PhD ‘91, and Cress,Andrea P. - MS ‘89

It was great to hear again fromold friends, Doug and Andrea Cress.Doug earned his PhD in Dr. SteveTriezenberg’s lab while Andrea didher graduate work with Dr. PamFraker. After their time at MSU, Dougand Andrea both took positions atthe Howard Hughes Medical Instituteat Duke University, Doug as a Post-doc and Andrea as a Research Asso-ciate. Doug is now an AssistantProfessor in the Moffitt CancerCenter at the University of SouthFlorida in Tampa. Doug says that hisfirst two PhD students successfullydefended their thesis work within thepast year, and he has received wordthat his NIH grant has been renewedfor another five years. Sounds likeDoug’s academic career is off to agood start. Andrea and Doug havethree sons, John, Isaac, and Joseph,

who, at the time we received theupdate from Andrea, were ages 8years, 5 years, and 5 months, respec-tively. Doug and Andrea can becontacted by e-mail to doug-andrea@hotmail .com or [email protected].

Dahms, A. Stephen - PhD ‘69In 1972, Steve joined the faculty at

San Diego State University (SDSU),


Alumni News

The concluding section in the last issue of this magazine providedsome information about several past graduates of this

department. Since that time, several other alums have responded tothe request to let us know what life has brought to them since theyleft MSU, and we thank them for that. Their responses are collatedbelow. Look them over and you might see a familiar name, andperhaps the opportunity to renew contact with a friend from yourdays at MSU. If you don’t see your name below (or even if you do),we invite you to use the form attached to this publication to bring usup-to-date on your post-graduation activities and current position.You can use the postage-paid envelope to return the form to us or, ifyou prefer, send the information by e-mail to [email protected]. Welook forward to hearing from you!

Steven Dahms

where he currently holds the rank ofProfessor of Chemistry. He was thefounding Director of the SDSU Mole-cular Biology Institute, established in1974, and he continued to serve inthat role until 1992, during whichtime the Institute grew to includeover 100 personnel. From 1992-1997,Steve was Director of a campus-wideBiotechnology Research and TrainingProgram, a program designed tobring together diverse elements fromengineering, sciences, and business.In 1997, he was appointed Directorof the newly-established SDSUCenter for Bio/Pharmaceutical andBiodevice Development(www.cbbd.sdsu.edu). Since 1987, hehas also served as Executive Directorof CSUPERB (www.csuschico.edu/csuperb), a biotechnology researchand education program that involvesthe 23-campus California StateUniversity system. When Steve sentus the most recent update on hisactivities (March, 2002), he was Chair-elect of the Board of Directors forthe U.S. Council of BiotechnologyCenters/BIO (CBC/BIO), and alsoserving on the Board of Directors forthe Biotechnology Industry Organiza-tion and chairing the CBC/BIONational Biotechnology WorkforceCommittee. He is extensivelyinvolved in various other activitiesrelated to the biotechnology indus-try, both in California and nationally,as well as serving on the Board ofDirectors for two companies and aprivate research foundation. It isevident that Steve has established anexceptional record of service in link-ing academia and the biotechnology

industry. For his outstanding accom-plishments, Steve was recognizedwith the Boezi Award in 1993. Stevecan be contacted at the Departmentof Chemistry, SDSU, San Diego, CA92182-1230, or by e-mail [email protected].

Domzalski, Alison, & Russell, Ryann - BS, ‘01Alison Domzalski wrote to tell us

that she is currently enrolled in agraduate program leading to an MSdegree in forensic science at John JayCollege in Manhattan. Ryann Russellis working as a research assistant ina bacterial pathogenesis/immunolo-gy laboratory at Rockefeller Universi-ty, also in Manhattan. Alison andRyann say that they are “lovingNYC!!” They can be contacted bymail to146 Freeman St., Apt. 2L,Brooklyn, NY 11222; phone: (718) 383-3221; e-mail: [email protected].

Finn, Erin M. - BS ‘01Erin is currently enrolled in the

graduate program of the Entomology& Nematology Department, Universi-ty of Florida. Erin’s research interests

are in the development of integratedpest management programs, with theaim of reducing pesticide use incommercial plantings. She says herresearch is going well and expects toreceive her MS in Entomology inMay, 2003. Erin can be contacted bye-mail to [email protected].

