Donald F. Hunt is currently the University Professor of Chemistry and Pathology at the University of Virginia

University of Virginia

The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...

.

Early life and education

He received his B.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts

University of Massachusetts

This article relates to the statewide university system. For the flagship campus often referred to as "UMass", see University of Massachusetts Amherst...

 and was an NIH Postdoctoral trainee under Professor Klaus Biemann

Klaus Biemann

Klaus Biemann is a Professor Emeritus of chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His work was centered on structural analysis in organic and biochemistry...

 at MIT.

The Hunt laboratory

The Hunt laboratory currently develops new methodology and instrumentation centered on mass spectrometry

Mass spectrometry

Mass spectrometry is an analytical technique that measures the mass-to-charge ratio of charged particles.It is used for determining masses of particles, for determining the elemental composition of a sample or molecule, and for elucidating the chemical structures of molecules, such as peptides and...

 based proteomics

Proteomics

Proteomics is the large-scale study of proteins, particularly their structures and functions. Proteins are vital parts of living organisms, as they are the main components of the physiological metabolic pathways of cells. The term "proteomics" was first coined in 1997 to make an analogy with...

 for the characterization of proteins and their modifications.

Research interests

Among his many research interests, Prof. Hunt investigates how the immune system uses peptides to kill diseased cells and how modifications to chromatin-associated proteins called histones create a "Code" that may be involved in many gene regulation events.

Professor Hunt currently teaches Organic Chemistry lab at the University of Virginia.

Awards

Widely regarded in the proteomic community, Prof. Hunt has been awarded several honors including the Distinguished Contribution Award from the American Society of Mass Spectrometry, the Christian B. Anfinsen Award from the Protein Society, the Chemical Instrumentation Award and Field and Franklin Award from the American Chemical Society

American Chemical Society

The American Chemical Society is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 161,000 members at all degree-levels and in all fields of chemistry, chemical...

, the Thomson Medal from the International Mass Spectrometry Society, the Human Proteome Organization

Human Proteome Organization

The Human Proteome Organization is an international consortium of national proteomics research associations, government researchers, academic institutions, and industry partners...

 Distinguished Achievement Award in Proteomics, and most recently the Association of Biomolecular Resource Facilities

Association of Biomolecular Resource Facilities

The Association of Biomolecular Resource Facilities is dedicated to advancing core and research biotechnology laboratories through research, communication, and education...

2007 Award.