Catherine (Cathy) Drennan is an American biochemist and crystallographer. She is the John and Dorothy Wilson Professor of Biochemistry professor at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

and a professor at the

Howard Hughes Medical Institute The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) is an American non-profit medical research organization headquartered in Chevy Chase, Maryland with additional facilities in Ashburn, Virginia. It was founded in 1953 by Howard Hughes, an American busin ...

Early life and education

Drennan grew up in New York with her parents (a medical doctor and anthropologist). She received a bachelor's degree in chemistry from

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States. The college be ...

, working in the laboratory of Professor Miriam Rossi. After college, Drennan spent time as high school science and drama teacher, in a quaker run school in Iowa. She received her PhD in

biological chemistry Biochemistry, or biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology, a ...

from the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

in 1995, working in the laboratory of the late Professor Martha L Ludwig. Drennan's thesis is titled "Crystallographic studies of FMN and Vitamin B12 Dependent Enzymes: Flavodoxin and Methionine Synthase". After her PhD, she joined Douglas Rees as a postdoctoral fellow in the

California Institute of Technology The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech) is a private research university in Pasadena, California, United States. The university is responsible for many modern scientific advancements and is among a small group of institutes ...

. During her time as a postdoctoral fellow, in 1997, she started and led the undergraduate poster competition at the

American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB) is a learned society that was founded on December 26, 1906, at a meeting organized by John Jacob Abel (Johns Hopkins University). The roots of the society were in the American Ph ...

(ASBMB) annual meeting. She also served on the ASBMB Education and Professional Development Committee. Drennan is dyslexic, but believes this has advantages in science, "don't listen to what anyone tells you what you can or cannot do...there is no dyslexia ceiling". At high school, Drennan was told "she was probably not even going to graduate high school because of her dyslexia".

Research

Drennan joined the faculty at the

in 1999. At

, Drennan focuses on innovation in education and fundamental research. She is interested in the future of college classrooms and creating a positive learning environment for diverse groups of students. She is recognized for her contributions to science pedagogy. In 2006 Drennan was named an HHMI Professor and awarded a $1 million grant to support educational initiatives for "Getting Biologists Excited about Chemistry". Drennan has studied enzymes that employ

vitamin B12 Vitamin B12, also known as cobalamin, is a water-soluble vitamin involved in metabolism. One of eight B vitamins, it serves as a vital cofactor (biochemistry), cofactor in DNA synthesis and both fatty acid metabolism, fatty acid and amino a ...

since she was a graduate student. Her research focus is

metalloprotein Metalloprotein is a generic term for a protein that contains a metal ion cofactor. A large proportion of all proteins are part of this category. For instance, at least 1000 human proteins (out of ~20,000) contain zinc-binding protein domains al ...

s and

metalloenzymes Metalloprotein is a generic term for a protein that contains a metal ion cofactor. A large proportion of all proteins are part of this category. For instance, at least 1000 human proteins (out of ~20,000) contain zinc-binding protein domains al ...

, and developing structural approaches to visualize enzymes. Her group uses

X-ray crystallography X-ray crystallography is the experimental science of determining the atomic and molecular structure of a crystal, in which the crystalline structure causes a beam of incident X-rays to Diffraction, diffract in specific directions. By measuring th ...

and

electron microscopy An electron microscope is a microscope that uses a beam of electrons as a source of illumination. It uses electron optics that are analogous to the glass lenses of an optical light microscope to control the electron beam, for instance focusing i ...

to characterize

s in action. She is interested in conformational change during catalysis. Her work also contributes to protecting the environment, as metals act as molecular helpers in chemical reactions. Drennan is the author of over 100 Protein Data Bank submissions.

Awards and honors

*2000 **Surdna Foundation Research Award **Cecil and Ida Green Career Development Chair *2001 - Searle Scholar *2002 - Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers *2003 - ASBMB–Schering–Plough Research Institute Scientific Achievement Award *2004 - Harold E. Edgerton Faculty Achievement Award *2005 - Everett Moore Baker Memorial Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching *2006 - Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professor *2008 - Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator *2017 - Winter Commencement Bicentennial Alumni Award *2020 **American Academy of Arts and Sciences member **Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin Award, The Protein Society *2021-

Fellow *2023 **Structural Science Society (ACA) Fellow **

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the ...

member

Weblinks

* Jennifer Viegas: ''Profile of Catherine Drennan.'' PNAS. Vol. 121 (46), November 2024, e2420751121. doi:10.1073/pnas.2420751121.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Drennan, Cathy Living people University of Michigan alumni American women biochemists American crystallographers Vassar College alumni Year of birth missing (living people) Scientists with dyslexia American scientists with disabilities 21st-century American women scientists 21st-century American biochemists Recipients of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers