Bollinger Wins Faculty Scholar Medal for Outstanding Research

J. Martin Bollinger Jr., professor of chemistry and of biochemistry and molecular biology, has won a Penn State Faculty Scholar Medal for Outstanding Achievement. Established in 1980, the award recognizes scholarly or creative excellence represented by a single contribution or a series of contributions around a coherent theme. A committee of faculty peers reviews nominations and recommends candidates to Penn State's president, Graham Spanier. Bollinger was selected by the president to receive the award in the physical sciences category during 2009.

Bollinger's research focuses on enzymes that use metal ions to catalyze reactions involving oxygen. The metal ions in these enzymes react with oxygen and form potent intermediates that break strong bonds between carbon and hydrogen atoms during biochemical transformations of organic compounds. Such biochemical transformations are central to the regulation of normal cellular physiology and to the development and progression of important human diseases. "The central objective of my research, which I conduct jointly with Penn State Associate Professor of Chemistry and of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Carsten Krebs, is to elucidate the principles underlying nature's design of these amazing catalysts," Bollinger said.

Bollinger earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry in 1986 at Penn State and a doctoral degree in biochemistry in 1993 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He was a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard Medical School before joining the Penn State faculty in 1995.