Andreas Matouschek is a

biochemist Biochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. They study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. Biochemists study DNA, proteins and Cell (biology), cell parts. The word "biochemist" is a portmanteau of ...

The University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 students as of fall 2 ...

, where he is a professor in the College of Natural Sciences. His graduate work with Alan Fersht resulted in the seminal application of phi-value analysis to the study of barnase, a bacterial RNAse used in many protein folding studies. Development of phi value analysis in combination with extensive protein engineering enabled an understanding of the kinetic intermediates during protein folding of barnase. In subsequent postdoctoral work at the

University of Basel The University of Basel (Latin: ''Universitas Basiliensis''; German: ''Universität Basel'') is a public research university in Basel, Switzerland. Founded on 4 April 1460, it is Switzerland's oldest university and among the world's oldest univ ...

, he studied how

mitochondria A mitochondrion () is an organelle found in the cells of most eukaryotes, such as animals, plants and fungi. Mitochondria have a double membrane structure and use aerobic respiration to generate adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is us ...

refold proteins after importing them. In 1996, he moved to

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

. In 2012, he moved to

. Matouschek currently studies the proteasome, the degradation machinery of eukaryotic cells, and the mechanisms by which the proteasome is able to unfold and translocate proteins.

Scientific career

Cambridge (1988-1993)

At Cambridge, Matouschek was a graduate student under Sir Alan Fersht from 1988 to 1992. In 1989, he pioneered the use of phi value analysis in combination with protein engineering in order to study the transition state of the bacterial protein barnase. By engineering mutations in carefully chosen portions of barnase and computing the ratio between the energetic destabilization introduced by a mutation in the

transition state In chemistry, the transition state of a chemical reaction is a particular configuration along the reaction coordinate. It is defined as the state corresponding to the highest potential energy along this reaction coordinate. It is often marked w ...

of barnase versus that of the same mutation to barnase's native state, he was able to gain insight about the transition state of barnase and its folding pathway. After receiving his PhD in 1992, Matouschek continued his work with Fersht, serving as a research fellow at the Centre for Protein Engineering for an additional year.

University of Basel (1993-1996)

At the University of Basel, Matoschek was a postdoctorate fellow under Gottfried (Jeff) Schatz.

Northwestern University (1996-2012)

The University of Texas at Austin (2012-present)

Matouschek was recruited to

in 2012.

References

External links

* Living people University of Texas at Austin faculty Alumni of the University of Cambridge Year of birth missing (living people) {{US-biologist-stub