Chemistry

 
Education

Postdoctoral:  California Institute of Technology, June 2001- present
          Advisor:  Harry B. Gray
 
Ph.D.: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, October 2001
           Thesis Advisor:  Thomas B. Rauchfuss
            GPA: 4.00/4.00
 
  B.S. Chemistry.  Lehigh University, May, 1995
  B.S. Chemical Engineering.  Lehigh University, May, 1995
            Both with Highest Honors. GPA: 3.99/4.00
 
Experience
 
Visitor, California Institute of Technology, August 2007-present:  Conducted research and consulted on the development of molecular wire active-site probes for methyl-CoM reductase, cytochrome P450BM3, and lipoxygenases.
 
Assistant Professor of Chemistry (1-year leave replacement), Azusa Pacific University, August 2006-May 2007:  developed and taught courses in biochemistry, organic &  biochemistry, and nonmajors general chemistry.
 
Postdoctoral Scholar, California Institute of Technology, June 2001- August, 2006: Bioinorganic and biophysical chemistry research under Prof. Harry B. Gray

• Prepared Ru and Re diimine molecular wires that reversibly and selectively bind copper amine oxidases and cytochrome P450cam
• Photogenerated topaquinone radicals in copper amine oxidase using novel Re- diimine molecular wires
• Three publications and five presentations at professional meetings
• Mentored 3 undergraduate researchers

Research Mentor, California Institute of Technology Freshman Summer Institute Program, August - September, 2005:  Taught two incoming Caltech freshmen research methodology and techniques.
 
Research Assistant, University of Illinois. January 1996 – May 2001: Conducted synthetic organometallic research under Prof. T. B. Rauchfuss:

• Prepared four new classes of organometallic cyanide clusters & three cyanometallate coordination networks
• Characterized the structures of numerous organometallic cyanide clusters and polymers using X-ray crystallography, NMR, IR, and MS
• Synthesized & characterized an all-Fe hydrogenase active site cofactor model complex
• Prepared and characterized pi-complexes of Cp*Ru²⁺ with phthalocyanines
• Eleven publications and six presentations at professional meetings

Consultant, OhmX Corporation, June 2005- May 2007:  Provides technical expertise related to the development of protein biosensors.
Consultant, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, July 2005 – June 2006:  Advised Dr. Adrian Ponce and his group on the design of synthetic receptor sites for spore detection.
 
Teaching Assistant, University of Illinois. August 1996 - May 1997, January -  December 1999:

• Teaching assistant, General Chemistry.  Lectured, conducted review sessions, wrote and gave quizzes.
• Teaching assistant, Industrial Inorganic Chemistry.  Provided organizational and administrative assistance.
• Head Teaching Assistant, General Chemistry Lab.  Prepared course materials, wrote exams, and tested experiments

Summer Researcher, Sandia National Labs.  May 1995 - August 1995, May 1994 - August 1994:  Conducted sol-gel science research under Dr. C.J. Brinker:

• Evaluated the effect of preparation conditions on the properties of sol-gel derived thin films, powders, gels, and membranes
• Developed a molecular imprinting method for controlling pore sizes in silica thin films
• Measured stresses in dip-coated thin films during drying 
• Two publications

Selected Honors   
 
 
Special Skills                      
 
Chemical and biochemical Synthesis

• Expert in synthesis and manipulation of air sensitive compounds using Schlenk manifolds, glove boxes, and high vacuum systems.
• Proficient in the maintenance and use of solvent purification systemsAble to perform chromatographic separations using GC, HPLC, FPLC
• Able to engineer, express, and purify proteins<>
  

Spectroscopy and Crystallography

• Proficient with the use of SHELX and PLATON for the solution, evaluation, and refinement of crystallographic data
• Proficient with NMR (VT and CP-MAS), IR, UV-vis, ESI-MS
• Experienced in the use of fluorimetry, CD, EPR, XPS, SEM, TGA
  

Computer Skills

• Experienced in the use of Cerius,  Insight II, and DSViewerPro for molecular structure visualization and analysis
• Experienced with Chemical Information Retrieval using the SciFinder Scholar, CSD,  Beilstein Commander, Web of Knowledge, OVID, Protein and Cambridge Crystallographic Data Banks, as well as other databases

• Experienced in writing FORTRAN and BASIC programs for modeling transport phenomena in a variety of systems
  

Professional Affiliations

American Chemical Society, Tau Beta Pi, Sigma Xi, American Scientific Affiliation, Omicron Delta Kappa


Professional Activities  

Summer Undergraduate Research Fellow Mentor, 2002-2005.  Directed three undergraduate student research projects.

