Profile for Md Kausar Raza
Contact me
Md Kausar Raza
Assistant Professor
Chemistry & Biochemistry
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
Md Kausar Raza
Assistant Professor
Chemistry & Biochemistry
Specialty area(s)
(Bio)Inorganic Chemistry, Biochemistry, Metalloenzymes, Metallocofactors in Viral Diseases, Metals in Medicine and Biology
Brief biography
Dr. Md Kausar Raza is an Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse (UWL).
His research focuses on metalloproteins and inorganic metal complexes in biological and medical contexts. Current projects include studies of iron-sulfur [Fe-S] cluster-containing enzymes and the design, synthesis, and characterization of inorganic metal complexes with applications in photodynamic immunotherapy.
Before joining UWL, Dr. Raza was a Visiting Assistant Professor at Haverford College and a Visiting Research Scientist at Brandeis University. He conducted postdoctoral research at the California Institute of Technology and subsequently held an Eberly Research Fellowship at Penn State University. He earned his Ph.D. in (Bio)Inorganic Chemistry from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, and his M.Sc. and B.Sc. (Honors) in Chemistry from Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India.
See more details at the Research Group Website!
Current courses at UWL
General Chemistry I – CHM 103 (Lecture and Laboratory)
Introductory course covering fundamental principles of chemical measurement, structure, and reactivity, with integrated lecture and laboratory components. Offered every Fall and Spring.
Education
Ph.D. (Bio)Inorganic Chemistry, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, India
M.Sc. Chemistry, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India
B.Sc. (Honors) Chemistry, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India
Career
Teaching history
Assistant Professor, Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse (2025-present)
Visiting Assistant Professor, Haverford College (2024-2025)
Professional history
Visiting Research Scientist, Brandeis University, MA
Eberly Research Fellow, Penn State University, PA
Postdoctoral Research Associate, California Institute of Technology, CA
Research and publishing
- Banaspati, B.; Das, A.; Sultana, J. P.; Raza, M. K.; Goswami, T. K. Mn(III) Porphyrins as Photosensitizers: Structural, Photophysical and Anticancer Studies. Dalton Trans. 2025, 54, 11743-11756. (co-corresponding author).
- Bag, G.; Musib, D.; Raza, M. K.; Castonguay, A.; Roy, M. Recent Advances on the Photo-Chemotherapeutic Potential of Manganese Carbonyl Complexes. Polyhedron 2024, 249, 116778.
- Maio, N.; Raza, M. K.; Li, Y.; Zhang, D.-L.; Bollinger, J. M., Jr.; Krebs, C.; Rouault, T. A. An Iron-Sulfur Cluster in the Zinc-Binding Domain of the SARS-CoV-2 Helicase Modulates Its RNA Binding and Unwinding Activities. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2023, 120, e2303860120. (Highlighted in NIH News).
- Salay+, L. E.; Blee+, A. M.; Raza+, M. K.; Gallagher, K. S.; Chen, H.; Dorfeuille, A. J.; Barton, J. K.; Chazin, W. J. Modification of the 4Fe-4S Cluster Charge Transport Pathway Alters RNA Synthesis by Yeast DNA Primase. Biochemistry 2022, 61, 1113-1123. (+Equal first author).
- Musib, D.; Ramu, V.; Raza, M. K.; Upadhyay, A.; Pal, M.; Roy, M. La(iii)-curcumin-functionalized gold nanocomposite as a red light-activatable mitochondria-targeting PDT agent† Inorg. Chem. Front., 2022, 9, 686-701.
- Raza, M. K.; Gautam, S.; Howlader, P.; Bhattacharyya, A.; Kondaiah, P.; Chakravarty, A. R. Pyriplatin-Boron-Dipyrromethene Conjugates for Imaging and Mitochondria-Targeted Photodynamic Therapy. Inorg. Chem. 2018, 57 , 14374-14385.
- Raza, M. K.; Gautam, S.; Garai, A.; Mitra, K.; Kondaiah, P.; Chakravarty, A. R. Monofunctional BODIPY-Appended Imidazoplatin for Cellular Imaging and Mitochondria-Targeted Photocytotoxicity. Inorg. Chem. 2017, 56, 11019-11029.
- Raza, M. K.*; Karges, J. (2025). Iron-Sulfur Clusters in Viral Diseases. In Encyclopedia of Inorganic and Bioinorganic Chemistry, R.A. Scott (Ed.). (Book Chapter).
- Chakravarty, A. R.; Raza, M. K.; Gandhi, A.; Kondaiah, P. Platinum-Based Boron Dipyrromethene Compound and Method Thereof. Indian Patent, IN37834440, Granted (WIPO).