H.J. Backer Lecture by Professor Frances Arnold, Nobel Laureate 2018

Prof. Frances Arnold

Linus Pauling Professor of Chemical Engineering, Bioengineering & Biochemistry, California Institute of Technology, USA

Contact: Prof. Gerard Roelfes (j.g.roelfes@rug.nl)

Innovation by Evolution: Bringing New Chemistry to Life

The most powerful design process ever invented is evolution: it generates incomparable functionality and works at all scales, from molecules to ecosystems. Humans have used evolution for biological design for thousands of years, choosing who mates with whom and who goes on to parent the next generation. We can now use evolution to explore the future of chemistry by engineering the catalysts of life, enzymes. I will describe how we can direct enzyme evolution to solve challenging (chemical) problems once thought to be out of reach of biology, and even of chemistry.