Tulane researcher receives National Science Foundation CAREER Award to unlock the physics behind how proteins work

Shuaihua Gao, an assistant professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Tulane University, has received a National Science Foundation CAREER Award to fund a five-year research project that could change how scientists design enzymes for a wide range of practical applications, from manufacturing pharmaceuticals and biomedicine to enabling new therapeutics and diagnostics.

The award - one of the NSF's most prestigious recognitions for early-career faculty - will allow Gao to study an intriguing question: How does heat move through a protein?

Inside a cell, a protein is subject to heat, which drives chemical reactions within the protein. But proteins are complex structures, and their behavior during this phase remains unclear. Gao's project aims to map the pathways through which heat travels inside a protein and use those pathways as a guide for designing better enzymes.

"This way, those pathways can guide us to design proteins in a faster, more rational manner," Gao said.

Today, most enzyme design still relies on trial and error. Gao wants to replace that with a predictive, physics-based framework built on real structural and energy data.

The potential reach of Gao's research is wide. Enzymes, most of which are proteins, offer a cleaner alternative to the chemicals and heavy metals often used in industrial catalysis. If scientists can design enzymes with greater precision, the possible applications could span multiple sectors.

"Imagine you can use proteins to make chemicals for industry, produce pharmaceuticals for health, and degrade harmful chemicals in the environment, such as forever chemicals," Gao said.

Gao's lab is already extending the biophysical tools developed through this project to other problems, including cancer biology and a neurodevelopmental disorder tied to genetic mutations that impact a protein called DDX3X, which can affect children's intellectual development. Currently there is no known treatment. Gao's lab has developed preliminary data on DDX3X and is preparing to submit a grant proposal to the National Institutes of Health to pursue that work further.

The NSF CAREER Award requires a significant educational component, and Gao has structured hers around connecting students at every level to the real science happening in her lab.

Beyond her courses, Gao's lab collaborates with Tulane's K-12 STEM education program to host workshops each year, introducing young students to protein science and encouraging them to pursue STEM fields in college. The program also includes outreach to local community colleges, with plans to bring students to Tulane's campus for summer research experiences, giving them a pathway from a two-year program into a four-year STEM degree.

More than the funding itself, Gao said, the award validates the direction she has pursued since she was a graduate student: bringing fundamental physics and applied protein engineering together under one roof.

"I am a biophysical chemist and a protein engineer," Gao said. "I do fundamental science. I also do translational research and then try to combine them. This award gave us the support to pursue the long-term goals and ideas we have in my lab."