Michael E. Johnson, Ph.D.


Professor & Director

Center for Pharmaceutical Biotechnology
University of Illinois at Chicago
900 So. Ashland Ave. (m/c 870)
Chicago, IL 60607-7173
Telephone: 312.996.9114
Fax: 312.413.9303
e-mail: mjohnson@uic.edu
Major Professional Activities and Honors
  • National Research Council US-China Roundtable Steering Committee, 2008-present
  • NIH Drug Discovery and Mechanisms of Antimicrobial Resistance Study Section, 2005-2010
  • Paul Dawson Biotechnology Award, American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, 2004
  • University Scholar, University of Illinois at Chicago, 2004-2007
  • NIAID Biodefense Study Sections (multiple), 2003-2005
  • Board of Directors, Protez Pharmaceuticals, Philadelphia, PA, 2003-2005
  • Chairman and Acting CEO, Influx, Inc., 2002-2003
  • External Advisory Committee, Nebraska Biomedical Research Infrastructure Network Program, 2001-present
  • Scientific Advisory Board, Influx, Inc., 1996-2003
  • Co-Founder and Consultant, Influx, Inc., 1995-2003
  • Established Investigator, American Heart Association (1979-1984)
  • NIH Postdoctoral Fellow (1974)
Glutamate racemase normal mode

Recent Publications:

A.K. Ghosh, G. Gong, V. Grum-Tokars, D.C. Mulhearn, M. Coughlin, B.S. Prabhakar, K. Sleeman, S.C. Baker, M.E. Johnson, and A.D. Mesecar (2008) “Design, Synthesis and Antiviral Efficacy of a Series of Potent Chloropyridyl Ester-derived SARS-CoV 3CLpro Inhibitors,  Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 18(20), 5684-5688. (Abstract)

K. Ratia, S. Pegan, J. Takayama, K. Sleeman, M. Coughlin, S. Baliji, R. Chaudhuri, W. Fu, B.S. Prabhakar, M.E. Johnson, S.C. Baker, A.K. Ghosh, and Andrew D. Mesecar (2008) “A new class of papain-like protease/deubiquitinase inhibitors blocks SARS virus replication,” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, 105(42), 16119-16124. (Abstract)

S. Tipparaju, D.C. Mulhearn, S. Yang, G. Klein, Andrew D. Mesecar, M.E. Johnson and A. Kozikowski (2008) “Design and synthesis of novel aryl ether inhibitors of the Bacillus anthracis Enoyl-ACP Reductase,” ChemMedChem, 3, 1260-1268. (Abstract)

S. K. Tipparaju, S. Joyasawal, S. Forrester, D.C. Mulhearn, S. Pegan, M.E. Johnson, A.D. Mesecar and A.P. Kozikowski (2008), “Design and Synthesis of 2-Pyridones as Novel Inhibitors of the Bacillus Anthracis Enoyl–ACP Reductase,” Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 18(12), 3565-3569. (Abstract)

B. Layden, W. Saengsawang, R.J. Donati, S. Yang, D. Mulhearn, M.E. Johnson and M. Rasenick (2008) “Structural Model of a Complex Between the Heterotrimeric G Protein, Gs(alpha), and Tubulin,” Biochimica et Biophysica Acta - Molecular Cell Research, 1783(6), 964-973. (Abstract)

A.K. Ghosh, K. Xi, V. Grum-Tokars, X. Xua, K. Ratia, W. Fu, K.V. Houser, S.C. Baker, M.E. Johnson and A.D. Mesecar (2007) “Structure-based design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of peptidomimetic SARS-CoV 3CLpro inhibitors”, Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett. 17(21), 5876-5880. (Abstract)

M. May, S. Mehboob, D.C. Mulhearn, Z. Wang, H. Yu, G.R.J. Thatcher, B.D. Santarsiero, M.E. Johnson and A.D. Mesecar (2007) “Comparative structural and functional analysis of the two Bacillus anthracis glutamate racemases and implications for inhibitor design,” Journal of Molecular Biology, 371(5), 1219-1237. (Abstract)

A.K. Ghosh, K. Xi, M.E. Johnson, Susan C. Baker and A.D. Mesecar (2006) Progress in Anti-SARS Coronavirus Chemistry, Biology and Chemotherapy,” Ann. Reports Med. Chem., 41, 183-196. (Abstract)

S. Mehboob, B.-H. Luo, WT Fu, M.E. Johnson and L. W.-M. Fung (2005) Conformational Studies of the Tetramerization Site of Human Erythroid Spectrin by Cysteine-Scanning Spin-Labeling EPR Methods, Biochemistry, 44(48), 15898-15905. (Abstract)

A.K. Ghosh, K. Xi, K. Ratia, B.D. Santarsiero, W.T. Fu, B. Harcourt, P. Rota, S. Baker, M.E. Johnson, and A.D. Mesecar (2005) “Design and Synthesis of Peptidomimetic Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Chymotrypsin-like Protease Inhibitors,” Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 48(22), 6767-6771. (Abstract)

S. Rumthao, O. Lee, Q. Sheng, W.T. Fu, D.C. Mulhearn, D. Crich, A.D. Mesecar and M.E. Johnson (2004) “Design, Synthesis and Evaluation of Oxyanion-Hole Selective Inhibitor Substituents for the S1 Subsite of Factor Xa,” Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 14(20), 5165-5170. (Abstract)

S. Mehboob, J. Jacob, M. May, L. Kotula, P. Thiyagarajan, M.E.  Johnson and L. W.-M. Fung (2003) “Structural Analysis of the αN-Terminal Region of Erythroid and Non-Erythroid Spectrins by Small Angle X-Ray Scattering,” Biochemistry, 42(49), 14702-14710. (Abstract)

J. Cui, D. Crich, D. Wink, M. Lam, A.L. Rheingold, D.A. Case, W.T. Fu, Y. Zhou, M. Rao, A.J. Olson, and M.E. Johnson (2003) “Design and Synthesis of Highly constrained Factor Xa Inhibitors: Amidine-Substituted Bis(benzoyl)-[1,3]-diazepan-2-ones and Bis(benzylidene)-Bis(gem-dimethyl)cycloketones,” Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry, 11 (16), 3379-3392. (Abstract)

S.Park, B.L. Hayes, F. Marankan, D.C. Mulhearn, L. Wanna, A.D. Mesecar, B.D. Santarsiero, M.E. Johnson, D.L. Venton (2003) "Regioselective Covalent Modification of Hemoglobin in Search of Antisickling Agents," Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 46, 936-953. (Abstract)

S. Park, M.S. Caffrey, M.E. Johnson and L.W.-M. Fung (2003) "Solution Structural Studies on Human Erythrocyte Alpha Spectrin Tetramerization Site," Journal of Biological Chemistry, 278, 21837-21844. (Abstract)