UpDate - Vol. 13, No. 30, Page 1
May 5, 1994
Grad program to explore chem-biology interface

     A new University of Delaware program designed to enable graduate
students to apply the methods of chemistry to important biological problems
is one of only five programs to be funded nationally by the National
Institutes of Health (NIH).
     Supported by an $870,000, five-year NIH grant, the program is expected
to begin this fall with four students. Competition for the NIH funding was
extremely keen, with applications submitted by more than 35 leading
academic institutions, according to Roberta F. Colman, program director and
professor of chemistry and biochemistry.
     Coordinated through the University's Department of Chemistry and
Biochemistry, the new program involves top faculty from five academic units
at the University, representing the diverse disciplines of biochemistry,
chemical engineering, organic chemistry, molecular biology, virology,
analytical chemistry, physical chemistry and marine biology.
     "The Graduate Training Program at the Interface of Chemistry and
Biology is an interdisciplinary effort to enable a talented group of
students to apply the mechanistic and synthetic approaches of chemistry to
biological problems," Colman said.
     Colman pointed out that recent rapid advances in molecular biology,
biochemistry, immunology, genetics, microbiology, structural biology and
chemistry have created new opportunities to attack important problems in
human health, agriculture, food production, drug development and
large-scale manufacturing of biologically active substances.
     In order to capitalize on the new opportunities presented by these
revolutionary developments in modern biology, multidisciplinary research
approaches are required. At the same time, government agencies and leaders
in pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries have recognized that there
is a diminishing pool of both chemists with the background to appreciate
the biological potential of the compounds and reactions they study and of
biologists with the necessary understanding of chemical structure and
reactivity to apply powerful modern approaches to solving biological
questions at a molecular level, Colman said.
     The new graduate program will equip students to be leaders in the
biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries or in academic departments of
chemistry, medicinal chemistry, biochemistry, molecular biology and
pharmacology.
     Through laboratory rotations, each student will gain experience in
three different research areas, such as biochemistry, analytical chemistry,
organic chemistry or chemical engineering.
     Those selected for the doctoral-level program also will take five
one-semester courses to be selected from a broad range of graduate courses
in five departments and a course on "Scientific Integrity and Ethical
Principles in Research," taught by Rivers Singleton of the University's
Center for Science and Culture.
     Other facets of the program include a multidisciplinary journal club,
which will be attended by students and faculty; seminars with outside
speakers; and an intense research experience culminating in a dissertation
that presents significant original contribution to a field at the interface
of chemistry and biology. Potential research areas for the dissertation in
this program include biochemistry, bio-organic, bio-analytical and
biophysical chemistry, as well as molecular biology, structural biology,
marine biochemistry and bioengineering.
     In addition, students and faculty will meet annually with an external
Scientific Advisory Board, which includes three prominent scientists.
Current members of the board-all UD alumni-are Anthony A. Kossiakoff,
laboratory director of protein engineering at Genentech Inc.; George D.
Rose, professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics at
Washington University's School of Medicine; and Michael M. Cox, professor
in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin.
     The program is coordinated by a faculty steering committee that
includes Colman, Colin Thorpe, associate program director, and H. Keith
Chenault, all chemistry and biochemistry; Abraham M. Lenhoff, chemical
engineering; and Robin W. Morgan, animal sciences and agricultural
biochemistry.
     Other UD faculty participating in the program are Stuart L. Cooper and
Andrew L. Zydney, both chemical engineering; Douglas J. Doren, Philip A.
Gottlieb, Mahendra K. Jain, Murray V. Johnston, Cynthia K. McClure and Mary
J. Wirth, all chemistry and biochemistry; Daniel T. Simmons, life and
health sciences; and J. Herbert Waite, marine studies.