James Collins (Boston University)

Infobox_Scientist
name = Jim Collins


caption =
birth_date = birth date and age|1965|06|26
birth_place = New York City, New York, U.S.
death_date =
death_place =
residence = flagicon|USA U.S., flagicon|UK UK (1987-90)
citizenship = flagicon|USA United States
nationality =
ethnicity =
field = biomedical engineering
work_institution = Boston University
alma_mater = University of Oxford (Ph.D.)
Holy Cross (BA)
doctoral_advisor =
doctoral_students =
known_for =
author_abbreviation_bot =
author_abbreviation_zoo =
prizes = Rhodes Scholar,

MacArthur Fellowcite web | title=MacArthur Fellows, October 2003 | publisher=John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation | url=http://www.macfound.org/site/c.lkLXJ8MQKrH/b.1142737/k.6839/Fellows_List__October_2003.htm | accessdate=2007-04-15] ,
[http://nihroadmap.nih.gov/pioneer/Recipients07.aspx NIH Director's Pioneer Award] ,
[http://www.hhmi.org/news/collins_bio.html HHMI Investigator]
religion =
footnotes =

James J. Collins (June 26, 1965) is an American bioengineer, Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Boston University, and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Investigator. He is one of the founders of the emerging field of synthetic biology, and a pioneering researcher in systems biology, stochastic resonance, biological dynamics and neurostimulation.Citation
last =Reardon | first =Michael
author-link =
title =The Profile: James J. Collins Jr. '87
newspaper =Holy Cross Magazine
volume=41 | number=1
pages =80 | year =2007 | date =winter 2007 | accessdate=2007-04-15
url =http://www.holycross.edu/departments/publicaffairs/hcm/winter07/GAA/gaa8.html]

Biography

Collins received a bachelor's degree in Physics (summa cum laude; class valedictorian) from the College of the Holy Cross in 1987 and a doctorate in Medical Engineering from the University of Oxford in 1990. From 1987 to 1990, he was a Rhodes Scholar. Since 1990, he has been a faculty member in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Boston University. Currently, Collins is a University Professor, Professor of Biomedical Engineering, and Co-Director of the [http://cbd.bu.edu Center for BioDynamics] at Boston University.

Collins' scientific accomplishments have been recognized by numerous awards. For example, in 1999, he was selected for Technology Review's inaugural TR100 - 100 young innovators who will shape the future of technologycite web | title=1999 Young Innovator, James Collins | date=November/December 1999| publisher=Technology Review | url=http://www.technologyreview.com/tr35/Profile.aspx?Cand=T&TRID=498 | accessdate=2007-04-15] . In 2003, he received a MacArthur Foundation "Genius Award", becoming the first bioengineer to receive this honor. Collins award citation noted, "Throughout his research, Collins demonstrates a proclivity for identifying abstract principles that underlie complex biological phenomena and for using these concepts to solve concrete, practical problems." In 2005, Collins was selected for the Scientific American 50 - the top 50 outstanding leaders in science and technologycite web | title=Scientific American 50: SA 50 Winners and Contributors | date=2005-11-21 | publisher=Scientific American | url=http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleID=000398F0-45B5-137E-85B583414B7F0000 | accessdate=2007-04-15] . In 2007, Collins received the [http://nihroadmap.nih.gov/pioneer/Recipients07.aspx NIH Director's Pioneer Award] and the [http://www.ellisonfoundation.org/news_detail.jsp?id=105 Ellison Medical Foundation Senior Scholar Award in Aging] . Additionally, he is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, the Institute of Physics, and the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering. In 2008, Collins was selected as an HHMI Investigator, becoming the first BU faculty member to be honored with this distinction.

Collins is also a gifted and committed teacher. He has won numerous teaching awards at Boston University, including the Biomedical Engineering Teacher of the Year Award, the College of Engineering Professor of the Year Award, and the Metcalf Cup and Prize for Excellence in Teaching, which is the highest teaching honor awarded by Boston University [citation | last=Brick | first=Tricia | title=Genius at Work
date=spring 2006 | newspaper=Bostonia | pages=20-25 |url=http://www.bu.edu/alumni/bostonia/2006/spring/collins/index.html | accessdate=2007-04-15] .

Collins has been involved with a number of start-up companies, and his inventions and technologies have been licensed by several biotech and medical device companies. Collins currently co-chairs the Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) of [http://www.gnsbiotech.com Gene Network Sciences] , and serves on the SAB of [http://www.codondevices.com Codon Devices] , [http://www.epitomebiosystems.com Epitome Biosystems] and Joule Biotechnologies. Additionally, he has served on the SAB of Mannkind Corporation (Nasdaq: MNKD) and Bios Group Inc.

Work

Collins' research focuses on developing nonlinear dynamical techniques and devices to characterize, improve and mimic biological function. His specific interests include:
* systems biology - reverse engineering naturally occurring gene regulatory networks,
* synthetic biology - modeling, designing and constructing synthetic gene networks, and
* developing noise-based sensory prosthetics.

Collins has invented a number of novel devices and techniques, including vibrating insoles for enhancing balance [cite journal | quotes= | last=Priplata | first=A | coauthors=Niemi J, Harry J, Lipsitz LA and Collins JJ
date=04 Oct 2003 | title=Vibrating insoles and balance control in elderly people
journal=The Lancet | volume=362 | issue=9390 | pages=1123–1124
pmid=14550702 | doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(03)14470-4] , bistable genetic toggle switches [cite journal | last=Gardner | first=TS | coauthors=Cantor CR and Collins JJ | date=20 Jan 2000 | title=Construction of a genetic toggle switch in Escherichia coli
journal=Nature | volume=403 | pages=339–342 | pmid=10659857 | doi=10.1038/35002131] for biotechnology and bioenergy applications, dynamical control techniques for eliminating cardiac arrhythmias, and systems biology techniques for identifying drug targets [cite journal | last=Gardner | first=TS | coauthors=di Bernardo D, Lorenz D and Collins JJ | date=04 Jul 2003 | title=Inferring genetic networks and identifying compound of action via expression profiling
journal=Science | volume=301 | pages=102–1005 | pmid=12843395 | doi=10.1126/science.1081900] [cite journal | last=di Bernardo | first=D | coauthors=Thompson MJ, Gardner TS, Chobot SE, Eastwood EL, Wojtovich AP, Elliot SJ, Schaus SE and Collins JJ | date=Mar 2005 | title=Chemogenomic profiling on a genome-wide scale using reverse-engineered gene networks
journal=Nature Biotechnology | volume=23 | pages=377–383 | pmid=15765094 | doi=10.1038/nbt1075] and disease mediators [cite journal | last=Ergun | first=A | coauthors=Lawrence CA, Kohanski MA, Brennan TA and Collins JJ | date=2007 | title=A network biology approach to prostate cancer
journal=Molecular Systems Biology | volume=3 | pages=82 | pmid=17299418 | doi=10.1038/msb4100125] .

References

External links

* [http://www.bu.edu/abl Jim Collins' Lab @ Boston University]
* [http://www.bu.edu/dbin/bme/people/primary/collins.php Jim Collins' BME faculty webpage @ Boston University]
* [http://www.hhmi.org/research/investigators/collins_bio.html Jim Collins' HHMI Investigator webpage @ HHMI]

Persondata
NAME=Collins, James J.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=professor, biomedical engineering
DATE OF BIRTH=June 26, 1965
PLACE OF BIRTH=New York City, New York, U.S.
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=