Stepping into the future of nanopore protein sequencing

Biography

Jeff Nivala is a professor in the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering at the University of Washington in Seattle and co-director of the Molecular Information Systems Lab. His research focuses on developing molecular read/write technologies and proteomics. Jeff is the recipient of the National Science Foundation CAREER Award (2023) and the Falling Walls Foundation Breakthrough Prize in Art & Science (2022), and was recognized in Forbes Magazine's ‘30 Under 30’ in Science (2017).

Abstract

A significant portion of the biomolecular world remains ‘dark’, limiting our ability to fully understand and engineer living systems. Among the most complex and challenging components is the proteome — the vast collection of proteins that serve as the molecular machines and information-processing elements of the cell.

In this talk, I will share my perspective on the development of nanopore-based protein sequencing, tracing its evolution over the past decade from early concepts to recent progress. I will discuss my group's efforts to adapt the Oxford Nanopore Technologies platform for 'long-read' single-molecule protein sequencing, along with the challenges and opportunities that come with this approach.