In celebration of Juneteenth, the federal holiday often regarded as America’s second Independence Day, ACS Bio & Med Chem Au presents a selection of Research Articles, Perspectives, Letters, and Reviews that showcase the remarkable talent of scientists descended from the African diaspora who continue to drive innovation in chemistry and the life sciences. While President Joe Biden recognized Juneteenth as a federal holiday in 2021, the history of Juneteenth dates back to January 1, 1863, when President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring that all persons held as enslaved people within the Confederate states were free. While this Proclamation sparked our nation’s commitment to freedom and initiated the critical steps in the history of emancipation in the United States, the intended results were severely limited, in part, by the Union army’s limited ability to enforce the Proclamation.
On June 19th, 1866, two months and ten days after the Confederate army surrendered and three years after the Emancipation Proclamation, the Union Army landed in Galveston, Texas, and pronounced that the more than 250,000 enslaved people in Texas were free. They were among the last to learn of their freedom. Soon after, on December 6, 1866, the 13th Amendment officially abolished slavery throughout the United States. Juneteenth is honored in modern times not only as a celebration of the freedom of enslaved people from the African Diaspora but also as a reminder that freedom in the United States was hard fought. Or, as UC Davis historian Gregory Downs once stated, “Juneteenth is an important moment in the history of emancipation because it reveals the way that emancipation did not happen all at once or with the stroke of a pen but in a brutal, decades-long fight against slave owners who did not surrender or retreat”. It serves as a reminder that the unity and freedoms we enjoy today were neither a “gift” nor brought about passively. Instead, it was purchased with the blood, sweat, and tears of our Black, White, and indigenous ancestors. In the context of this virtual issue of ACS Bio & Med Chem Au, Juneteenth serves as a poignant reminder that, with this freedom, Black people and others from the African diaspora have made significant contributions to the scientific landscape of the United States of America.
Although the Emancipation Proclamation brought “freedom” to Black people, African Americans were far from enjoying the inalienable rights of Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness granted in the U.S. Declaration of Independence. The end of slavery, especially after Reconstruction, brought continued misery and disenfranchisement in the form of the Black Codes, as well as poll taxes and literacy tests to restrict Black voting. Jim Crow laws were erected to ensure that Black people “knew their place” and to maintain a separation between the Black and White races in almost all facets of daily life. These laws were particularly harmful when applied to the education of Black people; a lack of access to robust educational resources often restricted their socioeconomic upward mobility. More importantly, Black people who did receive robust educations, sometimes at premier institutions in the United States, found it exceedingly difficult to obtain employment, especially in the sciences. Renowned Black scientists like Ernest Everett (E.E.) Just (University of Chicago), Percy Julian (University of Vienna), and Lloyd Ferguson (University of California, Berkeley), who received Ph.D. degrees from prestigious institutions, were relegated to teaching positions at Historically Black Colleges and Universities due to their inability to obtain professorships at most White institutions or jobs in industry. These individuals, along with many others, were exceptional. E.E. Just made fundamental contributions to the understanding of the cell surface in biological events such as fertilization; Percy Julian was a pioneer in the chemical synthesis of natural products, especially steroids, and was the second Black person to be elected to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences; while Lloyd Ferguson was the first Black person to earn a Ph.D. in chemistry from University of California, Berkeley, and wrote several influential textbooks in organic chemistry, some of which were adopted at White institutions in the south at a time when he would not be admitted as a student. Science was not something Black people were thought to be capable of excelling at. Instead, science was something that was done on Black people, as in the infamous Tuskegee Syphilis study (1932–1972), conducted by the US Public Health Service.
Black people were considered intellectually inferior, a sentiment that persists even today, although it is now more subtle. These beliefs were held by people such as Thomas Jefferson, who stated that Black people were “inferior to the Whites in the endowments of body and mind”, which was used to justify slavery. More recently, in 2007, James Watson, who won the Nobel Prize for the structure of DNA, argued that all our social policies in the U.S. and throughout the world are based on the assumption that the intelligence of Black people is equal to that of White people, whereas the testing suggests otherwise. These beliefs, when expressed publicly by highly respected people, have damning consequences.
