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Dr Rui-Gang Xu

Dr Rui-Gang Xu

  • Position: Research Fellow
  • Areas of expertise: Protein construct design and cloning; Protein production; Surface Plasmon Resonance; Microscale thermophoresis; Solid-state binding assays; Protein crystallography; protein/enzyme functional assays.
  • Email: R.Xu1@leeds.ac.uk
  • Website: | LinkedIn | Googlescholar | Researchgate | ORCID

Profile

I obtained my BSc in Pharmaceutical Sciences from Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in 2010. After graduating in 2013, I pursued postgraduate study in Medicinal Chemistry at Zhengzhou University where I worked on the design and synthesis of novel phosphonate nucleosides as antiviral inhibitors. I obtained my Ph.D. in Structural Biology at the University of York in 2017. My PhD project focussed on the structural and biochemical characterisation of several large terminase proteins from thermophilic dsDNA virus, a central protein involved in viral DNA packaging. After graduation, I joined Professor Robert Ariëns’ research team at the University of Leeds. My postdoctoral research aimed to investigate the molecular mechanisms of platelet Glycoprotein VI (GPVI)-fibrin(ogen) interactions in thrombosis. In 2020, I started working on the development of Affimers as tools to further investigate the mechanisms of GPVI-fibrin(ogen) interaction in thrombosis. I wrote and applied the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) UK grant “Conformational proteins to study molecular mechanisms underpinning GPVI-fibrin(ogen) interaction in blood clot propagation” with Prof. Ariëns. I was then awarded the grant as a Researcher Co-Investigator.

Research interests

My research interest focuses on using Affimers as tools to probe the mechanisms of haemostasis and thrombosis in disease. Specifically, I am interested in:

1. Identifying Affimers that target key proteins involved in the regulation of haemostasis and thrombosis.

2. Investigating how Affimers can modulate the function of these key proteins under pathophysiological conditions.

3. Understanding the linkage between the structures of these key proteins and their functional roles in hemostatic processes and thrombotic events using Affimers.

Understanding these aspects will address key questions on the mechanism of haemostasis thrombosis in disease and pave the way for the future design and development of next-generation therapeutics to treat deadly blood clots.

Qualifications

  • BSc in Pharmaceutical Sciences
  • MMed in Medicinal Chemistry
  • PhD in Structural Biology

Student education

My teaching role involves delivering lectures and tutorials on various topics in biological sciences, including biological molecules, DNA replication, transcription, and translation. Additionally, I mentor and supervise early-career postdoctoral researchers and student visitors in the lab.

Research groups and institutes

  • Leeds Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine