User:Aborlik/Aaron J. Shatkin

Aaron J. Shatkin
 Aaron J. Shatkin  (born July 18, 1934) was an American molecular biologist who taught at both Robert Wood Johnson School of Medicine and Rutgers University. He was the recipient of many professional awards during his lifetime including: US Steel Award in Molecular Biology in 1977, a honorary doctorate degree from his Alma mater Bowdoin College, the New Jersey Pride Award in Science And Technology, the Thomas Alva Edison Science Award, the Association of American Medical Colleges 2003 Award for Distinguished Research in the Biomedical Sciences, and the Outstanding Basic Biomedical Research Scientist Award for Basic Biomedical Research by the Edward J Ill Excellence Award. In addition, he was named one of New Jersey's Top 10 Scientists the New Jersey Business magazine.

Early life and education
Aaron J. Shatkin was born in Providence, Rhode Island, the son of Morris and Doris Shatkin in 1934. He graduated from Nelson Aldrich High School where he was a member of the Theta Delta Chi fraternity. Dr. Shatkin graduated summa cum laude from Bowdoin College in 1956. He continued his studies at both Columbia and Stanford University, ultimately earning his doctorate in microbiology from Rockefeller University in 1961.

Academic Career
Shatkin was mentored by the 1958 Nobel laureate in medicine, Dr. Edward Tatum. Upon earning his doctorate, Shatkin served for two years as the senior assistant scientist in the Public Health Service for the state of New Jersey from 1961 to 1963. Dr. Shatkin was trained and worked at the N.I.H., the Salk Institute and the Rockefeller University. He was a professor of molecular genetics, microbiology and immunology, and was a member of the Cancer Institute of New Jersey at the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. At Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Shatkin was the founding director of the Center for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine (CABM). Shatkin was also a professor of molecular biology at Rutgers University.

Research interests
After earning his doctorate degree in microbiology, Shatkin took a position of senior assistant scientist at the Public Health Service for the state of New Jersey. He also trained and worked at N.I.H., the Salk Institute and the Rockefeller University. Shatkin's work centered around post transcription mRNA capping and polyadenylation. In the journal article, The ends of the affair: Capping and polyadenylation, published in Natural Structure and Molecular Biology, Shatkin and his co-author, James Manley, sought to explain the factors and enzymatic processes that are involved in post transcription mRNA capping and polyadenylation. Dr. Shatkin has also collaborated with other authors on research such as using TMC278, a highly effective diarylpyrimidine nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor against wild-type, drug-resistant HIV-1 infections and research regarding protein cross linking synthesis of the 5' cap of mRNA.