Matthew D. Liptak

Matthew D. Liptak is a Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Vermont (UVM), part of the College of Arts and Sciences. His research focuses on bioinorganic chemistry, magneto-optical spectroscopy, and computational chemistry. He earned a B.A. from Hamilton College (2003), a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (2008), and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Rochester (2008–2011).

His research group investigates metalloenzyme mechanisms, particularly in pathogenic bacteria like Staphylococcus aureus and Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Key projects include heme iron acquisition pathways and metal tetrapyrrole biosynthesis. Techniques employed include recombinant protein expression, spectroscopy (MCD, NMR, EPR), and quantum mechanical modeling. Recent work highlights the role of electronic structure dynamics in enzymatic reactions and novel photophysical mechanisms in fluorophores.

Notable awards include the 2016 New Talent Americas Award, 2015 Paul Saltman Award, and 2009 Ruth Kirschstein-NRSA fellowship. His group has trained students advancing to academia and industry roles. Current openings exist for graduate students focused on metal tetrapyrrole degradation research.

Labs/Teams: The Liptak Group collaborates on antibiotic development, synthetic enzyme design, and photophysical property prediction. Key projects include heme oxygenase mechanisms, class II chelatase studies, and aggregation-induced emission phenomena in fluorophores.