skip to content

Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry

 

University Associate Professor

Research in my group can be divided into two areas, although these share a common theme of engineering metal protein interactions in novel ways.

One goal is to engineer novel proteins and polypeptide based assemblies that can be used in molecular electronic devices and nanotechnology in general. This involves understanding, at a fundamental level, how metal cofactors, particularly heme, is delivered to proteins in vivo and, in the case of c-type cytochromes, how heme is covalently attached to protein. It also involves understanding how functional protein units can be assembled into larger nanoscale assemblies that gain function through the proximity of the constituent monomers.

The other goal is to explore the interaction of 4d and 5d transition metals with proteins, particularly as a possible route to finding novel medicinal compounds. Specifically, Ruthenium organometallic complexes have shown some potential as anti cancer compounds, but little is understood about how the chemistry of Ruthenium interacts with biomolecules.

Research Interests

  • Self Assembly of Proteins into functional materials
  • Heme protein assembly and heme chaperones
  • Electrochemistry of Proteins
  • Heavy metal complexes and ther interaction with Proteins

Watch Dr Barker discuss his research

Publications

Combining experiment and energy landscapes to explore anaerobic heme breakdown in multifunctional hemoproteins.
AD Keith, EB Sawyer, DCY Choy, Y Xie, GS Biggs, OJ Klein, PD Brear, DJ Wales, PD Barker
– Phys Chem Chem Phys
(2024)
26,
695
Controlled Ligand Exchange Between Ruthenium Organometallic Cofactor Precursors and a Naïve Protein Scaffold Generates Artificial Metalloenzymes Catalysing Transfer Hydrogenation
GS Biggs, OJ Klein, SL Maslen, JM Skehel, TJ Rutherford, SMV Freund, F Hollfelder, SR Boss, PD Barker
– Angewandte Chemie
(2021)
133,
11014
Controlled Ligand Exchange Between Ruthenium Organometallic Cofactor Precursors and a Naïve Protein Scaffold Generates Artificial Metalloenzymes Catalysing Transfer Hydrogenation
GS Biggs, OJ Klein, SL Maslen, JM Skehel, TJ Rutherford, SMV Freund, F Hollfelder, SR Boss, PD Barker
– Angew Chem Int Ed Engl
(2021)
60,
10919
Unlocking the Full Evolutionary Potential of Artificial Metalloenzymes Through Direct Metal-Protein Coordination A review of recent advances for catalyst development
GS Biggs, OJ Klein, SR Boss, PD Barker
– Johnson Matthey Technology Review
(2020)
64,
407
Guest Editorial: Breaking Down Barriers and Borrowing from Biology
T Sturgeon, Y Yan, R Zhu, S Li, GS Biggs, OJ Klein, SR Boss, PD Barker, I Turetgen, MJ Haskew, JG Hardy, B Yilmaz, HA Karavana, T Tuccar, E Ilhan-Sungur, G Muyzer, B Candiroglu, ND Gungor, D Berber, I Turkmenoglu, NC Sesal, M Birbir, P Caglayan, Y Birbir, G Altug, M Cardak, PSC Turetken, S Kalkan, S Gurun, M Hayes, S Staniland, T Angelini, A Pushpanath, A Bornadel, E Siirola, S Bisagni, A Zanotti-Gerosa, B Dominguez
– Johnson Matthey Technology Review
(2020)
64,
394
Use of a fluorinated probe to quantitatively monitor amino acid binding preferences of ruthenium(ii) arene complexes
GS Biggs, MJ O'Neill, P Carames Mendez, TG Scrase, Y Lin, AM Bin-Maarof, AD Bond, SR Boss, PD Barker
– Dalton Trans
(2019)
48,
6910
Synthesis and extensive characterisation of phosphorus doped graphite
PD Matthews, TC King, H Glass, PCMM Magusin, GJ Tustin, PAC Brown, JA Cormack, R García-Rodríguez, M Leskes, SE Dutton, PD Barker, FM Grosche, A Alavi, CP Grey, DS Wright
– RSC Advances
(2016)
6,
62140
How to make a porphyrin flip: Dynamics of asymmetric porphyrin oligomers
C Shang, JM Philpott, N Bampos, PD Barker, DJ Wales
– Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics
(2015)
17,
27094
Investigating the mechanisms of amylolysis of starch granules by solution-state NMR
AJ Baldwin, DL Egan, FJ Warren, PD Barker, CM Dobson, PJ Butterworth, PR Ellis
– Biomacromolecules
(2015)
16,
1614
Theory and Practice: Bulk Synthesis of C<inf>3</inf>B and its H<inf>2</inf>- and Li-Storage Capacity
TC King, PD Matthews, H Glass, JA Cormack, JP Holgado, M Leskes, JM Griffin, OA Scherman, PD Barker, CP Grey, SE Dutton, RM Lambert, G Tustin, A Alavi, DS Wright
– Angewandte Chemie International Edition
(2015)
54,
5919
  • 1 of 8
  • >

Research Group

Research Interest Groups

Telephone number

01223 763096

Email address

pdb30@cam.ac.uk