MacKerell Is Maryland Chemist of the Year

Alexander D. MacKerell Jr. has been named 2006 Maryland Chemist of the Year by the ACS Maryland Section. He will receive the award on Dec. 13 during a section meeting in Towson, Md.

MacKerell is a professor in the department of pharmaceutical sciences at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. He is also director of the university's Computer-Aided Drug Design Center.

MacKerell is being honored for his numerous scientific achievements, including pioneering research on the aldehyde dehydrogenase enzyme system and the identification of isozymes, developing methodology related to time-resolved fluorescence, energetic and molecular dynamics studies of unsaturated lipids, and describing the structure-function relationship of polyamine transport. He is also being honored for being an interactive and inspiring teacher.