{{short description|American chemistry and physics professor}} {{Infobox scientist | name = David N. Beratan | image = | image_size = 175 px | caption = David N. Beratan, 2015 | birth_date = 1958 | birth_place = Evanston, Illinois | field = Chemistry | work_institution = Duke University<br />University of Pittsburgh | alma_mater = Duke University (B.S.)<br />California Institute of Technology (Ph.D.) | thesis_title = The theory of long distance electron transfer reactions | thesis_url = https://thesis.library.caltech.edu/8175/ | thesis_year = 1985 | doctoral_advisor = John Hopfield | known_for = Biophysics<br />Electron tunnelling | prizes = Irving Langmuir Award (2024)<br />Bourke Award (2019)<br />Murray Goodman Memorial Prize (2018)<br /> Feynman Prize in Nanotechnology (2013)<br />Guggenheim Fellow (1999) | website = {{url|https://chem.duke.edu/labs/beratan}} }}

'''David N. Beratan''' (born 1958) is an American chemist and physicist, the R.J. Reynolds Professor of Chemistry at Duke University.<ref name="Duke Chemistry">{{cite web|title=Duke Chemistry|url=https://chem.duke.edu/faculty/david-n-beratan|website=Duke University Chemistry|access-date=27 June 2019}}</ref> He has secondary appointments in the departments of Physics<ref>{{cite web|title=Duke Physics|url=https://phy.duke.edu/people/david-n-beratan|website=Duke University Physics|access-date=27 June 2019}}</ref> and Biochemistry.<ref>{{cite web|title=Duke Biochemistry|url=https://www.biochem.duke.edu/david-beratan-secondary|website=Duke University Biochemistry|access-date=27 June 2019|archive-date=10 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190710174247/https://www.biochem.duke.edu/david-beratan-secondary|url-status=dead}}</ref> He is the director of the Center for Synthesizing Quantum Coherence, a NSF Phase I Center for Chemical Innovation.<ref>{{cite web|title=Award Abstract 1925690|url=https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1925690|access-date=17 July 2019}}</ref>

==Career== Beratan received a Bachelor of Science with a major in chemistry from Duke University in North Carolina in 1980. He began his graduate studies in electron transfer theory at California Institute of Technology, where he received a Doctor of Philosophy in 1986, advised by John Hopfield.<ref name="Neurotree - Hopfield">{{cite web|title=Academic Family Tree – John Hopfield|url=https://neurotree.org/neurotree/peopleinfo.php?pid=80/|website=Neurotree - Hopfield|access-date=9 July 2019}}</ref>

Upon completion of his doctorate, Beratan was a National Research Council Resident Research Associate at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and later a Member of the Technical Staff, and held a concurrent visiting appointment at Caltech's Beckman Institute.<ref name="Guggenheim Fellow Biosketch">{{cite web|title=Guggenheim Fellow Biosketch|url=https://www.gf.org/fellows/all-fellows/david-n-beratan/|website=Guggenheim Fellows|access-date=9 July 2019}}</ref> At JPL, he developed the tunneling pathway model for biological electron transfer (with José Onuchic)<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Beratan, Betts, Onuchic |date=1991 |title=Protein electron transfer rates set by the bridging secondary and teriary structure |journal=Science |volume=252 |issue= 5010|pages=1285–1288 |doi=10.1126/science.1656523 |pmid= 1656523|bibcode=1991Sci...252.1285B }}</ref> and general principles for optimizing the nonlinear response of organic structures (with Joseph W Perry and Seth Marder).<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Marder, Beratan, Cheng |date=1991 |title=Approaches for Optimizing the First Electronic Hyperpolarizability of Conjugated Organic Molecules |journal=Science |volume=252 |issue=5002 |pages=103–106 |doi=10.1126/science.252.5002.103 |pmid= 17739081|bibcode=1991Sci...252..103M |s2cid=39158497 }}</ref>