As a high school student, one of us (S.J.B.) remembers a classmate bemoaning the arrival of Black History Month. The student stated that he did not know why he had to celebrate Black History Month: “Black people haven’t done anything”. This sentiment is precisely the problem and why it remains essential to celebrate the achievements of Black Americans. Not to do so can have devastating consequences on how others view Black people and how Black people view themselves. In the absence of specific examples of Black achievement in science, the default assumption is that a White male made the achievement. For example, few people know that Dr. Thomas Cole, as a Ph.D. student at the University of Chicago in the laboratory of Professor Phillip Eaton, was the first to synthesize cubane. This compound, which contains eight carbon atoms at the vertices of a cube, attracted overwhelming attention from the organic chemistry community. Many thought it would be impossible to synthesize, given that each of the carbons adopted strained 90° angles. Even fewer people know that Dr. Jane Wright, a Black woman, was the first to use folic acid antagonists as anticancer drugs and the first to identify methotrexate as a potent anticancer agent. The 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to David Baker, Demis Hassabis, and John Jumper for their work in computational protein design and structure prediction. Although they were undoubtedly deserving, the pioneer of computational protein design is Caltech biochemist Prof. Stephen Mayo, a Black scientist who was also deserving. Mayo, who incidentally earned his undergraduate degree in chemistry from The Pennsylvania State University, is credited with achieving the first successful design of a protein from physical principles with experimental validation (Science 1997, 278, 82–87. 10.1126/science.278.5335.82).
The achievements above are just a few of many remarkable contributions to science by Black people. While it is important to acknowledge that celebrating the achievements of Black scientists does not diminish the contributions made by people in other racial groups, this Juneteenth Special Issue of ACS Bio & Med Chem Au, by highlighting outstanding research from current Black scientists, demonstrates how far Black people have come since the abolition of slavery.
Squire J. Booker
Evan Pugh Professor and Eberly Family Distinguished
Chair in Science at the Pennsylvania State University and the Richard
C. Perry Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Biophysics, &
Chemical Biology at the University of Pennsylvania.
It is amazing what people can accomplish when presented with opportunities. – Squire J. Booker
Professor. Squire J. Booker earned a B.A. degree with a concentration in Chemistry from Austin College (Sherman, TX) and a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he studied under Professor JoAnne Stubbe. He performed postdoctoral studies for one year as an NSF-NATO fellow in the laboratory of Daniel Mansuy at Université René Descartes in Paris, France, before moving to the Institute for Enzyme Research at the University of WisconsinMadison to study with Professor Perry Frey under an NIH Ruth Kirschstein postdoctoral fellowship. He started his independent laboratory at The Pennsylvania State University in 1999 and remained there until his move to the University of Pennsylvania in June 2025.
The Booker lab focuses on enzyme catalysis, with a particular emphasis on enzymes that catalyze kinetically challenging reactions involving radicals. One major class of enzymes he studies is the radical S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) superfamily of enzymes, which use SAM as a precursor to a 5′-deoxyadenosyl radical intermediate, responsible for initiating well over one hundred different reaction types. His laboratory employs a range of techniques to investigate enzyme catalysis, including structural methods such as X-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy, spectroscopic methods like electron paramagnetic resonance and Mössbauer spectroscopies, electrochemical methods like protein film voltammetry, and various biochemical, microbiological, and molecular biological methods.
In addition to his scientific endeavors, he is involved in the mentoring of young scientists and has served on the advisory boards of ABRCMS and ASBMB NIH MOSAIC. He also served as chair of the Minority Affairs Committee of ASBMB. Among other awards, Booker has received a Presidential Early Career Award in Science and Engineering (PECASE), an ACS Cope Scholar award, the Frank Westheimer Medal from Harvard University, the Ruth Kirschstein and Merck Awards from ASBMB, the Percy Julian Award from NOBCChE, and the Hans Neurath Award from the Protein Society. He was elected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2013, a fellow of the American Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in 2021, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2017, and a member of the National Academy of Sciences in 2019. He is currently an Associate Editor of Biochemistry ACS and the Deputy Editor of ACS Bio & Med Chem Au.