Goodier, Anson - BS ‘69Anson is currently an aerospace

engineer at Tinker Air Force Base inOklahoma. Never know how thosebiochemists are going to end up, doyou? Anson can be contacted bymail to 1336 NW 138th St., Edmond,OK 73013.

Griffin, Jacob B. - BSJacob wrote to tell us that he is

currently a Laboratory Supervisor atthe University of Nebraska, Lincoln.He can be contacted by mail to hishome at 1511 SW 36th, Lincoln, NE68522.

Hanson, Douglas M. - PhD ‘68Doug Hanson wrote to fill us in

on developments since he receivedhis PhD from MSU, oh so manyyears ago. Doug did a postdoc atBoston University Medical School,then joined the Veterans Administra-tion. However, in 1977, he embarkedon a biotechnology endeavor withtwo partners, starting up a companywhich eventually went public. Hesold his interest in this company in1985, and then served as Presidentor CEO of several laboratory compa-nies working in the areas of toxicolo-gy and environmental chemistrytesting. In 1992, he joined another


Send your updates to

[email protected] look forward to hearing from you!

Ryann Russell and Allison Domzalski happily enjoyingtheir new east coast residence!

Alumni News

biotech company as Director ofTechnology Transfer, a job that tookhim to Japan and the People’sRepublic of China on several occa-sions, negotiating technology tradedeals relating to various vaccineproducts. The vaccines were to befurther developed and thenproduced in India for sale in thirdworld countries. Doug says thatthese jobs were pretty “high stress”and after three heart attacks andquadruple bypass surgery, he decid-ed to shed the management rolesand try to find something a little lessstressful. Currently he is a SeniorTechnical Writer for EMC, a majorcomputer company located in theBoston area. Doug says “it’s a lotless stress and I get to work with alot of crazy computer softwaredesigners and hardware engineers.”On January 4, 2002, he received aheart transplant, and in a communi-cation received March, 2002, he saidthat he was doing very well andexpected to return to work by April.He and his wife, Lorraine, live in NewHampshire and have three sons andan adopted daughter, and threegrandsons with another grandson“on the way” when his message wasreceived in March. Doug can becontacted by phone (603-886-1219) ore-mail: ([email protected]).

Hindash, Ammar - BS ‘01Ammar Hindash is working as a

production biochemist in theSynthetic Biochemicals Departmentof Sigma-Aldrich in St. Louis, MO.Ammar tells us that he is involved indevelopment and production of their

nucleotide line of products, one ofthe company’s most profitable. Hesays that this has been a great expe-rience. In addition, however, Ammarhas started working on an MBA atSt. Louis University, and intends tospecialize in international businessadministration. Ammar notes that St.Louis is a nice city but “not manylakes and very different from Michi-gan.” Ammar also told us that he isstill dating another MSU BMB grad,Darcy Fruner. Darcy works for Phar-macia-Upjohn, and after working inKalamazoo for a year after gradua-tion, transferred to the Pharmacia-Upjohn operation in St. Louis.Ammar can be contacted by mail to7361 Pershing Ave., Apt. 1W, St.Louis, MO 63130.

Kachel, C. Alan - BS ‘01During his undergraduate days at

MSU, Alan had worked in the labora-tory of Dr. James Tiedje, in MSU’sCenter for Microbial Ecology (CME).He noted that, together with hisundergrad BMB labs, this providedhim with excellent experience thatput him in good position when hesought employment after graduation.Through contacts made in thecourse of his work in CME, he wasoffered a position as a laboratorytechnician for Dr. Gerben Zylstra atRutgers University in New Brunswick,NJ. Alan indicated that he had otheroffers also, but chose to work withDr. Zylstra and has found this workmost rewarding. His duties includedaily laboratory management as wellas a great deal of DNA sequencingfor members of the Zylstra lab and

other investigators. Alan notes thatthe only drawback to his position isthe 5 hours per day spent commut-ing between the New York City area,where he lives, and Rutgers. Alan canbe contacted by e-mail [email protected].

