Draft:Matthew John Allen

Matthew John Allen is an American chemist. He is Chair of the Department of Chemistry, Professor of Chemistry, and Professor of Oncology at Wayne State University.

Education
Allen graduated from Purdue University in 1998 with a BS in honors chemistry with distinction with a minor in mathematics.REF As an undergraduate researcher in the laboratory of Jillian Buriak at Purdue University, Allen studied the functionalization of photoluminescent porous silicon.REF In addition to his undergraduate research at Purdue University, Allen was a summer intern for four years at Eli Lilly and Company conducting research related to process development.REF Allen earned his PhD in chemistry in 2003 from the California Institute of Technology working with Thomas J. Meade.REF Allen's graduate research investigated advanced contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) including gadolinium(III)-based agents that cross cell membranes and enzymatically-activated contrast agents.REF Before starting his independent career, Allen was a postdoctoral fellow with Laura L. Kiessling and Ronald T. Raines at the University of Wisconsin–Madison supported by fellowships from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).REF His postdoctoral research explored ring opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP)-derived polymer conjugates of the cytotoxic enzyme ribonuclease A, the synthesis of contrast agents for MRI integrated into ROMP-derived polymers, and new methods of synthesizing graft co-polymers.REF

Career
Allen started as an assistant professor at Wayne State University in January 2008. In August 2013, Allen was promoted to Associate Professor followed an additional promotion to Professor of Chemistry in August 2016. Additionally, Allen was appointed Chair of the Chemistry Department in July of 2016. and Professor of Oncology in July 2023.

Allen served as a member of the Inorganic Chemistry Editorial Advisory Board from 2020–2022 and as a member of the Imaging Probes and Contrast Agents (IPCA) Study Section of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from 2019–2023.

Eating Championship
On August 6, 2007, Allen won the first ever World Frog Leg Eating Championship held in Madison, Wisconsin.REF Allen beat his competition by over two ounces by successfully eating one pound and 10.8 ounces (760 g) of frog legs in five minutes.REF

Selected Honors and Awards
2019 Fellow, American Chemical Society

2018 Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science

2016 Outstanding Teacher Award, International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine

2016 Emerging Investigator in Bioinorganic Chemistry, American Chemical Society

2011 Elliott Lasser Award, Contrast Media Research Symposium

2011 Thieme Chemistry Journal Award

2010–2015 NSF CAREER Award

2006–2010 NIH Pathway to Independence Award (K99/R00)

2020 Outstanding Graduate Mentor Award, Wayne State University

2015 President’s Award for Excellence in Teaching, Wayne State University

2013 University Safety Award, Wayne State University

2011 Paul and Carol Schaap Faculty Scholar, Wayne State University

2010 College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Teaching Award, Wayne State University

2007 Boyer Postdoctoral Excellence Award, University of Wisconsin–Madison

2004–2006 Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Fellowship, NIH

2000–2003 National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship

1998 D.W. Margerum Undergraduate Research Scholarship, Purdue University

1995–1998 Eli Lilly–Purdue Alumni Scholarship

1994 Bausch & Lomb Science Award