Judith N. Burstyn

Judith N. Burstyn is a Professor of Chemistry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she leads the Burstyn Group in the Department of Chemistry. Her research focuses on understanding how proteins utilize heme to sense small gaseous molecules like CO, NO, and O₂, with emphasis on allosteric regulation and structure-function relationships in metalloproteins.

• Education:
  • 1980 – B.A., Cornell University
  • 1986 – Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles
  • Postdoctoral Associate, UCLA School of Medicine
  • Postdoctoral Fellow, MIT (Stephen Lippard)

The lab employs bioinorganic chemistry, biophysical methods, and bioinformatics to investigate heme coordination chemistry and its role in gas-mediated allosteric regulation. Key projects include the study of bacterial CO-sensing transcription factors (RcoM, CooA) and the enzyme cystathionine-β-synthase (CBS), which links heme function to sulfur amino acid metabolism and disease-related mutations.

Current group members include graduate students Madeleine Roberts and Brian Weaver. Former students have pursued diverse careers in academia, industry, and research institutions, such as Harvard Medical School, NIH, and Merck.

The lab's work is supported by interdisciplinary collaborations and utilizes techniques like enzyme kinetics, spectroscopy (EPR, resonance Raman, CD, fluorescence), mass spectrometry, SDSL-EPR, ITC, and structural analysis (SAXS, AUC).