Leslie M. Hicks
{{short description|Chemist, researcher}}
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| name = Leslie M. Hicks
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| fields = {{ublist |Analytical Chemistry |Mass Spectrometry}}
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| education = {{ublist |B.S., Chemistry, Marshall University |Ph.D, Analytical Chemistry, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign}}
| alma_mater = {{ublist |Marshall University |University of Illinois}}
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| doctoral_advisor = Neil L. Kelleher
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| awards = {{ublist |Agnes Fay Morgan Research Award, 2019| Eli Lilly Young Investigator Award in Analytical Chemistry, 2018 |Robert J. Cotter New Investigator Award, 2018 |NSF CAREER Award, 2015 |Arthur C. Neish Young Investigator Award, 2014}}
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| website = [http://hicks.chem.unc.edu Group Page]
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Leslie Hicks is an American associate professor of analytical chemistry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her work primarily focuses on the study of proteomics and protein post-translational modifications using mass spectrometry, and identifying biologically active peptides in plants.{{Cite journal|date=2015-08-20|title=Contributors to the emerging investigators issue|journal=Analytical Methods|language=en|volume=7|issue=17|pages=6937–6946|doi=10.1039/C5AY90060C|issn=1759-9679|url=https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7st4k83j}}
Career
Hicks earned her bachelor's degree at Marshall University in 2001, and went on to earn her doctorate at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 2005. She was an Assistant Member and Principal Investigator at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center from 2006 to 2013, and an adjunct professor in the Department of Biology at Washington University in St. Louis before beginning her current position as a professor at UNC.{{Cite web|url=http://www.chem.unc.edu/people/faculty/hicks/|title=Department of Chemistry Leslie Hicks|website=www.chem.unc.edu|language=en|access-date=2018-03-19}} She was named Sherman Fairchild Foundation Chancellor’s Science Scholars Term Associate Professor in 2022.{{Cite web |date=2022-06-02 |title=Carolina's newest distinguished professors |url=https://thewell.unc.edu/2022/06/02/carolinas-newest-distinguished-professors/ |access-date=2022-06-11 |website=The Well |language=en-US}}
Research
Hicks' research focuses largely on the development and implementation of mass spectrometric methods for protein identification and characterization. Recent work in the Hicks Lab has focused primarily on two areas. The first is the study of post-translational modifications and their role in regulation and development. The second involves a novel analytical pipeline for the discovery and characterization of antimicrobial peptides.
Hicks' research in post-translational modifications typically employs bottom-up proteomics using label-free quantification. Much of this research involves the model organism C. reinhardtii, an important organism in biofuel research due to its tendency to accumulate triacylglycerols. The Hicks Lab has studied the phosphoproteome of C. reinhardtii in order to examine underlying biological processes.{{Cite journal|last1=Wang|first1=Hongxia|last2=Gau|first2=Brian|last3=Slade|first3=William O.|last4=Juergens|first4=Matthew|last5=Li|first5=Ping|last6=Hicks|first6=Leslie M.|date=September 2014|title=The global phosphoproteome of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii reveals complex organellar phosphorylation in the flagella and thylakoid membrane |journal=Molecular & Cellular Proteomics|volume=13|issue=9|pages=2337–2353|doi=10.1074/mcp.M114.038281 |pmc=159653|pmid=24917610 |doi-access=free }}{{Cite journal|last1=Werth|first1=Emily G.|last2=McConnell|first2=Evan W.|last3=Gilbert|first3=Thomas S. Karim|last4=Couso Lianez|first4=Inmaculada|last5=Perez|first5=Carlos A.|last6=Manley|first6=Cherrel K.|last7=Graves|first7=Lee M.|last8=Umen|first8=James G.|last9=Hicks|first9=Leslie M.|title=Probing the global kinome and phosphoproteome in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii via sequential enrichment and quantitative proteomics|journal=The Plant Journal|language=en|volume=89|issue=2|pages=416–426|doi=10.1111/tpj.13384|year=2017|pmid=27671103|doi-access=free}} Work has also been done to understand cell regulatory pathways, especially the algal analog of the mammalian TOR pathway.{{Cite journal|last1=Werth|first1=Emily G.|last2=McConnell|first2=Evan W.|last3=Couso Lianez|first3=Inmaculada|last4=Perrine|first4=Zoee|last5=Crespo|first5=Jose L.|last6=Umen|first6=James G.|last7=Hicks|first7=Leslie M.|title=Investigating the effect of target of rapamycin kinase inhibition on the Chlamydomonas reinhardtii phosphoproteome: from known homologs to new targets|journal=New Phytologist|language=en|volume=221|issue=1|pages=247–260|doi=10.1111/nph.15339|pmid=30040123|year=2019|doi-access=free|hdl=10261/190569|hdl-access=free}} To a similar end, Hicks' group has extended its work to examine how the reversible oxidation of thiols plays a role in signaling{{Cite journal|date=2018-07-01|title=The phosphorylated redox proteome of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii: Revealing novel means for regulation of protein structure and function|journal=Redox Biology|language=en|volume=17|pages=35–46|doi=10.1016/j.redox.2018.04.003|pmid=29673699|issn=2213-2317|last1=McConnell|first1=Evan W.|last2=Werth|first2=Emily G.|last3=Hicks|first3=Leslie M.|pmc=6006682}} and effector-triggered immunity.{{Cite journal|last1=McConnell|first1=Evan W.|last2=Berg|first2=Philip|last3=Westlake|first3=Timothy J.|last4=Wilson|first4=Katherine M.|last5=Popescu|first5=George V.|last6=Hicks|first6=Leslie M.|last7=Popescu|first7=Sorina C.|title=Proteome-Wide Analysis of Cysteine Reactivity during Effector-Triggered Immunity|journal=Plant Physiology|language=en|volume=179|issue=4|pages=1248–1264|doi=10.1104/pp.18.01194|issn=0032-0889|pmc=6446758|pmid=30510037|year=2019}}
