Department of Chemistry
Endowed Professor in Analytical Chemistry
Ph.D. University of Utah, 1980
(Analytical Chemistry)
(206) 543-7835
Email: dovichi@chem.washington.edu
Dovichi group website
The Human Genome Project was the most ambitious research project in the history of analytical chemistry. The goal of that project was the determination of the primary structure of the human genome, which is a group of molecules with a combined molecular weight of 3 billion kilograms. Capillary array electrophoresis with laser induced fluorescence detection in a sheath flow cuvette was the primary analytical instrument used in sequencing the genome; that instrumentation was developed, in part, by the Dovichi research group.
Now that the genome is sequenced, interest is focused on the study of the proteome, which is the protein content of an organism, tissue, or cell. The Dovichi group is developing tools to study the proteome with two-dimensional capillary electrophoresis and laser-induced fluorescence. The group's long-term goal is to study protein expression in single cells and to determine how protein expression changes across a cellular population during cancer progression and during the development of an embryo.
The Dovichi group is collaborating with Brian Reid at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center to employ this technology to characterize compositional changes that accompany Barrett’s esophagus, a precancerous condition. Gastroesophageal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death world-wide and the most rapidly increasing form of cancer in the United States. If current rates of increase hold, deaths in the United States from esophageal adenocarcinoma will exceed those of both prostate and breast cancers in a decade and colorectal cancer in two decades. There is a vital need to develop tools to help guide therapy for those individuals with Barrett’s esophagus, the only known precursor to esophageal adenocarcinoma.
Proteomics provides a parts list for a cell; it does not necessarily describe how those parts function. Ultimately, the characterization of a cells metabolism, which describes the production and consumption of small molecules, is necessary to understand health and disease. The Dovichi group also is studying metabolic pathways in single cells. In general, a fluorescent substrate is synthesized. Any enzymatic transformation of the substrate can be monitored with exquisite sensitivity as long as the fluorescent label is preserved. We are collaborating with Ole Hindsgaul and Monica Palcic of the Carlsberg Institute to characterize sphingolipid metabolism in single cells. These glycolipids make up a very large fraction of neuronal membrane, and defects in their metabolism leads to devastating genetic diseases.
Whitmore C.D., Hindsgaul O., Palcic M.M., Schnaar R.L., Dovichi N.J.“Glycosphingolipid Metabolism in Single Cells” Anal. Chem.; 79; 5139-42 (2007).
Schoenherr RM, Ye M, Vannatta M, Dovichi NJ. “CE-microreactor-CE-MS/MS for protein analysis” Anal Chem. ; 79: 2230-2238 (2007).
Turner EH, Lauterbach K, Pugsley HR, Palmer VR, Dovichi NJ. “Detection of green fluorescent protein in a single bacterium by capillary electrophoresis with laser-induced fluorescence.” Anal Chem.; 79: 778-81(2007).
Zhu C, He X, Kraly JR, Jones MR, Whitmore CD, Gomez DG, Eggertson M, Quigley W, Boardman A, Dovichi NJ. “Instrumentation for medium-throughput two-dimensional capillary electrophoresis with laser-induced fluorescence detection.” Anal Chem.; 79: 765-8 (2007) .
“Rapid and reproducible two-dimensional capillary electrophoresis analysis of Barrett’s esophagus tissues” J.R. Kraly, M.R. Jones, D.G. Gomez, J.A. Dickerson, M.M. Harwood, M. Eggertson, T.G. Paulson, C.A. Sanchez, R. Odze, Z. Feng, B.J. Reid, N.J. Dovichi. Anal. Chem., 78, 5977-5986 (2006).
Spectrochemical Analysis Award, Analytical Division, American Chemical Society, 2003.
Honorary Professor, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, 2002.
Unsung Hero of the Human Genome Project, Science 2001. (291 1207)
Heinrich Emanuel Merck Award for Analytical Chemistry, 2000.