Mithun Madhusudhanan Awarded Prestigious Andrew Mellon Predoctoral Fellowship

We are delighted to announce that graduate student Mithun C. Madhusudhanan has been awarded the Andrew Mellon Predoctoral Fellowship for the 2025-2026 academic year. This highly competitive fellowship is awarded by the University of Pittsburgh to doctoral students of "exceptional ability and promise" to support their full-time engagement in dissertation research.

Research Excellence

Since joining the Liu Group in 2022, Mithun has established himself as a talented researcher in computational organic chemistry. His current work focuses on the computational modeling of chiral dirhodium catalysts, employing advanced molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and quantum mechanical calculations to investigate reaction mechanisms.

A Collaborative Approach

Mithun’s work is characterized by close collaboration with leading experimental groups. He has contributed key computational insights to high-impact projects, including:

• Stereospecific Alkenylidene Homologation: A study published in Nature describing a new method for synthesizing alkenyl boronates, in collaboration with the Guangbin Dong Group.

• Biocatalysis: Recent work on benzofuranoindoline-bearing fungal peptides published in Nature Chemical Biology.

• Catalyst Design: Ongoing collaborations with the Davies and Musaev labs at Emory University to develop innovative strategies for synthetic challenges.

  
  

Background

Mithun joined the University of Pittsburgh after completing his B.S. in Chemistry at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Thiruvananthapuram in 2021. He previously received the Pittsburgh Quantum Institute (PQI) Fellowship in Spring 2025.

The Mellon Fellowship will allow Mithun to dedicate the upcoming academic year entirely to his research, accelerating his contributions to the field of catalyst design.

Congratulations, Mithun!