Associate Professor Ann Kwan serves in the School of Life and Environmental Sciences at the University of Sydney's Faculty of Science. She obtained her PhD in biochemistry from the University of Sydney in 2005. Her research adopts a cross-disciplinary methodology to tackle pressing biological issues, with a primary focus on combating antimicrobial resistance. The Kwan Lab explores the engineering of biocompatible and antimicrobial coatings for medical implants utilizing functional amyloids, the development of drugs and tool molecules to counter resistance, and innovative strategies for the early detection and identification of infectious diseases. Employing techniques such as molecular biology, protein chemistry, biophysics, structural biology including NMR spectroscopy, computational biology, molecular docking, and omics, her work elucidates protein structures and interactions.

Ann Kwan's scholarly contributions center on the structural and biophysical analysis of protein interactions, particularly functional amyloids and hydrophobins from fungi, alongside RNA and DNA binding proteins, viral proteins such as those from SARS-CoV-2, and pathogen mechanisms like those in Porphyromonas gingivalis. Key publications include 'Molecular Characteristics and Biological Functions of Surface-Active and Amyloid Proteins from Fungi' (Annual Review of Biochemistry, 2017), 'Solid-State NMR Spectroscopy of Functional Amyloid from a Fungal Hydrophobin' (Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2012), 'Fungal Hydrophobin Proteins Produce Self-Assembling Amyloid Materials' (2014), 'Surface-Induced Hydrophobin Assemblies with Versatile Properties and Distinct Underlying Structures' (Biomacromolecules, 2023), 'A Biochemical and Biophysical Analysis of the Interaction of nsp9 with nsp12 from SARS-CoV-2' (2024), and 'Peptide nucleic acids can form hairpins and bind RNA-binding proteins' (2024). Boasting 121 publications and approximately 3,972 citations, her research exerts considerable influence in structural biology, biophysics, and biomedical applications. She has earned four younger investigator awards for her contributions and was selected for the inaugural Sydney Knowledge Hub Inventor Mentorship Program. Her laboratory has fostered student achievements, including scholarships from the Faculty of Science, SydneyNano, and ANSTO.

Professional Email: ann.kwan@sydney.edu.au