Seminars

Brooklyn College Chemistry Colloquia Archives

Spring 2021

Online, at 12:30 p.m. or time indicated
E-mail us to be included in our mailing list and receive a seminar link.

January 29

Brooklyn College Cancer Center Seminars
Assistant Professor Mariana Torrente, Brooklyn College
“A Missing Piece of the Puzzle: Aberrant Histone Modification Landscape in Neurodegenerative Disease”
Professor Aneta Mieszawska, Brooklyn College
“Peptide-coated nanoparticles as cancer nanomedicine”

March 12

Lauren Bejcek, Ph.D. Thesis Defense

March 19

Friedman Lecture
Professor Angela Casini, Technical University of Munich
“Frontiers in Bioinorganic Chemistry: Knowledge of Mechanisms Drives Discoveries Towards Biomedical Applications”

April 9

Professor Jeff Gustafson, San Diego State University
“Atropisomerism: A fresh spin on medicinal chemistry and an inspiration for new chemical methodologies”
Host: Professor Ryan Murelli

April 9

Professor Jeff Gustafson, San Diego State University
“Atropisomerism: A fresh spin on medicinal chemistry and an inspiration for new chemical methodologies.”
Host: Professor Ryan Murelli

April 16

Professor Akira Kawamura, Hunter College (CUNY)
“Uncovering the metabolic potential of mixed microbial cultures”

April 23

Brooklyn College Cancer Center Seminar
Half-Day Symposium (Structural Biology/Neuroscience)

May 7

Brooklyn College Cancer Center Seminar
Half-Day Symposium (Nanoscience)

Joint Chemistry/Brooklyn College Cancer Center Seminar
Professor Sherri McFarland
“Tackling Cancer and Infection with Light-Responsive Molecules”

Fall 2020

Online, on the days and times indicated
E-mail us to be included in our mailing list and receive a seminar link.

Monday, September 14

“Eastern Analytical Symposium Virtual Student Symposium”

Thursday, October 1

NY ACS Seminar
Professor Zhou Zhou, Queensborough Community College (CUNY)
“Design and Total Synthesis of Self-healing Cyanine Fluorophores”

Wednesday, October 7

NY ACS Seminar
Monona Rossol, M.S., M.F.A.
“Safety, Fire, and Chemical Hazards”

Friday, October 9

12:30 p.m.
Brooklyn College Cancer Center Seminars
Professor Brian Gibney, Brooklyn College
“Insights Into Zinc-Induced Protein Folding in Human Cancer Transcription Factors”
Associate Professor Emilio Gallicchio, Brooklyn College
“Molecular Modeling and High-Performance Computing Applications in Structure-Based Drug Discovery”

Friday, October 16

12:30 p.m.
Joint seminar with the Biology Department
Professor Steve Klotz, Arizona Cancer Center, and Professor Peter Lipke, Brooklyn College
“Cancer, Candida and Functional Amyloid: What Are Their Connections?”

Friday, October 30

12:30 p.m.
Brooklyn College Cancer Center Seminar
Professor Alexander Greer, Brooklyn College
“Multistage Oxidative Events: Deciphering Mechanisms Downstream From Photooxidative Reactions”

Friday, November 6

11 a.m.
Dr. Thomas Cheshire, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
Developing a Comprehensive Model of the Charge Injection Dynamics of Ruthenium Chromophores From Kinetic Simulation

Friday, November 13

12:30 p.m.
Brooklyn College Cancer Center Seminar
Professor Maria Contel, Brooklyn College
“Unconventional Metal-Based Drugs as Potential Therapeutic Treatments for Breast Cancer”

Friday, November 20

11:30 a.m.
Professor Mark Kobrak, Brooklyn College
Metal Extraction to Nanostructured Liquids: Unexpected Links Between Liquid Structure and Solvation

Friday, November 20

12:30 p.m.
Brooklyn College Cancer Center Seminar
Professor Nicolas Biais, Brooklyn College
“From infectious diseases to Cancer: an introduction to Mechanobiology”

Friday, December 4

11:00 a.m.
Brooklyn College Cancer Center Seminar
Professor Ryan Murelli, Brooklyn College
“New Advances in Tropolone Synthesis and their Applications to Cancer-Related Research”