Lewis, Douglas S. - PhD ‘78Doug Lewis received his PhD with

former faculty member Dr. BobRonzio as mentor. Doug subsequent-ly had been a faculty member atIowa State University for many years,during which he collaborated withanother former MSU student (PhDwith Willis Wood) and now facultymember at Iowa State, Don Bietz. InNovember of 2001, Doug becameProfessor and Chair of the Depart-ment of Human Nutrition and FoodScience at Cal Poly in Pomona. Heand his family currently reside inClaremont, CA. Doug’s researchinterests are in biological, nutritional,and educational interventions tolower chronic disease risk factors inchildren and young adults. Currentresearch projects include the role ofbile salts in fat digestion in earlyneonates, and developmental regula-tion of the cholesterol 7α-hydroxy-lase gene. Another project involvesthe use of additives (e.g., plantsterols, antioxidants) to enhance thenutritional quality of “foods that arehabitually consumed but may not beviewed as healthy.” (Hey, Doug, isthat a fancy way of saying “junkfood?”) Doug and his wife, Christine,have been married 21 years and havefive children. Two kids are in college(one a senior biochemistry major



and the other a sophomore biomed-ical engineering major), two in highschool and, last but not least, one in4th grade - quite a spread. Doug saidthat he was looking forward tothrowing a block party when he wasfinally through with public schools.Doug can be contacted by phone(909-869-2167) or e-mail ([email protected]).

Lippitt, Denise (Messing) - BS ‘90Denise completed her MD degree

at the University of Michigan andthen did a pediatrics residency(program run through NorthwesternUniversity) at Children’s MemorialHospital in Chicago. She is currentlyin private general pediatrics practicein Glenview, IL, and also participatesin teaching medical students andresidents at Northwestern UniversitySchool of Medicine. When we lastheard from Denise, she said that sheand her husband were expectingtheir first child in June, 2001. Denisecan be contacted by phone to herhome (847- 425-9223) or office (847-729-6445).

Merski, Matthew - BS ‘99Matt is currently enrolled in the PhDprogram in the Department ofBiophysics, Johns Hopkins University,in Baltimore.

Ioannis Moutsatsos - Ph.D. ‘86Ioannis recently sent us the followingmessage: I’m currently employed atWyeth Research in Cambridge, MA. Ihave been with the company (former-ly known as Genetics Institute) for 14

years, 12 of them in the lab. Mostrecently, I’ve pursued a career inbioinformatics. In 2001, I obtainedmy Masters degree in Software Engi-neering from Brandeis University,and I’m now working in the Bioinfor-matics field developing software forproteomic analysis using mass spec-trometry data. Although, unfortunate-ly, I have not kept in close contactwith many of my former colleaguesat MSU, I had the pleasure to contin-ue a lifelong friendship with MarcoVillanueva (John Wang lab, Ph.D.1987). I visited Marco in Mexico in1987 when his daughter, Mayte, waschristened, and again in 2001 withmy wife Angela and kids, Andreas (11years old) and Eleni (5 years old), tocelebrate Mayte’s 15th birthday.Marco has also visited us twice inrecent years in Boston during shortresearch sabbaticals in Providence,Rhode Island. We are hoping totravel with our families and meetagain in Greece next year ahead of

the 2004 Athens Summer Olympics. I can be reached easily via e-mail [email protected]

Neudahl, Gary A. - MS ‘82From Gary: “Twenty years after

graduating from MSU, my careerpath is firmly established in cosmeticscience. After my initial work withAlberto Culver Company, first devel-oping and then managing the devel-opment of personal care products, Ijoined an entrepreneurial company,Costect, toassist formulat-ing chemiststhroughout theAmericanMidwest. Withthe purchase ofCostec byRTD*HallStar inlate 2001, myreach willbecome national, and perhaps inter-national. There’s nothing like abiochemistry degree to provide abasis for the understanding of skinand hair and the products used onthem!” Gary is Product ApplicationManager for RTD*HallStar. Gary’sfamily now includes six children (4 by birth, 2 adopted), ranging inage from 2 to 15. Sounds like thatmust keep him busy but he alsonotes that he is an “occasional” bicy-clist and softball player. He and hisfamily live at 559 Ada St., Cary, IL,and he can be contacted by phone (847-516-7075) or e-mail ([email protected]).

