Effective August 2011, Marcia Levitus and John Chaput have been promoted to associate professor with tenure. Dmitry Matyushov has been promoted to full professor. Due to their outstanding records, all had unanimous support of the faculty.
Marcia Levitus employs an interdisciplinary approach to her research that interweaves concepts from physics, chemistry and biology. Her group focuses on the development and application of state-of-the-art techniques for single molecule detection in complex biological systems, using these concepts to investigate the dynamics, structure and kinetics of nucleoprotein assemblies. Specific projects include the study of the dynamic aspects of DNA-protein interactions in nucleosomes as well as characterizing the spontaneous DNA unwrapping and re-wrapping kinetics, and the study of the effect of ATP-dependent remodeling enzymes. Levitus's awards and honors include a 2006 NSF CAREER award, the 2010 Inter-American Photochemical Society Young Investigator Award and the cover of the Journal of Physical Chemistry B in March 2009 for her paper "Photophysics of Backbone Fluorescent DNA Modifications: Reducing Uncertainties in FRET".
John Chaput applies the principles of Darwinian evolution to evolve peptides, proteins, and nucleic acids with desired functional properties. Starting from large pools of sequences, his group isolates functional molecules through iterative cycles of selection and amplification. Using this methodology, Chaput and coworkers create novel tools for molecular medicine, exploring the functional landscape of the human genome, and examining the magnitude of the protein universe. This research combines traditional synthetic organic chemistry and molecular biology with functional genomics, structural biology, and nanobiotechnology. Specific projects in Chaput's laboratory include: In vitro evolution of novel protein folds, histone post-translational modifications and the epigenome, exploring the translational landscape of the human genome as well as developing synthetic antibodies to human proteins.
Dmitry Matyushov is interested in understanding how energy is transferred in biological and molecular assemblies. Energy chains in biology rely on transmembrane transfer of redox energy from electron donating molecules to catalytic sites where the energy is stored in chemical bonds. A similar mechanism is present in both natural and artificial photosynthesis. The photon energy is first stored in a photoabsorbing molecule and is then transferred away from
the point of primary photon absorption to an active site where catalytic chemical processes occur. In all these mechanisms, electrons move between centers of localization on organic cofactors or active sites of enzymes. Matyushov's group is working on understanding the kinetics and energetics of these elementary electron transport events with the goal of formulating the general principles of energetic efficiency of molecular charge-transfer chains. Matyushov's research strategy combines the use of computer simulations of realistic systems with the development of theoretical models that can be directly applied to interpretation of the experimental data.
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Arizona State University
Tempe, Arizona 85287-1604
Phone: (480) 965-3461 FAX: (480) 965-2747 chemistry.asu.edu
Marcia Levitus employs an interdisciplinary approach to her research that interweaves concepts from physics, chemistry and biology. Her group focuses on the development and application of state-of-the-art techniques for single molecule detection in complex biological systems, using these concepts to investigate the dynamics, structure and kinetics of nucleoprotein assemblies. Specific projects include the study of the dynamic aspects of DNA-protein interactions in nucleosomes as well as characterizing the spontaneous DNA unwrapping and re-wrapping kinetics, and the study of the effect of ATP-dependent remodeling enzymes. Levitus's awards and honors include a 2006 NSF CAREER award, the 2010 Inter-American Photochemical Society Young Investigator Award and the cover of the Journal of Physical Chemistry B in March 2009 for her paper "Photophysics of Backbone Fluorescent DNA Modifications: Reducing Uncertainties in FRET". 
John Chaput applies the principles of Darwinian evolution to evolve peptides, proteins, and nucleic acids with desired functional properties. Starting from large pools of sequences, his group isolates functional molecules through iterative cycles of selection and amplification. Using this methodology, Chaput and coworkers create novel tools for molecular medicine, exploring the functional landscape of the human genome, and examining the magnitude of the protein universe. This research combines traditional synthetic organic chemistry and molecular biology with functional genomics, structural biology, and nanobiotechnology. Specific projects in Chaput's laboratory include: In vitro evolution of novel protein folds, histone post-translational modifications and the epigenome, exploring the translational landscape of the human genome as well as developing synthetic antibodies to human proteins. 
Dmitry Matyushov is interested in understanding how energy is transferred in biological and molecular assemblies. Energy chains in biology rely on transmembrane transfer of redox energy from electron donating molecules to catalytic sites where the energy is stored in chemical bonds. A similar mechanism is present in both natural and artificial photosynthesis. The photon energy is first stored in a photoabsorbing molecule and is then transferred away from