Biography
Dr. Shelby Heath is an Assistant Professor of Chemistry at West Liberty University, where she teaches courses in organic chemistry, biochemistry, and medicinal chemistry. Her teaching emphasizes the connections between molecular structure, biological function, and human health, with a focus on active learning, scientific literacy, and career preparation.
Her research interests broadly span bioorganic chemistry, chemical biology, and medicinal chemistry. She is particularly interested in natural product drug discovery, biologically active molecules, and the development of chemical approaches for investigating potential therapeutic targets.
Dr. Heath is committed to providing students with meaningful hands-on experiences through undergraduate research and laboratory-based learning. She is also active in STEM outreach, laboratory safety initiatives, and efforts to help students explore the wide range of careers available to those with a background in chemistry.
Education
Ph.D. in Chemistry, University of Pittsburgh, 2023 — Dissertation: Synthetic Approaches Towards the Development of Protein Mimetics and the Study of Post-Translational Cyclic Imide Formation.
B.S. in Chemistry, Slippery Rock University, 2017, completing the ACS-certified chemistry curriculum.
Professional Experiences
Assistant Professor of Chemistry
Most Recent Publications and Presentations
Heath, S. L.; Guseman, A. J.; Gronenborn, A. M.; Horne, W. S. Probing Effects of Site-Specific Aspartic Acid Isomerization on Structure and Stability of GB1 through Chemical Protein Synthesis. Protein Science 2024, 33 (3), e4883. DOI: 10.1002/pro.4883.
Heath, S. L.; Horne, W. S.; Lengyel, G. A. Effects of Chirality and Side Chain Length in C?,?-Dialkylated Residues on ?-Hairpin Peptide Folded Structure and Stability. Organic and Biomolecular Chemistry 2023, 21, 6320–6324. DOI: 10.1039/D3OB00963G.
Rao, S. R.; Harmon, T. W.; Heath, S. L.; Wolfe, J. A.; Santhouse, J. R.; O’Brien, G. L.; Distefano, A. N.; Reinert, Z. E.; Horne, W. S. Chemical Shifts of Artificial Monomers Used to Construct Heterogeneous-Backbone Protein Mimetics in Random Coil and Folded States. Peptide Science 2023, 115 (2), e24297. DOI: 10.1002/pep2.24297.
Rao, S. R.; Schettler, S. L.; Horne, W. S. Metal-Binding Foldamers. ChemPlusChem 2021, 86 (1), 137–145. DOI: 10.1002/cplu.202000730.
Karnes, M. A.; Schettler, S. L.; Werner, H. M.; Kurz, A. F.; Horne, W. S.; Lengyel, G. A. Thermodynamic and Structural Impact of ?,?-Dialkylated Residue Incorporation in a ?-Hairpin Peptide. Organic Letters 2016, 18 (15), 3902–3905. DOI: 10.1021/acs.orglett.6b01936.