Alison R. H. Narayan

Alison Rae Hardin Narayan (born 1984) is an American chemist and the William R. Roush assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Michigan College of Literature, Science, and the Arts. Additionally, she is a research assistant professor at University of Michigan Life Sciences Institute.
Early life and education.
Narayan grew up in Cheboygan, Michigan graduating from high school in Frankenmuth. She completed her B.S. in Chemistry at the University of Michigan. During her bachelor's degree, she carried out research under the supervision of John P. Wolfe synthesizing substituted THF rings. Narayan completed her Ph.D. in organic chemistry with Richmond Sarpong at the University of California, Berkeley, the title of her thesis is "New Reactions and Synthetic Strategies toward Indolizidine Alkaloids and Pallavicinia Diterpenes". In 2011, Narayan returned to the University of Michigan as a postdoctoral fellow in David Sherman's lab. During her postdoc, she engineered cytochrome P450 enzymes to perform C-H functionalization in not native substrates. In 2015, Narayan joined the Department of Chemistry and the Life Sciences Institute at the University of Michigan as an assistant professor.
Research.
The Narayan lab focuses on identifying and characterizing enzymes from various microorganisms that can catalyze chemical reactions that are challenging to reproduce synthetically. These biocatalysts can be employed to create various chemicals for pharmaceutical or other purposes.
Awards and honors.
Narayan has received numerous awards and honors including:
Key publications.
Mentored Key Publications