Winner: 2022 Chemistry Biology Interface Division open award: Khorana Prize
Professor Ronald Raines
Massachussetts Institute of Technology
For translating fundamental chemical understanding of collagen into the life sciences and towards the clinic.
A protein is a string of amino acids that folds into a three-dimensional structure. Proteins perform the molecular functions that are necessary for life. These functions include catalysis of biochemical reactions (by enzymes), neutralisation of foreign toxins (by antibodies), stimulation of cellular activity (by hormones), and provision of a scaffold for the bodies of animals (by collagen). Professor Raines has discovered unappreciated forces that stabilise the three-dimensional structures of all proteins, and generated synthetic collagens that are stronger and longer than any found in nature. His team has also converted a human RNA-cleaving enzyme into a clinical anti-cancer agent, and developed processes to synthesise proteins, catalyse their folding, and facilitate their entry into human cells.
Biography
Ron Raines is the Roger and Georges Firmenich Professor of Natural Products Chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, an Extramural Member of the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT, and an Associate Member of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. Professor Raines is a native of the New Jersey suburbs of New York City. He received ScB degrees in chemistry and biology at MIT, performing undergraduate research with Chris Walsh. He received AM and PhD degrees in chemistry at Harvard University for research done with Jeremy Knowles. He was a Helen Hay Whitney postdoctoral fellow with Bill Rutter in the department of biochemistry and biophysics at the University of California, San Francisco. He joined the faculty at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1989, was a Visiting Associate at Caltech in 2009, and returned to MIT in 2017.
We live in a tangible world, and chemistry is the science of the tangible. Chemists are privileged in having the ability to create new molecules and new materials that can benefit the world in a real sense.
Professor Ronald Raines
Q&A with Professor Ronald Raines
How did you first become interested in chemistry?
My father earned a Ph.D. degree in physical chemistry from Columbia University in New York City. He went on to a career as a chemist in both academic and industrial settings. From an early age, his experiences exposed me to science, in general, and chemistry, in particular. That exposure sparked an interest that burns to the present day.
What motivates you?
Scientific puzzles are enticing. But...science can also better humanity. I embrace research projects that not only increase our fundamental understanding of the natural world but also have the potential to be translated in beneficial ways in the near term.
What advice would you give to a young person considering a career in chemistry?
I encourage young scientists to engage with a scientific problem rather than a particular technique and to be fearless -- learn whatever methods are necessary to solve the problem!
Can you tell us about a scientific development on the horizon that you are excited about?
The ability to transport any molecule of interest efficiently and safely into a human cell would revolutionize biotechnology and biomedicine.
Why is chemistry important?
We live in a tangible world, and chemistry is the science of the tangible. Chemists are privileged in having the ability to create new molecules and new materials that can benefit the world in a real (rather than virtual) sense.
What has been a highlight for you (either personally or in your career)?
I am thrilled to have had the opportunity to work with so many talented undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctorates, and to see so many of them achieve success in their own domains.
What does good research culture look like/mean to you?
An ideal academic laboratory encompasses as much breadth as possible (e.g. along the chemistry–biology interface) without significant gaps. The ensuing environment is highly conducive to transformative discoveries.