Michael L. Gross

Michael L. Gross is a Professor of Chemistry and of Immunology and Internal Medicine at Washington University in St. Louis. His research focuses on structural proteomics, leveraging mass spectrometry-based methods to study protein structure, aggregation, and interactions, particularly in amyloid diseases, viral pathogens, and membrane proteins. He holds a PhD from the University of Minnesota and a BA from St. John's University.

• Education:
• PhD in Chemistry, University of Minnesota
• BA in Chemistry, St. John's University

Research Interests: Dr. Gross develops innovative methods like Fast Photochemical Oxidation of Proteins (FPOP), Hydrogen/Deuterium Exchange (HDX), and chemical crosslinking to study protein conformational changes. Key areas include Alzheimer’s amyloid proteins, membrane protein dynamics, and viral interactions (e.g., SARS-CoV-2, Ebola). His work bridges fundamental science and biopharmaceutical applications, such as antibody design and mRNA vaccine development.

Publications Trends: Recent articles highlight advancements in FPOP for live-cell membrane protein analysis, HDX for drug discovery, and structural insights into viral proteins. Methodological innovations (e.g., IC-FPOMP) and applications in amyloid aggregation and mRNA stability are recurring themes.

• Awards:
• John Fenn Award (2020)
• ACS Award in Analytical Chemistry (2018)
• AAAS Fellow (2017)
• Over 70 awards, including international fellowships and visiting professorships

Advising & Collaborations: Mentored numerous graduate students and postdocs (e.g., Wesley Wagner, Jie Sun) across structural biology, biophysics, and virology. Collaborates with researchers at WashU (e.g., Daved Fremont) and industry partners (e.g., Pfizer) on projects like PROTAC complexes and mRNA structural changes.

Labs & Teams: Leads a lab at Washington University developing cutting-edge mass spectrometry tools. Recent milestones include in-cell footprinting (IC-FPOMP) and open-source analysis software (Kingfisher). Active in training the next generation for academia and biotech sectors.