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Susan M. Baxter

Biotechnology / CSU Chancellor's Office
: 619-594-2822 / : 619-594-2510 / : sbaxter@mail.s@example.com @example.com @example.comdsu.edu / : CSUPERB

About me

As Executive Director of CSUPERB, I administer and manage the grants and awards programs, organize workshops and the annual CSU biotechnology symposium, develop new program opportunities, and act as a liaison for the CSU with industry, government and educational partners.

I have over twenty years' research and management experience in business, nonprofit and academic settings. My scientific research projects were aimed at elucidating DNA binding protein structure and function using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, computational and molecular biology techniques. While in industry, I worked with teams to formulate new herbicide products, discover and characterize protein targets for new diabetes treatments and develop software for human population genetics studies.

On the business side, I have expertise in nonprofit and biotech management, alliance management, and software engineering project management. I gained licensing, business development and merger activity experience at an early stage biotechnology company.

Currently I'm serving on the boards at BIOCOM Institute, a nonprofit arm of the biotechnology industry association in southern California, the California Healthcare Institute (www.chi.org), and Histogen, a private regenerative medicine company.

I have a B.A. in chemistry from the University of Virginia. My graduate work in chemistry at Northwestern was supported by Monsanto Agricultural Company. I did my postdoctoral research at University of Oregon as an NRSA (NIH) fellow.

Publications

1. Miller, N.A., S.F. Kingsmore, A.D. Farmer, R.J. Langley, J. Mudge, J.A. Crow, A.J. Gonzales, F.D. Schilkey, R.J. Kim, J. van Velkinburgh, G.D. May, C.F. Black, M.K. Myers, J.P. Utsey, N.S. Frost, S.M. Virk, D.J. Sugarbaker, R. Bueno, S.R. Gullans, S.M. Baxter, S.W. Day, and E.F. Retzel. 2008. Management of High-Throughput DNA Sequencing Projects: Alpheus. Journal of Computer Science & Systems Biology 1: 132-148. (article)

2. Beavis, W.D., F.D. Schilkey, and S.M. Baxter. 2007. Translational Bioinformatics: At the Interface of Genomics and Quantitative Genetics. Crop Science 47: S32-S43. (article)

3. Baxter, S., S. Day, J. Fetrow, and S. Reisinger. 2006. Scientific software development is not an oxymoron. PLoS Computational Biology: e87. (article)

4. Baxter, S., J. Rosenblum, S. Knutson, M. Nelson, J. Montimurro, J. Di Gennaro, J. Speir, J. Burbaum, and J. Fetrow. 2004. Synergistic computational and experimental proteomics approaches for more accurate detection of active serine hydrolases in yeast. Molecular & Cellular Proteomics : MCP: 209-25. (article)

5. Hoffman, B., M. Nelson, K. Burdick, and S. Baxter. 2004. Protein tyrosine phosphatases: strategies for distinguishing proteins in a family containing multiple drug targets and anti-targets. Current Pharmaceutical Design: 1161-81. (article)

6. Baxter, S.M., J.S. Fetrow, and S. Knutson. 2003. The Importance of Structure-based Function Annotation to Drug Discovery. Protein Structure: Determination, Analysis, and Applications for Drug Discovery. Daniel Chasman, Ed., Dekker. (article)

7. Cammer, S., B. Hoffman, J. Speir, M. Canady, M. Nelson, S. Knutson, M. Gallina, S. Baxter, and J. Fetrow. 2003. Structure-based active site profiles for genome analysis and functional family subclassification. Journal of Molecular Biology: 387-401. (article)

8. Herrgard, S., S. Cammer, B. Hoffman, S. Knutson, M. Gallina, J. Speir, J. Fetrow, and S. Baxter. 2003. Prediction of deleterious functional effects of amino acid mutations using a library of structure-based function descriptors. Proteins: 806-16. (article)

9. Hart, B., J. Mathias, D. Ott, L. McNaughton, J. Anderson, A. Vershon, and S. Baxter. 2002. Engineered improvements in DNA-binding function of the MATa1 homeodomain reveal structural changes involved in combinatorial control. Journal of Molecular Biology: 247-56. (article)