Prof. Booker’s Article is titled “Radical Fluoromethylation Enabled by Cobalamin-Dependent Radical SAM Enzymes” (DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomedchemau.5c00062).
Donita C. Brady
Harrison McCrea Dickson, MD, and Clifford C. Baker, MD, Presidential Associate Professor, University of Pennsylvania.
Rooted in African ancestry and a family legacy of resilience, I am driven to dismantle barriers and expand access, inclusion, and representation in STEM fields. - Donita C. Brady
Dr. Donita C. Brady earned her BS in Chemistry from Radford University and her PhD in Pharmacology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, followed by postdoctoral research with Dr. Christopher Counter at Duke University, where she focused on oncogenic signaling pathways.
At the University of Pennsylvania, the Brady Lab explores how cancer cells adapt to fuel uncontrolled growth, with two primary research areas: Mapping and Leveraging Metal Signaling in Cancer and Unlocking the Chemical Space of Cancer-Associated Perturbations.
The lab investigates how dietary metals contribute to cancer progression. While metals are essential for DNA, RNA, and protein function, the mechanisms by which cells regulate metal balance and respond to metal fluctuations are not fully understood. Brady’s team studies how metal–protein interactions shape signaling and metabolism and how metal requirements shift as stem cells mature or activate during tissue repaira process that, when misregulated, may initiate cancer. These studies aim to uncover new opportunities to therapeutically target metal-driven pathways.
Recognizing that most patients do not benefit from genetic precision medicine, the Brady Lab focuses on the proteomethe active proteins driving cancer behavior. In 2019, Brady cofounded Penn Therapeutics Mechanisms (PTM), a multidisciplinary initiative aimed at developing tools to track dynamic changes in tumor protein activity and reveal previously hidden cancer vulnerabilities. A key innovation, the Probe-Enabled Activity Reporting (PEAR) platform, captures active proteins in cancer cells to identify novel drug targets that are often missed by genetic analyses. This proteome-centered approach has the potential to broaden the impact of precision oncology and lead to the discovery of new therapeutic strategies.
Prof. Brady’s Article is titled “MAPK Pathway Inhibition Reshapes Kinase Chemoproteomic Ligandability Reporting on Cellular Activation States”.
Craig Cameron
The Paul A. Godley, MD, PhD, Distinguished Professor and
Chair of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University
of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
This issue shows that we’ve come a long way since June 19, 1865. - Craig E. Cameron
Before joining University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2019, Dr. Cameron was the holder of the Eberly Family Chair in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at The Pennsylvania State University. His research focuses on the enzymology and cell biology of viral genome replication, with emphasis on viral enzymes, including viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerases. His laboratory, in collaboration with many others, applies a wide range of cutting-edge approaches to the study of plus-strand RNA viruses, contributing to pandemic preparedness. Dr. Cameron’s work has provided insights into the development of antiviral therapeutics and the fundamental understanding of RNA virus biology. He is also recognized for his extraordinary service to science and has received awards acknowledging his contributions to research and mentorship.
Prof. Cameron’s Article is titled “Mechanism of Forced-Copy-Choice RNA Recombination by Enteroviral RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerases” (DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomedchemau.5c00049).
Lydia Contreras
Professor of Chemical Engineering, Paul
D. and Betty Robertson Meek Centennial Professor, and Associate Dean
for Postdoctoral Affairs, the University of Texas–Austin.
My co-authors and I are thrilled to be highlighting in this issue some of the current mechanistic understanding of how environmental pollution impacts human health; this is an important issue that deserves much more scientific attention. - Lydia Contreras
Dr. Lydia M. Contreras is a Professor (and Paul D. and Betty Robertson Meek Centennial Professor) of Chemical Engineering at the University of Texas–Austin and currently serves part-time as an Associate Dean for Postdoctoral Affairs within the Graduate School. She is also a member of the microbiology, cell molecular biology, and biochemistry graduate programs.
