Postdoctoral Fellowship: MPS-APRF: : Harnessing Artificial Metalloenzymes for Selective Electrocatalytic Carbon-Carbon Coupling

Kevin E. Rivera Cruz is awarded an NSF Mathematical and Physical Sciences Ascending Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (NSF MPS-Ascend) to conduct a program of research and activities related to broaden participation by groups underrepresented in STEM. This fellowship to Dr. Rivera Cruz supports the research project entitled "Postdoctoral Fellowship: MPS-Ascend: Harnessing Artificial Metalloenzymes for Selective Electrocatalytic Carbon-Carbon Coupling" under the mentorship of a sponsoring scientist. The host institution for the fellowship is the University of California – Los Angeles (UCLA), and the sponsoring scientist is Dr. Hannah S. Shafaat. This proposal intends to develop a new bioelectrocatalytic approach for characterizing carbon–carbon bond-forming reactions by controlling the primary, secondary, and tertiary coordination spheres within protein-based model systems. Preparing model systems that can achieve similar reactivity and selectivity as the parent enzyme system is critically important for understanding the enzyme's reaction mechanism. The proposed work will characterize the reactivity using electrochemical techniques to control the enzyme's active site oxidation state, modulate the secondary coordination sphere to expand substrate reactivity, and control electron transfer by encapsulating the enzyme within redox-active polymers. The research will independently control the primary, secondary, and tertiary coordination spheres surrounding the enzyme's active site and determine the effects of each coordination sphere on the overall catalytic activity. Successful implementation of this work will provide fundamental insights into the parent and model enzyme reaction mechanism and facilitate the development of enzyme-polymer composite approaches to understand redox-mediated activity in small-molecule activation reactions. The PI intends to increase the participation of undergraduate students in research and participate in community outreach activities at public events in Los Angeles. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.