10. Betz, S., S. Baxter, and J. Fetrow. 2002. Function first: a powerful approach to post-genomic drug discovery. Drug Discovery Today: 865-71. (article)

11. Baxter, S.M. and J.S. Fetrow. 2001. Sequence- and structure-based protein function prediction from genomic information. Current Opinion in Drug Discovery and Development 4: 291-5. (article)

12. Baxter, S.M., J.S. Anderson, M.D. Forman, S. Modleski, and F.W. Dahlquist. 2000. Cooperative ordering in homeodomain-DNA recognition: solution structure and dynamics of the MATa1 homeodomain. Biochemistry 33: 10045-10054. (article)

13. Baxter, S.M., A. Shekhtman, L. McNaughton, and R.P. Cunningham. 1999. Identification of the Archaeoglobus fulgidus Endonuclease III-DNA interaction surface using heteronuclear NMR methods. Structure with Folding & Design 7: 919-930. (article)

14. Baxter, S.M. and J.S. Fetrow. 1999. Hydrogen exchange behavior of [U-15N] oxidized and reduced iso-1-cytochrome c. Biochemistry 38: 4493-4503. (article)

15. Baxter, S.M. and J.S. Fetrow. 1999. Assignment of 15N chemical shifts and 15N relaxation measurements for oxidized and reduced iso-1-cytochrome c. Biochemistry 38: 4480-4492. (article)

16. Baxter, S.M., J.C. Kowalski, M. Belfort, M.A. Stapleton, M. Holpert, J.T. Dansereau, S. Peitrokovski, and V. Derbyshire. 1999. Configuration of the catalytic GIY-YIG domain of intron endonuclease I-TevI: coincidence of computational and molecular findings. Nucleic Acids Research 27: 2115-2125. (article)

17. Baxter, S.M., M.D. Forman, R.F. Stack, P.S. Masters, and C.R. Hauer. 1998. High level, context-dependent misincorporation of lysine for arginine in Saccharomyces cerevisiae a1 homeodomain expressed in Escherichia coli. Protein Science 7: 500-503. (article)

18. Baxter, S.M., J.F. Fetrow, and T.L. Boose. 1997. 15N Isotopic Labeling and Amide Hydrogen Exchange Rates of Oxidized Iso-1-cytochrome. Journal of the American Chemical Society 119: 9899-9900. (article)

19. Baxter, S.M., D.M. Gontrum, C.L. Phillips, A.F. Roth, and F.W. Dahlquist. 1994. Heterodimerization of the Yeast Homeodomain Transcriptional Regulators 2 and a1: Secondary Structure Determination of the a1 Homeodomain and Changes Produced by Interactions. Biochemistry 33: 9294-9302. (article)

20. Baxter, S.M., M.B. Greizerstein, D.M. Kushlan, and G.W. Ashley. 1993. Conformational Properties of DNA Hairpins with TTT and TTTT Loops. Biochemistry 32: 8702-8711. (article)

21. Baxter, S.M. and G.W. Ashley. 1992. Modulation of neocarzinostatin- mediated DNA double-strand damage by activating thiol: deuterium isotope effects. Nucleic Acids Research 20: 805-809. (article)

Positions & Honors

2008 – Pinnacle Award Education Nominee, Athena, San Diego

2006 – Deals of Distinction, Licensing Executives Society (with management team at NCGR)

1993 – Structural Studies of a Eukaryotic Repressor Complex, NIH (University of Oregon)

1990 – Outstanding Teaching Assistant, College of Arts and Sciences, Northwestern University

1987-1992 – Supported Leave of Absence, Monsanto Agricultural Company

1987 – Achievement Award, Monsanto Agricultural Company

Grants

1. Interactions of the a1 and alpha2 proteins from Saccharomyces cerevisiae

2. Population Genetics Contract HHSN266200400064C

3. Structural Studies of Intron-Encoded Endonucleases

Educational background

1984 – Bachelor of Arts, University of Virginia (Chemistry)

1992 – Ph.D., Northwestern University (Chemistry)

Groups

I am a member of:

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