Rate My Professor Helen Hailes

Her research group develops sustainable strategies for molecular assembly using biocatalysts, focusing on single-step reactions, multi-step cascades, and processes in water. Projects include biocatalyst discovery through functional metagenomics and the use of enzymes such as transaminases, transketolases, ene reductases, decarboxylases, tyrosinases, imine reductases, alcohol dehydrogenases, methyltransferases, and norcoclaurine synthases. Additional efforts involve transforming biomass waste into higher-value compounds and employing enzymes for the degradation of plastics and other waste materials to enable molecular recycling. The group also applies organic chemistry to biological problems, including the synthesis of lipid conjugates for nanoparticle delivery and imaging agents, investigations into the photoactive behaviour of GFP, and the development of chemotherapeutics as anti-tuberculosis, anti-viral, and anti-bacterial agents. These activities have resulted in prizes from the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Institution of Chemical Engineers. Hailes has published over 270 papers, garnering more than 7,000 citations. Key publications include 'Enzymatic synthesis of benzylisoquinoline alkaloids using norcoclaurine synthase' (Nature Communications, 2022), 'Mechanoenzymatic reactions for the hydrolysis of PET' (Nature Communications, 2023), and 'The use of tyrosinases in a chemoenzymatic cascade as a peptide ligation strategy' (RSC Chemical Biology, 2023).