Carl Lee Tipton passed away on February 25, 2022 in Ames, Iowa. 

Reuben Peters, Distinguished Professor of biochemistry, biophysics and molecular biology at Iowa State University, has been named a 2022 fellow of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB).

Peters is one of 28 distinguished members who are being honored for their outstanding accomplishments in research, education, mentorship and service to the scientific community.

“Reuben Peters’ high-impact research, strong leadership and service in the field have been outstanding. I am so pleased, but not surprised, that he has been honored as an ASBMB fellow,” said Kristen Johansen, professor and chair of the Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology. “Reuben is a tireless advocate for next-generation scientists and a remarkable role model to all scientists.”

Paiton McDonald, BBMB senior in Biochemistry (CALS), has been selected for the prestigious Wallace E. Barron Award.

This award, established 54 years ago by the ISU Alumni Association, is conferred to outstanding ISU seniors who display high character, outstanding achievement in academics and university/community activities, and promise for continuing these exemplary qualities as alumni.

Congratulations to Gustavo MacIntosh as one of three ISU faculty awarded LAS Dean’s Professorships for their innovative research!  This is a great honor and quite competitive!  We are excited to see his work being recognized in the College this way.  So congratulations, Gustavo, and wishing you continued success in all you do!!

Gustavo MacIntosh studies two primary areas of plant science. His fundamental research delves into the interactions between soybean plants and aphids, a common and destructive pest. This research has enabled key soybean-industry stakeholders to improve pest-management practices and selectively breed more pest-resistant plants.

Gustavo MacIntosh (Christopher Gannon/Iowa State University)

Congratulations to Robert Jernigan, an Iowa State Charles F. Curtiss Distinguished Professor in Agriculture and Life Sciences in the Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology. Jernigan is part of a three-person ISU team awarded a three-year, $969,000 grant from the Department of Energy. The researchers will pursue microbial engineering to expand conditions in which industrial fermentation may occur. In his words, “I’ve studied proteins all of my life and we have incredibly rich data – several hundred million protein sequences – and this is an opportunity to make practical applications of this information."

Read more at the news release.

Don Beitz has been selected as a Fellow of Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Honor Society! The Fellow of Sigma Xi distinction is awarded on a competitive basis to members who have been recognized by their peers. Fellows must be an active, full member for the last 10 years continuously, or a life member, with distinguished service to Sigma Xi and outstanding contributions to the scientific enterprise.

Congratulations to Don on this distinguished honor, it is very well deserved!

Congratulations to Dr. Gustavo Macintosh for being selected for the prestigious "Liberal Arts & Sciences Dean’s Professorship”, funded from the Transforming Liberal Arts and Sciences endowment. Named faculty positions are the highest recognition for scholarly excellence at U.S. research universities, they are rare and prestigious.This award expresses appreciation for Dr. Macintosh's outstanding research on gene expression and metabolic changes during plant defense responses to pests. This professorship will support Dr. Macintosh's leadership role as the elected president of the American Society of Plant Biologists. As part of the professorship, Dr. Macintosh will receive $50,000 in research support per year, beginning January 1, 2022, and ending December 31, 2024, with an option of renewal for an additional three years.

Dr. Gustavo Macintosh was elected as President-Elect for the American Society of Plant Biologists. Being elected President-Elect of a major national society such as ASPB is a strong testament to Gustavo’s national standing in the field and recognition of his leadership qualities. Gustavo will serve one year as President-Elect, one year as President, and then one year as Past-President. His term will begin on October 1, 2021. Congratulations Gustavo, well done!

A new publication from the Yang lab was published in Science. The study details the structure of the SARS-CoV-2 ExoN complex bound to its substrate, revealing an important target for antiviral therapeutics. Second year Biochemistry Ph.D. student Scott Becker is also an author on the paper. Congratulations to the Yang lab!

Read more about the study here.

BBMB associate professor Dipali Sashital was featured in the Change Agent series, a series of articles telling the personal stories of Iowa State University faculty and scientists whose work is changing the world for the better. The article details Dipa's career path and her lab's work on CRISPR technology and cryo-EM.

Read the article here.

Congratulations to Reuben Peters for being named Distinguished Professor in Liberal Arts & Sciences!  This is an outstanding accomplishment, and very well deserved.  The title of Distinguished Professor, first awarded in 1956, is Iowa State's highest academic honor. It recognizes a faculty member whose accomplishments in research or creative activities have had a significant impact on his or her discipline nationally or internationally and who has demonstrated outstanding performance in at least one other area of faculty responsibility. Nominees must hold the rank of professor and have served at least five years on the Iowa State faculty. The awardee retains the title for the remainder of his or her career at the university.  Well done, Reuben!

Benjamin Litterer, junior in data science from Manchester, plans to pursue a Ph.D in statistics with an emphasis in bioinformatics.

Paiton McDonald, junior in agricultural biochemistry from Fletcher, North Carolina, plans to pursue a Ph.D in Immunology and infectious diseases.

Lauren Kueffer, Ph.D. candidate in Biochemistry in Professor Amy Andreotti's Lab, has been awarded the 2021-2022 Brown Graduate Fellowship. The Fellowship, which includes $10,000 in institutional funding, is awarded annually by the Office of the Vice President for Research (OVPR) and is used to support strategic university research.

BBMB is privileged to have Lauren in its Biochemistry graduate program and honored that she has been recognized by the OVPR for this award.   She is a first-rate contributor to this institution as a top-notch scientific investigator,  as a recruiter of prospective graduate students, as a mentor of new graduate students, and as a teacher of undergraduate students.

Dr. Stone Chen received the CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation.  The award will provide Dr. Chen 5-year support for not only his research focused on understanding the regulation of the actin cytoskeleton in endosome trafficking, but also his multiple teaching and outreach activities, such as the development of novel virtual lab software for teaching biochemistry lab courses.