Friday, December 18

12:30 p.m.
Brooklyn College Cancer Center Seminar
Professor Guillermo Gerona-Navarro, Brooklyn College
“Bisthioether Stapled Peptides as Allosteric Inhibitors of PRC2 function”
and
Professor Anjana Saxena, Brooklyn College
“Sensing cellular stress: RNA-binding proteins in gene expression and cancer therapeutics”

Spring 2020

Fridays: 11 a.m.–noon (unless otherwise noted)
Location: 329 Ingersoll Hall Extension

January 31

Student undergraduate research showcase
Host: Assistant Professor Torrente

February 21

Attilio Vargiu, University of Cagliari (Italy)
“EDES: A Protocol to Generate Holo-like and Druggable Protein Conformations Starting From the Apo Structure”
Host: Assistant Professor Gallicchio

March 5 (Thursday), Friedman Lecture

Hilal Lashue ’94, Ph.D., Swiss Federal Institute of Technology
“Protein Misfolding and Aggregation in Neurodegenerative Diseases”
12:15-1:30 p.m., Tanger Auditorium, Brooklyn College Library
Host: Assistant Professor Mariana Torrente

March 13

Professor Richard Magliozzo, Brooklyn College
“A Journey Into Drug-Resistant TB and the KatG Enzyme”
Host: Professor Brian Gibney

March 20

Annie Castonguay, Université du Québec, Canada
“Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of Organoruthenium Complexes”
Host: Professor Maria Contel

March 26 (Thursday), Joint Chemistry-Biology Seminar

Angela Casini, Technical University of Munich (Germany)
TBA
Hosts: Professor Maria Contel, Associate Professor Tony Wilson

April 3

Akira Kawamura, Hunter College (CUNY)
“Uncovering the Metabolic Potential of Mixed Microbial Cultures”
Host: Professor Lesley Davenport

May 1

Brooklyn College Science Day

May 8

Greg Doerk, Brookhaven National Labs
TBA
Host: Professor Mark Kobrak

Fall 2019

Fridays: 11 a.m.–noon
133 Ingersoll Hall Extension (unless otherwise noted)

September 27

20th Anniversary Celebration of Professor Alec Greer

September 20

Lucia D’Accolti, University of Bari, Italy
“New Technologies and Processes From Renewable Sources”

October 25

Eugene Douglass, Columbia University
“New Technologies and Processes From Renewable Sources”

November 1

Giovanna Scapin, Merck Pharmaceuticals
“Insights Into the Insulin Receptor Activation Mechanism: The Cryo-EM Structure of the IR:insulin Complex”

November 13 (Wednesday)

Friedman Lecture: Esther S. Takeuchi, Stony Brook University
“From Medical Applications to the Environment: The Important Role of Energy Storage”

November 22

Andrés M. Durantini, Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto, Argentina
“Revealing Phenotypic Differences in Photodynamic Inactivation. A Fluorescence Microscopy Approach at the Single Bacterium Level”

December 6

Dmytro Nykypanchuk, Brookhaven National Lab
“DNA for Nanotechnology”

Spring 2019

Wednesdays: 2:20–3:20 p.m.
4428 Ingersoll Hall (unless otherwise noted)

February 27

Kent Kirshenbaum, New York University
“A Biomimetic Approach to Drug Discovery”

March 13

Braja Gopal Bag, Vidyasagar University
“Triterpenoids in 21st Century: From Green Chemistry to Self-Assembly”

March 20

Dimitri Zakharov, Brookhaven National Laboratory
“Real-Time Study of Carbon Nanotube Nucleation and Growth Processes by Environmental Transmission Electron Microscopy”

April 10

Rupal Gupta, College of Staten Island (CUNY)
“Metal-Dependent Self-Assembly of Calgranulin C: An Antimicrobial Protein at the Host-Pathogen Interface”

May 8

José Pedro Cerón-Carrasco, Universidad Católica San Antonio de Murcia
“Computational Disruption in Drug Discovery: Applications for the Real Medical World”

May 13 (Monday)

Andrés Thomas, National University of La Plata
TBA

Fall 2018

Wednesdays: 2:20–3:20 p.m.
133 Ingersoll Hall (unless otherwise noted)

