Detailed Information
Program of Study
The Graduate Program in Biological Chemistry is an interdisciplinary program leading to the Ph.D. degree. Participating faculty members are drawn from the Departments of Biology, Biochemistry, Chemistry, Medicinal Chemistry, Oncological Sciences, Pathology, and Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Chemistry. The aim of the program is to train students for independent research at the interface of chemistry and biology. A wide variety of research interests are represented, including biochemistry, biophysics and molecular simulation, chemical biology, medicinal chemistry, and structural biology.
Students admitted to the Program in Biological Chemistry take a common set of first-year courses. Entering students rotate in four laboratories in order to become acquainted with possible research supervisors. A student in good standing at the end of the first academic year chooses a faculty research supervisor for further doctoral study and is automatically admitted to the graduate program of the supervisor’s department. Additional requirements for the Ph.D. are set by individual departments, but they are similar throughout the University.
Research Facilities
A series of shared core facilities are available to all participating departments. These include cores for oligonucleotide and peptide synthesis, DNA and protein sequencing, mass spectrometry, NMR, transgenic mice, homologous recombination, and various types of microscopy. Participating departments have up-to-date facilities, including X-ray diffraction instrumentation and biophysical equipment (calorimetry, diverse types of spectrometers, and sedimentation ultracentrifugation). There are two comprehensive science libraries, one on the main campus (near the Departments of Biology and Chemistry) and the other at the Health Sciences Center.
Financial Aid
The Program in Biological Chemistry supports students during the first year without requiring teaching. Support after the first year is from individual departments and research programs through teaching assistantships, research assistantships, and NIH Training Grants. One semester of teaching experience is generally required after the first year. The level of support for 2007–08 was $25,000 plus a $1000 starting allocation for the year. The program also covers the cost of health and dental insurance.
Cost of Study
Tuition and fees are paid by the Program in Biological Chemistry for the first year. After the first year, departments or individual research programs support their students; there is currently no cost to students.
Living and Housing Costs
Housing is available within walking distance of the University in private apartments and in University housing. Rent for a typical one-bedroom unfurnished private apartment is $600 per month both on and off campus. University housing includes all utilities except a telephone.
Student Group
The Program in Biological Chemistry admits 10–15 graduate students per year. The University has nearly 6,600 graduate students, with approximately 300 graduate students in disciplines related to biological chemistry. Students come from all states and many countries.
Location
The University is located in Salt Lake City, 1½ miles east of the city center. The site is at an altitude of 4,500 feet, just at the base of the Wasatch Range, which rises precipitously to the east and south of the University. The main campus, home to the Departments of Biology and Chemistry, is less than 1 mile from the Health Sciences Center, which houses the Departments of Biochemistry, Oncological Sciences, and Human Genetics. The Departments of Medicinal Chemistry, Pharmaceutical Chemistry, and Pharmacology and Toxicology are in adjacent buildings. Travel between the two campuses is a pleasant 15-minute walk, and there are frequent free shuttle buses or TRAX train.
Metropolitan Salt Lake City, with a population of more than 898,000, is the economic and cultural center of the intermountain region of the western United States. The city is well-known for classical music (Utah Symphony), dance (Repertory Dance Theater, Ballet West), and sports (Utah Jazz and University teams). Salt Lake City is a popular vacation destination for outdoor enthusiasts because of the nearby mountains, forests, and deserts. Nine national parks are within a day’s drive.
The University
Founded in 1850, the University of Utah is the oldest state university west of the Missouri River. The total enrollment is approximately 28,000. There are nearly 1,700 teaching faculty members and 1,800 adjunct, research, and clinical faculty members. The University includes colleges of medicine, law, education, business, mines and mineral industries, science, humanities, social and behavioral sciences, health, fine arts, engineering, nursing, pharmacy, and social work.
