On August 17, 2022, the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry honored 2022 Nobel Laureate Professor Carolyn Bertozzi (Stanford) with the 2022 Glenn T. Seaborg Medal in recognition of her seminal contributions to the field.
A symposium entitled “Bringing Chemistry to Life”, a poster session, and an evening medal award dinner were held in Bertozzi’s honor on the UCLA campus.
A photo gallery from the event can be viewed here and select photos can be viewed below.
After welcoming remarks by Department Chair Professor Neil Garg and Seaborg Committee Co-Chair Professor William Gelbart (2017 Seaborg Medalist) at the afternoon symposium, Bertozzi and four other prominent scientists from Californian institutions gave talks:
- Professor Carolyn Bertozzi (Stanford) – “Bioorthogonal Chemistry, an Enabling Tool for Biomedicine” (Introduced by Seaborg Committee Co-Chair Prof. Ellen Sletten)
- Professor Frances Arnold (Nobel Laureate, California Institute of Technology) – “Innovation by Evolution: Bringing New Chemistry to Life” (Introduced by Prof. Yi Tang)
- Professor Jennifer Prescher (University of California, Irvine) – “Imaging Tools and Technologies Inspired by Nature’s Light-Emitting Chemistry” (Introduced by Prof. Ken Houk)
- Professor Alanna Schepartz (University of California, Berkeley) “Expanding the Definition of a Protein” (Introduced by Prof. Paul Weiss)
- Professor Ellen Sletten (UCLA, Seaborg Committee Co-Chair) – “Bioorthogonal Complexation for Labeling Living Systems” (Introduced by Prof. Alex Spokoyny)
The Glenn T. Seaborg Medal was established in 1987 and is given annually by the UCLA Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry to honor individuals for their significant contributions to chemistry and biochemistry. This is the first time the Seaborg Symposium has had an all-female slate of speakers.
A poster session by chemistry and biochemistry postdocs, graduate students, and undergraduate students was held as part of the symposium on the Court of Sciences patio. Six poster session winners were chosen by our three newest faculty members, Professors Prineha Narang, Matthew Nava, and Danielle Schmitt, who served as judges. The winners were announced at the medal award dinner.
Following the symposium, a reception and medal award dinner were held at the UCLA Covel Commons Terrace. Bertozzi’s father, MIT Physics Professor Emeritus William Bertozzi, and her sister, UCLA Math Professor Andrea Bertozzi, attended both the symposium and the evening events. Also attending the day’s events were Seaborg Medalists Professor David Eisenberg (2004), Professor Michael Jung (2016) and his wife Alice, and Professor Kendall Houk (2013).
In his welcoming remarks at the Medal Dinner, Dean of Physical Sciences Professor Miguel García-Garibay pointed out that all the symposium speakers have affiliations with California universities. He asked the audience, “What is it that brings some of the brightest and most distinguished women in the world to the State of California? Could it be the weather? Sunny beaches and remarkable nature? Great food and wine? While no doubt all of that helps, I am sure that many distinguished scientists come to California because we are one the most diverse and welcoming states in the world, with open minded and progressive people who look to the future, and who welcome and celebrate gender equity and diversity.”
The highlight of the evening was when García-Garibay presented the 2022 Glenn T. Seaborg Medal to Bertozzi, who then made remarks.
Congratulations to the following Poster Session Winners!
The department wishes to thank the generous supporters whose donations made the Seaborg events possible.
Photos by Reed Hutchinson. Article by Penny Jennings, UCLA Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, penny@chem.ucla.edu.