Educating Tomorrow's Chemists.  Performed hands-on demonstrations for middle school students and coordinated a “Polymer” experiment in 1998.

Publications 
1.         Langley, D. B.; Contakes, S. M.; Brown, D.; Gray, H. B.; Dooley, D. M.; Guss, J. M.; Freeman, H. C. " Structural studies of copper amine oxidase in complex with channel-blocking ruthenium(II) and rhenium(I) molecular wires (working title)", manuscript in preparation.

2.         Contakes, S. M.; Cable, M. L.; Kirby, J. P.; Ponce, A. P. “Engineering receptor sites for luminescent molecular sensors” in Bottom-Up Nanofabrication: Supramolecules, Self-Assemblies, and Organized Films, Ariga, K.  Ed., Academic Publishers, in press.

3.    Contakes, S.M.; Nguyen, Y-H L.; ;Udit, A. K.; Gray, H. B. “Conjugates of heme-thiolate enzymes with Photoactive Metal-diimine wires” in Structure & Bonding: Photofunctional Transition Metal Complexes, Yam, W.W. Ed., Springer-Verlag, in press.

4.         Udit, A. K.; Contakes, S.M.; Gray, H. B. “P450 electron-transfer reactions” in Met. Ions Life Sci. 2007, 3, 157-185.

 5.         Contakes, S. M.; Juda, G. A.; Langley, D. B.; Halpern-Manners^, N. W.; Duff, A. P.; Dunn, A. R.; Gray, H. B.; Dooley, D. M.; Guss, J. M.; Freeman, H. C. “Reversible inhibition of copper amine oxidase activity by channel-blocking ruthenium(II) and rhenium(I) molecular wires”, Proc. National Acad. Sci. USA 2005, 102(38), 13451-6.

6.         Contakes, S. M.; Klausmeyer, K. K.; Rauchfuss, T. B.  “Cyanide compounds. Tricyanometalate building blocks and organometallic cyanide cages.”    Inorganic Syntheses, 2004, 34, 166-171. (invited contribution)

7.         Contakes, S. M.; Kuhlman, M. L., Ramesh, M., Wilson, S. R., Rauchfuss, T. B. “Systematic assembly of the double molecular boxes: {Cs[CpCo(CN)₃]₄[Cp*Ru]₃} as a tridentate ligand” Proc. National Aced. Sci. USA, 2002, 99, 4889-4893.  (invited contribution, supramolecular chemistry and self-assembly special feature, and cover article).

8.         Contakes, S. M.; Hsu, S. C. N.; Rauchfuss, T. B.; Wilson, S. R. “Preparative and structural  studies on the carbonyl cyanides of iron, manganese, and ruthenium: Fundamentals relevant to the Hydrogenases” Inorg. Chem., 2002, 41(6), 1670-1678.

9.         Rauchfuss, T. B.; Contakes, S. M.; Hsu, S. C. N.; Reynolds, M. A.; Wilson, S. R. “The influence of cyanide on the carbonylation of iron(II): synthesis of Fe-SR-CN-CO centers related to the Hydrogenase active sites“ J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2001; 123(28); 6933-6934.


10.    Contakes, S. M.; Rauchfuss, T. B. “Alkali metal-templated assembly of the tetrahedral cyanometallate cages [M@Mo₄(µ-CN)₆(CO)₁₂]^5- (M = Li, Na)”, Chem. Commun.,2001, 553-554.
11.    Contakes, S. M.; Beatty, S. T.; Dailey, K. K.; Rauchfuss, T. B.; Fenske, D. "Pi- complexes of phthalocyanines and metallophthalocyanines” Organometallics, 2000; 19, 4767-4774.

 12.  Contakes, S. M.; Rauchfuss, T. B. "{K@[Mo(CO)₃]₆(CN)₉}^8-: A trigonal-prismatic cyanometallate cage" Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl. 2000, 39, 1984-1986.  <>

13.    Contakes, S. M.; Klausmeyer, K. K.; Rauchfuss, T. B. "Coordination solids derived from Cp*M(CN)₃^- (M = Rh, IR)" Inorg. Chem. 2000, 39, 2069-2075.

 14.    Schmidt, M.; Contakes, S. M.; Rauchfuss, T. B. "First generation synthetic analogues of all-Fe hydrogenases: synthesis and oxidation of Fe₂(SR)₂(CO)₄(CN)₂^2-" J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1999, 121, 9736-9737.

