Our research program is driven by significant problems in organic, biochemistry, and physical chemistry. Our research in chemical theory and computation is fully integrated in strong collaboration with successful experimental chemists. We have a full range on interests, starting with the development of fundamental ideas on the theory of chemical bonding, and how this information can be used to understand the fundamentals of Lewis acidity and basicity, organic reaction catalysis, organometallic structures, and the bonding and reactions at surfaces. In the field of biochemistry, we investigate the energetics and mechanisms of phosphoryl transfer reactions, and design new antimicrobial agents to light the increasing risk of drug resistant bacterial fungal infections.
"All-atom empirical potential for molecular modeling and dynamics studies of proteins," A. D. MacKerell Jr., D. Bashford, M. Bellott, R. L. Dunbrack Jr., J. D. Evanseck, M. J. Field, S. Fischer, J. Gao, H. Guo, S. Ha, D. Joseph-McCarthy, L. Kuchnir, K. Kuczera, F. T. K. Lau, C. Mattos, S. Michnick, T. Ngo, D. T. Nguyen, B. Prodhom, W. E. Reiher, B. Roux, M. Schlenkrich, J. C. Smith, R. Stote, J. Straub, M. Watanabe, J. Wiórkiewicz-Kuczera, D. Yin, and M. Karplus, J. Phys. Chem. B. 102, no. 18 (1998)
"Transition structures of hydrocarbon pericyclic reactions," Houk, Kendall N., Yi Li, Jeffrey D. Evanseck, Angewandte Chemie International Edition 31, no. 6 (1992)
"Locally accessible conformations of proteins: multiple molecular dynamics simulations of crambin," Caves, Leo SD, Jeffrey D. Evanseck, Martin Karplus., Protein Science 7, no. 3 (1998)
"Influence of the heme pocket conformation on the structure and vibrations of the Fe-CO bond in myoglobin: a QM/MM density functional study," Rovira, Carme, Brita Schulze, Markus Eichinger, Jeffrey D. Evanseck, Michele Parrinello, Biophysical journal 81, no. 1 (2001)
"Density functional theory study of aqueous-phase rate acceleration and endo/exo selectivity of the butadiene and acrolein Diels-Alder reaction," Kong, S., Evanseck, J.D., Journal of the American Chemical Society 122, no. 42 (2000)
"Chemistry REU Leadership Group: Support for the Chemistry Undergraduate Research Community" Watkins, L.M., Evanseck, J.D. ACS Symposium Series 1295, pp. 73-83
"Evolution of an AwESOME Chapter" Cooper, E., Shaik, S., Bautista, D., (...), Gawalt, E.S., Evanseck, J.D. ACS Symposium Series 1278, pp. 55-71
"Metalated nitriles: SNi′ cyclizations with a propargylic electrophile," Ping Lu, Venkata S. Pakkala, Jeffrey D. Evanseck, Fraser F. Fleming, Tetrahedron Letters 56, 3216 (2015)
"Intramolecular Charge-Assisted Hydrogen Bond Strength in Pseudochair Carboxyphosphate," Sarah E. Kochanek, Traci M. Clymer, Venkata S. Pakkala, Sebastien P. Hebert, Kyle Reeping, Steven M. Firestine, and Jeffrey D. Evanseck, J. Phys. Chem. B 119, 1184 (2015)
"Common Hydrogen Bond Interactions in Diverse Phosphoryl Transfer Active Sites," Jean C. Summerton, Gregory M. Martin, Jeffrey D. Evanseck, Michael S. Chapman, PLOS One 9, e108310 (2014)
"Metalated nitriles: SNi′ cyclizations with a propargylic electrophile," Ping Lu, Venkata S. Pakkala, Jeffrey D. Evanseck, Fraser F. Fleming, Tetrahedron Letters 56, 3216 (2015)
"Intramolecular Charge-Assisted Hydrogen Bond Strength in Pseudochair Carboxyphosphate," Sarah E. Kochanek, Traci M. Clymer, Venkata S. Pakkala, Sebastien P. Hebert, Kyle Reeping, Steven M. Firestine, and Jeffrey D. Evanseck, J. Phys. Chem. B 119, 1184 (2015)
"Common Hydrogen Bond Interactions in Diverse Phosphoryl Transfer Active Sites," Jean C. Summerton, Gregory M. Martin, Jeffrey D. Evanseck, Michael S. Chapman, PLOS One 9, e108310 (2014)
"Hyperconjugation-Mediated Solvent Effects in Phosphoanhydride Bonds," Jean C. Summerton, Jeffrey D. Evanseck, and Michael S. Chapman, J. Phys. Chem. A 116 10209 (2012)