Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron DESY
Notkestraße 85
22607 Hamburg


Universität Hamburg (UHH)
Luruper Chaussee 149
22761 Hamburg

Enzymes are biology’s machines for doing chemistry. In addition to being central to life as we know it, they often perform desirable reactions many orders of magnitude faster than man-made catalysts with stereoselectivity and specificity. Yet a full physical description of how this is possible is lacking. As a result, we do not fully understand life and our ability to create new enzymes is limited.
I propose to address this knowledge gap by imaging enzymes while they perform catalysis. Since chemistry involves the rearrangement of bonds, imaging of such processes requires atomic spatial resolution and femtosecond temporal resolution, only recently possible thanks to X-ray free electron lasers like the European XFEL. Such experiments require initiation of the enzyme reaction with femtosecond temporal resolution, currently only possible using ultrafast lasers. Therefore, we will first study one of the few naturally light-triggered enzymes, DNA photolyase, which conducts a DNA repair reaction. Simultaneously, we will pursue the development of a light-activated enzyme cofactor, a photoNAD(P)H. This will enable us to turn the drug target DHFR into a light-activated system, allowing us to image it, resolving open questions about how it functions while demonstrating the new photoNAD(P)H technology.

Leader of the Helmholtz Young Investigators Group:

Dr. Thomas J. Lane
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron DESY
Notkestr. 85
22607 Hamburg

Phone: +49 40 8998-6273
Email: thomas.lane@desy.de

Partner university:

Fakultät für Mathematik, Informatik
und Naturwissenschaften
The Hamburg Centre for Ultrafast Imaging (CUI)
Prof. Dr. Arwen Pearson
Luruper Chaussee 149
22761 Hamburg