Dr. Contreras obtained a B.SE in Chemical Engineering from Princeton University in 2003, where she graduated Cum Laude. She completed her PhD in Chemical Engineering from Cornell University in 2008, focusing on engineering bacterial cells for improved production of therapeutic proteins. As a postdoctoral associate at the Wadsworth Center (New York State Department of Health), she focused on understanding mechanisms of infection in pathogenic bacteria. She began her career at the University of Texas–Austin in 2011, where she leads a research team focused on RNA biochemistry to study gene regulation mechanisms associated with stress responses for applications in health and biotechnology. Her research team is particularly interested in how environmental stressors influence regulatory patterns of gene expression in living systems.
She has received several academic, teaching and service awards including: an NSF CAREER, ACS BIOT Young Investigator Award, American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AICHE) Food, Pharmaceutical and Bioengineering Division Early Career Award, Biotechnology and Bioengineering Daniel I.C. Wang Award, Department of Thrust Reduction Agency (DTRA) Young Investigator, Airforce Office of Scientific Research Young Investigator, Health and Environmental Institute (HEI) Walter E. Rosenblith New Investigator, Norman Hackerman Advanced Research Program (NHARP) Early Career, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) Young Investigator Award, and an Innovative Early-Career Frontiers of Engineering Educator. Most recently she has been elected to the American Society of Microbiology.
Prof. Contreras’ Article is titled “High-throughput microfluidic technologies for rapidly screening pollutant-induced cell health effects”.
Laura Dassama
Assistant Professor of Chemistry and of Microbiology and
Immunology, Stanford University.
The pursuit of excellence in service of all humanity is the history of Black scientists. We will continue to uphold this rich history. - Laura Dassama
Dr. Laura M. K. Dassama is an Assistant Professor of Chemistry at Stanford University, an Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at Stanford School of Medicine, and an Institute Scholar at Sarafan ChEM-H Institute. Her research interests center around creating chemical tools for the selective modulation of difficult-to-drug human proteins and discovering new druggable targets for infectious disease mitigation. She received her Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry from Temple University in 2007 and a PhD in Biochemistry, Microbiology, and Molecular Biology from the Pennsylvania State University in 2013. Her PhD research, performed under the mentorship of Marty Bollinger and Carsten Krebs, focused on oxygen-utilizing metalloenzymes. As a postdoctoral fellow with Amy Rosenzweig at Northwestern University, she studied the biosynthesis and trafficking of bacterial secondary metabolites. In 2017, she spent a year working as a visiting scientist in the group of Stuart Orkin at Boston Children’s Hospital, where she pursued a long-standing personal interest in sickle cell disease. She began her tenure as an independent scientist at Stanford in 2018.
Prof. Dassama’s article is titled “Engineering Cell-Specific Protein Delivery Vehicles for Erythroid Lineage Cells” (DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomedchemau.4c00098).
Theodore Kwaku Dayie
Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry,
and Biophysics, University of Maryland.
Blessed to expand the boundaries of knowledge with other brilliant, diverse minds by shining light on the “invisible” with million-dollar toys. - Theodore Kwaku Dayie
Professor Theodore Kwaku Dayie received his doctoral degree from Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, under the direction of Gerhard Wagner. After a postdoctoral position with Jamie Williamson at MIT and then at The Scripps Research Institute (La Jolla, CA), he became a group leader at the Lerner Research Institute at the Cleveland Clinic (OH) in 2000, starting an group focused on RNA NMR. He has been a Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry with a focus on biophysical chemistry at the University of Maryland, College Park since 2008. He is interested in understanding the complex life of the so-called dark matter of the genome, “RNAs”, and how this dark matter influences its binding partners, such as small effector molecules, other RNAs, DNA, and proteins. Having studied and lived on three continents (Africa (Ghana), Europe (UK), and North America (USA)), he understands that truly groundbreaking scientific advances require the participation of people from various backgrounds, cultures, and ethnicities at the bench. His group continues to develop novel, robust, and economical chemo-enzymatic synthesis of selective isotopically labeled (15N/2H/13C/19F) nucleotides for probing RNAs involved in disease processes, using solution NMR to understand their structure, dynamics, and interactions.
Prof. Dayie’s Article is titled “Consolidated 3-Fold Isotopic Lens for Probing RNAs” (DOI:10.1021/acsbiomedchemau.5c00075).
