Department of Chemistry graduate student Jackson Brunicardi, a member of the Nowick Group, was recently spotlighted in the UCI School of Physical Sciences News.
When Jackson Brunicardi was in high school, his chemistry instructor, Mr. Steven Sogo, organized a field trip to the UC Irvine Department of Chemistry. The trip was fateful: it introduced Brunicardi to UC Irvine Distinguished Professor James Nowick. A passion for chemistry stirred in him and kept growing as Brunicardi pursued undergraduate studies in chemistry at UC Santa Barbara and the University of Toledo, Ohio. After Brunicardi received an offer to attend UC Irvine for graduate school in organic chemistry, his journey came full circle when he joined Nowick’s research group as a doctoral student.
The UC Irvine School of Physical Sciences caught up with Brunicardi to find out more about his time at UCI, and how his years here helped prepare him for what’s ahead. This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
SoPS: So, tell us about the research you’ve been doing here at UCI.
JB: For the last five years I’ve worked to study and improve the drug-like properties of the antibiotic peptide clovibactin so it might reach the clinic and treat infectious diseases. Clovibactin fights off Gram-positive bacterial infections, so things like pneumonia, tuberculosis, MRSA, VRE and even bioweapons like anthrax. The list goes on. It’s quite potent, and bacteria have great difficulty developing resistance to it, which adds to its appeal as a drug candidate. But right now, the drug still has a few flaws that we’re working to fix before it can be considered clinically viable.
SoPS: Does the work help address some kind of imminent public health problem?
JB: The main problem we’re trying to tackle is the antibiotic resistance crisis, where bacteria develop resistances that render traditional antibiotics ineffective. Many large pharmaceutical companies have lost interest in developing antibiotics because they’re not very profitable, so a lot of the burden now falls on academia and start-up companies to push the frontier of antibiotic development. Meanwhile, bacteria are still evolving resistances to the current arsenal of drugs that we have, so it’s becoming increasingly more important as the decades pass that we invent new antibiotics that can last and stave off the development of resistances. It’s critically important that we develop new antibiotics, and our research lab is trying to help with that.
SoPS: What inspired you to get into this kind of research?
JB: I’ve always wanted to help people and to make a positive impact on the world. My father was a great role model in that sense. When I was in high school, I took an advanced chemistry research course that helped me discover a passion for chemical research. This was around the time Breaking Bad came out, and there was a lot of publicity for organic chemistry. After I got to college, I enjoyed my coursework in organic chemistry so much that I was inspired to start doing my own research in the field. I really fell in love with the art of organic chemistry, the science of it, how intellectually stimulating it was, and how it could make an impact on people through the development of medicines in a laboratory.
SoPS: How did you come to do doctoral research at UCI?
JB: I went to high school in Laguna Beach, and our class visited UCI as part of the advanced chemistry research course I was taking. We came here to meet Phil Denison and James Nowick, who organized a trip for my class to come here and learn about NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance), and that was my introduction to UCI chemistry, organized by my high school chemistry teacher, Mr. Steven Sogo. UCI is nationally recognized as an excellent institution for the study of organic chemistry, so I thought it was a no-brainer to come here for grad school given the department size, resources, weather and to be close to family.
SoPS: What made you want to work with Professor Nowick?
JB: The laboratory environment that I came into when I first started rotating in James Nowick’s group – the group’s camaraderie, the level of science and the research topics – were right up my alley. James is also an incredibly brilliant and kind man, and I thought he would be an excellent fit as a PI to help support my research endeavors. I feel very fortunate to have had him as my mentor these past five years.
SoPS: What achievement are you most proud of from your time at UCI?
JB: There’re a few things that come to mind. I’m proud to think of how my laboratory work may translate into treatments for infectious diseases in humans. But I’m most proud of the people I’ve helped, primarily through teaching and mentorship. I’ve taught over nine different organic chemistry courses here at UCI, and I always aim to go above and beyond to help students because I think it’s critically important to help them succeed. If I can help tens to hundreds of students, I’ll do so. I’m also proud to have mentored two undergraduate research assistants, one of whom is going to Stanford for his own Ph.D. journey next year. Lastly, I’m proud of my work in the General and Organic Chemistry Peer Tutor Programs that I led as a Chemical Education Fellow for over two years. Helping all of those students further their education – that’s what I’m most proud of.
SoPS: Were there any professors who had a special impact on your grad career?
JB: Definitely. The graduate level organic spectroscopy course with Professor James Nowick deepened my fundamental understanding of the spectroscopic tools I need to conduct my research and to analyze the chemistry and molecules I produce. It impacted me so much that it was a huge determining factor in my joining his laboratory, and I’m so thankful for his guidance and mentorship throughout this entire journey. I’m also thankful for Professor Vy Dong for her wonderful advice and support.
SoPS: How has UCI prepared you for what’s to come?
JB: UCI has really prepared me for my future. I picked up a tremendous number of soft skills that go behind just the art of chemistry: things like public speaking, confidently defending my ideas, consistently showing up for people who depend on me, leading my own projects, and being willing to just throw myself in the deep end. I feel pretty confident that I can go out into the world and no matter what I do, I’ll be a leader and will be able to help lift up other people.
I’m going to miss UCI. I know a lot of graduate students are super eager to rush out of here and go live life, and to some extent I am too, but I’ve really loved this journey. It’s not so much about the destination as it is about the journey, and while it’s been a challenging one, I’m so thankful for every moment of it – everybody I’ve met, and all the difficulties as I near the end. Hopefully, I can find the same fun elsewhere.