Rate My Professor Brent Nannenga

Brent Nannenga is an Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering in the School for Engineering of Matter, Transport and Energy within the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University. He is also a faculty member at the Biodesign Institute’s Center for Applied Structural Discovery. Nannenga received his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Washington in 2011, advised by François Baneyx. He then pursued postdoctoral research at the Janelia Research Campus of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Tamir Gonen’s laboratory, where he pioneered advancements in cryo-electron microscopy, notably developing microcrystal electron diffraction (MicroED). He joined Arizona State University in 2015, progressing from Assistant Professor to his current associate professor role.

Nannenga’s research focuses on method development and new applications of structural biology and protein engineering, utilizing MicroED and cryo-EM for high-resolution structure determination of biomolecules and materials. His investigations encompass protein-inorganic interfaces, ferritin iron uptake and oxidation mechanisms, metal-organic frameworks, covalent organic frameworks, photosynthetic systems in bacteria, and amyloid beta fragments. He has authored or co-authored numerous influential publications, including "Structure of the toxic core of α-synuclein from invisible crystals" (Nature, 2015), "Three-dimensional electron crystallography of protein microcrystals" (eLife, 2013), "High-resolution structure determination by continuous-rotation data collection in MicroED" (Nature Methods, 2014), "High thermodynamic stability of parametrically designed helical bundles" (Science, 2014), "The cryo-EM method microcrystal electron diffraction (MicroED)" (Nature Methods, 2019), and "Structure of catalase determined by MicroED" (eLife, 2014). These works have collectively amassed thousands of citations, underscoring his impact in structural biology, nanotechnology, and biotechnology. Nannenga’s innovations in MicroED have facilitated structural insights across diverse fields, from pharmaceuticals to photovoltaics. His contributions have earned him the NSF CAREER Award, Air Force Office of Scientific Research Young Investigator Award, 2020 Burton Medal from the Microscopy Society of America, and 2022 Margaret C. Etter Early Career Award from the American Crystallographic Association.