David Stuart (structural biologist)

Stuart was born in 1953 in Lancashire. He was educated initially in Helmshore, Lancashire, and then in North Devon, at Barnstaple Grammar School. He studied Biophysics at King's College London, where he graduated with a BSc degree in 1974. He subsequently attended the University of Bristol and completed a PhD degree in the Biochemistry Department in 1979,{{cite thesis |degree=PhD |first=David Ian|last=Stuart |title=X-ray studies on pyruvate kinase |publisher=University of Bristol |date=1979 |url=http://pmt-eu.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/44BU_VU1:default_scope:44BU_LMS_DS000347441 |website=exlibrisgroup.com }} working on the structure of the enzyme pyruvate kinase in the laboratory of Hilary Muirhead.{{Who's Who | title=Stuart, Prof. David Ian | id = U36581 | year = 2017 | edition = online Oxford University Press|location=Oxford|author=Anon|doi=10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U36581}}

Stuart moved to Oxford in 1979 and worked with Louise Johnson on the structure of the enzyme glycogen phosphorylase before moving in 1981 to work at the Institute of Biophysics in Beijing, China, with Liang Dong-Cai on insulin. Returning to Oxford in 1983 to work with Johnson he then in 1985 set up his own research group in the Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics, focused mainly on virus–receptor interactions and virus assembly. In 1999 Stuart led the establishment of the Division of Structural Biology, in the Nuffield Department of Medicine.

Stuart has solved the atomic structures of complex biological molecules and viruses, including foot-and-mouth disease virus, bluetongue virus and the membrane-containing phages PRD1 (the first structure of an enveloped virus) and PM2.{{Scopus id}}{{EuropePMC|ORCID=0000-0002-3426-4210}} His structure of foot-and-mouth virus has assisted in the development of improved vaccines via structural vaccinology. He has also investigated the structure of the HIV reverse transcriptase protein, facilitating targeted drug design. Stuart also develops methods in structural biology and researches protein structure and evolution.

Since 2008 Stuart has, as life science director, helped the development of the Diamond Light Source, the UK's synchrotron light source. His former doctoral students include Susan Lea.

Stuart has received a number of awards and honours for his work on viral structure, including:

• Federation of European Biochemical Societies (FEBS) Anniversary Prize (1990){{citation needed|date=July 2017}}
• Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS, 1996){{cite web|url=https://royalsociety.org/people/david-stuart-12365/ |title=David Stuart |publisher=Royal Society |author=Anon |year=1994 |website=royalsociety.org |access-date=14 November 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161114171837/https://royalsociety.org/people/david-stuart-12365/ |archive-date=14 November 2016 }}
• Descartes Prize (2002){{citation needed|date=July 2017}}
• Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences (FMedSci, 2006)[https://acmedsci.ac.uk/fellows/fellows-directory/ordinary-fellows/fellow/Professor-David-Stuart-0006308 Fellows directory: Professor David Stuart] - website of the Academy of Medical Sciences
• Gregori Aminoff Prize with Stephen C. Harrison by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (2006)
• European Crystallographic Association Max Perutz Prize (2007){{cite web|url=http://ecanews.org/mwp/blog/third-eca-max-perutz-prize-to-prof-david-stuart |website=ecanews.org |title=Max Perutz prize awarded to David Stuart |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161112142255/http://ecanews.org/mwp/blog/third-eca-max-perutz-prize-to-prof-david-stuart/ |archive-date=2016-11-12 }}
• Honorary fil.Dr.h.c. degree, University of Helsinki, Finland (2010){{cite web|url=http://www.helsinki.fi/filtdkpromootio2010/Honorary%20Doctors.pdf |website=helsinki.fi |title=University of Helsinki: Honorary doctors of the Faculty of Philosophy |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160804035957/http://www.helsinki.fi/filtdkpromootio2010/Honorary%20Doctors.pdf |archive-date=2016-08-04 }}
• Honorary DSc degree, University of Leeds (2011){{cite web|url=https://www.leeds.ac.uk/arts/news/article/2239/award-winning_musician_among_those_honoured_by_the_university |website=leeds.ac.uk |title=Award-winning musician among those honoured by the University |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220082821/https://www.leeds.ac.uk/arts/news/article/2239/award-winning_musician_among_those_honoured_by_the_university |archive-date=2016-12-20 }}
• Honorary DSc degree, University of Bristol (2015){{cite web|url=http://www.bristol.ac.uk/graduation/honorary-degrees/2015.html/stuart.html |website=bristol.ac.uk |title=Professor David Stuart, FRS: Doctor of Science |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161111191959/http://www.bristol.ac.uk/graduation/honorary-degrees/2015.html/stuart.html |archive-date=2016-11-11 }}
• Premio Città di Firenze for Molecular Sciences – Award from CERM (2016){{citation needed|date=July 2017}}
• Knighted in the 2021 New Year Honours for services to medical research and the scientific community{{London Gazette|issue=63218|supp=y|page=N2|date=31 December 2020}}

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Category:1953 births

Category:British biologists

Category:X-ray crystallography

Category:Fellows of the Royal Society

Category:Fellows of the Academy of Medical Sciences (United Kingdom)

Category:Alumni of King's College London

Category:Alumni of the University of Bristol

Category:Living people

Category:Knights Bachelor

Category:Alumni of the University of Oxford