Marvin L. Hackert – Director           m.hackert@mail.utexas.edu           Ph: 512-471-1105    FAX:  512-471-6135

Link to Davis Retirement Symposium (April 28-29, 2006)

Link to RiggsFest  (Nov. 13, 2004)

  

  Biochemistry is the chemistry of life, or the study of living processes on the molecular level.  

   The Biochemical Institute was founded by the late Roger J. Williams (1893-1988) who came to the University of Texas in 1939, founded the Institute in 1940, and served as its Director until 1963.  The Institute under Dr. Williams’ direction helped build a strong and diverse program in biochemistry at the University of Texas at Austin.  More vitamins and their variants were discovered in the Biochemical Institute than in any other laboratory in the world.   

   Today the Biochemical Institute seeks to promote biochemical research at The University of Texas at Austin.  While the early work in nutrition by necessity focused on microbial studies, today’s nutritional studies can deal with human cells and the development of methods to assess an individual's metabolism and nutritional status, particularly the genetic variations of biochemical individuality impairing individual health status.  Other areas of active research today include the structures of biological molecules, mechanisms of recognition and signal transduction, control and catalysis, the biochemical processes of metabolism, synthesis of biomacromolecules, and the expression of genetic information. 

   Click on the buttons above to learn more about the history of the Biochemical Institute, explore its various facets, and degree programs related to biochemistry at the University of Texas at Austin.

Dept. of Chemistry and Biochemistry	College of Natural Sciences	UT Home Page

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