U.S.-Germany Program: Dissertation Research in Biochemistry using Pulse Radiolysis

该奖项支持匹兹堡大学Valerian Kagan教授的博士生Radoslov Goldman对德国的研究访问。 Goldman先生的生物化学论文研究将有机会在德国上施莱桑环境与健康研究中心辐射生物学研究所Wolf Bors教授的实验室工作十周。 他的研究主题是低能自由基与蛋白质反应的机理。 特别是，他对苯氧基自由基与低分子量和蛋白质巯基的催化反应感兴趣，其中包括RNA切割过程。 Bors博士是反应速率脉冲辐射分解研究方面的专家，他最近开发的研究水溶液中酚类自由基反应的技术对Goldman先生的论文研究将是非常宝贵的。 作为回报，Bors博士将受益于将他的技术扩展到蛋白质和肽。 有机硫化合物的电子结构决定了它们作为抗氧化剂的能力以及它们在催化和酶中的作用。 这项研究将通过将已知的结构特征与氧化速率联系起来的实验，增加对实际控制这些过程速率的因素的认识。

This award supports a research visit to Germany by Radoslov Goldman, a doctoral degree student of Professor Valerian Kagan at the University of Pittsburgh. Mr. Goldman's dissertation research in biochemistry will be enhanced by the opportunity to work for ten weeks in the laboratory of Professor Wolf Bors of the Institute for Radiation Biology at the Research Center for Environment and Health in Oberschleissheim, Germany. The general subject of his research is the mechanism of reactions of low energy radicals with proteins. In particular, he is interested in the catalytic reactions of phenoxyl radicals with low molecular weight and protein sulfhydryl groups, which include processes in RNA cleavage. Dr. Bors is an expert in pulse radiolytic studies of reaction rates and his recently developed technique for studying phenoxyl-radical reactions in aqueous solutions will be invaluable to Mr. Goldman's dissertation research. In return, Dr. Bors will benefit from the extension of his technique to proteins and peptides. The electronic structure of organic sulfur compounds determines their abilities as antioxidants and their roles in catalysis and enzymes. This research will add to the knowledge of the factors which actually control the rates of these processes, through experiments which link known structural characteristics to rates of oxidation.