Faculty Promotions Announced
Faculty promotions were announced at a recent meeting of The Scripps
Research Institute (TSRI) Board of Directors.
They include:
- Helen Jane Dyson, promoted to full professor in the Department
of Molecular Biology. Dyson (B.Sc., Ph.D., University of Sydney), who
has been with TSRI since 1984, has focused her studies on two major
themes: the understanding of how the amino acid sequence of a protein
determines its final folded structure and the understanding of enzyme
and protein function through the study of structure and dynamics.
- David Millar, promoted to associate professor with tenure
in the Department of Molecular Biology. Millar (B.Sc., Melbourne University;
Ph.D., California Institute of Technology), who began at TSRI in 1987,
conducts research in the area of biophysical chemistry. Millar uses
ultra-fast laser spectroscopy and single molecule fluorescence techniques
to study the mechanisms of action of ribozymes and DNA polymerases,
focusing on dynamic structural changes that underlie the catalytic activity
of these enzymes.
- David S. Goodsell, promoted to associate professor in the
Department of Molecular Biology. Goodsell (B.S., University of California,
Irvine; Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles) first started
working at TSRI in 1987. He combines computer graphics and computational
chemistry.
- Michael Robertson, promoted to associate professor in the
Department of Molecular and Experimental Medicine. Robertson (B.A.,
Case Western Reserve University; Ph.D., University of Illinois) has
been a member of TSRI since 1990. His research focuses on the study
of structure-dependent function of immunoglobulin E (IgE) and the multisubunit
high affinity IgE receptor (FceRI), molecules that are central components
involved in generating common allergic responses such as hayfever and
allergic asthma.
- David Schlaepfer, promoted to associate professor in the Department
of Immunology. Schlaepfer (B.A., Princeton University; Ph.D., University
of California, Irvine), who has been at TSRI since 1996, studies the
role of tyrosine kinase signaling events promoting cell motility and
invasion with regard to both normal and cancer cell biology. The emphasis
has been elucidating the role of integrin-stimulated focal adhesion
kinase activation.
- Paul Wentworth Jr., promoted to associate professor in the
Department of Chemistry. Wentworth (BSc. and Ph. D. University of Sheffield,
England) has been a member of TSRI since 1994. His research interests
include probing the chemical biology of the intrinsic oxidation pathway
of immunoglobulins, programmable biocatalysis, and polymer-supported
chemistry.
- Antoine Tabarin, promoted to adjunct associate professor in
the Department of Neuropharmacology. Tabarin (M.D., University of Bordeaux
II), who recently spent a sabbatical year at TSRI, is also a professor
of endocrinology and metabolic diseases at the University of Bordeaux
Medical School (Bordeaux II) and chair of the Department of Endocrinology
at the University of Bordeaux Hospital. His findings at TSRI included
a knockout of the mu opioid receptor that causes resistance to the weight
gain and neuroendocrine sequelae that form a premorbid diabetes-like
state associated with ingestion of a high-fat diet.
- Dan J. Von Seggern, promoted to assistant professor in the
Department of Immunology. A member of TSRI since 1994, Von Seggern (B.S.,
University of Washington, Seattle; Ph.D., University of California,
Berkeley) is primarily interested in improved vectors for gene therapy.
He previously generated a system for retargeting adenovirus, and is
now using the technology to develop therapies for cancer and for retinal
degenerations. A second area of investigation is receptor usage by the
adenovirus family, and its relationship to the pathologies caused by
these viruses.
- Anita D. Wentworth, promoted to assistant professor in the
Department of Chemistry. Wentworth (BSc. and Ph. D. University of Sheffield,
England) has been affiliated with TSRI since 1997. Her research focuses
on the kinetic and thermodynamic basis of antibody biocatalysis.
Go back to News & Views Index
|
Helen Jane Dyson has been promoted to full professor.
Photo by Jason Socrates Bardi.
|
