Mary Susan Cates
EDUCATION
- Rice University,
Houston, Texas
Ph.D., Biochemistry, April, 2000
Advisor: Dr. George N. Phillips, Jr.
- Thesis topic: Crystallographic and Computational Studies of the
Metal Ion-Binding
Properties of Parvalbumin
- University of
Houston, Houston, Texas
B.S., Physics, May, 1995
HONORS
- Robert A. Welch Postdoctoral Fellowship,
Summer 2000
- W. M. Keck Center for
Computational Biology Predoctoral Fellowship, 1996-1999
- Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Endowed
Scholarship, 1998
- Phi Lambda Upsilon (Honorary Chemical
Society)
- Sigma Pi Sigma (National Physics Honor
Society)
- National Merit Letter of Commendation
EXPERIENCE
- Faculty Lecturer and
Graduate Laboratory Coordinator,
Dept. Biochemistry and Cell Biology,
Rice University, Houston, TX
- February 1, 2002 - present
- NIH Postdoctoral Research Associate,
Texas A & M University, Inst. for Bioscience & Technology,
Center for Structural Biology, Houston, TX
- August 15, 2000 - January 31, 2002
- Welch Postdoctoral Research Associate,
Rice University,
Dept. of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Houston, TX
- May 16 - August 15, 2000
Emphasis: Computational Molecular Dynamics
- Predoctoral Fellow, Rice University,
Dept. of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Houston, TX
1995-2000
Emphasis: Computational Biology, X-Ray Crystallography of Biological
Macromolecules
- K-12 Outreach Program, 1997
- Participated in an outreach program with the Rice School
using the
Interplanetary Society's RedRover course, sponsored by the
W. M. Keck Center
for Computational Biology.
Teaching Assistant Rice University 1996-1997
- Molecular Biophysics (1 semester)
- Biochemistry (1 semester)
- Computer skills: UNIX, Macintosh, Windows, WindowsNT, MATLAB,
Fortran, C
- Major Software Packages:
- SHELX
- Xplor/CNS
- Denzo/Scalepack
- Ribbons
- O
- Chain
- NAMD
- VMD
- PhotoShop
- PowerPoint
- Quanta
- Excel
- Igor Pro
RESEARCH INTERESTS
- X-ray crystallography, computational molecular dynamics
simulations and free energy
perturbation calculations.
ABSTRACTS
- Cates, M.S., Li, Q., Ho, E.L., Berry, M.B., Potter, J.D., and
Phillips,
G.N., Jr., Structural Calcium Binding Studies in Parvalbumin Mutants, ASBMB
Meeting on Methods in Biomolecular Imaging, Whistler, B.C., Canada
(1996).
- Cates, M.S., Li, Q., Ho, E.L., Berry, M.B., Potter, J.D.,
Scuseria, G. and Phillips, G.N., Jr., Calcium Recognition by Proteins, NLM
Training Program Meeting , Trainee Speakers Abstracts, Bethesda,
MD, (1997).
- Cates, M.S., Ho, E.L., Berry, M.B., Potter, J.D., and Phillips,
G.N., Jr.,
Examination of the Calcium Binding Affinity of EF-Hand Type Proteins by
X-ray Crystallographic Analysis of a Series of Parvalbumin Mutants, Biophys.
J. 76, A103 (1999).
- Cates, M.S., Ho, E.L., Berry, M.B., Li, Q., Potter, J.D., and
Phillips,
G.N., Jr., Structural Examination of the Last Metal-Ion Coordinating
Residue
in a Parvalbumin EF-Hand Site, Internat. Union of Crystallography
XVIII Congress and General Assembly,
Glasgow, Scotland, UK, Aug. 4-13, General Abstracts, p. 290 (1999).
REFEREED PUBLICATIONS
- Cates, M.S., Berry, M.B., Ho, E.L., Potter, J.D., and Phillips,
G.N.,
Jr.,
Metal Ion Affinity and Specificity in EF-hand Proteins: Coordination
Geometry
and Domain Plasticity in Parvalbumin, Structure 7(10), 1269-78
(1999)
- Cates, M.S., Teodoro, M.L., and Phillips, G.N., Jr., Molecular
Mechanisms of Calcium and Magnesium Binding to Parvalbumin, Biophysical
Journal 82:1133-1146 (2002).
CONTACT INFORMATION
- Office Address:
Dept. of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, MS 140
Rice University
6100 S. Main
Houston, TX 77005
e-mail: mscates@rice.edu
http://www.bioc.rice.edu/~mscates/
Home Address:
16311 Flint Run Way
Sugar Land, TX 77478
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Last Modified 13 September 2005