M. Lane Gilchrist, Jr.

Assistant Professor  (1999-present)

Department of Chemical Engineering and the
New York Center for Biomedical Engineering,
City College of New York

Mailing Address:

T306 Steinman Hall            
City College of New York            
New York, NY 10031            

Office:

Steinman Hall T306
Tel:(212)-650-6664
E-mail: lane@chemail.engr.ccny.cuny.edu

Research Interests

Design and Structural Studies of Biomaterials

     It is conceivable that in the future we will be able to mimic natural cellular communication processes
to precisely control cellular response and thus biocompatibility.  To this end we are designing biomimetic
materials assembled from cellular components such as cell recognition proteins, structural proteins
and thermally stable phospholipids. The design process is being guided with the combination of molecular
modeling and biomolecular spectroscopy, and in particular magnetic resonance studies.    It is hoped that
these materials will show promise as biomaterials and will also allow us to efficiently explore hypotheses
about the mechanisms of cellular recognition and bioreactions.

Cellular Components for Engineering: Bioprocess and Metabolic
Engineering

      Our components are to be primarily isolated from microorganisms grown in bioreactors.  In particular
we are interested in obtaining phospholipids and structural proteins from thermophilic bacteria such as Thermus
thermophilus and potentially glycosylated chemokines and receptors from yeasts such as Pichia pastoris.
To facilitate structural studies of the components, the integration of NMR-active probe nuclei will be achieved
via control of the bioreactor nutrient makeup.

Structural Biology of Cellular Communication

     The primary event in cellular communication is the formation of the ligand/receptor complex.  As most
receptors are membrane-bound proteins, methods of probing this process are limited. We are interested in
using solid state NMR to study the details of these interactions and  how they pertain to the interactions between
cells and immobilized signaling molecules on a biomimetic surface.

Concise Biographical Sketch and Publication List

Education

1989-1995 Ph. D. in Biophysical Chemistry. University of California, Davis, Department of Chemistry
       Thesis: Pulsed Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Investigations of the Photosystem II Oxygen
       Evolving Complex.    Advisor: Prof.  R. David Britt
1981-1986 B. S. in Chemical Engineering.  Louisiana State University
       Emphasis: Biochemical Engineering

Postdoctoral Study

1995-1999 NIH Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Chemistry, Columbia University.
   Project: Solid State NMR of Drug/Receptor Complexes   Advisor: Prof. Ann McDermott

Publications

Tang, X.-S.; Diner, B. A.; Larsen, B. S.; Gilchrist, M. L. Jr.; Lorigan, G. A.;  Britt, R. D.  (1994), Identification of Histidine at the Catalytic Site of the Photosynthetic Oxygen Evolving Complex. Proceedings of the National  Academy of Sciences  ,  91, 704-708

Britt, R. D.; Tang, X.-S.; Gilchrist, M. L. Jr.; Lorigan, G. A.; Larsen, B. S.;  Diner, B. A. (1994), Histidine At The Catalytic Site Of The Photosynthetic Oxygen-Evolving Complex. Biochemical Society Transactions , 22, 343-347

Gilchrist, M. L. Jr.; Randall, D. R.; Ball, J. A.; Britt, R. D.  (1995), Proximity of the Redox Active Tyrosine Yz. to the Manganese Cluster of Photosystem II.  Proceedings of the National  Academy of Sciences, 92, 9545-9549

Britt, R. D., Randall, D. W., Ball, J. A., Gilchrist, M. L., Force, D. A., Sturgeon, B. E., Lorigan, G. A., Tang, X.-S., Diner, B. A., Klein, M. P., Chan, M. K., and Armstrong, W. H. (1995)  Electron Spin Echo - ENDOR Studies of the Tyrosine Radicals and the Manganese Cluster of Photosystem II.  In Photosynthesis: from Light to Biosphere (ed. P. Mathis) Kluwer Academic Publishers, Amsterdam, vol II, pp. 223-228.

Britt, R. D., Force, D. A., Campbell, K. A., Randall, D. W., Gilchrist, L. M. Jr., Clemens,  K. L., Gingell, D. M., Peloquin, J. M., Pham, D. P., and Debus, R. J. Progress in Characterization of the Photosystem II Oxygen Evolving Complex  Using Advanced EPR Methods.  In Spectroscopic Methods in Bioinorganic Chemistry  (ed. E. Solomon) Oxford University Press, Washington

M. Lane Gilchrist Jr., Monde, K. Tomita, Y.; Iwashita, T.; Nakanishi, K. and McDermott,  A. E. (1999), Measurement of Interfluorine Distances in Solids.  (in preparation; to be submitted to the Journal of Magnetic Resonance)