David Eisenberg
Encyclopedia
David S. Eisenberg is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 biochemist
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:...

 best known for his contributions to structural and computational molecular biology
Molecular biology
Molecular biology is the branch of biology that deals with the molecular basis of biological activity. This field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry...

. A professor at the University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...

 since the early 1970s and director of the UCLA-DOE Institute for Genomics & Proteomics since the early 1990s, as well as a member of the California NanoSystems Institute
California Nanosystems Institute
The California NanoSystems Institute is an integrated research center operating jointly at UCLA and UC Santa Barbara whose mission is to foster interdisciplinary collaborations for discoveries in nanosystems and nanotechnology; train the next generation of scientists, educators and technology...

 (CNSI) at UCLA, Eisenberg's current experimental work focuses on the structural biology of amyloidogenic proteins, while his computational efforts largely center on the development of bioinformatic/proteomic methodologies for elucidation and analysis of protein interaction networks. His research group hosts the Database of Interacting Proteins
Database of Interacting Proteins
The catalogs experimentally determined interactions between proteins. It combines information from a variety of sources to create a single, consistent set of protein–protein interactions...

.

Scientific interests and contributions

David Eisenberg coined the term Rubisco
RuBisCO
Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase oxygenase, commonly known by the shorter name RuBisCO, is an enzyme involved in the first major step of carbon fixation, a process by which atmospheric carbon dioxide is converted by plants to energy-rich molecules such as glucose. RuBisCo is an abbreviation...

. The abbreviation was derived from the full name for Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase.

He was the recipient of Harvey Prize
Harvey Prize
The Harvey Prize is awarded by the Technion in Haifa, Israel. It is awarded in different disciplines of Science, Technology, Human Health, and Contributions to Peace in the Middle East. Two awards - each of $75,000 - are given away annually...

  (Human Health) 2008 in recognition of his contributions in unfolding the structure of amyloid
Amyloid
Amyloids are insoluble fibrous protein aggregates sharing specific structural traits. Abnormal accumulation of amyloid in organs may lead to amyloidosis, and may play a role in various neurodegenerative diseases.-Definition:...

 fibrils. The award was presented to him at a ceremony that took place on March 23, 2009 at the Technion. This recently recognized protein state provides opportunities to understand cells in health and disease.

Biographical information

  • Formal education and training
    • Harvard University (1961; research with J.T. Edsall)
    • D.Phil, Oxford University (1964; research with Coulson)
    • Postdoctoral research, Princeton University (1964–1966; with Walter Kauzmann
      Walter Kauzmann
      Walter J. Kauzmann was an American chemist and professor emeritus of Princeton University. He was noted for his work in both physical chemistry and biochemistry. His most important contribution was recognizing that the hydrophobic effect plays a key role in determining the three-dimensional...

      )
    • Postdoctoral research, California Institute of Technology (1966–1969; with Richard E. Dickerson)

  • Appointments and positions held
    • Professor, Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, UCLA, USA (1969-Present)
    • Professor, Department of Biological Chemistry, UCLA Medical School
    • Director, UCLA-DOE Institute for Genomics & Proteomics (1993-Present)
    • Member, California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI), UCLA
    • Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute (2001-Present)

  • Honors and awards
    • L.J. Henderson Prize (1961)
    • Harvard College Honorary Scholarships (1958-1960)
    • Rhodes Scholarship (1961-1964)
    • USPHS Career Development Award (1972-1977)
    • UCLA Distinguished Teaching Award (1975)
    • McCoy Award of the UCLA Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry for innovative research (1982)
    • Member, National Academy of Sciences (1989; Biophysics & Computational Biology section)
    • Pierce Award of the Immunotoxin Society (1992)
    • Protein Society Stein & Moore Award (1996)
    • American Chemical Society Repligen Award in Molecular Biology (1998)
    • Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute (2000)
    • Amgen Award of the Protein Society (2000)
    • Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science (2001)
    • UCLA's Seaborg Medal (2004)
    • Harvard University's Westheimer Medal (2005)
    • ACS Nobel Laureate Signature Award for Graduate Education in Chemistry (2008, as preceptor, student was Rebecca Anne Nelson)

Significant trainees

  • Michael Gribskov
    Michael Gribskov
    Michael Gribskov is currently a professor of Biological Sciences and Computer Science at Purdue University.In 1979, Gribskov graduated from Oregon State University, with a Bachelor in Science Honors degree in Biochemistry and Biophysics...


  • Melinda Balbirnie
    • Born Philadelphia
    • September 20, 1967
    • Postdoctoral scholar working with David Eisenberg in their explorations of the three-dimensional structures at the molecular level.

External links

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