Faculty Profiles

Colleges and Departments

Dr. Sean Michael Kerwin

  • Regents' Professor - Chemistry and Biochemistry
  • Regents' Professor - College of Science & Engineering
Portrait of Dr. Sean Michael Kerwin

Biography and expertise

Sean Kerwin earned a PhD in chemistry from UC Berkeley. After postdoctoral work at UC San Francisco, he began his academic career at UT Austin in the College of Pharmacy, and moved to Texas State University in 2015 where ​he is currently Regents' Professor and Director of the Materials Science, Engineering, and Commercialization ​Program.

Education

Doctorate Degree

PhD in Chemistry

Univ of California, Berkeley, 1989

Bachelor's Degree

BS in Chemistry

Notre Dame College, 1984

Teaching Interests

Research Interests

Patents

  • “UK-1 Analogues: Methods of Preparation and Use.” Sean Kerwin. Regular, #US 7,294,643.
    Date awarded: 11/13/2007
  • “DNA-Cleaving Antitumor Agents.” Sean Kerwin, Wendi David. Regular, #US 6,686,345.
    Date awarded: 06/21/2005
  • “Methods and Compositions for Stimulating Osteoblast Proliferation or Treating Malignant Cell Proliferation and Methods for Selecting Osteoclast Proliferation Stimulants.” Sean Kerwin, Laurence Hurley, Mark DeLuca, Bob Moore, III, Gregory Mundy. Regular, #US 6,720,344.
    Date awarded: 04/13/2004
  • “Inhibition of Human Telomerase by a G-quadruplex-Interaction Compound.” Sean Kerwin, Oleg Fedoroff, Miguel Salazar, Laurence Hurley. Regular, #US 6,689,887.
    Date awarded: 02/10/2004
  • “Inhibition of Human Telomerase by a G-quadruplex-Interaction Compound.” Sean Kerwin, Oleg Fedoroff, Miguel Salazar, Laurence Hurley. Regular, #US 6,156,763.
    Date awarded: 11/18/2003
  • “Inhibition of Human Telomerase by a G-quadruplex-Interaction Compound.” Sean Kerwin, Oleg Fedoroff, Miguel Salazar, Laurence Hurley. Regular, #US 6,623,930.
    Date awarded: 09/23/2003
View all intellectual property
  • Betancourt, Tania (Principal), Brittain, William J (Co-Principal), Irvin, Jennifer A (Co-Principal), Theodoropoulou, Nikoleta (Co-Principal), Martin, Benjamin (Co-Principal), Rhodes, Christopher Peter (Co-Principal), Wistey, Mark A (Co-Principal), Miyahara, Yoichi (Co-Principal), Kerwin, Sean Michael (Co-Principal). TxState-UT PREM Center for Intelligent Materials Assembly (CIMA), National Science Foundation, Federal, $3822000. (Funded: July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2027). Grant.
  • Lewis, Karen A (Principal), Kerwin, Sean Michael (Co-Principal), McLean, Robert J C (Co-Principal), Chang, Carolyn T (Supporting), David, Wendi M (Supporting). U-RISE at Texas State, National Institutes of Health - National Institute of General Medical Sciences, Federal, $2238578. (Funded: April 1, 2021 - March 31, 2025). Grant.
  • Lewis, Karen A (Co-Principal), Whitten, Steven T (Co-Principal), Kerwin, Sean Michael (Principal). Circular Dichroism Spectrometer, National Institutes of Health, Federal, $209852. (Funded: August 2025 - July 2026). Grant.
  • Kerwin, Sean Michael (Principal). Circular Dichroism Spectrometer, NIH, Federal, $209852. (Submitted: 2024, Funded: August 1, 2025 - 2027). Grant.
  • Hudnall, Todd W (Principal), Kerwin, Sean Michael (Co-Principal), Schilter, David (Co-Principal), Peterson, Ryan Loren (Co-Principal), Shi, Xijun (Co-Principal). Equipment: MRI: Acquisition of a Single Crystal X-ray Diffractometer to Advance Structural Analysis in Chemical, Biochemical, and Material Sciences at Texas State University, National Science Foundation, Federal, $485000. (Funded: May 2024 - April 2025). Grant.
View all grants
  • Kerwin, S. M. (2025). Introduction to non-canonical DNA using 3D printed models. Abstracts of Papers, 269th ACS National Meeting, CHED-98.
  • Myhre, M. W., Das, M. K., Williams, E. P., David, W. M., & Kerwin, S. M. (2025). From triads to tools: A Comprehensive Review of the Expanding Landscape of G-Triplex Structures. Molecules, 30, 4303. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules30214303
  • Kerwin, S. M. (n.d.). 3D Printed Biomolecular Structures. In 3D Printing for Chemical Education: Tools for Active Learning. American Chemical Society.
  • Tho, C., Kerwin, S. M., Jamnongtanachot, P., Vongsutilers, V., & Tuesuwan, B. (2025). Revisiting ligand-exchange chromatography for valsartan chiral analysis using a conventional non-chiral column. J. Pharm. Sci., 114, 103797. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xphs.2025.103797
  • Saucedo, A., Muppidi, S., Smith, J. L., Jemal, M., Mesa-Diaz, N. L., Vernaza, A., … Kerwin, S. M. (2025). Caffeic acid phenethyl amide and analogues as anticancer agents against neuroblastoma. Book of Abstracts of the 269th ACS National Meeting & Exposition.
View all scholarly/creative works
  • Award / Honor Recipient: Senior Member of the National Academy of Inventors, National Academy of Inventors. 2025 - Present
  • Award / Honor Recipient: University Distinguished Professor, Texas State University. 2024 - Present
  • Award / Honor Recipient: Regent's Professor, Texas State University System. 2024 - Present
  • Award / Honor Recipient: Presidential Distinction Award for Service, Texas State University. 2024 - 2025
  • Award / Honor Recipient: COSE Excellence in Teaching Award, COSE. 2023 - 2024
View all awards
  1. Member

    UIDP Working Group on Industry-Prepared PhD Certificate

  2. Other

    Honors College Undergraduate Research Symposium

  3. Member

    Texas State Regents' Professor Advisory Selection Committee

  4. Other

    Integrated Molecular and Biophysical Chemistry Program

  5. Adjudicator

    Texas Venture Fest

  6. Participant

    THECB Board Meeting Presentation of IMBC Program

  7. View all activities