Steven Damo
The Chair of the Department of Life and
Physical Sciences, Fisk University, and The Assistant Dean of the
School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, Fisk University.
It’s just as much about the scientists as the science. - Steven Damo
Professor Steven Marañón Damo is an Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and serves as the Assistant Dean of the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics and the Chair of the Department of Life and Physical Sciences at Fisk University, a primarily undergraduate Historically Black University in Nashville, TN. The Damo Lab utilizes the tools of biochemistry and biophysical chemistry to characterize micronutrient homeostasis at the host–pathogen interface, to further our understanding of fundamental biological mechanisms that can be leveraged to impact human health. A passionate teacher-scholar, Steve is dedicated to mentoring the next generation of STEM professionals. He has supervised the research of more than 100 undergraduate and master’s students in his lab, the majority of whom have gone on to pursue advanced degrees. Steve earned a BS in chemistry at New York University and his doctorate in chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley.
Prof. Damo’s Article is titled “The antimicrobial activity of selenium against the perinatal pathogen Streptococcus agalactiae”.
Donald Hamelberg
Vice President for Research & Economic Development
and Professor of Chemistry, Georgia State University.
Just as resilience shapes our journey, every scientific breakthrough is forged through perseverance and opens new avenues for humanity. - Donald Hamelberg.
Professor Donald Hamelberg’s research focuses on developing and applying theoretical and computational methods to investigate allosteric mechanisms and long-time scale dynamics of biomolecules in cellular processes. His group advances statistical mechanics approaches to understand biomolecular function and complement experimental techniques in structural biology. A key focus is the development of computational tools to analyze biomolecular conformational ensembles and uncover atomic-level mechanisms. These tools enhance our understanding of biomolecular dynamics and support the discovery and design of drugs and biomolecules. The Hamelberg group has made significant contributions to theoretical biochemistry and biophysics, including methods for enhanced sampling, free energy calculations, and the analysis of conformational ensembles. Their molecular dynamics-based approaches offer insights often inaccessible to experiments alone and are instrumental in generating testable hypotheses that guide experimental design and foster collaborative research.
Prof. Hamelberg’s Article is titled “Uncovering the Role of Distal Regions in PDK1 Allosteric Activation” (DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomedchemau.5c00025).
André O. Hudson
Dean, College of Science, Rochester Institute of Technology.
Rooted in my African ancestry, I see science as a powerful bridgehonoring ancestral wisdom while driving innovation that uplifts communities and transforms our shared future. - André O. Hudson
The central themes of Dr. André O. Hudson’s research are rooted in biochemistry and microbiology, specifically in the areas of antibiotic resistance, amino acid metabolism, structural analyses of enzymes involved in amino acid and bacterial peptidoglycan metabolism, and the isolation, identification, and genomic characterization of plant-associated bacteria.
Prof. Hudson’s Review is titled “Unlocking the Potential of Brazilian Plant Terpenes to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance” (DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomedchemau.5c00069).
Kayunta Johnson-Winters
Associate Professor of Chemistry
and Biochemistry, University of Texas at Arlington.
Representation in science matters: diverse scientists collaborating, discovering, and mentoring amplify voices, advance knowledge, and empower future generations to innovate beyond limits. – Kayunta Johnson-Winters
In addition to her faculty role, Professor Kayunta Johnson-Winters holds the position of Director of Undergraduate Research within the Office of the Vice President of Research and Innovation. Through her dual roles, she plays a significant part in advancing research opportunities and mentoring across various academic levels. Over the course of her tenure at UT-Arlington, Dr. Johnson-Winters has mentored more than 100 individuals, including graduate students, undergraduate researchers, high school interns, and a postdoctoral fellow, all of whom have contributed to the dynamic and collaborative environment of her research group. Notably, approximately 50% of her mentees have been women, and about half have come from historically underrepresented groups demonstrating her dedication to broadening access and opportunity in science.
