Peter Nemes

Peter Nemes is a Hungarian-American chemist, who is active in the fields of bioanalytical chemistry, mass spectrometry, cell/developmental biology, neuroscience, and biochemistry.

Biography Nemes has been an associate professor at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMD) since January 2018. Prior to his appointment there, he was an assistant professor at the Department of Chemistry at George Washington University (Washington, DC), where he taught bioanalytical chemistry. Nemes graduated with summa cum laude with a Master's of Science (M.Sc.) from the Eötvös Loránd University in 2004. His original thesis research was conducted in the Department of Mass Spectrometry at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest, Hungary. Under mentorship by Vekey Karoly, Nemes studied the formation of amino acid clusters in the gas phase upon electrospray ionization,1 such as the magic serine clusters that preferentially incorporate amino acids and sugars of certain chirality matching those enriched on Earth. During his PhD in Akos Vertes’ laboratory at the Department of Chemistry, The George Washington University (GWU; Washington, DC) between 2005 and 2009, he established the significance of spraying modes/regimes during electrospray ionization (ESI) mass spectrometry (MS) in efficient and soft ion generation2 and the confirmational state of proteins3. He also invented and patented laser ablation electrospray ionization (LAESI)4 mass spectrometry for in situ and in vivo analysis4 of tissues and single cells5 2- and 3-dimensional molecular imaging MS6 at ambient conditions for biological samples. He completed postdoctoral training in analytical neuroscience with Jonathan V. Sweedler at the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign, IL. There, he developed capillary electrophoresis ESI MS instruments7 and built a unique matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI–C60 secondary ionization mass spectrometry (SIMS) dual-ion source mass spectrometer8 to enable the analysis of small and large molecules in single cells.9

In 2011, Nemes became a Staff Fellow and then also Laboratory Leader at the US Food and Drug Administration (2011–2013). An independent investigator, Nemes developed a high-throughput approach10 based on Direct analysis in real time to enable the rapid differentiation of heparin from glycosaminoglycans, including authentic adulterated products confiscated by the FDA during the 2008 heparin crisis. Nemes also established the mass spectrometry facility at the White Oak Headquarters of the US FDA with several mass spectrometers to support regulatory science.

As a professor since 2013, Nemes has conducted cutting-edge research at the interface of bioanalytical instrumental chemistry and neurodevelopmental biology and taught courses in analytical chemistry and mass spectrometry. In Fall 2013, Nemes became an assistant professor at the Department of Chemistry at George Washington University (Washington, DC), where he taught analytical chemistry. 2008 Young investigator Travel Award, the Washington-Baltimore Mass Spectrometry Discussion Group 2008 International Research Fellowship Award, the Dimitris N. Chorafas Foundation (Luzern, Switzerland) 2007 Young Investigator Travel Award, the Mass Spectrometry Discussion Group