Congratulations to Dr. Gary Pielak! He is the 2016 recipient of the Carl Branden Award from the Protein Society for his contributions to the field of protein chemistry.
The Protein Society is a not-for-profit scholarly society with a mission to advance state-of-the-art science through international forums that promote communication, cooperation, and collaboration among scientists involved in the study of proteins. The Carl Brändén Award, sponsored by Rigaku Corporation, honors an outstanding protein scientist who has made exceptional contributions in the areas of education and/or service. The award consists of an engraved medal and honorarium. The recipient also presents at the next Society’s annual meeting.
The 2016 Carl Brändén Award recipient is Dr. Gary Pielak, Kenan Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and joint appointee in the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics. Pielak is honored for his advancements in the field of protein chemistry through pioneering research in unraveling protein biophysics in living cells. Pielak and his students developed innovative quantitative techniques to measure protein stability and diffusion in crowded samples that interfere with standard measurement techniques. He has also made major advances in elucidating how the intracellular environment impacts both globular and intrinsically disordered proteins in surprising ways. Pielak revolutionized our understanding of how proteins work where they actually function – inside cells –, and not in the artificial environment of the test tube.
Pielak received his PhD in chemistry from Washington State University and completed postdoctoral studies at the University of Oxford and University of British Colombia, Vancouver. He joined UNC in 1989 and is currently a Kenan Distinguished Professor of Chemistry (an honor he received in 2015), the Vice Chair of Facilities in Chemistry and Glen H. Elder, Jr. Distinguished Term Professor of Research & Undergraduate Education.