Dr. Johnson-Winters’ research focuses on F420-dependent enzymes, which are associated with the F420 cofactor, a unique flavin analog involved in hydride transfer reactions. These reactions occur in enzymes found primarily in methanogenic and sulfate-reducing archaea, but interestingly, F420-dependent enzymes are also present in nonmethanogenic organisms, including the human pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Her research aims to elucidate the mechanisms of enzymes that utilize the F420 cofactor, to develop a detailed mechanistic model for this unique class. This work is particularly valuable because prior to her studies, the enzymology of F420-dependent enzymes had received limited investigation. Her contributions aid to fill a significant gap in the biochemical knowledge and may also have broader implications for microbiology and infectious disease. Dr. Johnson-Winters’ dedication to mentorship and scientific discovery underscores her impact not only in the laboratory but also in shaping the next generation of scientists.
Prof. Johnson-Winters’ Article is titled “Kinetic Characterization of F420-dependent sugar-6-phosphate dehydrogenase from Cryptosporangium arvum”.
Cato Laurencin
The University Professor at the University of Connecticut, The Albert and Wilda Van Dusen Distinguished Endowed Professor of Orthopedic Surgery, Professor of Chemical Engineering, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, and Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Connecticut, and Chief Executive Officer of The Cato T. Laurencin Institute for Regenerative Engineering.
Sir Cato T. Laurencin, M.D., Ph.D., K.C.S.L., is the University Professor at the University of Connecticut (one of only two at the school) and the Albert and Wilda Van Dusen Distinguished Endowed Professor of Orthopedic Surgery. He is Professor of Chemical Engineering, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, and Professor of Biomedical Engineering at UConn. He serves as the Chief Executive Officer of The Cato T. Laurencin Institute for Regenerative Engineering, an Institute created in his honor.
Dr. Laurencin earned a B.SE in Chemical Engineering from Princeton University. He earned his M.D., Magna Cum Laude, from the Harvard Medical School, and received the Robinson Award for Surgery. He earned his Ph.D. in Biochemical Engineering/Biotechnology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he was named a Hugh Hampton Young Fellow.
Dr. Laurencin is the founder and pioneer of the field of Regenerative Engineering. He is an expert in biomaterials science, stem cell technology, and nanotechnology, and has worked in the Convergence of these areas of research. In receiving the Spingarn Medal from the NAACP, he was named the world’s foremost engineer–physician–scientist. He is the world leader in chemistry and materials science applied toward musculoskeletal repair and regeneration.
Dr. Laurencin is the recipient of the Priestley Medal, the American Chemical Society’s highest honor, and the recipient of the Von Hippel Award, the Materials Research Society’s highest honor. He is the recipient of the Founders Award from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and the Percy Julian Medal from the National Association of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers, their highest awards. The American Association for the Advancement of Science awarded Dr. Laurencin the Philip Hauge Abelson Prize, given ‘for signal contributions to the advancement of science in the United States.’ In recognition of his breakthrough achievements in Regenerative Engineering worldwide, the American Institute of Chemical Engineers created the Cato T. Laurencin Regenerative Engineering Founder’s Award.
Dr. Laurencin is an inventor. He was named the 2023 Inventor of the Year by the Intellectual Property Owners Education Foundation. He received the 2024 Kathryn S. Hach Award for Entrepreneurial Success from the American Chemical Society. He is the recipient of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, America’s highest honor for technical achievement, awarded by President Barack Obama in ceremonies at the White House.
Prof. Laurencin’s Review is titled “Graphene Oxide in Bone Regenerative Engineering: Current Challenges and Future Perspectives” (DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomedchemau.4c00152).
Renã Robinson
Professor of Chemistry and Dorothy J. Wingfield Phillips Chair, Vanderbilt University.
