Richard Henderson, FRS, FMedSci, winner of the 2017 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and Professor Emeritus at the Medical Research Council (MRC) Laboratory of Molecular Biology at the University of Cambridge, will give the third annual Coleman R. Seskind, M.D. Lecture, titled, “Extending the reach of Cryo-EM,” on Tuesday, October 22, 2024, at 4 p.m. in the Knapp Center for Biomedical Discovery, Room 1103.
Dr. Henderson is a structural biologist with an undergraduate degree in physics from Edinburgh University. He worked on the structure and mechanism of chymotrypsin for his Ph.D. with David Blow at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology (LMB). As a postdoc at Yale, he developed an interest in membrane proteins and worked on voltage-gated sodium channels. After returning to LMB, he worked with Nigel Unwin using electron microscopy to determine the structure of bacteriorhodopsin in two-dimensional crystals, first at low resolution and later at atomic resolution. With Chris Tate, he helped to develop methods for improving the stability and conformational homogeneity of membrane proteins, especially G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). These methods were instrumental in solving the structures of several GPCRs, and he later formed a company to develop drugs targeting them.
Over the last 30 years, Dr. Henderson has focused on single particle electron cryomicroscopy (cryoEM), working to understand technical challenges that need to be solved to make the method reach its full theoretical potential. With colleagues at LMB, he encourages microscope manufacturers to develop an entry-level cryoEM, so that more people will have greater access to the technology to accelerate further developments.
The Coleman R. Seskind, M.D., Lecture is an annual lectureship in the Biological Sciences Division. The award features a visiting lecturer working in any field represented in the Biological Sciences Division (BSD) who is a Nobel Laureate, Lasker Award winner, or other prominent scientist, and who will engage with faculty and students. The lectureship was established in 2021 by a generous gift from Coleman R. Seskind, M.D., a retired private practice physician and alumnus of the College and The Pritzker School of Medicine who previously worked in the Department of Pathology at the University of Chicago.
To learn more about the Coleman R. Seskind. M.D., Lecture, please visit the lecture series page. To view full event details, visit the University Calendar.