Send your updates to

[email protected] look forward to hearing from you!

Marco, Tere and Mayte Villanueva, Ioannis andAngela Moutsatsos in Merida Mexico (Summer2001). Mayte Villanueva’s 15th birthday celebration.Ioannis and Angela are Mayte’s godparents.

Gary Newdahl

Alumni News

Peterson, Donna N. - MS ‘67Donna (who worked with Profes-

sor Emeritus Paul Kindel for her MSdegree) is currently a Scientist withthe Minnesota Technical AssistanceProgram (MNTAP), with which shehas worked for the past 15 years.Donna tells us that MNTAP is locat-ed at the University of Minnesotaand was established to helpMinnesota businesses understandenvironmental requirements andreduce waste and emissions. Thishas included working on some EPAprograms and with various state andcounty regulatory agencies inMinnesota.

Rollins, Thomas E. - BS ‘78, MS ‘81Tom says he is an “old guy; gray

hair; not submitting photo; two kids;married; still have sense of humorand still having fun.” Same old Tom,who brought lots of laughs to thoseassociated with him during his daysat MSU. Tom is now Senior VicePresident for Development and Oper-ations for Sepracor, Inc.. He and hisfamily live in Hopkinton, MA, and hecan be contacted by phone (508-497-2561) or e-mail([email protected]).

Saxe, Stephen A. - MS ‘78In October, 2001, Steve assumed

his new position as in-house patentcounsel for Alexion Pharmaceuticals,Inc., in Chesire, Connecticut. Hecurrently resides at 10 CoachmanLane, Bethany, CT, and can becontacted by phone (203-271-8289)or e-mail ([email protected]).

Spencer, Andrew - PhD ‘98 Since receiving his PhD, Andy had

been doing postdoctoral work atUniversity of Colorado in Boulder,working on cell migration and down-stream control of Ras signal trans-duction pathways in C. elegans.However, in July of 2002, he movedto a new postdoctoral position at theUniversity of Wisconsin, Madison,where he will be continuing studiesof receptor-mediated signal transduc-tion and the role of transient glyco-sylations in signaling. He can becontacted at his new address: 1724Jefferson St. Apt. #2, Madison, WI53711 (phone: 608-255-1070). Andysays he enjoyed his work in Boulderand looks forward to the scientificopportunities in Madison, but themove to Madison also will bringgreat personal benefits. Andy metKatie Miller (daughter of departmen-tal Associate Chairperson ShelaghFerguson-Miller) while he was still inBill Smith’s lab here at MSU. Andymoved on to Colorado for his post-doc, while Katie stayed in East Lans-ing, completing her MD degree inMSU’s College of Human Medicine.Katie is now doing a residency inMadison, and she and Andy decidedthat “being in the same city shouldbe priority number one.” Stay tuned.

Voige, William H. - BS ‘69Bill (http://csm.jmu.edu/

chemistry/faculty/voige/whvindex.htm) is currently a Professor at JamesMadison University in Harrisonburg,VA, where he holds a joint appoint-ment and teaches in both the

Department of Chemistry and theInstitute of Technical and ScientificCommunication. Bill’s teaching inter-ests are in the history of science,particularly British science, and hehas developed a London-basedtravel-study program that enablesstudents to visit historical sites andmuseums associated with importantBritish scientists. Bill can be contact-ed by e-mail to [email protected].

Welton, Ann F. - PhD ‘74Ann has pursued a research

career in the pharmaceutical indus-try. She tells us that she spent “20+years” at major pharmaceuticalcompanies in New Jersey. Ann wasVice President for Preclinical Devel-opment at Hoffmann LaRoche in1998, when she says she got hit bythe “bug” to join a small biotechcompany. She and her husbandmoved to California, where Annjoined Axus Pharmaceuticals, whichwas acquired by Celera in 2001. Anncurrently holds the position of VicePresident for Biology and PreclinicalSciences for Celera. She says sheenjoys the “rough and tumble” of thebiotech world, and is involved inwork focused on discovery of drugswith applications in oncology andtreatment of inflammatory diseases.Ann and her husband currentlyreside in San Mateo, and can becontacted by mail (3307 El SobranteSt., San Mateo, CA 94403-3714) or e-mail ([email protected] [email protected]).



the current work is directed atusing the same approach toengineer overexpression of γ-TMT,with resulting increase in α-tocopherol content of morecommon food products, such ascanola oil.

DellaPenna sees this as bothdo-able and desirable. Moreover,he believes this general approachis applicable to improving dietarysources of other plant-derivednutrients. He points out thatabout three billion peopleworldwide suffer from chronicmicronutrient deficiencies, and

states: “We’re in a uniqueposition to actually do somethingbeneficial. This won’t curemalnutrition, but it will make adent in the problem. And that’sall we can hope for.” Nor is thereany reason to limit it to vitamins.DellaPenna points out that plantsproduce an amazing array ofcompounds - more than 80,000of the 100,000 known “secondarymetabolites” are produced byplants. Most of these are poorlycharacterized, if at all, and theymay represent an untappedsource of nutritionally or

therapeutically importantcompounds. DellaPenna is still arelatively young man - hecelebrated his 42nd birthday witha round of golf on a local coursethis past year - but even for aman of his considerable energies,it is unlikely that he will haveexhausted the possibilitiesrepresented by these 80,000 plantproducts in the course of hiscareer. However, his pioneeringwork in nutritional genomics hasshown the potential, and led theway for further developments.

Healthier Eating - Vitamins Made Simple?Continued from page 15

magnet section, but also addinsertion devices called undula-tors into the straight section ofsector 21. An insertion device issimply a linear series of north-south permanent magnets thatare “inserted” above and belowthe path of the electrons. Whenthe electrons pass through thealternating fields, they undulateup and down in a roller coasterfashion. The alternating magneticfields in an undulator narrow thecone of emitted synchrotron radi-ation, allowing all of the radiationfrom “undulations” to interfereconstructively. This interferencecreates spikes of high-brilliance X-rays that are tunable to thespecific wavelengths. These undu-lators markedly increase thepower and versatility of theplanned beamlines. Of the fivebeamlines in LS-CAT, four will be

served by undulators. When LS-CAT is fully operational, it will beone of the most advanced andunique synchrotron facilities forX-ray crystallography in the world.

LS-CAT will significantlyenhance the scientific scope andimpact of research in structuralbiology within MCSB, at MSU,and in the state of Michigan.Several professors in BMB, includ-ing Shelagh Ferguson-Miller, JackPreiss, Bill Henry, ChristophBenning, and Bill Smith, arealready engaged in cutting-edgestructural research using X-raycrystallography. Their currentscientific foci span a broad spec-trum of biological research: generegulation, membrane biogenesis,fatty acid metabolism, enzymeaction, and energy production.Many other research projects inBMB are focusing on aspects of

modern drug design and proteinengineering. Here, a protein struc-ture serves as a “workbench” formolecular design in order todevelop new inhibitors (i.e., newdrugs) or to redesign the proteinsas commercial catalysts. Structur-al biology will continue to impactall these research endeavors, aswell as help open up newresearch directions in biochem-istry well into the 21st century.When LS-CAT and the otherMCSB supported facilities forstructural biology are fully opera-tional, the faculty and students inBMB will have the new tools tokeep their research at the highestlevels of excellence.



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Contributions from past students and other supporters of the Department of Biochemistry and Mole-cular Biology provide funding for several departmental awards and developmental activities. Endow-

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P A I DE. LANSING, MIPermit No. 21

2002BIOLOGY

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The Advanced Photon Source. The upper panel shows an aerial view of the APS; a schematic of the synchro-tron facility and the participating CATs is seen in the lower panel. For more information, see the APS website at http://www.aps.anl.gov. The photograph and illustration are from the APS photograph gallery.

A Bright, New Light for BiochemistrySee article on page 24.

2002

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