JoAnne Stubbe, Novartis Professor of Chemistry and professor of biology, has been awarded the National Academy of Sciences Award in Chemical Sciences.
The $15,000 prize is awarded annually for "innovative research in the chemical sciences that, in the broadest sense, contributes to the better understanding of the natural sciences and to the benefit of humanity."
Stubbe was cited for her work on the mechanisms and regulation of enzymes called ribonucleotide reductases, which control the cellular concentration of deoxyribonucleotides, or single units of DNA.
The National Academy of Sciences described the work as "a compelling demonstration of the power of chemical investigations to solve problems in biology."
A version of this article appeared in MIT Tech Talk on January 30, 2008 (download PDF).