Department of Biochemistry

Welcome!

Bruce Nicholson, Ph.D. Professor and Chairman

The Department of Biochemistry is one of seven basic science departments in the The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. The faculty of the Department of Biochemistry is dedicated to the training of future scientists not only by teaching an existing body of knowledge, but also by expanding that body of knowledge through their original research activities. Our primary instructional activities are directed toward our graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in biochemistry as well as to students enrolled in the medical and dental schools of this institution.

The research activities of the department are faculty-initiated and encompass most areas of contemporary biochemistry. The brief descriptions of the current faculty research projects and the publications cited in the Faculty section of this website highlight the extent to which the faculty has excelled in their respective fields of endeavor. More importantly the faculty has an excellent record of securing fiscal support for their research activities from federal and private funding agencies. The past record of innovation and creativity exhibited by the faculty in their research efforts will most certainly insure continued success in attracting funding and national attention to our research programs.

This institution and department have maintained a strong commitment to the acquisition of instrumentation and facilities necessary for our competitive position in contemporary biomedical and biophysical research. As a result our faculty, postdoctoral fellows and students have not been limited by a lack of access to sophisticated technologies required in the pursuit of research endeavors.

The achievements of our faculty have been recognized not only by our success in garnering peer-reviewed funding but also by our frequent selection to serve as peer reviewers. Several faculty members in the department are members of grant review committees of federal and private funding agencies and editorial boards of major biochemical/biophysical journals.

The department sponsors an excellent seminar program that attracts renowned scientists from the best research institutions in the country. This seminar program provides an excellent opportunity for our faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and students to calibrate their own research activities with those of the very best scientists in the world. In addition, the institution sponsors a number of faculty seminars and informal journal clubs that expose the scientific community in the Health Science Center to developments at the cutting edge of biomedical science. Several named lectureships provide a forum for seminar presentations by internationally known scientists, including members of the National Academy of Sciences and Nobel laureates.

In summary, the Department of Biochemistry is a dynamic, productive scientific and educational enterprise. We have positioned a unique group of exceptionally talented faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and students in an exciting research environment. In doing so, we have developed the capacity and perception to seek answers to the most vexing biochemical questions of our time.

Bruce J. Nicholson, Ph.D.
Professor and Chairman