Chemistry Professor Mishtu Dey wins NSF-SusChEM grant

Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Mishtu Dey
Mishtu Dey

University of Iowa Professor Mishtu Dey has received a National Science Foundation grant for her research project, “Molecular and Structural Dissection of Methyl Coenzyme M Reductase for Methane Production.” The grant is part of the NSF’s Sustainable Chemistry, Engineering, and Materials (SusChEM) initiative.

From the abstract: “The objective of this project is to investigate the mechanism of methane formation by MCR and biosynthesis of unusual post-translational modifications (PTMs) present in this globally important metalloenzyme responsible for biological methane production. Here, structural and mechanistic enzymology approaches are used to investigate enzyme-catalyzed C-heteroatom bond activation and biological methylation reactions. The proposed studies may provide important insights into the mechanism of biological methane formation and may illuminate Nature's strategies to carry out unusual PTMs. The knowledge gained from the proposed research offers important insights into how energy-rich molecules, such as methane, are synthesized within the hydrophobic reaction chamber of a buried metalloenzyme active site. The comprehensive structure-function study has applications in bioengineering and bioenergy/biofuel industries.”

Dey is an assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry, part of the UI College of Liberal Arts & Sciences.

The University of Iowa College of Liberal Arts and Sciences offers about 70 majors across the humanities; fine, performing and literary arts; natural and mathematical sciences; social and behavioral sciences; and communication disciplines. About 15,000 undergraduate and nearly 2,000 graduate students study each year in the college’s 37 departments, led by faculty at the forefront of teaching and research in their disciplines. The college teaches all Iowa undergraduates through the college's general education program, CLAS CORE. About 80 percent of all Iowa undergraduates begin their academic journey in CLAS. The college confers about 60 percent of the university's bachelor's degrees each academic year.