Frontiers in Nanotechnology Seminar Series Presents, IIN Trailblazer Award Winner Alexander Spokoyny, UCLA

“Organometallic Strategies for Modifying Biomolecules“

Join us for a captivating lecture in the Frontiers in Nanotechnology series, hosted by the International Institute for Nanotechnology at Northwestern University. We are excited to welcome Alexander Spokoyny, esteemed Chair of the UCLA Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, as our distinguished speaker and IIN Trailblazer Award Winner.

In this insightful presentation, we explore a decade of pioneering work in the development of organometallic reagents designed to attach complex functional groups to biomolecules. The lecture will offer a historical overview, delve into reagent design, and showcase the latest breakthroughs from his lab. Highlighting the innovative application of organometallic chemistry in modifying biomolecular nanostructures, this talk will challenge the traditional view that small-molecule organometallics are incompatible with biological systems.

This event is a must-attend for those keen on the cutting edge of nanotechnology and biochemical research. Come prepared to engage with groundbreaking ideas that are setting new frontiers in the field.

Get to Know Alexander

Alexander Spokoyny is a professor and chair of the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department at UCLA and a faculty member of the California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI). He received his Ph.D. degree from Northwestern University in inorganic chemistry in 2011 and conducted a post-doctoral stint at MIT in chemical biology. His group’s research focuses on fundamental synthetic chemistry challenges that can be further applied to address pressing problems in biology, medicine, and materials science.

Over his career, he has co-authored more than 100 research manuscripts and received numerous national and international awards, including being named a 2024 Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC), receiving the 2020 Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, the 2019 National Science Foundation CAREER Award, the 2018 Cottrell Scholar from the Research Corporation for Science Advancement, the 2017 Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship in Chemistry, the 2017 NIH/NIGMS Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award (MIRA), the 2016 Chemical and Engineering News (C&EN) Talented 12, the 2016 3M Non-Tenured Faculty Award, the 2013 Grand Poster Prize from the American Peptide Society, the 2012 International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) Prize for Young Chemists, and the 2011 American Chemical Society Inorganic Young Investigator Award.

The popular press, including Science, Nature, C&EN, Cell Press, RSC, and other news outlets, highlighted his research. At UCLA, Spokoyny has also been engaged in efforts to broaden scientific literacy among non-STEM undergraduates and students incarcerated at state prison facilities. He has received the 2021 UCLA Distinguished Teaching Award and the 2022 UCLA Community Service and Praxis (DEI) Award for his efforts.