Douglas Mitchell is the recipient of the 2015 Pfizer Award in Enzyme Chemistry. He is cited for his outstanding work in enzyme chemistry where the presence of enzyme action is unequivocally demonstrated. The award is in recognition of fundamental research in enzyme chemistry by a scientist not over forty years of age.

He states, "The Mitchell laboratory has a long-standing interest in the biosynthetic construction, structure, and mechanism of action of complex molecules. Our interest in this area derives from the fact that most of today’s medicines can trace their origins to natural products. Not only do architecturally complex 'small' molecules from nature provide challenging targets for synthetic chemists, sometimes even inspiring the development of new reaction methodologies, the study of the naturally occurring route often uncovers novel biosynthetic enzymology. Indeed, the study of natural products continues to stimulate significant advances at the chemistry-biology-medicine interface."

He will be presented the award at the spring national American Chemical Society meeting in Denver, CO. Prof. Mitchell joined the faculty in 2009 and has subsequently been the recipient of numerous honors. He recently became a Helen Corley Petit Scholar, was a Tomorrow's PI (Genome Technology magazine), and received a Packard Fellowship in Science and Engineering and a NIH Director's New Innovator Award.

ACS Division of Biological Chemistry award page