August 29

Benelita T. Elie (Contel’s Lab) doctoral thesis defense
“Preclinical Evaluation of Gold-Based Chemotherapeutic Candidates for the Treatment of Metastatic Renal Cancer”
Occidental Room, fifth floor, Student Center

September 12

Danielle Hirsch (Murelli’s lab) doctoral thesis defense
“The Synthesis and Evaluation of Densely Functionalized Troponoids”

October 10

Amédée Des Georges, City College (CUNY)
“Insights Into Ryanodine Receptor Ligand Binding and Gating Using Cryo-EM and Geometric Machine Learning”

October 17

“You Should Get a Ph.D.!” (various speakers), hosted by Assistant Professor Mariana Torrente, Brooklyn College

October 24

Stephen O’Brien, City College (CUNY)
“Nanocomposite Capacitors: The Use of Chemistry and Nanotechnology in the Fabrication of Electronic Materials and Devices”

October 31 (CANCELLED, will be rescheduled)

Alberto Munoz, Columbia University
TBA

December 12

Dmitri N. Zakharov, Brookhaven National Laboratory
2:30 p.m.
“Real-Time Study of Carbon Nanotube Nucleation and Growth Processes by Environmental Transmission Electron Microscopy”

Spring 2018

Wednesdays: 2:20–3:20 p.m.
3424 Ingersoll Hall (unless otherwise noted)

February 7

Arthur Tinoco, University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras
“Designing Cytotoxic Titanium(IV) Compounds Prepared With Iron Chelators to Attack Iron Availability in Cancer Cells”

February 28

Tianning Diao, NYU
“Strategies for Promoting Nickel-Catalyzed Alkene Functionalization”

April 19, Thursday (Friedman Lecture)

Bruce Berne, Columbia University
“Molecular Dynamics: a Personal Retrospective”
Abstract: Molecular Dynamics (MD) has become a ubiquitous and powerful tool for understanding the structure and dynamics of systems ranging through all the phases of matter from the simple to the complex. A personalized view of the development of MD over the past five decades will be presented with examples ranging from simple liquids, small and large-scale hydrophobicity through proteins and protein-ligand binding.
Tentative schedule of Friedman lecture-related events:

  • 10 a.m.: Registration and welcome, Penthouse, Student Center
  • 10:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m.: Graduate student talks, Penthouse, Student Center
  • 1–2 p.m.: Friedman Lecture by Bruce Berne, Tanger Auditorium, Library
  • 2:30–4:30 p.m.: Friedman Lecture reception and ceremonies, Penthouse, Student Center

April 25

Richard Fish, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
“Chemoselective Synthesis of [(η6-Cp*Rh-Tyr#)-GPCR Peptide](OTf)2 Complexes, and Quantum Chemical and Molecular Docking Studies of [(η6-Cp*Rh-Tyr1)-Leu-enkephalin](OTf)2 to the µ-, ∂-, and k-Opioid Receptors, in Comparison to the Neuropeptide, [Tyr1]-Leu-enkephalin”

May 2

Kevin Yager, BNL
“Tricking Block-Copolymers Into Forming New Morphologies”

May 9

Yalan Xing, William Patterson University
“Development of Alkyne Di-functionalization Methodology”

May 30

Istvan Horvath, City University of Hong Kong
“Evolutionary Model of Sustainability and Its Application in Chemistry”*
* Dedicated to the memory of Professor Roberto Sanchez-Delgado

Fall 2017

Wednesdays: 2:10–3:40 p.m.
1141 Ingersoll Hall Extension (unless otherwise noted)

August 30

Seminar course meeting with Professor Gibney

September 27

Ming-Yu Ngai, SUNY Stony Brook
TBA

October 4

Dirk Trauner, New York University
TBA

October 25 (special session)

Mariana Torrente, Brooklyn College
“You Should Go for a Ph.D.! (And How to Get Into Grad School)”

November 8

Mircea Cotlet, Brookhaven National Lab
“Mastering Interfacial Interactions in Quantum Dot-Based Nano-Architectures”

November 15

Brown University Chemistry Graduate Event

November 16 (Thursday)

