Eric L. Hegg
| Eric L. Hegg | |
|---|---|
| Born | Eric Linke Hegg |
| 🏫 Education | Kalamazoo College (B.A.) University of Wisconsin–Madison (Ph.D.) |
| 💼 Occupation | |
| 🏅 Awards | Cottrell Scholar Award (2002) NSF CAREER Award (2004) AAAS Fellow (2019) RCSA IMPACT Award (2025) |
Eric Linke Hegg is an American biochemist and academic administrator who serves as the dean of the Michigan State University College of Natural Science.[1] He is a professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Michigan State University, where his research focuses on biofuel production, lignin depolymerization, and enzymes involved in the global nitrogen cycle.[2] In 2019, Hegg was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.[3]
Education
Hegg earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Kalamazoo College in 1991 and a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1996.[4] He completed postdoctoral research at the University of Minnesota, initially as a postdoctoral fellow (1996–1997) and then as a National Institutes of Health postdoctoral fellow (1997–1999).[4]
Career
University of Utah
Hegg began his academic career at the University of Utah, where he was an assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry from 1999 to 2006, and was promoted to associate professor in 2006.[4]
Michigan State University
Hegg joined Michigan State University in 2006 as an associate professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and was promoted to full professor in 2014.[4] From 2013 to 2019, he served as director of business operations for the Michigan State University component of the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, a U.S. Department of Energy-funded center led by the University of Wisconsin–Madison focused on developing sustainable biofuels and bioproducts.[5] From 2022 to 2024, he was co-associate director of the Center for Catalysis in Biomimetic Confinement, a DOE Energy Frontier Research Center.[4]
Hegg served as associate dean for budget, planning, research, and administration in the College of Natural Science from 2020 to 2024.[2] In September 2024, he became the dean of the College of Natural Science, succeeding Phillip Duxbury.[1]
In March 2022, Hegg testified before the U.S. House Science, Space, and Technology Committee on the opportunities and challenges of bioenergy research.[6]
Research
Hegg's research spans the interface between chemistry and biochemistry, with a focus on environmentally important processes. His major research areas include lignocellulosic biomass conversion, enzymology, and the nitrogen cycle.[2]
In the area of bioenergy, Hegg co-developed a pretreatment process for efficiently separating lignin from cellulose and hemicellulose in woody biomass, facilitating the production of fermentable sugars for biofuels and yielding high-quality lignin for bioproducts such as renewable chemicals and polyurethane applications.[7] His laboratory also developed biomimetic approaches to lignin depolymerization using thiol compounds, inspired by bacterial degradation pathways, as an alternative to oxidative methods for breaking down lignin while preserving energy density.[8]
In enzymology, Hegg has conducted research on cytochrome c nitrite reductase, an enzyme that converts nitrite into ammonia, contributing to understanding of electron storage and distribution mechanisms relevant to the global nitrogen cycle.[9] He has also studied the biosynthesis and transport of heme a, a component of cellular respiration.[9]
Hegg has authored approximately 80 manuscripts and book chapters and holds four patents.[2] His laboratory has been funded by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, U.S. Department of Energy, National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, and U.S. Department of Agriculture.[7]
Awards and honors
- 2002 – Cottrell Scholar Award, Research Corporation for Science Advancement[5]
- 2004 – NSF CAREER Award[4]
- 2016 – Big Ten Academic Alliance Academic Leadership Program Fellow[4]
- 2019 – Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science[3]
- 2025 – IMPACT Award, Research Corporation for Science Advancement[7]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Eric Hegg recommended as dean of MSU's College of Natural Science". MSUToday. Michigan State University. July 2024. Retrieved March 22, 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Dean Eric L. Hegg". College of Natural Science. Michigan State University. Retrieved March 22, 2026.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "2019 AAAS Fellows approved by the AAAS Council". Science. 366 (6469): 1086–1089. November 29, 2019. doi:10.1126/science.366.6469.1086.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 "Eric Linke Hegg". NatSci Directory. Michigan State University. Retrieved March 22, 2026.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Eric Hegg". Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center. Retrieved March 22, 2026.
- ↑ "Witness Testimony of Eric L. Hegg" (PDF). United States Congress. March 16, 2022. Retrieved March 22, 2026.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 "Eric Hegg honored with IMPACT award". College of Natural Science. Michigan State University. April 23, 2025. Retrieved March 22, 2026.
- ↑ "Scientists mimic natural decay to break down plant material for biofuel production". Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center. August 16, 2019. Retrieved March 22, 2026.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 "2025 STAR, IMPACT Awards Honor 4 Cottrell Scholars". Research Corporation for Science Advancement. April 2025. Retrieved March 22, 2026.
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