Gregory Petsko
Encyclopedia
Gregory A. Petsko is an American biochemist
and member of the National Academy of Sciences
. He is currently the Gyula and Katica Tauber Professor of Biochemistry
& Chemistry
at Brandeis University
.
. He received a Rhodes Scholarship
, and obtained his doctorate from Oxford University with David Chilton Phillips
.
, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
, the Max Planck Institute, and, since 1991, Brandeis University
, where he is Professor of Biochemistry and of Chemistry and Director of the Rosenstiel Center. He is Past-President of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
. In April 2010, he was elected to the American Philosophical Society
.
.
Petsko is best known for using X-ray crystallography
to solve important problems in protein function including protein dynamics as a function of temperature and problems in mechanistic enzymology.
At MIT and Brandeis, he trained a large number of current leaders in structural molecular biology who now have leadership roles in science. These individuals include:
Biochemist
Biochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. Typical biochemists study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. The prefix of "bio" in "biochemist" can be understood as a fusion of "biological chemist."-Role:...
and member of the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
. He is currently the Gyula and Katica Tauber Professor of Biochemistry
Biochemistry
Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
& Chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
at Brandeis University
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
.
Education
Petsko was an undergraduate at Princeton UniversityPrinceton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
. He received a Rhodes Scholarship
Rhodes Scholarship
The Rhodes Scholarship, named after Cecil Rhodes, is an international postgraduate award for study at the University of Oxford. It was the first large-scale programme of international scholarships, and is widely considered the "world's most prestigious scholarship" by many public sources such as...
, and obtained his doctorate from Oxford University with David Chilton Phillips
David Chilton Phillips
David Chilton Phillips, Baron Phillips of Ellesmere, KBE, FRS is considered to be a founding father of the now expanding field of structural biology and was an influential figure in science and government...
.
Academics
Petsko's independent academic career included stints at Wayne State UniversityWayne State University
Wayne State University is a public research university located in Detroit, Michigan, United States, in the city's Midtown Cultural Center Historic District. Founded in 1868, WSU consists of 13 schools and colleges offering more than 400 major subject areas to over 32,000 graduate and...
, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
, the Max Planck Institute, and, since 1991, Brandeis University
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
, where he is Professor of Biochemistry and of Chemistry and Director of the Rosenstiel Center. He is Past-President of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology is a learned society that was founded on December 26, 1906 at a meeting organized by John Jacob Abel...
. In April 2010, he was elected to the American Philosophical Society
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society, founded in 1743, and located in Philadelphia, Pa., is an eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, that promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications,...
.
Research
Petsko is co-author with Dagmar Ringe of Protein Structure and Function. He is also the author of a monthly column in Genome Biology modelled after an amusing column in Current Biology penned by Sydney BrennerSydney Brenner
Sydney Brenner, CH FRS is a South African biologist and a 2002 Nobel prize in Physiology or Medicine laureate, shared with H...
.
Petsko is best known for using X-ray crystallography
X-ray crystallography
X-ray crystallography is a method of determining the arrangement of atoms within a crystal, in which a beam of X-rays strikes a crystal and causes the beam of light to spread into many specific directions. From the angles and intensities of these diffracted beams, a crystallographer can produce a...
to solve important problems in protein function including protein dynamics as a function of temperature and problems in mechanistic enzymology.
At MIT and Brandeis, he trained a large number of current leaders in structural molecular biology who now have leadership roles in science. These individuals include:
- Tom Alber and John KuriyanJohn KuriyanJohn Kuriyan is currently Chancellor's Professor at the University of California Berkeley in the departments of Molecular and Cell Biology and Chemistry. He is also a Faculty Scientist in Berkeley Lab's Physical Biosciences Division, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, and a member of...
, professors at University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, BerkeleyThe University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA... - Barry Stoddard and Roland Strong, faculty at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research CenterFred Hutchinson Cancer Research CenterThe Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, is one of the world’s leading cancer research institutes...
- Ilme Schlichting, department head at Max Planck, Heidelberg
- Ann Stock, professor at HHMI and Rutgers
- Steven Almo, professor at Albert Einstein College of MedicineAlbert Einstein College of MedicineAlbert Einstein College of Medicine is a graduate school of Yeshiva University. It is a not-for-profit, private, nonsectarian medical school located on the Jack and Pearl Resnick Campus in the Morris Park neighborhood of the borough of the Bronx of New York City...
- Axel Brunger, professor at Stanford
- Charles Brenner, department head at University of IowaUniversity of IowaThe University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
- Karen Allen, professor at Boston UniversityBoston UniversityBoston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
- Lynne Howell and David Rose, professors at University of TorontoUniversity of TorontoThe University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
- and Stephen Burley of SGX Pharmaceuticals