Joint Biology-Chemistry Seminar
Nicholas Farrell, Virginia Commonwealth University
“Platinum Anti-Cancer Drugs: Current Status and New Targets”

November 29

Samuel Thomas, Tufts University
“Singlet Oxygen Responsive Polymers”

December 6

Michael D’Erasmo, Brooklyn College and Graduate Program in Chemistry at the CUNY Graduate Center
Ph.D. Defense Seminar

Spring 2017

Fridays: 2:30–3:30 p.m.
432 Ingersoll Hall Extension (unless otherwise noted)

March 10

Rupal Gupta, College of Staten Island (CUNY)
“Structure and Function of Catalytic Metal Centers in Biology: Insights From Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy”

March 17

Angelo Albini, University of Pavia, Italy
“Up and Down the Excited Surface, phenyl cation and alpha,n-didehydrotoluenes”

March 31

Sabesan Yoganathan, St John’s University
“Development of Drug Leads Through Structural Modifications of Natural Products and Synthetic Scaffolds”

April 21

Tom Kurtzman, Lehman College (CUNY)
“Exploiting Active Site Solvation Structure and Thermodynamics for Drug Discovery and Design”

May 10

Friedman Lecture
Scott Miller, Yale University

Fall 2016

Fridays: 2:30–3:30 p.m.
432 Ingersoll Hall Extension (unless otherwise noted)

September 16

Jaclyn Catalano, Montclair State
“Structure and Dynamics of Lead Carboxylates Found in Traditional Oil Paintings”

October 21

Stefano Protti, University of Pavia, Italy
“Phenyl Cations: Long Live the Short-Lived Intermediates!”

October 28—Cancelled

Elizabeth Middleton, SUNY Purchase
TBA

November 4

Yolanda Small, York College
“Theory and Experiment Collaborate to Design Tunable Fluorophores”

November 18

Prabodhika Mallikaratchy, Lehman College
TBA

December 2

Lara Mahal, New York University
TBA

December 9

Lauren Wikstrom, Borough of Manhattan Community College (CUNY)
TBA

Spring 2016

Fridays: 2:30–3:30 p.m.
432 Ingersoll Hall Extension (unless otherwise noted)

February 19

Daniele Di Marino, Università della Svizzera Italiana, Switzerland
“A Comprehensive Description of the Homo- and Hetero-Dimerization Mechanism of the CCR5 and CXCR4n Chemokine Receptors”

February 26

Jean Gafney, Baruch College (CUNY)
TBA

March 4

Marion Emmert, Worcester Polytechnic Institute
“Breaking Strong Bonds and Recovering Rare Earths: Adventures in Sustainable Chemistry”

March 11

Nasri Nesnas, Florida Tech
TBA

April 1

Sebastien Bontemps, CNRS Toulouse, France
TBA

April 7—Friedman Lecture

Greg Petsko, Weill Cornell Medical College
“Targeting Protein Trafficking for the Treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease”

April 8

Jay Schneekloth, National Cancer Institute at Frederick
“Targeting Structurally and Functionally Diverse Nucleic Acids with Druglike Small Molecules”

April 15

Jeremy Wulff, University of Victoria
TBA

May 13—Rescheduled to fall semester

Lara Mahal, New York University
“Cracking the Glycocode With Systems-Based Approaches”

Fall 2015

Fridays: 2:30–3:30 p.m.
432 Ingersoll Hall Extension (unless otherwise noted)

October 9

Rachel Austin, Barnard College
“Bridging Scales: A Molecular Perspective on Selected Problems in Environmental (Bio) Inorganic Chemistry”

October 16

Charles Jakobsche, Clark University
“From Synthetic Organic Chemistry Methodology to Chemical Biology”

November 6

Jean P. Gaffney, Baruch College (CUNY)
“Finding New Mechanisms of Fluorescence in Marine Organisms”—CANCELLED

November 13

Sebastian Poget, College of Staten Island (CUNY)
“Interactions Between Animal Peptide Toxins and Ion Channel Domains: Functional and NMR Structural Studies”

November 20

Brian Zeglis, Hunter College (CUNY)
“Harnessing Bioorthogonal Chemistry for Pretargeted PET Imaging”