Applying
Application materials are available on the program’s Web site or by request. The program requires a completed application form, transcripts of grades of all college-level courses, scores on the General Test portion of the Graduate Record Examinations (verbal, quantitative, and analytical writing), three letters of recommendation solicited by the applicant, and a detailed personal statement of career interest. The University’s application fee is paid by the program. Applications are due January 15 for entrance the following August. The Admissions Committee of the program invites promising prospective students for personal interviews; travel expenses for invited students are paid by the program.
The Faculty and Their Research
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Following the faculty member’s name, his or her department is listed in parentheses, followed by the specific research interest.
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E. Dale Abel (Biochemistry): cardiac metabolism and gene expression by insulin.
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Markus Babst (Biology): protein trafficking.
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Kuberan Balagurunathan (Medicinal Chemistry): glycobiology and carbohydrate biosynthesis.
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Brenda Bass (Biochemistry): double-stranded RNA, RNA editing, and interference.
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David Blair (Biology): bacterial motility.
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Don Blumenthal (Biochemistry): protein kinases.
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Susan Bock (Medicinal Chemistry and Bioengineering): protein conformational change and targeting.
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Greg Bulaj (Medicinal Chemistry): neuropeptides and conotoxins.
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Cynthia Burrows (Chemistry): nucleic acid chemistry.
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Brad Cairns (Oncological Sciences): chromatin; transcription; genomics.
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Dana Carroll (Biochemistry): gene targeting.
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Tom Cheatham (Medicinal Chemistry): biomolecular simulation.
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Darrell Davis (Medicinal Chemistry): RNA structure.
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Peter Flynn (Chemistry): solution NMR.
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Tim Formosa (Biochemistry): DNA replication; chromatin.
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David Gard (Biology): microtubules and MAPs.
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Hamid Ghandehari (Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Chemistry): nanomedicine and drug delivery.
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David Goldenberg (Biology): protein biophysics.
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David Grainger (Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Chemistry): materials in medicine.
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Barbara Graves (Oncological Sciences): transcription; protein biochemistry.
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Charles Grissom (Chemistry): cancer drug delivery and enzyme mechanisms.
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James Herron (Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Chemistry): structural immunology; vaccines; biosensors.
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Chris Hill (Biochemistry): protein structure and function.
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Martin Horvath (Biology): structural biology; X-ray crystallography.
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Wai Mun Huang (Pathology): topoisomerases: structure and function.
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Chris Ireland (Medicinal Chemistry): marine natural products.
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David Jones (Oncological Sciences and Medicinal Chemistry): colon cancer development.
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Michael Kay (Biochemistry): viral entry.
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Jindrich Kopecek (Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Chemistry): biomaterials; drug delivery.
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Carol Lim (Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Chemistry): controlled protein delivery.
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Janet Lindsley (Biochemistry): DNA-based enzymes.
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Ryan Looper (Chemistry): small-molecule interactions in biological systems.
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Baldomera Olivera (Biology): molecular neurobiology; conotoxins.
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Dale Poulter (Chemistry): mechanistic enzymology.
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Jon Rainier (Chemistry): synthetic organic chemistry.
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Martin Rechsteiner (Biochemistry): intracellular proteolysis.
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Jared Rutter (Biochemistry): metabolic signaling.
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Eric Schmidt (Medicinal Chemistry): natural products chemistry/biology.
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Wesley Sundquist (Biochemistry): HIV assembly.
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Thanh Truong (Chemistry): computer modeling; enzyme mechanisms.
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Greg Voth (Chemistry): theory of biomolecular systems.
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Dennis Winge (Biochemistry): metalloproteins; metalloregulation.
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Ilya Zharov (Chemistry): organic and biological materials.
Correspondence and Information
University of Utah
Wesley Sundquist, Director
Interdepartmental Graduate Program in Biological Chemistry
15 North 2030 East
533 EIHG, Room 1400
Salt Lake City, Utah 84112-5330
Telephone:
801-581-5207
Fax:
801-585-2465
Email:
barbara.saffel@genetics.utah.edu
