Baylor Biochemistry Researcher Recognized with National Nobel Laureate Signature Award for Graduate Education from American Chemical Society
Recent chairholder appointee Ivan Korendovych, Ph.D., served as mentor for 2024 student recipient of prestigious national award honoring elite graduate scholars
Ivan Korendovych, Ph.D., the inaugural James. R. Schofield Endowed Chair in Biochemistry in Baylor University’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, has been recognized for excellence in graduate education by the American Chemical Society (ACS). Korendovych, who joined Baylor in January from Syracuse University, is the preceptor for this year’s Nobel Laureate Signature Award for Graduate Education in Chemistry, a national ACS award that recognizes an outstanding graduate student and instructor in chemistry.
Korendovych earned the award along with his student, Sagar Bhattacharya, Ph.D., for work completed at Syracuse University, which resulted the fastest artificial enzyme ever created. Their research in this area was published in the journal Nature in 2022, and continued through the conclusion of their partnership. Bhattacharya now serves as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California-San Francisco.
“There are certainly no shortages of great students and mentors for ACS to select from, so this is both an exciting and humbling development,” Korendovych said. “Sagar is a really brilliant student who was up to the task of taking a crazy idea that we had and seeing it through. We’re grateful to be included on this roster of scientists.”
The roll of past recipients consists of highly decorated innovators, including winners of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
“This award is an incredible recognition of the stature of Dr. Korendovych's research program as our new endowed Schofield Chair in Biochemistry,” said Lee Nordt, Ph.D., dean of the College of Arts & Sciences at Baylor. “Such recognitions continue to support our standing as an R1 Christian research university.”
Ivan Korendovych, Ph.D., the inaugural James. R. Schofield Endowed Chair in Biochemistry in Baylor University’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, has been recognized for excellence in graduate education by the American Chemical Society (ACS). Korendovych, who joined Baylor in January from Syracuse University, is the preceptor for this year’s Nobel Laureate Signature Award for Graduate Education in Chemistry, a national ACS award that recognizes an outstanding graduate student and instructor in chemistry.
Korendovych earned the award along with his student, Sagar Bhattacharya, Ph.D., for work completed at Syracuse University, which resulted the fastest artificial enzyme ever created. Their research in this area was published in the journal Nature in 2022, and continued through the conclusion of their partnership. Bhattacharya now serves as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California-San Francisco.
“There are certainly no shortages of great students and mentors for ACS to select from, so this is both an exciting and humbling development,” Korendovych said. “Sagar is a really brilliant student who was up to the task of taking a crazy idea that we had and seeing it through. We’re grateful to be included on this roster of scientists.”
The roll of past recipients consists of highly decorated innovators, including winners of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
“This award is an incredible recognition of the stature of Dr. Korendovych's research program as our new endowed Schofield Chair in Biochemistry,” said Lee Nordt, Ph.D., dean of the College of Arts & Sciences at Baylor. “Such recognitions continue to support our standing as an R1 Christian research university.”
Catalyst on the cutting edge
Faculty mentors such as Korendovych play a crucial role in the success of graduate students, with research consistently showing the strong connection between mentoring and a graduate student’s scholarly well-being – from productivity and confidence to program satisfaction, said Baylor Graduate School Dean J. Larry Lyon, Ph.D.
“Dr. Korendovych’s reputation in this area precedes him to Baylor, and we are grateful for his dedication to mentoring graduate students. The Baylor University Graduate School is thrilled to celebrate this national recognition for him,” Lyon said. “A defining characteristic of graduate education at Baylor is faculty mentorship. It helps prepare graduate students for success not only after they have received their degrees, but while they are on campus through publications and grant opportunities. So, Dr. Korendovych is a welcome and significant addition to our mentoring efforts.”
When Korendovych joined the Baylor faculty, he brought with him a highly regarded research portfolio in protein engineering, biocatalysis and chemical biology. At Syracuse University, he earned significant funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Science Foundation (NSF), among other organizations, and was published in Nature, Nature Chemistry and other leading journals.
With a collaborative bent across disciplines, his work touches on biology, materials science and more. Much of those efforts are focused on chemical reactions that occur in nature, and utilizing that understanding to develop new catalysts for different reactions.
“The idea is that we learn from nature and build things using nature’s lessons to make people’s lives better,” Korendovych said. “With new reactions come new products. In the process, we learn how proteins behave and evolve and can apply those lessons to actually evolve proteins ourselves.”
Further understanding of these processes could impact a wide range of human health challenges, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s Disease, HIV and more, as well as issues related to the environment and sustainability.
“We have a broad interest in our lab that allows us to address ever-evolving cutting-edge challenges,” Korendovych said. “We’re looking to solve unsolved problems and develop new things, with the hope to devise a set of basic principles in enzymes so that we can create new tools to do chemistry better and more efficiently.”
Developing future professionals
The research collaboration that led to the national Nobel Laureate Signature Award for Graduate Education stemmed from what Korendovych called a “crazy idea” to predict where protein mutations took place with the hope of creating beneficial mutations. Together, he and Bhattacharya developed a novel method to find an enzyme’s “sweet spot,” which allowed them to more quickly and efficiently generate desired reactions.
“We showed that this idea actually worked, and the paper in Nature was transformative,” Korendovych said. “We had a very simple idea and demonstrated to skeptics that it could be done. I believe it has the potential to change things.”
In working alongside Bhattacharya, Korendovych helped to elevate both the research and Bhattacharya’s burgeoning career, which included the Nature publication. While the significance of the research helped drive that research partnership toward a national award, that same approach to graduate mentorship guides Korendovych in his work.
“As a scientist, you may discover something or publish a paper, but the people you train and mentor are the real things that drives science after you are done mentoring them,” Korendovych said. “It’s kind of like parenting in a way, or akin to coaching. You develop people and play the roles of parent, teacher, scholar and psychologist. To see them succeed is very exciting and rewarding.
“In coming to Baylor, I believe a lot of students will appreciate the personal touch that comes from personal relationships. I believe this will continue to help raise the profile of the University as we recruit great students and send the message that they can do very well here,” he said.
Transformative generosity
The position that drew Korendovych to Baylor was the result of generosity designed to elevate scholarship and impact at the University.
The James R. Schofield Chair in Biochemistry was established through a gift from the estate of the late Dr. James Schofield, a Baylor alumnus and former visiting professor. Dr. Schofield, who died in 2007, chose to create a lasting legacy at Baylor, leaving a portion of his estate to the University. The Schofield Chair in Biochemistry is one of two endowed chairs created through his gift, which support innovative research and scholarly activity and teaching within the College of Arts & Sciences and the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry.
In accepting this position, Korendovych joined the ranks of Foster Academic Challenge Scholars. These scholars hold endowed chairs that were established as part of a $100 million gift to Baylor from Paul and Alejandra Foster of El Paso, Texas, which supported the University’s efforts to generate high-impact research and scholarship through matching support.
ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked Research 1 institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for more than 20,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions. Learn more about Baylor University at www.baylor.edu.
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