Rachel Hutcheson PhD

Background Narrative

Dr. Rachel Hutcheson received her B.S. from Seattle University and worked in Dr. Joan Broderick’s group focusing on bioinorganic chemistry for her Ph.D. from Montana State University.  Previously, she taught at the College of St. Benedict and St. John’s University until she joined the Chemistry Department at the University of Portland in 2015.  She regularly teaches courses in Biochemistry, but has also taught courses in General and Organic chemistry.  Her research interests include bioinorganic chemistry, specifically enzymes that utilize metal cofactors, enzyme mechanisms, and use of enzymes in bioremediation.  She is currently working on investigating uncharacterized radical SAM enzymes, which are involved in reactions as varied as enzyme activation, complex cofactor synthesis, vitamin biosynthesis, DNA repair, viral inhibition, antibiotic synthesis, modification of translational machinery, sulfur insertion, and production of antitumor compounds.

Education

• Doctor of Philosophy, Montana State University, Bozeman                                                                     
• Bachelor of Science, Seattle University