I am proud to show up as my authentic self and contribute to scientific efforts that can directly impact people. This is what makes being a scientist and doing science special. - Rena Robinson
Professor Renã A. S. Robinson, Professor of Chemistry at Vanderbilt University and inaugural Dorothy J. Wingfield Phillips Chair, received her B.S. in Chemistry with a concentration in Business from the University of Louisville and Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry from Indiana University under the mentorship of Professor David Clemmer. She developed proteomics methods to study aging in fruit flies and continued working in aging as a Lyman T. Johnson Postdoctoral Fellow with Professor D. Allan Butterfield at the University of Kentucky. During this fellowship, she began to focus on neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease and received a UNCF/Merck Postdoctoral Fellowship. In 2009, she accepted a position as Assistant Professor of Chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh and in 2017 moved to Vanderbilt University as Associate Professor of Chemistry and the Dorothy J. Wingfield Phillips Chancellor’s Faculty Fellow. Renã is currently a Professor of Chemistry, Principal Investigator of RASR Laboratory, and Faculty Head of House of Murray House, and actively supports the Vanderbilt Memory & Alzheimer’s Center, the Vanderbilt Institute for Chemical Biology, and Vanderbilt Brain Institute. She has an internationally recognized research program and is a leader in the field of proteomics for her work in aging, Alzheimer’s disease, and applications relevant to human health. Her laboratory is especially focused on advancing proteomics and lipidomics technologies to promote health equity in Alzheimer’s disease. Renã serves as the Immediate Past President of NOBCChE (National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers) where she was the 14th President from 2021 to 2023 and led the organization through tremendous growth in membership, programming, funding, and overall outreach of URMs in STEM. She is the former faculty advisor for the Nashville Student and Professional Chapter of NOBCChE, current Co-Director for the Faculty ACCESS Program, and Board Member-at-Large for the US Human Proteome Organization.
Prof. Robinson’s Article is titled “Bridging Health Disparity Gaps in Alzheimer’s Disease among Marginalized Populations: How Clinical Proteomics Can Accelerate Biomarker Discovery”.
Herman O. Sintim
Grace-Rupley Professor of Chemical Biology at the University of Notre Dame and the Associate Director at Harper Cancer Institute.
About 14% of the US population identify as Black but account for 4% of chemistry doctorates awarded in the US. I hope to see this number increase. - Herman O. Sintim
Professor Sintim’s research interests center around cyclic dinucleotide and cyclic oligonucleotide signaling in bacteria and higher organisms. The Sintim group has developed various cyclic dinucleotide probes to illuminate CDN biology, identifying small-molecule inhibitors of CDN signaling in bacteria with potential use as novel antibacterial agents. Additionally, the Sintim group is interested in identifying compounds that agonize or antagonize cyclic dinucleotide signaling in immune cells. Such compounds have the potential to be used as immunotherapies or anti-inflammatory agents.
Prof. Sintim is also interested in developing kinase inhibitors that inhibit secondary mutated kinases, which play important roles in drug resistance (i.e., cancer intrinsic pathways), and/or inhibitors that target kinases that regulate the tumor microenvironment (i.e., cancer extrinsic pathways). Integrating computational and experimental workflows, such as the use of multicomponent reactions to prepare novel kinase inhibitor libraries, the Sintim lab has identified novel chemotypes that inhibit disease-associated protein kinases.
Prof. Sintim’s Article is titled “5′-Phosphorothioester Linked Cyclic Dinucleotides, Endo-S-CDNs, Displaying Impressive Antitumor Activities In Vivo when Dosed Subcutaneously” (DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomedchemau.5c00070).
Cornelius Taabazuing
Presidential Assistant Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of Pennsylvania.
I was born a ‘majority’, and I believe that if you can’t see it, you can’t be it - representation matters! - Cornelius Taabazuing
Prior to joining the faculty at the University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Cornelius Taabazuing was a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Chemical Biology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in the lab of Dr. Daniel Bachovchin. He earned his bachelor’s and his Ph.D. at the University of Massachusetts Amherst in the lab of Dr. Michael Knapp. The focus of the Taabazuing lab is to understand molecular mechanisms of cell death. The lab is especially interested in uncovering the molecular regulation of pyroptosis, an inflammatory type of cell death that activates the innate immune system to protect from infections. The lab combines a variety of techniques, including chemical biology, biochemistry, and functional genetics to interrogate cell death mechanisms.
Prof. Taabazuing’s Article is titled “A potent inhibitor of caspase-8 based on the IL-18 tetrapeptide sequence reveals shared specificities between inflammatory and apoptotic initiator caspases”.
Blanton Tolbert
Jacob Gershon Cohen Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics.
