Iain Mattaj
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Iain Mattaj FRS FRSE |
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| Born |
5 October 1952 St Andrews, Scotland |
| Fields | Biochemistry |
| Institutions | European Molecular Biology Laboratory |
| Alma mater | |
| Thesis | Studies on cloned GDH genes (1980) |
| Doctoral advisor | John Wooton |
| Influences | |
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Website www |
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Iain William Mattaj (born 5 October 1952 in St Andrews, Scotland)FRSFRSE is a British scientist and Honorary Professor at Heidelberg University in Germany. As of 2016[update] he the Director General of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), a position he has held since 2005.
Mattaj was educated at the University of Edinburgh (BSc) and the University of Leeds where he was awarded a PhD in 1990 for research on cloned Glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) genes supervised by John Wooton.
Mattaj has made a number of important contributions to our knowledge concerning how RNA and proteins are transported between the cell nucleus and cytoplasm. These findings stemmed from his early work on the import and export of ribonucleoproteins particles — RNA–protein complexes — at the cell nucleus.
Iain subsequently uncovered the role of enzymes known as GTPases in the regulation of mitosis — the division of the cell nucleus into two daughter nuclei. Under the influence of Ran, a GTPase signalling protein, the cell cytoskeleton remodels to form the mitotic spindle — a crucial structure in mitosis. By dissecting Ran’s role in facilitating mitosis, Iain is enabling researchers to create improved cell-regeneration therapies.
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