15.    Contakes, S. M.; Schmidt, M.; Rauchfuss, T. B. "Synthesis of organometallic solids by protonation of Cp*M(CN)₃^n- (M = Rh, Ir, Ru)” Chem. Commun. 1999, 1183.

16.    Contakes, S. M.;  Klausmeyer, K. K.;  Milberg, R. M.;  Wilson, S. R.;  Rauchfuss, T. B. "The seven-component assembly of the bowl-shaped cages Cp*₇Rh₇(CN)₁₂²⁺ and Cp*₇Rh₃Ir₄²⁺" Organometallics 1998, 17, 3633-3655.

17.    Samuel, J.; Hurd, A. J.; van Swol, F.; Fink, L.; Douglas, J.; Brinker, C. J.; Contakes, S. "Preparation of microporous films with sub-nanometer pores and their characterization using stress and FTIR measurements" Mater. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc. 1996, 431, 185-190.


18.    Brinker, C. J.;  Wallace, S.; Raman, N. K.;  Sehgal, R.; Samuel, J.; Contakes, S. M. "Sol-gel processing of amorphous nanoporous silicas: thin film and bulk" Access Nanoporous Mater., [Proc. Symp.] 1995, 123-139.

 

Selected Presentations

1.       Contakes, S. M.; Juda, G.; Halpern-Manners, N.; Dunn, A. R.; Dooley, D. M.; Gray, H. B.  “Probing the active site of copper amine oxidase with nanosecond electron tunneling wires” 229^th ACS National Meeting, March 13-17, 2005.

2.       Halpern-Manners, N.; Contakes, S. M.; Udit, A. K.; Di Bilio, A. J.; Gray, H. B.; Winkler, J. R.  “Photooxidation of cytochrome P450cam using nanosecond electron tunneling wires.”  229^th ACS National Meeting, March 13-17, 2005.

3.       Contakes, S. M.; Dunn, A. R.; Morales, N. F.; Halpern-Manners, N.; Peng, K.; Winkler, J. R.; Gray, H. B. “Substrate-tethered Probes for Investigating the Active Site of Myeloperoxidase”  11^th International Conference on Bioinorganic Chemistry, Caines, Australia, July 19-23, 2003.

4.       Gray, H. B.; Dunn, A. R.; Belliston, W.; Leigh, B. S.; Contakes, S. M.; Winkler, J. R.  “Electron-tunneling wires for heme enzymes.” 225^th ACS National Meeting, March 23-27, 2003.

5.       Contakes, S. M.; Dunn, A. R.; Dmochowski, I. J.; Winkler, J.R.; Gray, H.B. “Probing the Active Site of Myeloperoxidase using Sensitizer-tethered Substrates”  10^th International Conference on Bioinorganic Chemistry, Florence, Italy, August 26-31, 2001.

6.       Rauchfuss, T. B.; Contakes, S. M.; Kuhlman, M. L.  “Multimetallic ensembles based on tricyanometallates.” 222^nd ACS National Meeting, August 26-30, 2001.

7.       Hsu, S. C. N.; Contakes, S. M.; Rauchfuss, T. B.  “Synthesis, structure, and chemistry of cis- and trans-[Fe(CN)₄(CO)₂]^2-, fac-[Mn(CO)₃(CN)₃]^2- and related species.” 222^nd ACS National Meeting, August 26-30, 2001.

8.       Schmidt, M. A.; Contakes, S. M.; Rauchfuss, T. B.  “Synthetic analogs of the iron hydrogenase: A link between biological and organometallic iron-sulfur chemistry.”    218^th ACS National Meeting, Aug. 22-26,1999.

9.       Contakes, S. M.; Klausmeyer, K. K.; Rauchfuss, T. B.  “Synthesis of linear polymers, sheets, and 3-D networks based on linked organometallic cyanometallates.”    217^th ACS National Meeting, March 21-25, 1999.

10.  Schmidt, M. A.; Contakes, S. M.; Klausmeyer, K. K.; Moreland, A. C.; Rauchfuss, T. B.  “Half sandwich cyanometallate chemistry” 217^th ACS National Meeting, March 21-25, 1999.

11.  Contakes, S. M.; Rauchfuss, T. B.; Klausmeyer, K. K.  “Novel organometallic derivatives of phthalocyanines and cyanometallates.” 215^th ACS National Meeting, March 29-April 2, 1998.