In 1992, he was appointed Associate Professor of Chemistry at University of Pittsburgh, where he was promoted to full professor in 1997.<ref name="Guggenheim Fellow Biosketch" /> At Pittsburgh he pioneered studies of DNA electron transfer,<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Priyadarshy, Risser, Beratan |date=1996 |title=DNA is not a molecular wire: protein-like electron-transfer predicted in an extended pi-electron system|journal=J. Phys. Chem. |volume=100 |issue= 44|pages=17678–17682 |doi=10.1021/jp961731h }}</ref> developed the foundations of inverse molecular design theory,<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Kuhn, Beratan |date=1996 |title=Inverse Strategies for Molecular Design |journal=J. Am. Chem. Soc. |volume=100 |issue=25 |pages=10595–10599 |doi=10.1021/jp960518i }}</ref> and developed strategies to assign the absolute stereochemistries of natural products using theoretical calculations (with Peter Wipf) of optical rotations.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Kondru, Wipf, Beratan |date=1998 |title=Theory-Assisted Determination of Absolute Stereochemistry for Complex Natural Products via Computation of Molar Rotation Angles |journal=J. Am. Chem. Soc. |volume=120 |issue=9 |pages=2204–2205 |doi=10.1021/ja973690o |bibcode=1998JAChS.120.2204K }}</ref>

In 2001 he was appointed R.J. Reynolds Professor of Chemistry at Duke University, and he served as chair of the chemistry department from 2004 - 2007.<ref name="Guggenheim Fellow Biosketch" /> At Duke, his studies have focused on novel electron transfer systems in biology,<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Zhang, Liu, Balaeff, Skourtis, Beratan |date=2014 |title=Biological charge transfer via flickering resonance |journal=PNAS |volume=111 |issue= 28|pages=10049–10054 |doi=10.1073/pnas.1316519111 |pmc=4104919 |pmid= 24965367|bibcode=2014PNAS..11110049Z |doi-access=free }}</ref> signatures of quantum coherence in chemistry,<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Skourtis, Waldeck, Beratan |date=2004 |title=Inelastic electron tunneling erases coupling-pathway interferences |journal=J. Phys. Chem. B |volume=108 |issue= 40|pages=15511–15518 |doi=10.1021/jp0485340 }}</ref> host-guest interactions, and inverse molecular design<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Wang, Hu, Beratan, Yang |date=2006 |title=Designing molecules by optimizing potentials |journal=J. Am. Chem. Soc. |volume=128 |issue= 10|pages=3228–3232 |doi=10.1021/ja0572046 |pmid= 16522103|bibcode=2006JAChS.128.3228W }}</ref> and library design<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Virshup, Contreras-Garcia, Wipf, Yang, Beratan |date=2013 |title=Stochastic voyages into uncharted chemical space produce a representative library of all possible drug-like compounds |journal=J. Am. Chem. Soc. |volume=135 |issue= 19|pages=7296–7203 |doi=10.1021/ja401184g |pmc= 3670418|pmid= 23548177|bibcode=2013JAChS.135.7296V }}</ref> (with Weitao Yang).

==Current research== Ongoing studies in the Beratan lab target the design of molecular structures and assemblies to capture and convert solar energy, defining mechanisms of multi-electron redox catalysis, mapping charge transfer pathways and mechanisms in extremophiles, designing molecular structures that focus oscillator strength for light absorption, creating functional de novo proteins, enumerating diversity-oriented property-biased molecular libraries, exploring charge transfer over micrometer to centimeter distances in bacterial nanowires and bacterial cables, understanding how exciting molecular vibrations can change electron transport dynamics, and understanding the physical principles that underpin host-guest interactions.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://chem.duke.edu/labs/beratan/research|title = Beratan Lab}}</ref>