December 4

Kevin Ryan, City College (CUNY)
“Molecular Recognition of Small Molecules by the Mammalian Odorant Receptors”

Spring 2015

Fridays: 2:30–3:30 p.m.
432 Ingersoll Hall Extension (unless otherwise noted)

January 30

Ryan Murelli, Brooklyn College
“New Synthetic Methods and Strategies for Drug Discovery and Development”

February 6

Silvia De Rubeis, Mount Sinai
“Unraveling the Neurogenetics of Autism Spectrum Disorder”

February 20

Pawel Kulesza, University of Warsaw
“Lighting-up Metals: Fluorescent Tools for the Study of Magnesium Homeostasis”

March 6 – Canceled due to inclement weather. It will be rescheduled.

Jay Schneekloth, NCI Frederick
“Targeting Gene Expression With Small Molecules: New Strategies and Technologies”

March 20

Mingzhao Liu, Brookhaven National Laboratory
“Photocatalytic Water Splitting Over Metal Oxide Nanostructures: Carrier Recombination Assessment and Management”

March 27

Megan Shaw, Mount Sinai
“Exploring Novel Targets for Influenza Antivirals”

April 24

Mark Kobrak, Brooklyn College
“A Thermodynamic Approach to Interfacial Concentration Gradients”

May 1

Ulrich Bierbach, Wake Forest University
“Preclinical Status of Platinum-Intercalator Hybrid Anticancer Agents”

May 8

Reza Khayat, City College of New York (CUNY)
“Mechanism of Cellular Recognition by Porcine Circovirus”

May 14

Tom Muir, Princeton University Friedman Lecture
“Houdini Proteins: Discovery and Applications of Ultrafast Inteins”

Fall 2014

Fridays: 2:30–3:30 p.m.
432 Ingersoll Hall Extension (unless otherwise noted)

September 5

Rein Uljin, Advanced Science Research Center (CUNY)
“Adaptive Nanosystems Using Aromatic Peptide Amphiphiles”
Host: Associate Professor Brian Gibney

September 12

Piotr Piotowiak, Rutgers University – Newark
“Photoinduced Electron Transfer in Host-Guest Assemblies, Molecular Clusters and Dendrimers”
Host: Associate Professor Laura Juszczak

September 19 (Special Seminar)

Geoffrey Coates, Cornell University
TBA
Host: Inorganic and Organometallic Topical Group of the New York ACS
Note: This seminar is part a symposium held at Columbia University (209 Havemeyer Hall).

October 10

Mike Massiah, George Washington University
“Using NMR, MD Simulation, and Biochemical Techniques to Characterize the Function of MID1: A Multifaceted Protein Linked to Cleft Lipid/Palate and Huntington Disease”
Host: Assistant Professor Emilio Gallicchio

October 17

Rob Knowles, Princeton University
“Proton-Coupled Electron Transfer in Organic Synthesis and Asymmetric Catalysis”
Host: Assistant Professor Ryan Murelli

October 24

Stuart F. J. Le Grice, Center for Cancer Research, NCI at Frederick
Small Molecule Inhibitors of HIV Ribonuclease H and Integrase
Host: Assistant Professor Ryan Murelli

November 7

Elizabeth Biddinger, City College of New York (CUNY)
“Investigating Ionic Liquids in Electrochemical Applications
Host: Professor Mark Kobrak

November 14 (Special Seminar)

Michael Kelly
TBA
Host: Brooklyn College Chemistry Club

November 21

Shengping Zheng, Hunter College (CUNY)
“Heterocycle Synthesis From Quinoids”
Host: Assistant Professor Ryan Murelli

December 5

Pawel Kulesza, University of Warsaw
TBA
Host: Professor Malgorzata Ciszkowska

December 18 (Two special seminars)

Santiago Gómez-Ruiz (Profesor Titular, Rey Juan Carlos I, Madrid)
“Biological applications of nanostructured materials functionalized with metal complexes”
and
Sanjiv Prashar (Profesor Titular, Rey Juan Carlos I, Madrid)
“Catalytic applications of metal complexes and nanostructured materials”
Host: Professor Maria Contel

Brooklyn. All in.