Marc Baldus is a physicist and professor of NMR spectroscopy at

Utrecht University Utrecht University (UU; , formerly ''Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht'') is a public university, public research university in Utrecht, Netherlands. Established , it is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands. In 2023, it had an enrollment of ...

. He is especially known for his work in the field of

structural biology Structural biology deals with structural analysis of living material (formed, composed of, and/or maintained and refined by living cells) at every level of organization. Early structural biologists throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries we ...

using

solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance Solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (ssNMR) is a spectroscopy technique used to characterize atomic-level structure and dynamics in solid materials. ssNMR spectra are broader due to nuclear spin interactions which can be categorized as dipolar ...

(ssNMR) spectroscopy. He applies ssNMR methods to establish structure-function relationships in complex biomolecular systems including membrane and Amyloid proteins. In addition, he develops cellular NMR methods to study large molecular transport and insertion systems in bacteria as well as signal transduction mechanisms in eukaryotic cells.

Biography

Marc Baldus studied

physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...

at the

Technische Universität Darmstadt The Technische Universität Darmstadt (official English name Technical University of Darmstadt, sometimes also referred to as Darmstadt University of Technology), commonly known as TU Darmstadt, is a research university in the city of Darmsta ...

, after which he became a Diploma Student at the Department of Physics of

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

in Gainesville, USA. He obtained his PhD degree in 1996 from the

ETH Zurich ETH Zurich (; ) is a public university in Zurich, Switzerland. Founded in 1854 with the stated mission to educate engineers and scientists, the university focuses primarily on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. ETH Zurich ran ...

in Switzerland. After postdoctoral research at

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...

and

Leiden University Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince of Orange as a Protestantism, Protestant institution, it holds the d ...

he became group leader at the

Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry The Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry (), also known as the Karl-Friedrich Bonhoeffer Institute (), was a research institute of the Max Planck Society, located in Göttingen, Germany. On January 1, 2022, the institute merged with ...

in Goettingen, Germany. In 2008 he became Full Professor of Structural Biology in the

Bijvoet Centre for Biomolecular Research The Bijvoet Centre for Biomolecular Research is a research institute at Utrecht University. The Bijvoet Centre performs research on the relation between the structure and function of biomolecules, including proteins and lipids, which play a role ...

in Utrecht. From 2016 to 2019 he was scientific director of the Bijvoet Centre for Biomolecular Research.

Research

Marc Baldus is an expert in the field of structural biology using solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (ssNMR) spectroscopy. In addition, he develops cellular NMR methods for structural biology, such as Dynamic Nuclear Polarization (DNP) NMR spectroscopy and his research group at Utrecht University was the first group worldwide with a 527 GHz Solid State DNP-NMR spectrometer. Baldus is also the coordinator of the uNMR-NL project, funded by the

Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research The Dutch Research Council (NWO, Dutch: Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek) is the national research council of the Netherlands. NWO funds thousands of top researchers at universities and institutes and steers the course o ...

(NWO) with 18.5M Euro, to establish a national infrastructure for ultra-high field NMR spectroscopy, a joined initiative between Utrecht University, the

Radboud University Nijmegen Radboud University (abbreviated as RU, , formerly ) is a public university, public research university located in Nijmegen, Netherlands. RU has seven faculties and more than 24,000 students. Established in 1923, Radboud University has consistentl ...

Wageningen University Wageningen University & Research (also known as WUR) is a public university, public research university in Wageningen, Netherlands, specializing in life sciences with a focus on agriculture, technical and engineering subjects. It is a globally i ...

Eindhoven University of Technology The Eindhoven University of Technology (), Abbreviation, abbr. TU/e, is a public university, public technical university in the Netherlands, situated in Eindhoven. In 2020–21, around 14,000 students were enrolled in its Bachelor of Science, BS ...

and the Dutch public-private partnership COAST for the analytical sciences. The uNMR-NL facility was officially opened by Dutch

Undersecretary Undersecretary (or under secretary) is a title for a person who works for and has a lower rank than a secretary (person in charge). It is used in the executive branch of government, with different meanings in different political systems, and is a ...

for Education, Culture and Science,

Sander Dekker Sander Dekker (born 9 February 1975) is a Dutch politician who served as Minister for Legal Protection in the Third Rutte cabinet from 2017 to 2022. A member of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), he previously served as State ...

on November 5, 2015. The main focus of the research of Marc Baldus is the use of solid state NMR spectroscopy to study the structure and dynamics of proteins and other biomolecules. He has used the technology amongst others to study the behavior of bacterial proteins, protein aggregation in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, to study the effect of sugars on membrane behaviour, for the analysis of membrane embedded proteins such as

G-protein coupled receptors G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), also known as seven-(pass)-transmembrane domain receptors, 7TM receptors, heptahelical receptors, serpentine receptors, and G protein-linked receptors (GPLR), form a large group of evolutionarily related ...

and

ion channels Ion channels are pore-forming membrane proteins that allow ions to pass through the channel pore. Their functions include establishing a resting membrane potential, shaping action potentials and other electrical signals by gating the flow of ...

and for the characterization of novel

drug delivery systems In pharmacology and toxicology, a route of administration is the way by which a drug, fluid, poison, or other substance is taken into the body. Routes of administration are generally classified by the location at which the substance is applied. ...

. In recent years, his attention has been focussed on the analysis of in-cell NMR to study the structure and function of proteins in their native cellular environment.

Honours and awards

Marc Baldus received the Founders Medal of the International Conference on Magnetic Resonance in Biological Systems (ICMRBS) in August 2006. In 2014, Marc Baldus received the

Günther Laukien Prize The Günther Laukien Prize is a prize presented at the Experimental Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Conference "to recognize recent cutting-edge experimental NMR research with a high probability of enabling beneficial new applications". The prize was est ...

from Richard Ernst, 1991 Nobel laureate in Chemistry. The prize recognizes cutting-edge experimental NMR research, is awarded yearly and is one of the most prestigious prizes in the field of NMR and MRI.

References

External links

Marc Baldus
at NARCIS, the database of scientists working at Dutch institutions
Marc Baldus'
personal page at

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baldus, Marc 21st-century German physicists 1967 births Living people Technische Universität Darmstadt alumni University of Florida College of Liberal Arts and Sciences alumni