==Major publications== (Publications listed below have been cited more than 200 times)<ref name="Google Scholar">{{cite web|title=Google Scholar|url=https://scholar.google.com/scholar?start=0&q=david+beratan&hl=en&as_sdt=0,34|access-date=8 July 2019}}</ref>

*A Migliore, NF Polizzi, MJ Therien, and DN Beratan, "Biochemistry and theory of proton-coupled electron transfer", Chem. Rev., 114, 3381-3465 (2014) *A. Virshup, J. Contreras-García, P. Wipf, W. Yang, and D.N. Beratan, “Stochastic voyages into uncharted chemical space produce a representative library of all possible drug-like compounds,” J. Am. Chem. Soc., 135, 7296-7303 (2013). *J Contreras-Garcia, ER Johnson, S Keinan, R Chaudret, J-P Piquemal, DN Beratan, and W Yang, "NCIPLOT: A program for plotting noncovalent interaction regions", J. Chem. Theory Comput., 7, 625-632 (2011) *S.S. Skourtis, D.H. Waldeck, and D.N. Beratan, “Fluctuations in biological and bioinspired electron-transfer reactions,” Annu. Rev. Phys. Chem., 61, 461-485 (2010). *T.R. Prytkova, I.V. Kurnikov, D.N. Beratan, “Coupling coherence distinguishes structure sensitivity in protein electron transfer,” Science, 315, 622-625 (2007) *J Lin, IA Balabin, and DN Beratan, "The nature of aqueous tunneling pathways between electron-transfer proteins", Science, 310, 1311-1313 (2005) *DN Beratan, S Priyadarshy, and SM Risser, "DNA: insulator or wire?", Chemistry & Biology, 4, 3-8 (1997) *S Priyadarshy, SM Risser, and DN Beratan, "DNA is not a molecular wire: Protein-like electron-transfer predicted for an extended π-electron system", J. Phys. Chem., 100, 17678-17682 (1996), *JM Nocek, JS Zhou, S De Forest, S Priyadarshy, DN Beratan, JN Onuchic, and BM Hoffman, "Theory and practice of electron transfer within protein-protein complexes: Application to the multidomain binding of cytochrom c by cytocrome c peroxidase", Chem. Rev., 96, 2459-2490 (1996) *S Priyadarshy, MJ Therien, and DN Beratan, "Acetylenyl-linked, porphyrin-bridged, donor-acceptor molecules: A theoretical analysis of the molecular first hyperpolarizability in highly conjugated push-pull chromophore structures", J. Am. Chem. Soc., 118, 1504-1510 (1996) *DN Beratan, JN Onuchic, JR Winkler, and HB Gray, "Electron-tunneling pathways in proteins", Science, 258, 1740 (1992) *JN Onuchic, DN Beratan, JR Winkler, and HB Gray, "Pathway analysis of protein electron-transfer reactions", 'Annu. Rev. Biophys. Struct., 21, 349-377 (1992) *DN Beratan, JN Betts, and JN Onuchic, "Protein electron transfer rates set by the bridging secondary and tertiary structure", Science, 252, 1285-1288 (1991) *SR Marder, DN Beratan, and L-T Cheng, "Approaches for Optimizing the First Electronic Hyperpolarizability of Conjugated Organic Molecules", Science, 252, 103-106 (1991) *DN Beratan, JN Onuchic, JN Betts, BE Bowler, and HB Gray, "Electron tunneling pathways in ruthenated proteins", J. Am. Chem. Soc., 112, 7915-7921 (1990) *JN Onuchic and DN Beratan, "A predictive theoretical model for electron tunneling pathways in proteins", J. Chem. Phys., 92, 722 (1990) *DN Beratan, JN Onuchic and JJ Hopfield "Electron tunneling through covalent and noncovalent pathways in proteins", J. Chem. Phys., 86, 4488 (1987) *JN Onuchic, DN Beratan, and JJ Hopfield, "Some aspects of electron-transfer reaction dynamics", J. Phys. Chem., 90, 3707-3721 (1986) *DN Beratan and JJ Hopfield, "Calculation of tunneling matrix elements in rigid systems: mixed-valence dithiaspirocyclobutane molecules", J. Am. Chem. Soc., 106, 1584-1594 (1984)

