Derk Joester
Assistant Professor of Materials Science and Engineering
Education
Minerva Fellow Structural Biology, Weizmann Institute, Rehovot, Israel
Postdoctoral Fellow Structural Biology, Weizmann Institute, Rehovot, Israel
Ph.D. Chemistry, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
M.Sc. Chemistry, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
Fulbright Scholar Chemistry, University of Tennessee, Knozville, TN
B.A. Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
Research Interests
For more than 500 million years, “simple” sea urchins have used fiber-reinforced gradient ceramic materials to build self-sharpening teeth. This may be astonishing; it is, however, by no means unique. Organisms from all domains make use of the materials properties of crystalline and amorphous solids (e.g. inorganic minerals) to provide physical integrity and sense gravity, to guide light and even perceive the earth’s magnetic field.
Evolutionary optimization has led to organic-inorganic composite structures of amazing complexity, ordered across many levels of hierarchy and on length scales between the nano- and the macro scale. One very impressive feature of biominerals is that the organisms freely sculpt single-crystalline material into smoothly and continuously curving shapes, seemingly overriding the thermodynamic control of crystal morphology.
My group is driven by the desire to understand not only the design, i.e. the structure and functional organization of biominerals, but also their integrated synthesis. On a cellular level, these two, design and its execution, are inextricably linked. Our highly interdisciplinary approach reflects this complexity and rests on both the engineering of biomaterials synthesis in cell culture and the biologically inspired in vitro synthetic (re)construction of artificial mineralizing systems. In this way, we hope to find ways to create new materials of functional and architectural sophistication that rival that of biominerals.Significant Recognition
- Full Scholarship at the GEM4 Summer School, 2006
- JSP Fellow at the Bürgenstock Conference on Stereochemistry, 2006
- Minerva Fellow, 2005-2007
- Friends of the Weizmann-Institute Postdoctoral Fellowship, 2003-2005
- ETH-Scholarship, 1999-2000
- Fulbright-Scholarship, 1994-1995
- Dr. Nathorff-Einstein Award, 1992
- Award of the Fonds of the German Chemical Industry, 1992
Significant Professional Service
- Member of ACS and MRS
Selected Publications
L. Gordon, L. Tran, and D. Joester,* ACS Nanoavailable online, “Atom Probe Tomography of Apatite End Members and Apatite-Based Biominerals”. DOI:10.1021/nn3049957
R.T. Knapp, C.-H. Wu, K. C. Mobilia, D. Joester, J. Am. Chem. Soc.available online, “Recombinant Sea Urchin VEGF Directs Single Crystal Growth and Branching in vitro”. DOI:10.1021/ja309024b
C. C. Tester, C.-H. Wu, S. Weigand, and D. Joester, Faraday Discussions 2012, 159, 345-356, “Precipitation of ACC in liposomes a model for biomineralization in confined volumes.”, DOI: 10.1039/c2fd20088k
D. Joester,* A. Hillier, Y. Zhang, and T.J. Prosa, Microscopy Today 2012, 20, 3, 26-31, “Organic Materials and Organic/Inorganic Hetero-structures in Atom Probe Tomography”, DOI:10.1017/S1551929512000260.
M. R. Krejci, B. Wasserman, L. Finney, I. McNulty, D. Legnini, S. Vogt, and D. Joester, J. Struct. Biol. 2011, 176, 192-202, “Selectivity in biomineralization of barium and strontium.”DOI: 10.1016/j.jsb.2011.08.006.
C. C. Tester, R. E. Brock, C.-H. Wu, M. R. Krejci, S. Weigand, and D. Joester, CrystEngComm 2011, 13, 3975-3978, “In vitro synthesis and stabilization of amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) nanoparticles within liposomes.” DOI: 10.1039/C1CE05153A.
M. R. Krejci, L. Finney, S. Vogt, and D. Joester, ChemSusChem 2011, 4, 470-473. “Selective sequestration of strontium in desmid green algae by biogenic co-precipitation with barite”. DOI:10.1002/cssc.201000448.
C.-H. Wu, A. Park, and D. Joester, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2011, 33, 16581661, “Bioengineering Single Cystal Growth”. DOI: 10.1021/ja109500e.
L. Gordon, D. Joester, Nature 2011, 469,194-197,“Nano-Scale Chemical Tomography of Buried Organic- Inorganic Interfaces in the Chiton Tooth.” DOI:10.1038/nature09686.
