Assistant Professor Deborah Perlstein awarded NSF Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) grant

Dr. Deborah Perlstein
Dr. Deborah Perlstein

Dr. Perlstein, who has been with Boston University’s Chemistry Department since 2010, was recently awarded a 5-Year early investigator award through the NSF CAREER grant program.The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program is a Foundation-wide activity that offers the National Science Foundation’s most prestigious awards in support of junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, excellent education and the integration of education and research within the context of the mission of their organizations. Such activities should build a firm foundation for a lifetime of leadership in integrating education and research.

Dr. Perlstein’s research focuses on how metals are mobilized and monitored within the cell so that they get to where they need to go and do not end up in places they shouldn’t. With this new five-year grant, Dr. Perlstein plans to unravel the molecular mechanism by which iron-sulfur cluster cofactors are assembled in the cytosol of eukaryotic organisms.  Since inhibition of this first step in cluster biosynthesis can lead to defects in DNA replication, DNA repair and protein synthesis, she expects this work will provide new insight into how cluster biogenesis affects these other fundamental biochemical pathways.

With the CAREER award, Perlstein also plans to develop new undergraduate course curriculum as well as building on current STEM outreach program efforts to begin training the next generation of scientists.

To learn more about Dr. Perlstein and her groups research activities visit her Faculty page: http://www.bu.edu/chemistry/people/faculty/perlstein/.

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