Professor Krystle McLaughlin Earns Top Honor in Crystallography
Associate Professor of Chemistry Krystle McLaughlin has been named a Fellow of the American Crystallographic Association (ACA), one of the field’s highest honors. “Your election as an ACA Fellow reflects the high regard in which your colleagues hold your contributions to crystallography and its applications,” ACA President Danielle L. Gray said in a letter informing McLaughlin of her election. “This honor recognizes your distinguished accomplishments, your service to the scientific community, and the lasting impact of your work.”
Crystallography is a method used by scientists to determine the structures of simple molecules, such as salt, and more complex ones, such as proteins and DNA. McLaughlin employs crystallography in her research, which centers on proteins from diverse microbial systems and antibiotic resistance transfer, and she teaches this method to students in some of her biochemistry classes. The ACA fellowship recognizes this work in the lab and in the classroom.
McLaughlin was nominated for the fellowship by Sarah Bowman, Professor of Biochemistry and Director of the National Crystallization Center at the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at the University at Buffalo. In her letter of nomination, Bowman praised McLaughlin for her contributions to science and her innovative work in the classroom. “Krystle is clearly dedicated to structural science, and exhibits exceptional achievements in education, professional service, leadership, and engagement with the ACA and the wider structural science community,” she wrote.
One of McLaughlin’s former students, Jordan Norman ’24, is conducting research using crystallography as an MD-PhD candidate at the University of California, San Francisco, and credits her with inspiring her to pursue graduate studies. Norman said she was pleased to learn that McLaughlin had been awarded the ACA Fellowship. “Krystle was an amazing mentor who taught me many valuable technical skills as well as how to formulate a research question, present data, and effectively communicate as a scientist,” Norman said.
McLaughlin is the first Vassar professor to be elected an ACA Fellow. Vassar alum Cathy Drennan ’85, Professor of Biology and Chemistry at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), was awarded an ACA fellowship in 2023.