==Awards and honors== * [https://www.nasonline.org/news-and-multimedia/news/2024-nas-election.html Member, National Academy of Sciences], 2024 * [https://cen.acs.org/people/awards/2024-ACS-National-Award-winners-Part-V/102/i1 Irving Langmuir Award in Chemical Physics, American Chemical Society], 2024 * [https://www.rsc.org/prizes-funding/prizes/2023-winners/electron-bifurcation/ Faraday Horizon Prize, Royal Society of Chemistry], 2023 * [https://www.acscleveland.org/event/2021-edward-w-morley-award-and-address-may-19/ Edward W. Morley Medal, American Chemical Society, Cleveland Section], 2021 * [https://www.pnas.org/post/update/2020-cozzarelli-prize-recipient Cozzarelli Prize, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America], 2020 * Bourke Award of the Royal Society of Chemistry, 2019<ref name="Bourke Award 2019">{{cite web|title=Bourke Award 2019|url=https://www.rsc.org/ScienceAndTechnology/Awards/BourkeAward/2019-Winner.asp|access-date=10 July 2019}}</ref> * Murray Goodman Memorial Prize, 2018<ref>{{cite web|title=Murray Goodman Memorial Prize 2018|date=5 November 2018|url=https://www.advancedsciencenews.com/david-beratan-winner-of-the-2018-biopolymers-murray-goodman-memorial-prize/}}</ref> * Florida Award, American Chemical Society, Florida Section, 2017<ref>{{cite web|title=Florida Award 2017|url=http://fame2017.fl-acs.org/awards/fl-award/|access-date=2019-07-10|archive-date=2019-07-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190710174239/http://fame2017.fl-acs.org/awards/fl-award/|url-status=dead}}</ref> * Charles H. Herty Medal, American Chemical Society, Georgia Section, 2015<ref>{{cite web|title=Herty Medal 2015|url=https://chem.duke.edu/news-announcements/beratan-awarded-2015-herty-medal|access-date=2019-07-10|archive-date=2019-07-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190710174243/https://chem.duke.edu/news-announcements/beratan-awarded-2015-herty-medal|url-status=dead}}</ref> * Feynman Prize in Nanotechnology (Theory), Foresight Institute, 2013<ref>{{cite web|title=Feynman Prize 2013|url=https://foresight.org/about/2013Feynman.php|access-date=2019-07-10|archive-date=2019-07-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190710174234/https://foresight.org/about/2013Feynman.php|url-status=dead}}</ref> * Elected Fellow, Royal Society of Chemistry (2013), American Chemical Society (2013), American Association for the Advancement of Science (2002), and the American Physical Society (2001) * J.S. Guggenheim Foundation Fellow, 1999-2000<ref name="Guggenheim Fellow Biosketch"/> * Ralph & Lucy Hirschmann Visiting Professorship, University of Pennsylvania, 2000<ref>{{cite web|title=Hirschmann Visiting Professorship|url=http://www.chem.upenn.edu/content/ralph-and-lucy-hirschmann-visiting-professorship}}</ref> * NSF National Young Investigator, 1992-97<ref>{{cite web|title=NSF Young Investigator: Electron Transfer in Complex Systems|url=https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9257092&HistoricalAwards=false}}</ref>

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== * [https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/acs.jpcb.0c02604 autobiography]

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Beratan, David}} Category:1958 births Category:Living people Category:21st-century American chemists Category:Duke University Trinity College of Arts and Sciences alumni Category:California Institute of Technology alumni Category:Duke University faculty Category:Fellows of the Royal Society of Chemistry Category:Fellows of the American Physical Society Category:Fellows of the American Chemical Society Category:Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science