Joseph Cotruvo
Professional Appointments and Affiliations
Professor of Chemistry
Office
220 Benkovic Building
University Park, PA 16802
Email: juc96@psu.edu
(814) 863-4869
Mailing Address
104 Benkovic Building
Education
Ph.D., Chemistry, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2012
A.B., Chemistry, Princeton University, 2006
Honors and Awards
Faculty Scholar Medal in the Life and Health Sciences, Penn State (2025)
Blavatnik National Awards Finalist (2024)
Eli Lilly Award in Biological Chemistry, ACS Division of Biochemistry and Chemical Biology (2024)
Ed Stiefel Young Investigator Award (2022)
Sloan Research Fellowship (2021)
DOE Early Career Award (2020)
NSF CAREER Award (2019)
Charles E. Kaufman Foundation New Investigator Award (2018-2020)
Jane Coffin Childs Memorial Fund Postdoctoral Fellowship (2013-2016)
National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship (2008-2011)
Research
The Cotruvo lab uses biochemistry and chemical biology to understand metal selectivity in biological systems. We study how bacteria selectively acquire and utilize lanthanides and apply what we learn to design biotechnologies for rare earth detection, recovery, and separations. We also develop and apply new tools to study roles of transition metals (particularly iron and manganese) in infectious and neurodegenerative disease.
Selected Recent Publications
Larrinaga, W.B., Jung, J.J., Lin, C.-Y., Boal, A.K., Cotruvo, J.A., Jr. Modulating metal-centered dimerization of a lanthanide chaperone protein for separation of light lanthanides. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2024, 121, e2410926121. Link
Mattocks, J.A., Jung, J.J., Lin, C.-Y., Dong, Z., Yennawar, N.H., Featherston, E.R., Kang-Yun, C.S., Hamilton, T.A., Park, D.M., Boal, A.K., Cotruvo, J.A., Jr. Enhanced rare-earth separation with a metal-sensitive lanmodulin dimer. Nature 2023, 618, 87-93. Link
Park, J., Cleary, M.B., Li, D., Mattocks, J.A., Xu, J., Wang, H., Mukhopadhyay, S., Gale, E.M., Cotruvo, J.A., Jr. A genetically encoded fluorescent sensor for manganese(II), engineered from lanmodulin. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2022, 119, e2212723119. Link
Mattocks, J.A., Cotruvo, J.A., Jr., Deblonde, G.J.-P. Engineering lanmodulin’s selectivity for actinides over lanthanides by controlling solvent coordination and second-sphere interactions. Chem. Sci. 2022, 13, 6054-6066. Link
Xu, J., Cotruvo, J.A., Jr. Reconsidering the czcD (NiCo) riboswitch as an iron riboswitch. ACS Bio Med Chem Au 2022, 2, 376-385. Link
Dong, Z., Mattocks, J.A., Deblonde, G.J.-P., Hu, D., Jiao, Y., Cotruvo, J.A., Jr., Park, D.M. Bridging hydrometallurgy and biochemistry: A protein-based process for recovery and separation of rare earth elements. ACS Cent. Sci. 2021, 7, 1798-1808. Link
Deblonde, G.J.-P., Mattocks, J.A., Dong, Z., Wooddy, T., Cotruvo, J.A., Jr., Zavarin, M. Capturing an elusive but critical element: Natural protein enables actinium chemistry. Sci. Adv. 2021, 7, eabk0273. Link
Deblonde, G.J.-P., Mattocks, J.A., Wang, H., Gale, E.M., Kersting, A.E., Zavarin, M., Cotruvo, J.A., Jr. Characterization of americium and curium complexes of the protein lanmodulin: A potential macromolecular mechanism for actinide mobility in the environment. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2021, 143, 15769-15783. Link
Featherston, E.R., Issertell, E.I., Cotruvo, J.A., Jr. Probing lanmodulin's lanthanide recognition via sensitized luminescence yields a platform for quantification of terbium in acid mine drainage. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2021, 143, 14287-14299. Link
Featherston, E.R. and Cotruvo, J.A., Jr. The biochemistry of lanthanide acquisition, trafficking, and utilization. Biochim. Biophys. Acta Mol. Cell Res. 2021, 1868, 118864. Link
Mattocks, J.A. and Cotruvo, J.A., Jr. Biological, biomolecular, and bio-inspired strategies for detection, extraction, and separations of lanthanides and actinides. Chem. Soc. Rev. 2020, 49, 8315-8334. Link
Deblonde, G.J.-P., Mattocks, J.A., Park, D.M., Reed, D.W., Cotruvo, J.A., Jr., Jiao, Y. Selective and efficient biomacromolecular extraction of rare earth elements using lanmodulin. Inorg. Chem. 2020, 59, 11855-11867. Link
Xu, J. and Cotruvo, J.A., Jr. The czcD (NiCo) riboswitch responds to iron(II). Biochemistry 2020, 59, 1508-1516. Link
Cotruvo, J.A., Jr. The chemistry of lanthanides in biology: Recent discoveries, emerging principles, and technological applications. ACS Cent. Sci. 2019, 5, 1496-1506. Link
Mattocks, J.A., Ho, J.V., Cotruvo, J.A., Jr. A selective, protein-based fluorescent sensor with picomolar affinity for rare earth elements. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2019, 141, 2857-2861. Link
Cook, E.C., Featherston, E.R., Showalter, S.A., Cotruvo, J.A., Jr. Structural basis for rare earth element recognition by Methylobacterium extorquens lanmodulin. Biochemistry 2019, 58, 120-125. Link
Cotruvo, J.A., Jr., Featherston, E.R., Mattocks, J.A., Ho, J.V., Laremore, T.N. Lanmodulin: A highly selective lanthanide-binding protein from a lanthanide-utilizing bacterium. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2018, 140, 15056-15061. Link
Prior to Penn State (Selected):
Krishnamoorthy, L.,* Cotruvo, J.A., Jr.,* Chan, J., Kaluarachchi, H., Muchenditsi, A., Pendyala, V.S., Jia, S., Aron, A.T., Ackerman, C.M., Vander Wal, M.N., Guan, T., Smaga, L.P., Farhi, S.S., New, E.J., Lutsenko, S., and Chang, C.J. Copper regulates cyclic-AMP-dependent lipolysis. Nat. Chem. Biol., 2016, 12, 586-592. (*Co-first authors)
Cotruvo, J.A., Jr., Stich, T.A., Britt, R.D., and Stubbe, J. Mechanism of assembly of the dimanganese-tyrosyl radical cofactor of class Ib ribonucleotide reductase: Enzymatic generation of superoxide is required for tyrosine oxidation via a MnIIIMnIV intermediate. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2013, 135, 4027-4039.
Boal, A.K., Cotruvo, J.A., Jr., Stubbe, J., and Rosenzweig, A.C. Structural basis for activation of class Ib ribonucleotide reductase. Science 2010, 329, 1526-1530.
Cotruvo, J.A., Jr. and Stubbe, J. An active dimanganese(III)-tyrosyl radical cofactor in Escherichia coli class Ib ribonucleotide reductase. Biochemistry 2010, 49, 1297-1309.