Squire Booker is an American biochemist at

Penn State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a public state-related land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvania. Founded in 1855 as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania, Penn State became ...

. Booker directs an interdisciplinary chemistry research program related to fields of biochemistry, enzymology, protein chemistry, natural product biosynthesis, and mechanisms of radical dependent enzymes. He is an associate editor for the

American Chemical Society The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all d ...

Biochemistry Journal, is a Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, and an Eberly Distinguished Chair in Science at Penn State University.

Early life

Booker was born September 9, 1965. He grew up in the segregated community of

Beaumont, Texas Beaumont is a coastal city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat, seat of government of Jefferson County, Texas, Jefferson County, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur, Texas, Port Arthur Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan area, metropo ...

. He was raised by his grandmother with the help of three uncles. Squire Booker's career was particularly influenced by two of his uncles. One worked at

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

and sparked his interest in astronomy, while the other was a math teacher who inspired his curiosity for solving complex problems. This led him to choose chemistry as his major in college, which combined his interests in math and science.

Education

Booker received his B.A. in chemistry at

Austin College Austin College is a private liberal arts college affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and located in Sherman, Texas. where he was a Minnie Stevens Piper Scholar. He received his Ph.D. in biochemistry from

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

in 1994, and conducted postdoctoral research at Universite Rene Decartes in Paris, France and held a postdoctoral fellowship at the Institute for Enzyme Research at the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

. He became a professor at

in 1999, where he earned tenure in 2005.

Research

Booker is a professor of biology, biochemistry, and molecular biology at Penn State University. His research explores how enzymes change their catalytic abilities due to metal ions or metal clusters. His research focuses on enzymes containing iron-sulfur clusters which catalyze chemical reactions. He focuses on the Radical S-adenosylamethionine Superfamily (SAM) which is a group of enzymes that encounters radical chemistry in post-transcriptional and post-translational modifications of DNA. He also researches many bacteria including ''

Staphylococcus aureus ''Staphylococcus aureus'' is a Gram-positive spherically shaped bacterium, a member of the Bacillota, and is a usual member of the microbiota of the body, frequently found in the upper respiratory tract and on the skin. It is often positive ...

'', which is found in the nasal cavity and on the skin in humans. ''S. aureus'' is problematic because it can mutate into the

superbug Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when microbes evolve mechanisms that protect them from the effects of antimicrobials. All classes of microbes can evolve resistance. Fungi evolve antifungal resistance. Viruses evolve antiviral resistance. P ...

methicillin-resistant ''S. aureus'' (MRSA). There is a protein called Cfr protein in ''S. aureus'' that binds to ribosomes which is where translation occurs. Many antibiotics bind to ribosomes which cause bacteria to die. However, when Cfr is expressed, it binds to the ribosome and allows the bacteria to stay alive which is known as methylation This research has led Booker to discover that ''S. aureus'' expresses a protein, Cfr, which makes it resistant to many

antibiotic An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the treatment and prevention of ...

s. He developed mechanism of this methylation. Booker's lab also researches aspects of the bacterium, ''

Escherichia coli ''Escherichia coli'' (),Wells, J. C. (2000) Longman Pronunciation Dictionary. Harlow ngland Pearson Education Ltd. also known as ''E. coli'' (), is a Gram-negative, facultative anaerobic, rod-shaped, coliform bacterium of the genus ''Escher ...

''. He determined the three-dimensional structure of the RImN protein from the bacteria. RImN is one of two proteins which makes chemical modification to different RNA molecules. Understanding this structure will help with other research of

antibiotic resistance Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when microbes evolve mechanisms that protect them from the effects of antimicrobials. All classes of microbes can evolve resistance. Fungi evolve antifungal resistance. Viruses evolve antiviral resistance. ...

. As a result of his research, he is synthesizing new compounds to stop the bacteria's defenses which would make antibiotics more effective. The goal of his research to design compounds which can prevent infections due to drug-resistant bacteria.

Activism

Booker is active in promoting diversity in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (

STEM Stem or STEM may refer to: Plant structures * Plant stem, a plant's aboveground axis, made of vascular tissue, off which leaves and flowers hang * Stipe (botany), a stalk to support some other structure * Stipe (mycology), the stem of a mushro ...

) especially towards undergraduate and graduate students. He was a chair on the Minority Affairs Committee of the American Association of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. In 2010, he helped organize a workshop which discussed the different obstacles and challenges that minorities in biochemistry and molecular biology encounter when building externally funded research programs. Booker was the guest speaker at Massachusetts Institute of Technology's 2019 Investiture of Doctoral Hoods and Degree Conferral Ceremony. He was chosen due to his impressive contributions to the scientific community and his activism towards inclusion of all in STEM. In his speech, he emphasized an opportunity for all in science. He encouraged the graduates to take responsibility and give back to society. It does not matter what one's background is in, people in STEM need to be willing to accept and stand up for each other.

Honors and awards

Booker has received numerous honor and awards: * 2019 Associate Editor for the

Biochemistry Journal * 2018 Evan Pugh Professor at

* 2017 Eberly Distinguished Chair in Science at

* 2017 Elected to the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...

* 2017 Lloyd N. Ferguson Distinguished Lecturer at Cal State, Los Angeles * 2016 Penn State Faculty Scholar Medal * 2016 Scott Lectureship in Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Florida * 2016 Co-organizer of the ASBMB Annual Meeting * 2015 Selected as a Hughes Medical Investigator * 2015 Everson Lectureship in Biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin, Madison * 2014 Fellow of the

American Association for the Advancement of Science The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is an American international non-profit organization with the stated goals of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific respons ...

* 2013 TY Shen Lectureship in Biological Chemistry at MIT * 2011 American Chemical Society Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award * 2006 co-chair, GRC on Enzyme Coenzymes and Metabolic Pathways * 2004 Presidential Early Career Award in Science and Engineering * 2002-2007 NSF Faculty Early Career Award * 1996-1999 NIH

Postdoctoral Fellow A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). The ultimate goal of a postdoctoral research position is to p ...

at the Institute for Enzyme Research at the University of Wisconsin * 1994-1995 NSF-NATO Postdoctoral Fellow

Selected publications

Booker has published over 100 scientific publications in journals such as the ''Journal of the American Chemical Society'' and ''Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences''. Here are some of the most cited publications: * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Booker, Squire Living people Pennsylvania State University faculty American biochemists African-American chemists Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science Austin College alumni Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Science alumni Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences 1965 births 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people Recipients of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers Chemists from Texas