Rate My Professor Peter-Leon Hagedoorn

Peter-Leon Hagedoorn serves as a tenured Associate Professor of Biocatalysis in the Department of Biotechnology at Delft University of Technology. Renowned for his expertise in the mechanistic investigation of metalloenzymes, including ferritin and chlorite dismutase, he pioneered the MIRAGE approach for metalloproteomics. Hagedoorn has advanced the field through innovative techniques such as enzyme calorimetry with chip-based devices and unique microsecond-scale rapid mixing methods using the Nanospec continuous flow UV-vis spectrophotometer and the MHQ rapid freeze hyperquench device—tools approximately 100 times faster than commercial alternatives. These innovations facilitated key discoveries, including novel transient intermediates in the heme enzyme chlorite dismutase, as detailed in ACS Catalysis, and Cu2+ binding dynamics to ATCUN/NTS motif peptides, published in Angewandte Chemie.

His recent endeavors include enzyme immobilization and flow biocatalysis in collaboration with Prof. Hanefeld, focusing on Mn2+-dependent aldolases, hydroxynitrile lyases, thermophilic glycosyl transferases, and hydratases incorporating FeS clusters. Author of over 110 peer-reviewed publications centered on metalloenzyme reaction mechanisms and metalloproteomics, standout works encompass "Unity in the biochemistry of the iron-storage proteins ferritin and bacterioferritin" (Chemical Reviews, 2015), "The catalytic center of ferritin regulates iron storage via Fe(II)-Fe(III) displacement" (Nature Chemical Biology, 2012), and "Iron–sulfur clusters as inhibitors and catalysts of viral replication" (Nature Chemistry, 2022). Hagedoorn contributes editorially to Analytical Biochemistry, previously served on the board of the Netherlands Biotechnology Society (2016-2019), currently acts as secretary of the European Federation of Biotechnology's Biocatalysis division, sits on the scientific committee for the 2024 European Conference on Biotechnology, and leads a workgroup in the COST action FeSImmChemNet. Following a postdoctoral position, he joined TU Delft as assistant professor in 2003.