Professor Sir Alan Fersht FRS

Our major research programme concerns the folding, stability and activity of proteins. We apply a broad multi-disciplinary approach that combines methods and ideas of molecular biology and physical-organic chemistry. We use techniques including protein engineering, DNA cloning, sequencing and mutagenesis, cell culture, gene and peptide synthesis, spectroscopy, rapid reaction techniques, multi-dimensional NMR (we have a 500, 600, 700 and an 800 MHz spectrometers) and x-ray protein crystallography.

Current major projects include: protein folding, misfolding and disease; drug discovery; and structure-activity relationships of proteins involved in cancer and disease.

Although now emeritus, I am still fully active in research with long term funding, including an MRC Programme Grant.

Publications

Fluorescence resonance energy transfer analysis of the folding pathway of Engrailed Homeodomain

F Huang, G Settanni, AR Fersht

– Protein Eng Des Sel

(2008)

21,

131

(doi: 10.1093/protein/gzm069)

The role of the turn in β‐hairpin formation during WW domain folding

T Sharpe, AL Jonsson, TJ Rutherford, V Daggett, AR Fersht

– Protein Sci

(2007)

16,

2233

(doi: 10.1110/ps.073004907)

Comparative Biophysical Characterization of p53 with the Pro-apoptotic BAK and the Anti-apoptotic BCL-xL

B Sot, SMV Freund, AR Fersht

– Journal of Biological Chemistry

(2007)

282,

29193

(doi: 10.1074/jbc.M705544200)

Quaternary structures of tumor suppressor p53 and a specific p53 DNA complex.

H Tidow, R Melero, E Mylonas, SMV Freund, JG Grossmann, JM Carazo, DI Svergun, M Valle, AR Fersht

– Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

(2007)

104,

12324

(doi: 10.1073/pnas.0705069104)

Searching for multiple folding pathways of a nearly symmetrical protein:: Temperature dependent Φ-Value analysis of the B domain of protein A

S Sato, AR Fersht

– Journal of Molecular Biology

(2007)

372,

254

(doi: 10.1016/j.jmb.2007.06.043)

Correlation of Levels of Folded Recombinant p53 in Escherichia coli with Thermodynamic Stability in Vitro

S Mayer, S Rüdiger, HC Ang, AC Joerger, AR Fersht

– Journal of molecular biology

(2007)

372,

268

(doi: 10.1016/j.jmb.2007.06.044)

The folding pathway of an FF domain:: Characterization of an on-pathway intermediate state under folding conditions by ¹⁵N, ¹³C^α and ¹³C-methyl relaxation dispersion and ¹H/² H-exchange NMR Spectroscopy

DM Korzhnev, TL Religa, P Lundström, AR Fersht, LE Kay

– Journal of Molecular Biology

(2007)

372,

497

(doi: 10.1016/j.jmb.2007.06.012)