Rate My Professor Russell Doolittle

His research centered on molecular evolution through comparative protein sequences, with a focus on fibrinopeptides and fibrinogen in blood clotting. He demonstrated evolutionary relationships among mammal species using fibrinopeptide sequences, constructed phylogenies for cetartiodactyls such as pigs, camels, deer, and bison, as well as primates including macaques, chimpanzees, and humans, and extended fibrinogen studies to lampreys and sea cucumbers. In the 1970s, his laboratory determined the amino acid sequences of human fibrinogen's three polypeptide chains totaling 1,810 residues, proposed its structure as three nodules connected by coiled coils, and described the molecular mechanism of its polymerization into fibrin fibers, later validated by X-ray crystallography. Doolittle created early searchable protein sequence databases like NEWAT, precursors to modern bioinformatics resources that aided the Human Genome Project, and linked a tyrosine kinase gene to cancer research. His honors include election to the National Academy of Sciences in 1984, Guggenheim Fellowship in 1984, Paul Ehrlich Prize in 1989, and the John J. Carty Award for the Advancement of Science in 2006. He presented 18 named lectures and passed away on October 11, 2019.