Science thrives when it mirrors the complexity and richness of the society it serves – drawing strength from every voice, every mind - Blanton Tolbert
Professor Blanton S. Tolbert, is the Jacob Gershon-Cohen Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics at the University of Pennsylvania, where he directs a research program investigating the molecular biology of RNA viruses. His lab focuses on the biochemical mechanisms underlying virus–host interactions, with particular emphasis on identifying novel protein–RNA complexes as potential targets for therapeutic intervention. Tolbert’s work has informed the development of antiviral compounds with the potential to inhibit the replication of viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 and enterovirus A71.
From 2022 to 2025, Tolbert served as the inaugural Vice President of the Center for the Advancement of Science Leadership and Culture at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI). In this role, he led a comprehensive portfolio of initiatives designed to embed inclusion into the fabric of academic science. His efforts spanned undergraduate and graduate training, faculty development in culturally responsive mentorship, and the creation of inclusive research environments and strategic partnerships. He also introduced opportunities for predoctoral scientists to meaningfully engage with their communities as part of the basic research process, fostering a more connected and socially aware scientific enterprise.
Prior to joining HHMI, Tolbert was the Rudolph and Susan Rense Professor of Chemistry at Case Western Reserve University, where he also served as the inaugural Vice Dean for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusive Excellence at the School of Medicine and Associate Director for DEI at the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center. His leadership focused on diversifying the scientific workforce and creating institutional structures to support scholars from all backgrounds.
A longtime advocate for inclusive excellence in STEM, Tolbert has mentored dozens of trainees at every career stage, many of whom have advanced to successful roles in academia, biotechnology, and healthcare. He has led and co-developed several research experiences for undergraduates, including the Interdisciplinary Research at the Interface of Health Science and the Environment (IRIHSE), which supports students from underrepresented backgrounds in pursuing biomedical and environmental science. From 2018 to 2023, Tolbert served as acting Chair of the NIH Office of AIDS Research Advisory Council, where he played a key role in shaping national strategies to support and retain early stage HIV investigators.
Dr. Tolbert received his BS in chemistry from the University of South Carolina and his PhD in biophysics and structural biology from the University of Rochester. He was an HHMI postdoctoral fellow at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. His contributions have been recognized with the 2016 Morton L. Mandel Award for Excellence in Research and Service and the 2023 Diversity in Science and Excellence Award from the International Society for Antiviral Research.
Prof. Tolbert’s Article is titled “Toward a Beautiful Amalgam: The Necessity of Heterogeneity in RNA Science and Research Culture”.
Steve Townsend
Professor of Chemistry, Vanderbilt University.
How you work is just as important as what you know. - Steven D. Townsend
Our laboratory is dedicated to the discovery and development of new molecules of therapeutic value, obtained by advancing chemical synthesis. Our small-molecule program is focused on carbohydrates, terpenoids, alkaloids, and lipids that are useful tools for studying cancer, infectious diseases, and neurological disorders. Our chemical biology program is focused on characterizing the protective properties of human milk, particularly the human milk oligosaccharides.
Prof. Townsend’s Letter is titled “Discovery of Iboga-Derived Ligands for the Sigma-2 Receptor” (DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomedchemau.5c00011).
Tamra C. Blue-Lahom
Dr. Tamra C. Blue-Lahom is an NIH Postdoctoral Fellow in the Chemistry Departments at The Pennsylvania State University and the University of Pennsylvania under the mentorship of Professor Squire J. Booker. She received her bachelor’s of science in Chemistry with a concentration in Biochemistry from Georgia State University, where she was first introduced to research under the direction of Dr. Suzette Reid Mooring. During this time, she became an NSF Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) Fellow. She received her PhD in Chemistry from Emory University with Dr. Katherine M. Davis.
Her current research in the Booker Lab focuses on using bioinformatic, electrochemical, and biochemical methods to elucidate the mechanism of novel metalloenzymes of bacterial and archaeal origin. She is a 2025 CAS Future Leader Fellow, a founding member of the graduate and postdoctoral ASBMB Chapters at The Pennsylvania State University, and a founding member of the NOBCChE at Emory local chapter. She is personally driven by community centered holistic approach to science.
Views expressed in this editorial are those of the authors and not necessarily the views of the ACS.