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

EXPERIENCE

Recruiting and Marketing Administrator
Biochemistry & Cell Biology
Rice University, Houston, TX
July 1, 2008 - present
 
Faculty Lecturer and
Graduate Laboratory Coordinator,
Dept. Biochemistry and Cell Biology,
Rice University, Houston, TX
February 1, 2002 - present
 
Presenter for AP Biology Teachers Workshops,
Advanced Topics in Biology (Bioinformatics and Evolution of Heme Proteins)
Glasscock School of Continuing Studies, Rice University, 2006 - 2007

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


Computer skills: UNIX, Macintosh, Windows, WindowsNT, MATLAB, Fortran, C
Major Software Packages:

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

Aranda R 4th, Worley CE, Liu M, Bitto E, Cates MS, Olson JS, Lei B, Phillips GN Jr., Bis-methionyl coordination in the crystal structure of the heme-binding domain of the streptococcal cell surface protein Shp, J Mol Biol. 374(2):374-83 (2007).

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).

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)

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
phone: 713-348-5777
http://www.bioc.rice.edu/~mscates/


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Last Modified 26 Nov 2008