The increasing threat of antimicrobial resistance has produced a need for novel antimicrobial agents.{{Cite web|url=https://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2014/amr-report/en/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140430150557/http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2014/amr-report/en/|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 30, 2014|title=WHO {{!}} WHO's first global report on antibiotic resistance reveals serious, worldwide threat to public health|website=www.who.int|access-date=2018-04-21}} The Hicks Lab has investigated antimicrobial peptides as a potential source for new antibiotics. Recent work has involved the development of a comprehensive analytical approach using LC-MS for the identification of novel antimicrobial peptides from botanical,{{Cite journal|last1=Kirkpatrick|first1=Christine L.|last2=Broberg|first2=Christopher A.|last3=McCool|first3=Elijah N.|last4=Lee|first4=Woo Jean|last5=Chao|first5=Alex|last6=McConnell|first6=Evan W.|last7=Pritchard|first7=David A.|last8=Hebert|first8=Michael|last9=Fleeman|first9=Renee|date=2017-01-04|title=The "PepSAVI-MS" Pipeline for Natural Product Bioactive Peptide Discovery|journal=Analytical Chemistry|language=EN|volume=89|issue=2|pages=1194–1201|doi=10.1021/acs.analchem.6b03625|pmid=27991763|s2cid=19255313 |pmc=8609470}}{{Cite journal|last1=Parsley|first1=Nicole C.|last2=Kirkpatrick|first2=Christine L.|last3=Crittenden|first3=Christopher M.|last4=Rad|first4=Javad Ghassemi|last5=Hoskin|first5=David W.|last6=Brodbelt|first6=Jennifer S.|last7=Hicks|first7=Leslie M.|date=August 2018|title=PepSAVI-MS reveals anticancer and antifungal cycloviolacins in Viola odorata|journal=Phytochemistry|volume=152|pages=61–70|doi=10.1016/j.phytochem.2018.04.014|issn=0031-9422|pmc=6003877|pmid=29734037|bibcode=2018PChem.152...61P }} fungal,{{Cite journal|last1=Kirkpatrick|first1=Christine L.|last2=Parsley|first2=Nicole C.|last3=Bartges|first3=Tessa E.|last4=Cooke|first4=Madeline E.|last5=Evans|first5=Wilaysha S.|last6=Heil|first6=Lilian R.|last7=Smith|first7=Thomas J.|last8=Hicks|first8=Leslie M.|date=2018-02-05|title=Fungal Secretome Analysis via PepSAVI-MS: Identification of the Bioactive Peptide KP4 from Ustilago maydis|journal=Journal of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry|volume=29|issue=5|language=en|pages=859–865|doi=10.1007/s13361-017-1880-z|pmid=29404970|pmc=5983367|bibcode=2018JASMS..29..859K|issn=1044-0305}} and bacterial{{Cite journal|last1=Kirkpatrick|first1=Christine L.|last2=Parsley|first2=Nicole C.|last3=Bartges|first3=Tessa E.|last4=Wing|first4=Casey E.|last5=Kommineni|first5=Sushma|last6=Kristich|first6=Christopher J.|last7=Salzman|first7=Nita H.|last8=Patrie|first8=Steven M.|last9=Hicks|first9=Leslie M.|date=2018-07-16|title=Exploring bioactive peptides from bacterial secretomes using PepSAVI-MS: identification and characterization of Bac-21 from Enterococcus faecalis pPD1|journal=Microbial Biotechnology|volume=11|issue=5|pages=943–951|language=en|doi=10.1111/1751-7915.13299|pmid=30014612|pmc=6116741|issn=1751-7915}} sources.
Awards and honors
- Agnes Fay Morgan Research Award, Iota Sigma Pi, 2019
- Marshall University College of Science Distinguished Alumni Award, 2019{{Cite news|url=https://www.herdalum.com/s/1269/index.aspx?pgid=429&gid=1|title=82nd Alumni Awards Banquet|date=April 13, 2019|work=Marshall University Alumni Association}}
- Eli Lilly Young Investigator Award in Analytical Chemistry, 2018{{Cite web|url=https://chem.unc.edu/research_item/young-investigator-award-2/|title=Young Investigator Award|last=Sahl|first=Lars|website=Department of Chemistry|language=en-US|access-date=2019-04-17}}
- US HUPO Robert J. Cotter New Investigator Award, 2018{{Cite web|url=http://www.ushupo.org/About/Awards/tabid/83/default.aspx|title=Awards|website=www.ushupo.org|language=en-US|access-date=2018-03-20}}
- NSF CAREER Award, 2015{{Cite web|url=https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1552522&HistoricalAwards=false|title=NSF Award Search: Award#1552522 - CAREER: Uncoupling Growth and Triacylglycerol Accumulation in Algae|website=www.nsf.gov|access-date=2018-04-26}}
- Arthur C. Neish Young Investigator Award, 2014{{Cite web|url=http://www.psna-online.org/PSNAawards.html|title=PSNA Awards|website=www.psna-online.org|access-date=2018-04-19}}
- NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, 2002-2005{{Cite web|url=http://imageserve.chem.unc.edu/assets/pdf_files/faculty_cv/hicks/hicks_cv.pdf|title=Leslie Hicks, Curriculum Vitae|last=Hicks|first=Leslie|date=April 10, 2017|website=UNC Chemistry|access-date=March 20, 2018}}
References
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Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
Category:University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faculty
Category:Marshall University alumni